Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-25

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below gives information about the number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US between 1960 and 2020.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US, 1960-2020

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The given line chart gives the data for the employment count in millions in the four major economic sectors in Manufacturing, Retail, Agriculture and Healthcare in the United States from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, it is evident from the graph that Manufacturing almost remained as giving the highest number of jobs to the citizens of US. Whereas, the Agriculture being the lowest jobs provider throughout the tenure of six decades.

The manufacturing began as the peak employment opportunity for the US residents with a highest job count of 15 million, with the retail and agriculture having same job count of around 6 million people, ending with healthcare having least jobs of just around 3 million people, in 1960. In the last year, however, retail and healthcare surpassed the manufacturing sector having highest count of around 16 million, with manufacturing sector holding second position gave 13 million jobs in 2020. The remaining agriculture sector just gave around 3 million jobs (lowest in 2020).

The healthcare and retail sectors initially started lowest at 3 million and 6 million jobs in 1960, rose linearly to reach the count of just above 15 millions in 2020, respectively. Whereas, the agriculture at 6 million approximately in 1960, decreased slowly over the period of 6 decades to reach just at 3 million in 2020. Manufacturing howver, started high at 15 million in 1960, rose at highest peak of 10 million in 1980.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The student successfully reports the main features and trends of the four economic sectors over the sixty-year period. An overview is provided, highlighting the general dominance of manufacturing and the persistently low figures for agriculture, alongside the significant growth in retail and healthcare. However, there are some inaccuracies in reading the data from the graph, such as stating that manufacturing peaked at '10 million in 1980' when the graph shows it reached 20 million, and minor confusion regarding the 2020 figures where retail and healthcare both reached around 16 million. Despite these data misreadings, the response clearly addresses all parts of the task and makes relevant comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response is arranged logically with a clear introduction, overview paragraph, and body paragraphs dedicated to specific data comparisons. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'Whereas', and 'In the last year, however' are used to connect ideas, though some transitions feel a bit mechanical or awkward, such as 'Manufacturing howver, started high...'. Paragraphing is handled appropriately to separate the overview from the detailed body points. However, referencing and progression occasionally falter due to slightly clumsy phrasing and minor sentence-level cohesion issues.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student attempts a range of vocabulary suitable for a task 1 report, including terms like 'employment count', 'economic sectors', 'peak employment opportunity', and 'surpassed'. There are, however, noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward collocations, such as 'Manufacturing almost remained as giving the highest number' and 'least jobs of just around 3 million people'. Spelling errors also occur, such as 'howver' instead of 'however'. While the vocabulary is adequate to convey the general meaning, these persistent slips prevent the score from reaching a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and subordinate clauses (e.g., 'The given line chart gives the data...', 'Whereas, the agriculture at 6 million approximately...'). There are several grammatical errors and awkward structures throughout the text, such as missing prepositions or incorrect verb forms ('Manufacturing almost remained as giving', 'the agriculture being the lowest jobs provider', 'rose linearly to reach the count... respectively'). Punctuation and article use are also occasionally faulty. Nevertheless, these errors do not impede overall communication.

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