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 line graph shows information about the number of vacancies in the different sectors of the economy ( manufacturing, Retail, Agriculture and healthcare) in US, over the 60-years period between 1960 and 2020. Jobs measured in terms of millions.

Overall, what stands out from the graph is that there were an upward trend in the Retail and Healthcare sectors, whereas manufacturing and Agriculture sector having a downward trend.

Looking at the details, as regards healthcare jobs started at approximately 2 millions in 1960. This figure gradually increased over the period and reached at above 15 millions jobs in 2020. If we look at Retail sector, the trend was similar. Retail sector jobs also rise from 5 millions of jobs to peak at over 15 millions over the period.

By contrast, manufacturing sector had a highest numbers of jobs accounted with 15 millions in 1960, then this recireded figure went up and reached 20 millions of jobs in 1980. After that, the jobs of retail sector faced a plummted and reached below 15 millions of jobs overe the period. Whereas, the started figure of Agriculture sector was above 5 millions and its gradually decreased over the period and reached at around 2 millions of jobs.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The student covers all four economic sectors and provides a clear overview of the main trends (upward trends for retail and healthcare; downward trends for manufacturing and agriculture). The figures cited are generally accurate and grounded in the visual data, such as noting manufacturing starting at 15 million in 1960 and peaking at 20 million in 1980. However, there are some minor mechanical errors in data reporting and minor inaccuracies, such as referring to 'vacancies' rather than 'jobs' or 'number of jobs', and a slight confusion in paragraph four where 'manufacturing sector' is mixed up with 'retail sector jobs'. Despite these minor flaws, the task is successfully addressed with an adequate selection of key features and comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response is logically organized into four paragraphs with a clear introduction, an overall trend summary, and two body paragraphs detailing the specific sectors. Cohesive devices are used to link ideas, such as 'Overall, what stands out', 'Looking at the details', and 'By contrast'. However, referencing is occasionally faulty, leading to confusion, such as writing 'the jobs of retail sector faced a plummeted' when discussing the manufacturing sector. Paragraphing is present and appropriate, but the mechanical transitions and minor cohesion slips place this response firmly in the Band 6 range.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting some less common lexical items such as 'gradually increased', 'plummeted', and 'sector'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as using 'vacancies' instead of 'jobs', 'an upward trend' followed by 'were' (agreement error), 'rise' instead of 'rose', 'recireded' (misspelling of 'recorded' or misuse of vocabulary), and 'plummeted' used as a noun ('a plummeted'). Spelling and morphological errors ('overed', 'started figure') occasionally distract, though communication is not severely impeded.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'while manufacturing and Agriculture sector having a downward trend' and 'If we look at Retail sector, the trend was similar.' However, control of grammar is inconsistent. There are frequent grammatical errors, including subject-verb agreement issues ('there were an upward trend', 'sector having'), incorrect verb tenses or forms ('jobs started at approximately 2 millions', 'rise from 5 millions'), and prepositional or article omissions. Punctuation and spacing errors also appear throughout. These errors require some effort from the reader to untangle, limiting the score to a Band 5.5.

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