Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-26

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 5.0)

The line chart illustrates the number of empoyement in four different sectors of the economy in the US from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, Manufacturing was initialy on top and ended with the downward trend while Retail and Healthcare encountered a gradual increase through all over the time frame.

Initially, Manufacturing had 15 jobs and registered a surge to 20 in 1980 and constantly expecienced fall upto 2020 and closes nearly 17 jobs. Beside that, Agriculture had appoximatly 6 job in beginning and faced a decline for two dacades. After that, remain stable for the next two years and a minor drop in next years and ended close to 3 jobs.

Meanwhile, Retail and Healthcare can be grouped togather due to followinf the same trend over the period. Both started from almost 3 and 6 jobs and registered a constant upward trend where both closes approxialtly in the sam

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response makes a clear attempt to summarise the main features and trends of the four economic sectors shown in the line chart. An overview is provided, noting that Manufacturing started on top and declined while Retail and Healthcare increased. However, the student misinterprets several key data points and figures. For example, stating that Manufacturing 'had 15 jobs' rather than 15 million, and misreading the final value for Manufacturing as 'closes nearly 17 jobs' when it actually drops to 13 million by 2020. Furthermore, the summary trails off at the very end ('where both closes approxialtly in the sam'), and the response fails to meet the 150-word minimum, falling short at 148 words. These inaccuracies in data reporting and the incomplete ending keep the score at Band 5.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview paragraph, a body paragraph detailing Manufacturing and Agriculture, and a final paragraph attempting to cover Retail and Healthcare. Cohesive devices are used to signal transitions, such as 'Overall', 'Initially', and 'Meanwhile'. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical, and the logical progression is disrupted by the abrupt cutoff at the end of the text. Paragraphing is attempted appropriately, but the lack of completion in the final sentence detracts from the overall flow. These characteristics align best with a Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting sector-specific and analytical terms such as 'illustrates', 'downward trend', 'gradual increase', and 'surge'. However, there are numerous spelling and word-choice errors that weaken the lexical control. Examples include 'empoyement' instead of employment, 'initialy', 'expecienced', 'upto', 'appoximatly', 'dacades', 'remain' instead of remaining, 'togather', 'followinf', and 'approxialtly'. Additionally, referring to data points as 'jobs' rather than 'million jobs' or 'millions of jobs' affects precision. Despite these noticeable errors, the vocabulary is minimally adequate to convey the general message, fitting a Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and time markers. There are, however, frequent grammatical and mechanical errors throughout the text. Instances such as 'was initialy on top and ended with the downward trend' (missing article), 'constantly expecienced fall upto 2020 and closes nearly 17 jobs', and 'Agriculture had appoximatly 6 job in beginning and faced a decline for two dacades. After that, remain stable...' demonstrate poor control over verb tenses, prepositions, and singular/plural agreement. Because these frequent errors cause occasional difficulty for the reader and disrupt sentence structure, the grammar is appropriately rated at Band 5.0.

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