Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-01

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 below illustrates amount of occupation available in four different sectors in US country for specific period from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, the trend in manufacturing industry is rising and then fall in jobs. In agriculture and retail, it is continuously increasing over a given period of time. In agriculture sector, it has been falling in jobs continuously.

In 1960 to 1980, manufacturing grows from 15 million to 20 million jobs, and retail industry rises from 5 to 10 million almost same rise as manufacturing. In first 2 decades, healthcare falls dramatically from 5 to 3 million approximately, whereas agriculture surged from 2 million to 5 million.

From 1980 to 2000, manufacturing dropped by 20 million to 17 million jobs, whereas a rapid rise in retail from 10 million to 15 million. Further, agriculture also increases from 5 to 12 million estimated and healthcare sector remains same.

In the last 2 decades, retail and agriculture both rose one from 15 to 16 million and other one from 12 to 16 million, respectively. Moreover, manufacturing again decreased from 17 million to 13 million roughly and healthcare was dropped by only 1 million from 3 to 2 million.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

The response attempts to describe the data, but it suffers from severe factual inaccuracies throughout. For instance, the student states that the trend in manufacturing is rising and then falling, whereas it actually rises between 1960 and 1980 and then steadily declines. Furthermore, the details contain major misreadings, such as claiming that manufacturing dropped from 20 million to 17 million between 1980 and 2000 (which is correct), but then stating in the next paragraph that it dropped 'from 17 million to 13 million roughly' while also confusing data between healthcare and agriculture. Because the information reported is largely inaccurate and contradictory regarding the actual figures in the graph, the task is only partially addressed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic structural organization with an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs dedicated to different time periods. Paragraphing is attempted, though the logical development is hindered by confused data reporting. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'In 1960 to 1980', 'From 1980 to 2000', and 'In the last 2 decades' are used to sequence the text chronologically. However, referencing and transitions between ideas are sometimes mechanical or unclear, such as 'one from 15 to 16 million and other one from 12 to 16 million, respectively', which creates confusion for the reader and prevents a truly clear progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The lexical range is limited and minimally adequate for the task. The student attempts to use some vocabulary related to trends and data reporting, such as 'industry', 'sectors', 'surged', and 'dropped'. However, there are noticeable errors in word choice, collocation, and phrasing throughout the text. Examples include 'amount of occupation available' instead of the number of jobs, 'in US country' instead of in the US, and awkward phrasing like 'retail and agriculture both rose one from 15 to 16 million and other one'. These lexical inaccuracies and repetitive phrasing occasionally cause difficulty for the reader and prevent the response from achieving a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response displays a limited range of grammatical structures, relying mostly on simple sentences with occasional attempts at complex forms that are often faulty. There are frequent errors in grammar, including missing articles (e.g., 'in US country', 'in agriculture sector'), incorrect prepositions (e.g., 'trend in manufacturing industry is rising'), and tense inconsistencies or awkward verb patterns. For example, 'manufacturing grows from 15 million to 20 million jobs' mixes tenses awkwardly with past time markers. These frequent errors in basic and complex structures cause some difficulty for the reader, keeping the control of grammar at this level.

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