Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-02

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 6.5)

The line graph illustrates the various jobs in four different economic branches in the US from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, manufacturing was initially rising but led to a decline in the later years. Both retail and healthcare gradually increased over the years. However, agriculture sector declined reaching the lowest among the rest.

Manufacturing began with 15 million jobs which were the highest number in 1960 as compared to other areas and reached its maximum in 1980 with 20 million jobs reported. Nevertheless, it gradually declined over the years to becoming the third by 2020.

Agriculture and retail sector, both reported similar start of above 5 million but agricultural economy presented a decline from 1960 till 1980 and later plataued. On the contrary, retail significantly increased reaching above 15 million by 2020.

Jobs in healthcare were the weakest among all but showed the highest development starting from below 5 million to above 15 million by the year 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response successfully covers all parts of the task by reporting on all four economic sectors across the given timeframe. A clear overall trend is provided in the second paragraph, capturing the main developments successfully. Key features are accurately selected and compared, such as manufacturing peaking in 1980 at 20 million before declining, and healthcare experiencing significant growth to match retail by 2020. However, the response tends to over-generalise slightly or sketch certain details briefly, such as grouping agriculture and retail together initially while omitting some precise data points. These characteristics fully align with a solid response that addresses all parts of the task well, while leaving room for a fully developed extension of ideas to reach the highest bands.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The text presents a clear overall arrangement with information logically sequenced from an introduction to an overview, followed by body paragraphs detailing specific sectors. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different groups of data. Cohesive devices are employed to connect ideas, such as 'Nevertheless' and 'On the contrary', though referencing and cohesion occasionally feel a bit mechanical. For instance, the transition between paragraphs and sentences can occasionally be abrupt, and the use of cohesive markers shows some minor faults. To push into higher bands, the progression between sentences would need to be smoother and more sophisticated, ensuring that cohesive ties are completely natural and unobtrusive throughout the report.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

An adequate range of vocabulary is used for the task, successfully conveying trends and numerical data with phrases like 'gradually increased', 'significantly increased', and 'reaching its maximum'. The student attempts some less common vocabulary items with general success, although there are occasional inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'economic branches' instead of 'economic sectors' or 'economic fields', and 'agricultural economy presented a decline' where 'agricultural sector experienced a decline' would be more natural. Spelling and word choice errors are present but do not impede communication. To achieve a higher band, a wider and more precise range of less common lexical items combined with entirely natural collocations would be necessary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The response exhibits a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over basic structures and attempting more intricate constructions such as participial phrases ('reaching the lowest among the rest') and comparative clauses ('the highest number in 1960 as compared to other areas'). There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, such as missing articles ('to becoming the third' instead of 'to becoming the third sector' or 'third place', and 'Agriculture and retail sector' requiring a plural verb or restructuring) and awkward prepositions or verb forms ('plataued' with a spelling error). However, these errors are relatively infrequent and rarely impede communication, fully reflecting a dependable performance with a good mix of sentence types alongside minor persistent errors.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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