Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-06

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 graph below produces information about the number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US from 1960 to 2020.

The manufacturing sector has more jobs in the 1960 and had an increase of 5 million in the 1980 compared to the remaining 3 sectors. However it has an signifcant drop from 1980 to 2020 and both the retail and healthcare sectors showed a gradual increase from 1960. Morevover the 2 sectors had same number of jobs in the year 2020 and the agriculture sector had an initial drop from the begining.

Finally the retail and healthcare sectors had more number of jobs by 2020 that is about 16 million whuch is highest among those 4 sectors and the manufacturing sector which has highest number of jobs in the year 1960 had an impact increase and showed a rapid decrease by the year 2020, agriculture has about 3 million jobs which is lowest

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response addresses the task only partially because it falls short of the 150-word minimum requirement, specifically containing 142 words (with 15 words copied directly from the prompt not counted). While the candidate attempts to report the main features and makes some comparisons, the information is not fully developed. For instance, the discussion of the manufacturing sector states it "has more jobs in the 1960 and had an increase of 5 million in the 1980", which captures some trends, but key data points are mixed or lack clear contextual synthesis. Furthermore, the overview is weak, and some descriptions lack precision, such as stating agriculture "had an initial drop from the begining" without fully elaborating on its overall trajectory.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response shows some organisation, but there is no clear overall progression throughout the text. Paragraphing is attempted, but the body of the response is clumped into dense blocks that lack smooth logical transitions. Cohesive devices are basic, repetitive, or inaccurate, such as "Morevover" and "Finally", which fail to guide the reader effectively through the data points. Pronoun referencing and linking between sentences are occasionally mechanical, making the flow disjointed and difficult to follow in places.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited but minimally adequate for the task, with noticeable errors that may cause some difficulty for the reader. The candidate attempts some less common vocabulary, such as "signifcant", "gradual increase", and "rapid decrease", but spelling errors like "signifcant", "begining", "Morevover", and "whuch" detract from the overall quality. Word choice is sometimes awkward, as seen in phrases like "impact increase", which indicates a lack of precision in lexical control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a limited range of structures, relying mostly on simple sentences and basic compound forms. Attempts at complex sentences are often faulty or poorly controlled, such as "the manufacturing sector which has highest number of jobs in the year 1960 had an impact increase and showed a rapid decrease by the year 2020". There are frequent errors in verb tense consistency (e.g., mixing present and past tenses like "has more jobs" and "had an increase"), missing articles (e.g., "highest number"), and prepositions, which can cause difficulty for the reader.

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