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 graph below illustrates the number of jobs in four sectors of the economy including (Manufacturing,Retail,Agriculture and Healthcare) in the US from [redacted phone].

The Horizontal line of the graph shows the year , the vertical line shows jobs in millions. Now the healthcare jobs according to graph starts from 2 million in 1960 and rose to 5 million in 1980 and then in 2000 it grew to 12 million and then rose to 16 million in 2020.

The Manufacturing sector jobs in the US were 15 million in 1960 , then in 1980 it increased to 20 million , in 2000 it was 17 million , in 2020 it decreased to 13 million.

The Retail sector jobs in 1960 were 6 million , 10 million in 1980 and increased to 15 million in 2000 and in 2020 it become 16 million.

The Agriculture jobs in 1960 were 6 million then it decreased to 3 million in 1980 and in 2000 it remained same (3 million) while in 2020 it decreased to 2 million

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You report the figures for all four sectors and accurately describe their main movements: manufacturing peaks at 20 million before declining, while agriculture falls overall. However, the opening says the period is “1960-2000,” omitting 2020, and there is no clear overview summarising the most important comparisons. In particular, you do not highlight that retail and healthcare both reach about 16 million by 2020, or that agriculture is the smallest sector at the end. The healthcare figure for 2000 is given as 12 million rather than approximately 11, a small but relevant inaccuracy. To strengthen the response, give a concise overview and ensure the stated period and key figures match the graph.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response is arranged in a generally understandable order: an introduction, a note about the axes, and then information about each sector. This makes the data reasonably easy to follow. However, the writing reads mainly as a sequence of separate descriptions, with little comparison between sectors and no distinct overview paragraph to guide the reader through the main trends. Repeated sequencing phrases such as “then” and “in 2000” make the progression mechanical, while the long healthcare sentence contains several stages joined together. Grouping related trends—for example, the growth in retail and healthcare against the decline in agriculture—and using clearer paragraphing would create a stronger overall progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough basic vocabulary to identify the sectors and describe changes, including “increased,” “decreased,” “rose,” and “remained same.” These choices make the general meaning clear. However, the range is limited and several expressions are repetitive or imprecise, such as “jobs … starts from” and “it become 16 million.” The phrase “Horizontal line” is also less suitable than the standard chart term “horizontal axis.” Aim for more precise reporting language and vary the verbs and nouns used to describe trends. For example, “employment in healthcare stood at” is more natural than “healthcare jobs … starts from,” while “reached” can replace repeated uses of “rose to” or “increased to.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

Most sentences communicate the figures, and you attempt to connect several time points using clauses such as “while in 2020 it decreased to 2 million.” However, the range of sentence structures is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to affect fluency. For example, “healthcare jobs … starts” has a subject–verb agreement problem, and “it become 16 million” uses the wrong verb form. The sentence beginning “Now the healthcare jobs” is also overloaded with repeated clauses, and punctuation spacing is inconsistent throughout. Practise accurate past-tense reporting and agreement, and divide long sequences into shorter, controlled sentences. A wider mix of simple and complex structures would also help the report sound more fluent.

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