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 chart illustrates the information regarding the number of jobs in the four economic sectors in USA from 1980 to 2020.

Overall, manufacturing sector had highest numbers of jobs but after reaching to a peak, it declined gradually. Agriculture sector's employment rate declined steadily whereas, the jobs in Heathcare and retail sector rose significantly.

In 1980, Manufacturing sector was the most popular area and had the highest number of jobs as it contained 15 millions jobs, this rate reached at peak in 1980 and had 20 millions jobs but later declined gradually to 16 millions in 2000 and around 12 millions in 2020. Agriculture sector had the next Sector started with 6 millions jobs in 1960, while declining to around 2 millions in 1980. These numbers fell steadily. These numbers planteaud till 2020 before declining further to 1 millions in 2020.

The Retail and Healthcare started with the same numbers of jobs around 6 million in 1960. However, this rate.

The Retail and Healthcare sector started with 6millions and 2millions of jobs in 1960, respectively. This rate gradually increased and reached to 10 millions and 5 millions in 1980, 25 millions and 11millions in 2000 and nded up to 16 millions of jobs in 2020, respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main broad patterns: manufacturing peaks and then declines, agriculture falls, and retail and healthcare rise. You also include several figures, such as manufacturing reaching 20 million in 1980 and healthcare reaching 11 million in 2000. However, the account is only partly accurate and some key comparisons are unclear. The chart begins in 1960, but the introduction says 1980; manufacturing is described as having 15 million jobs in 1980, although that figure belongs to 1960. Agriculture falls to about 3 million by 1980 and remains there until 2000, rather than reaching 2 million in 1980. The final paragraph is also incomplete and gives retail as 25 million in 2000, not 15 million. Check each figure and provide a clear overview of the sectors’ relative positions by 2020.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is an attempt to organise the response into an introduction, overview and detail paragraphs, and grouping the rising sectors together could work well. However, progression is difficult to follow because information is repeated and some sentences are unfinished. For example, the retail and healthcare comparison appears twice, and “However, this rate.” interrupts the paragraph without completing an idea. The agriculture discussion also shifts between periods without a clear sequence. Linking words such as “whereas” and “however” are used, but they do not consistently clarify the relationships between figures. Use one paragraph for the overview, then organise the details chronologically or by similar trends, and remove repeated material so each comparison appears once.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing trends, including “peak,” “declined,” “steadily” and “increased,” which helps communicate the general patterns. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or awkward, sometimes making the data harder to interpret. For example, “most popular area” is not suitable for describing employment figures; “sector with the most jobs” is clearer. “Employment rate” does not accurately mean the number of jobs, and “planteaud” appears to be a misspelling of “plateaued.” There are also inconsistent forms such as “Heathcare” and “nded.” Aim for precise chart language, use “jobs” or “employment” consistently, and proofread spelling and repeated phrases.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast with “whereas” and a time clause in “after reaching to a peak.” However, errors occur frequently enough to make some relationships difficult to follow. Examples include “manufacturing sector had highest numbers,” which needs an article and clearer number agreement, and “this rate reached at peak,” where the verb pattern is faulty. The sentence beginning “Agriculture sector had the next Sector…” is incomplete or incorrectly joined, while “The Retail and Healthcare started…” lacks a clear grammatical subject. Tense and sentence boundaries also become unclear in the final paragraph. Practise forming complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, and check articles, plurals and verb patterns when describing changes over time.

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