Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-09

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 illustrates the number of jobs in sectors ot the economy in the United States between1960 to 2020.

Overall, it is clear that manufacturing jods recorded the higest figure, whilehealth remained the lowest. It is also noticeable that increased whereas agriculture showed relatively little change.

At the beginning of the period, manufacturing jods higest at 15 million in 1960 in the United States, followed by retail jods at 5 million, whereas agriculture jobs in the Us and healthcare at 5 or 3 million. In 1980, manufacturing jobs dramatically at 20 million and retail jobs slightly rose 5 to 10 million, agriculture jobs was decline 3 million, healthcare jobs increase at 5 million.

In 2020, manufacturing jobs slightly decline 20 million to among 13 million, followed by reatail jobs at 15million, agriculture is also decreased at 2million and healthcare jobs jods in the Us highly increase among 15 million in the United States

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the period and the four sectors, and you include several relevant figures, such as manufacturing reaching 20 million in 1980 and agriculture falling to 2 million by 2020. However, the response only partially reports the main features. The overview is incomplete and inaccurate: manufacturing was not the highest throughout, since retail and healthcare both reached about 16 million in 2020, and healthcare was not the lowest overall. The 2000 figures and the important convergence of retail and healthcare by 2020 are omitted. Some figures are also misreported: retail was about 6 million in 1960, not 5, and healthcare was about 2 million, not 3. Select the key trends accurately and give a clearer overview before describing the stages.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic overall structure, moving from an introduction to an overview and then chronological details. Time markers such as “At the beginning of the period,” “In 1980,” and “In 2020” help the reader follow the timeline. However, progression is uneven: the 2000 data are skipped, and the final paragraph combines several trends without clearly comparing them. Some linking is also awkward, particularly “followed by retail jobs” where the comparison is not fully explained. Organise the body into clearer stages or group related trends, and use linking phrases to show contrasts and changes rather than relying mainly on year markers.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant task vocabulary, including “line graph,” “figure,” “rose,” and “decline,” so the topic is generally recognisable. However, the range is limited and several noticeable spelling and word-choice errors reduce clarity: “jods,” “higest,” “reatail,” and “whilehealth” appear in the response. Phrases such as “jobs highly increase among 15 million” and “manufacturing jobs slightly decline 20 million to among 13 million” are not natural ways to describe data. Use precise trend language and standard collocations, for example, “increased to,” “fell from … to,” and “stood at.” Proofreading spelling and spacing would also make the report easier to read.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

There is an attempt to use both simple statements and longer comparisons, but control is inconsistent, and frequent errors sometimes make the intended relationships difficult to understand. Examples include “between1960 to 2020,” “manufacturing jobs dramatically at 20 million,” and “agriculture jobs was decline 3 million.” These need appropriate prepositions and finite verb forms, such as “between 1960 and 2020,” “manufacturing jobs rose to 20 million,” and “agricultural employment declined to 3 million.” Tense and agreement are also unreliable in “healthcare jobs increase” and “agriculture is also decreased.” Practise past-tense reporting verbs and complete sentence patterns, and check punctuation and spacing between words.

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