Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-13

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 7.0)

The graph illustrates the details regarding the number of work in four sectors of the economy namely manufacturing, retail, agriculture and healthcare in the United States of America between 1960 and 2020.

Overall, the most noticeable feature is that manufacturing had the highest number among the other jobs in four sectors in the early years, however, it decreased dramatically in the latter years. On the other hand, retail and healthcare increased consistently througout the year period, whereas agriculture gradually declined.

Looking first at manufacturing, it can be seen that it had the highest recorded number of jobs in 1960 at 15 million and 20 million in 1980. However, it fell dramatically in 2000 and 2020 around 17 million and 13 million respectively. Similarly, the agriculture decreased from estimated 6 million in 1960 to around 3 million in 2020.

Turning to the remaining figures, retail climbed from 6 million in 1960 to around 16 million in 2020, while healthcare similarly experienced an increase in number from around 2 million in 1960 to 16 million in 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

The response selects the main trends and gives a clear overview: manufacturing leads initially before declining, retail and healthcare rise, and agriculture falls. The figures reported for manufacturing and the endpoints for the other sectors are broadly consistent with the chart. This is a well-focused summary with relevant comparisons, rather than a list of every data point. To make the account more fully developed, include key intermediate figures for retail and healthcare, such as retail reaching 15 million in 2000 and healthcare rising to 11 million, then both ending at about 16 million. Also, agriculture falls to around 3 million by 1980 and remains there in 2000 before reaching 2 million in 2020; the response compresses this pattern into a single decline.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5

The response is organised effectively into an introduction, an overview, and two detail paragraphs. Its progression from the overall trends to manufacturing and agriculture, then to retail and healthcare, is easy to follow. Linking expressions such as “Overall,” “Looking first,” “However,” and “Turning to the remaining figures” help signal the structure, and the comparisons between rising and falling sectors are clear. Cohesion is generally flexible, though some transitions and phrasing are slightly formulaic, and the final paragraph groups two series without showing their different intermediate paths. A more precise sequence of comparisons—for example, contrasting retail’s steady rise with healthcare’s stronger growth after 1980—would make the progression more informative and cohesive.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

The vocabulary is adequate for describing the graph, with useful trend language such as “decreased,” “climbed,” “gradually declined,” and “experienced an increase.” The writer also uses relevant terms including “recorded number” and “respectively.” However, some choices are imprecise or awkward, limiting flexibility and natural collocation: “the number of work” is not the appropriate phrase, and “the highest number among the other jobs” is cumbersome. “Decreased dramatically” also overstates the manufacturing decline, which is more accurately described as a fall after its 1980 peak. There is a spelling error in “througout.” More precise, varied language for trends and comparisons would strengthen the report while preserving its clear meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.0

The response uses a range of sentence forms, including complex clauses with “whereas,” “however,” and “while,” and several sentences are controlled and easy to understand. For example, the overview contrasts the rising sectors with agriculture, and the final sentence compares retail and healthcare. A few grammatical errors remain. In “the number of work in four sectors,” the noun phrase is not correctly formed; “the agriculture decreased” uses an unnecessary article; and “it fell dramatically in 2000 and 2020 around 17 million and 13 million” needs clearer punctuation and a grammatical link before the figures. These issues do not prevent understanding, but careful editing of articles, noun forms, and sentence structure would improve accuracy.

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