Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-15

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 5.5)

The line graph illustrates the number of jobs in four different sectors of the economy in the United States from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, healthcare and retail jobs increased significantly throughout the period, while manufacturing and agriculture sectors declined steadily over the period from 1960 to 2020, despite an few dip experienced in Manufacturing sector.

In 1960, the numbers of job around 15m and then it reaching 20m in 1980.

After that,the jobs declined steadily over the four decades and roughly 13m in 2020.In the retail sector, employment were around 6m in 1960, it then rose dramatically and reaching 15m in 2000, after the number of employments in between 2000 and 2020 were approximately 16m.

Agriculture sector around 6m in 1960,it dip roughly 3m in 1980 and remain stable in the next two decades.A few dip is occur in 2020 that was around 2m.The healthcare sector jobs was around 2m in 1960 and it then rose dramatically over the six decades and roughly at 16

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the chart’s subject and give a relevant overview, noting that healthcare and retail rise while agriculture falls; you also report several key figures accurately, including manufacturing’s peak of about 20 million in 1980 and agriculture’s decline to around 2 million. This addresses the main task, but some features are less fully or clearly reported. The overview incorrectly says manufacturing declined steadily: it first rose, then fell. The manufacturing paragraph also begins without naming the sector, and the healthcare account ends at “roughly at 16” without clearly stating the year or completing the comparison. Make the overview more precise and finish each trend with its endpoint to present the information more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and descriptions of the sectors. The sequence from manufacturing to retail, agriculture and healthcare is generally understandable, and phrases such as “After that” and “In the retail sector” help signal movement between details. However, the progression is weakened by unclear paragraphing and abrupt transitions. The manufacturing figures appear in a separate fragment-like paragraph without a clear topic sentence, while retail and agriculture details run together. Some linking is also mechanical or confusing, as in “after the number of employments in between 2000 and 2020.” Group related sectors into clear paragraphs and use straightforward comparisons to guide the reader.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing trends, including “increased significantly,” “declined,” “rose dramatically,” and “remain stable,” so the main patterns are usually identifiable. There is some repetition of “jobs,” “number,” and “around,” and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, such as “number of employments” and “a few dip.” These choices make parts of the report less natural, although the intended meaning is generally recoverable. Aim for more precise chart language and vary the nouns and trend verbs appropriately; for example, use “employment” as an uncountable noun and describe a small fall as a “slight decline.” Check word forms as well as collocations when editing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts both simple and more extended sentence forms, and the opening sentence and parts of the overview communicate the main subject clearly. However, errors in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence boundaries occur across the report. Examples include “it then reaching 20m,” “employment were,” and “it dip roughly 3m”; these should use consistent past-tense forms and subject–verb agreement. Several clauses are joined with commas, as in “In 1960, the numbers of job around 15m and then it reaching 20m,” making the structure difficult to follow. The final healthcare sentence is also incomplete. Build accurate past-tense sentences first, then combine them with controlled clauses and check punctuation.

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