Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

THE GRAPH DEPICTS INFORMATION OF JOBS IN FOUR SECTORS OF THE ECONOMY IN THE US BETWEEN 1960 AND 2020.

OVERALL, THE MOST EYE-CATCHING FEATURE IS THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN MANUFACTURING JOB WHICH HIT THE HIGHEST IN 1980 WITH A REMARKABLE 20 MILLION JOBS.

IN 1960, THE RETAILING JOB STARTED DECENTLY WITH BELOW 5 MILLION JOBS BEFORE IMPROVING GRADUALLY AS IT REACHED TO 15 MILLION JOBS BY 2020. MANUFACTURING SECTOR INCREASED HEAVILY IN 1980 WITH 20 MILLION JOBS BEFORE DECREASING TO BELOW 15 MILLION JOBS IN 2020.

A SIMILAR TREND AS RETAILING SECTOR CAN BE SEEN IN THE HEALTHCARE SECTOR AS IT FOLLOWS THE SAME PATTERN AFTER STARTING WITH BELOW 5 MILLION JOBS IN 1960, AND BY 2020 IT CATCHES UP TO THE SAME NUMBER OF JOBS AS RETAILING WHICH IS SLIGHTLY ABOVE 15 MILLION.

AGRICULTURE SECTOR CONSISTS THE LOWEST PROPORTION OF JOBS. DESPITE HAVING A DECENT 5 MILLION NUMBER OF JOBS, IT KEPT DECLINING OVER THE YEARS WITH NO SUCH IMPROVEMENT ANYWHERE TO BE FOUND.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify several important features, including manufacturing’s peak of 20 million in 1980, its subsequent decline, and agriculture’s position as the smallest sector. The overview is relevant, but it focuses heavily on manufacturing rather than summarising the main overall pattern across all four sectors. Some details are inaccurate: retail rises to about 16 million in 2020, not 15 million, and it began at around 6 million rather than below 5 million. Agriculture started at about 6 million, not 5 million, and healthcare and retail only draw level in 2020. To strengthen the report, give a clearer overview of the contrasting trajectories and check the starting and ending figures against the graph.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs describing the sectors. This makes the information generally easy to follow, and comparisons such as the similar upward trends in retail and healthcare help connect related data. However, the progression is somewhat mechanical, with each paragraph largely listing a sector’s changes rather than grouping the main trends more purposefully. Phrases such as “A similar trend” provide a link, but the comparison could be clearer by explaining how healthcare’s rise differs in timing or scale from retail’s. Organise the details around contrasting patterns—rising sectors, declining sectors, and the manufacturing peak—to create a more coherent account.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of vocabulary for describing trends, including “increased,” “decreasing,” “declining,” and “catches up,” and the meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts at more expressive language, such as “eye-catching” and “remarkable,” although these are less suitable for a neutral data report. Some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or imprecise: “jobs started decently,” “increased heavily,” and “consists the lowest proportion” do not sound natural in this context. Prefer precise, conventional reporting language and use it consistently. For example, describe a sector as having the fewest jobs, and say that employment rose or fell to a stated figure. This would improve precision without requiring more elaborate vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “before” and “as,” and the main trends remain understandable. Some grammatical errors are present, particularly in sentence construction and verb patterns. For example, “which hit the highest” is an awkward construction for describing a peak, while “it reached to 15 million” uses an unnecessary preposition. In “Agriculture sector consists the lowest proportion,” the verb pattern is incomplete, and “a 5 million number of jobs” has an incorrect article and noun structure. Review verb patterns, articles, and prepositions, and check that each sentence has a clear grammatical subject and predicate. Greater accuracy in these areas would make the report more fluent.

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