Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-17

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 6.5)

The line chart shows the number of jobs in the United States's economy from 1960 to 2020 related to four different sectors. Units are measured in millions.

Overall, manufacturing was dominated initially but eventually it declined whereas healthcare has the least number of jobs in the beginning and it significantly rose in all these years and become the sector with highest number of jobs along with retail. Additionally, retail and agriculture was on same point at start. However, the number of jobs in retail continuously increased and it became one of the top ranked sector while agriculture declined and stood at lowest ranked in terms of number of jobs.

Regarding manufacturing and agriculture, both follow almost same pattern of decreasing number of jobs. In 1960, manufacturing stood in first place with 15 million job which further increased in 1980 upto 20 millions. After that, it started declining and left with approximately 13 millions in 2020. Agriculture was at about 6 million jobs in 1960 which decreased in 1980 and remained same until 2000. Eventually, it fell to roughly 2 million in 2020.

In terms of retail and healthcare, retail was at 6 million jobs while healthcare was about 2 million job in 1960. After that, both followed the same increasing pattern and accounted to same number of job until 2020 just above 15 millions.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

The response selects the main trends and supports them with relevant figures: manufacturing peaks at 20 million in 1980 before falling to about 13 million, while agriculture declines from 6 million to 2 million. The overview also identifies healthcare’s strong rise and retail’s growth, addressing the key features of the graph. However, the claim that healthcare and retail reached the same number “until 2020” is imprecise: they were not equal in 1980 or 2000, and only converge at roughly 16 million in 2020. Similarly, saying manufacturing and agriculture follow “almost same pattern” overgeneralises their different trajectories. More precise comparisons at each stage would strengthen an otherwise well-supported summary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response is organised clearly into an introduction, an overview, and two detail paragraphs. Grouping manufacturing with agriculture, then retail with healthcare, gives the reader a sensible route through the data, and transitions such as “After that” and “Eventually” help show sequence. The progression is generally easy to follow, though some linking is repetitive and the final paragraph’s claim that both sectors increased “until 2020” blurs the comparison rather than clarifying it. The overview also repeats the idea of agriculture’s decline in the detail paragraph without adding much contrast. To improve, use more varied, precise links and structure comparisons around the years when the lines diverge or converge.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

There is adequate vocabulary for describing trends, including “declined,” “increased,” “remained,” and “approximately,” and the writer uses relevant terms such as “sector” and “number of jobs.” Some attempts at more formal or varied phrasing are less natural or precise, however: “manufacturing was dominated initially” does not clearly express that it had the most jobs, and “accounted to same number” is an awkward collocation. “Top ranked sector” is also less idiomatic than a direct comparison of employment levels. These choices do not prevent understanding, but they limit precision and naturalness. Prefer standard chart language such as “had the highest employment,” “rose to,” and “reached the same level.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex forms, including contrast clauses with “whereas” and time clauses such as “which further increased in 1980.” Meaning remains clear, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “retail and agriculture was” needs plural agreement, while “healthcare has the least number” shifts into the present tense when describing past data. There are also errors in number and articles in “15 million job,” “20 millions,” and “2 million job,” and the phrase “it started declining and left with” is not grammatically complete. Use consistent past tense, check singular/plural agreement, and form trend clauses with a clear subject and verb. These corrections would make the varied sentence forms more controlled.

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