Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-29

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 below demonstrats information about the quantity of jobs in manufacturing, retail , agriculure, and Healthcare of the economy in US from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, Healthcare started at the lowest by the end it surged to the top along with, retail. While agriculure by the time hit its lowest portion.

To Begin with, number of jobs in the four sectors. In 1960 healthcare was it the bottom with almost 2 millions by 1980 and rose upto 5 millions and continues the growth steadly to almost 16 millions in 2020. Similarly, Retail also shows and upward trend starting from 6 millions in 1960 it shows a sharp increase in number of jobs till 15 millions by 2020 and then slow down a little but still gain by the end it was same with Heathcare almost 16 millions.

Additionally, if we look at the manufacturing started at the top in 1960 with almost 15 millions and increases to 20 millions by 1980 the showed a decline trend and at the end of 2020 it came down to almost 1 millions. Moreover, if we agriclture also was it 6 millions t in 1960 and that gradually decreased to almost 2.5 millions and at the end it remained the lowest.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the four sectors and give a relevant overview: healthcare rises from the lowest starting point to joint-highest, while agriculture declines to the lowest. Several key trends are also reported, including manufacturing peaking in 1980 and retail and healthcare growing. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear. Retail reaches about 16 million in 2020; it does not reach 15 million by 2020 and then rise further. Manufacturing falls to about 13 million, not “1 millions,” and agriculture is around 3 million in both 1980 and 2000 before falling to 2 million. The overview’s phrase “along with, retail” is also unclear about their shared endpoint. More precise, consistently accurate comparisons would make the summary more complete and reliable.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview and two body paragraphs. Grouping healthcare with retail and then discussing manufacturing with agriculture is a sensible way to organise the data. However, progression within sentences is sometimes difficult to follow, particularly in the retail account: “it shows a sharp increase … till 15 millions by 2020 and then slow down a little” gives the stages in a confusing order. Linking phrases such as “To Begin with,” “Similarly,” and “Additionally” help signal movement, but some are mechanical or attached to incomplete phrasing. The overview also contains an unclear connection between healthcare and retail. Use clearer topic sentences and connect each figure directly to its year and trend.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing graphs, including “surged,” “decline,” “gradually decreased,” and “upward trend,” so the reader can generally understand the main movements. However, the range and control are uneven, and several word choices or spellings reduce precision: “quantity of jobs” is less natural than “number of jobs,” while “lowest portion” and “gain” do not clearly describe the data. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “demonstrats,” “agriculure,” “steadly,” and “Heathcare.” Some phrases, such as “shows and upward trend,” appear to be attempts at suitable graph language but are not accurately formed. Build a reliable set of trend verbs and check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, including clauses introduced by “while” and “if,” but complex structures are often faulty and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences hard to interpret. For example, “Overall, Healthcare started at the lowest by the end it surged to the top” joins two ideas without a clear grammatical link. In “healthcare was it the bottom,” the sentence structure is also incorrect, and “manufacturing started … and increases … the showed” shifts tense and breaks down. Articles, plurals and verb forms are inconsistent, as in “2 millions” and “it remained the lowest.” Practise writing shorter, complete sentences first, then combine them with accurate clauses and consistent past-tense verbs.

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