Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-30

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 graphs below illustrate the data about the number of jobs in millions in four sectors such as manufacturing, retail, agriculture as well as healthcare of the economic in the US between 1960 and 2020.

Overall, in 1960 manufacturing was the highest number poducing employment oppourntity, whereas healthcare was the smallest number of work in the US.

Manufacturing stood at 15 million in 1960. It then increased 15 to 20 million in 1980 which makes it highest employment in US, afterthat it begin fell from 20 to 17 million in 2000 and manufacturing stood at 8 million in 2020 which has greatest fall in jobs. Meanwhile retail recorded at 6 million in 1960 from that it increased from 6 to 10 millionin 1980 and again 10 to 15 million in 2000, at last it stood at 16 million in 2020 which makes it highest job created.

Agriculture stood at 6 million in 1960, it decreased from 6 to 3 milliom in 1980, in 2000 agiculture remained stable at 3 million after that it fell from 3 to 1 million.

Healthcare recorded at 2 million. It then increased from 2 to 5 million in 1980, 5 to 11 million in 2000 and finally it stood at 16 million in 2020 which makes it highest created jobs in US.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main sectors and describe their broad trends, including manufacturing’s early peak and the growth in retail and healthcare. However, some reported figures are inaccurate: manufacturing is about 13 million in 2020, not 8 million, and agriculture ends at about 2 million, not 1 million. The overview also focuses on the highest and lowest sectors only in 1960, rather than summarising the major changes across the whole period. Your statement that retail and healthcare each reached 16 million in 2020 is useful, but the comparison that they became the joint leaders could be made clearer. More accurate figures and a stronger overview of the contrasting trends would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for manufacturing/retail and agriculture/healthcare. This makes the information generally easy to follow. You also use time markers such as “in 1980,” “after that,” and “finally” to show change over time. However, several links are mechanical or unclear, and some sentences run together, particularly the manufacturing and retail descriptions. Phrases such as “from that it increased” and “which makes it highest employment” do not connect ideas smoothly. Use clearer sentence boundaries and organise each paragraph around a direct comparison or trend, rather than repeating the same sequence of figures.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “increased,” “decreased,” “remained stable,” and “stood at,” so the reader can understand the general trends. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, such as “highest number poducing employment oppourntity,” “smallest number of work,” and “highest created jobs.” Spelling errors, including “oppourntity,” “milliom,” and “agriculture,” also reduce precision. Aim for standard chart language such as “the number of jobs,” “employment,” “peaked at,” and “fell to.” Avoid repeating “stood at” for every data point, and check spelling and word forms carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, and the sequence of changes is usually understandable. However, complex sentences are often joined without correct punctuation or structure, as in “Agriculture stood at 6 million in 1960, it decreased…” and “It then increased 15 to 20 million in 1980 which makes it highest…”. There are also recurring problems with verb forms and sentence construction, including “it begin fell” and “which makes it highest employment.” Use past-tense forms consistently (“began to fall,” “which made it the highest”) and separate independent clauses with a full stop or an appropriate conjunction. More controlled sentence patterns would improve clarity.

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