Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-02

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)

This graph state the information about number of jobs in four different field of economy in us from 1960 to 2020

The graph provide data about number of jobs in us in certain time period in four different sector .The graph show per million jobs and number of years in manfacture , retail agriculture and healthcare .

At the very top of the graph is manufacture sector which told us from 1960 to 1980 manufacturing generate 20 million jobs but from 1980 graph started to decline to about 13 million jobs till 2020 and on the other hand retail performed excellent from 1960 to 2020 graph grows from 5 miilion to 15 million

On the other hand agriculture performance was very poor it tells decreased in jobs but from 1980 to 2000 it became stable but after 2000 it slightly falls till 2020 and on last healthcare proformed excepetnly well the graph grow overall from 1960 to 2020 its created from 2 million to 15 million jobs

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify all four sectors and describe their broad directions: manufacturing peaks around 1980 before falling, agriculture declines and then levels off, while retail and healthcare rise. However, the overview is not clearly separated from the details, and some key comparisons are incomplete or inaccurate. Manufacturing begins at about 15 million in 1960, rather than the response’s unclear claim that it “generate[s] 20 million jobs” across 1960–1980. Retail reaches about 16 million in 2020, not 15, and healthcare also ends at about 16 million, not 15. The response does not clearly highlight that retail and healthcare finish joint highest. To strengthen the report, give a concise overview of the main contrasts, then support it with accurate start, peak and end figures for each sector.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response includes the relevant sectors and uses basic linking expressions such as “on the other hand” and “but,” so the reader can follow the general direction of the trends. However, the information is not arranged into clear paragraphs, and the opening repeats the same introductory point in two sentences. The long sentence beginning “At the very top of the graph” combines manufacturing and retail, making the comparisons difficult to track. The final sentence also joins agriculture and healthcare without a clear transition. Organise the report into an introduction, a brief overview, and two detail paragraphs, grouping related trends. Use linking words selectively and make each sentence focus on one clear comparison or sector.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant terms, including “decline,” “stable,” and “million jobs,” which help communicate the broad trends. However, the vocabulary range is limited, and several choices are imprecise or informal for an academic chart report. Phrases such as “performed excellent,” “performance was very poor,” and “proformed excepetnly well” evaluate the sectors rather than neutrally describe the data. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “manfacture,” “miilion,” and “excepetnly,” which reduce clarity. Build a more precise set of trend verbs and nouns, such as “rose,” “fell,” “remained stable,” “reached a peak,” and “employment.” Check spelling and use neutral language rather than judging a sector’s performance.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts to connect ideas in longer sentences, but control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes make the intended meaning unclear. For example, “This graph state” and “The graph provide” have subject–verb agreement errors, while “the graph started to decline” incorrectly makes the graph itself the subject of the trend. Several sentences lack clear punctuation, particularly the long sentence beginning “At the very top of the graph,” and the final sentence contains an unclear construction: “its created from 2 million to 15 million jobs.” Most structures are simple or joined with basic conjunctions, with limited accurate variety. Practise writing short, complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, then add controlled comparisons using forms such as “rose from … to …” and “fell to ….”

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