Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-03

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 graph shows jobs in milllions in four sectors of the economy in the US from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, manufacturing accounted for highest job ratio while heathcare had lowest number of jobs.

Manufacturing made highest number of job with 20 million upto 1980. After 1980 manufacturing jobs decreased gradually. While, retail and healthcare followed gradual increased till 2020 accounting 15 million jobs.The lowest number of jobs were seen in the sector of agriculture.

In 1960 there were jobs sightly above 5 million and with passage of time decreased in gradual manner. All of the four sectors followed different trends. Retail and healthcare remained gradually increasing and reached its peek in 2020. But Manufacturing in the US declined after the 1980, and reached below the 15 million jobs. Lowest grossing jobs were seen in the field of the agriculture, it produced least number of the jobs. And the decline in the jobs were not sharp.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify several relevant patterns, including manufacturing peaking in 1980 and agriculture remaining the smallest sector, but the overview is not fully accurate: manufacturing was not the highest throughout the period, and healthcare was not consistently the lowest. By 2020, retail and healthcare were joint highest at about 16 million, while agriculture was lowest. Some figures and comparisons are missing, and the claim that retail and healthcare reached 15 million in 2020 understates their approximate values. The response also falls four words short of the 150-word minimum; the nine words copied from the task prompt are excluded from the count. Add a clearer overview and report the key end-point comparisons accurately.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has some organisation: it begins with an introduction and overview, then moves to details about the sectors. However, the progression is not consistently clear because several points are repeated, particularly that agriculture had the fewest jobs and that manufacturing declined after 1980. Linking is sometimes awkward or mechanical, as in “While, retail and healthcare…” and “But Manufacturing…”. The final paragraph also revisits trends without adding a clear comparison between sectors. Grouping the information into a concise overview followed by two focused detail paragraphs—for example, manufacturing and agriculture, then retail and healthcare—would make the sequence easier to follow and reduce repetition.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant chart vocabulary, including “decreased,” “declined,” “accounting,” and “trends,” so the main ideas are generally understandable. However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural: “job ratio,” “highest grossing jobs,” and “produced least number of the jobs” do not describe employment figures precisely. There are also spelling errors such as “milllions,” “heathcare,” “sightly,” and “peek,” which reduce accuracy. Aim for straightforward, precise expressions such as “number of jobs,” “employment,” “rose to a peak,” and “the smallest sector.” This would improve clarity without requiring more complicated vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple statements and longer sentences, and the overall meaning can usually be followed. However, control is uneven, especially in longer constructions. For example, “While, retail and healthcare followed gradual increased till 2020 accounting 15 million jobs” lacks a complete, well-formed clause, and “In 1960 there were jobs sightly above 5 million and with passage of time decreased” has an unclear subject for “decreased.” Articles, plurals, and sentence boundaries also need attention, as in “the highest number of job” and the comma splice-like sequence “Lowest grossing jobs were seen… it produced…”. Use complete clauses with clear subjects and check agreement and punctuation when combining ideas.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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