Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-04

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 given line graph illustrates the information about the number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US country over the period from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, it is clear that the categories followed different trends.Furthermore, healthcare sector recorded the highest figures, whereas the agriculture sector had the lowest figures.

Looking at the details, healthcare sector stood at the approximately 2.5 million jobs in 1960. It then increased to almost 16 million in 2020. Similarly, retail jobs started at 7 million and experienced increases over the following year, reaching almost 15 million by 2020

Regarding the remaining category, agriculture sector jobs recorded 7 million compared with manufacturing sector jobs 15 million. Meanwhile, agriculture showed a significant decrease and finished at 2.5 million jobs .By contrast, manufacturing increase some of the starting yesrs but after that relatively decrease throughout the period. And by, contrast two lines .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the broad contrast between rising healthcare employment and declining agriculture, and include several relevant figures, such as healthcare reaching about 16 million and agriculture ending near 2.5 million. However, the overview is inaccurate: manufacturing, not healthcare, had the highest figure in 1960 and 1980, while retail and healthcare were joint highest in 2020. Some details are also misreported: retail began at about 6 million and reached 16 million, while agriculture began at about 6 million. The manufacturing trend is mentioned but not clearly quantified, and the final phrase about “two lines” is incomplete. The response is 134 words, below the 150-word minimum; use the remaining space to report the main comparisons more fully and accurately.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure, moving from an introduction and overview to details, and phrases such as “Overall,” “Similarly,” and “By contrast” show an attempt to connect information. However, the progression is weakened by grouping the sectors unevenly and leaving the final comparison unfinished: “And by, contrast two lines.” The overview also does not prepare the reader accurately for the details that follow. Some linking expressions are awkward or repetitive, particularly the repeated use of “By contrast,” and the sentence about agriculture and manufacturing is difficult to follow. Organise the body by clear comparisons—for example, rising sectors together and declining sectors together—and ensure each paragraph develops a complete point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “line graph,” “increased,” “decrease,” and “figures,” so the main subject is generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several phrases are unnatural or imprecise, such as “in the US country,” “over the following year” when describing a long period, and “recorded 7 million compared with manufacturing sector jobs 15 million.” “Categories” is also less precise than “sectors” in this context. The phrase “starting yesrs” contains a spelling error, and “two lines” does not communicate a clear comparison. Aim for accurate collocations and varied trend language, such as “rose steadily,” “peaked at,” and “declined gradually,” while keeping the figures and time references precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including “It then increased to almost 16 million in 2020” and a contrast introduced with “Meanwhile.” However, grammatical errors are frequent enough to make some sentences difficult to interpret. Examples include the missing article in “healthcare sector stood,” the awkward construction “stood at the approximately 2.5 million,” and the incorrect verb form in “manufacturing increase.” The sentence beginning “And by, contrast” is incomplete, while punctuation spacing and comma placement are inconsistent. Practise forming complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, and check articles, verb tense, and punctuation. For example: “Manufacturing employment rose to 20 million in 1980 before declining to 13 million by 2020.”

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