Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-14
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The chart and table below show the results of a survey of library users at a university.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Categories of library users
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The pie chart illustrates the percentage of different groups attending a university library, and the table depicts the proportion of different attributes that are statisfied in library.
Overall, there are five groups that normally use libaray. The full time undergraduate is the largest group of students that go to libarary, While academic staff was the group that came in last. On the other hand, the table demonstrates the proportion of satisfaction students have over the services provided at library with helpfulness of staff stands on top.
The number of full time undergraduate has the greatest percentage at 44%, While the lowest number belongs to academic staff with 8%. The full time postgraduate, part time postgraduate and distance learning (all courses) have percentages at 25%, 16%, 8% respectively.
The table depicts the proportion of services satisfaction for library users. For instance, helpfulness of staff gets the most positive reviews and stands at 95% . While, availability of journals was the major issue faced by users and their satisfactory level is at 45%. Furthermore, library opening hours, availability of books and reliability of wifi have satisfaction levels at 65%, 50%, 48% respectively.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student successfully covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features from both the pie chart and the table. An overview is provided, noting the largest and smallest categories of users and highlighting the top satisfaction rating. Key data points are accurately cited, such as full-time undergraduates at 44% and staff helpfulness at 95%. However, comparisons between the two graphics are minimal, and there is a slight tendency to list figures sequentially rather than fully synthesising the data. Overall, the response meets the criteria for Band 6.0 as it addresses all parts of the task with relevant, supported details.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response has a clear overall progression, divided into logical paragraphs for the introduction, overview, chart details, and table details. Cohesive devices are used to connect ideas, such as 'For instance,' 'Furthermore,' and 'On the other hand.' However, paragraphing could be structured more cleanly, and referencing is occasionally repetitive or clunky (e.g., 'The table depicts the proportion...'). Cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical, placing this response firmly in the Band 6.0 category where information and ideas are generally coherent, but transitional flow lacks advanced flexibility.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, such as 'illustrates,' 'proportion,' 'attributes,' and 'satisfaction.' However, there are notable spelling errors ('statisfied,' 'libaray') and awkward word choices ('satisfactory level' instead of 'satisfaction level'). Less common vocabulary is attempted with some inaccuracy, which prevents the score from reaching a higher band. Nevertheless, the meaning remains clear throughout, aligning with the Band 6.0 descriptor for lexical resource.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'The pie chart illustrates... and the table depicts...' and relative clauses ('that are statisfied in library'). There are several grammatical errors and punctuation issues, including missing articles ('go to libarary', 'gets the most positive reviews'), incorrect capitalization after commas ('While'), and prepositions ('satisfaction levels at 65%'). Despite these errors, they rarely impede communication, demonstrating a solid Band 6.0 level of grammatical control.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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