Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-15
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 and table illustrate the results of the questionnaire of library members at a university.
In general, the maximum percentage of users are full-time students; while, others constitutes a limited part. Majority of the members are satisfied with the library opening hours and helpfulness of the staff. Some are moderately satisfied with the availability of books; instead, few are satisfies with the availability of journals and reliability of wi-fi.
The pie chart depicts that the members of library constitues 44% full-time undergraduate students, 25% full-time postgradute students, 16% part-time postgraduate students, 8% academic staff and 7% distance learning users. If we analyze it, the maximum members are full-time students (69%) and part-time ranks second with 16%. The academic staff and distance learning student at bottom contributing 7% and 8% respectively. The highest percentage are very satisfied with helpfulness of staff (95%); contrarily, the lowest percentage are very satisfied with availability of journals.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response covers all parts of the task by reporting on both the categories of library users from the pie chart and the satisfaction percentages from the table. An adequate overview is provided in the second paragraph, outlining the dominance of full-time students and general trends in satisfaction. Key features are successfully selected, such as noting that full-time undergraduates make up 44% and that helpfulness of staff received the highest satisfaction rating at 95%. However, there are minor numerical inaccuracies and generalized groupings, such as the statement that 'the lowest percentage are very satisfied with availability of journals' which slightly misreads the precise table layout (which shows 20% 'not satisfied' for journals). Nevertheless, the main features and comparisons are generally well reported, fitting the Band 6.5 to 7.0 profile well.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response has a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, overview paragraph, and detail paragraph. Cohesive devices are used to connect ideas, such as 'In general', 'while', 'instead', and 'contrarily'. However, paragraphing is somewhat underdeveloped, with the body of the response crammed into just two dense paragraphs rather than logically separating the pie chart data from the table data. Additionally, referencing is occasionally repetitive or slightly awkward, such as 'If we analyze it', which creates a mechanical feel in places. Progression is present, but logical transitions between sentences could be smoother to reach a higher band.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common items such as 'constitutes', 'dominance' (implied), and 'postgraduate'. There are, however, several noticeable spelling and word choice errors throughout the text, including 'constitues' instead of 'constitutes', 'postgredute' variants, and 'satisfies' instead of 'satisfied'. Despite these lexical errors and some minor spelling slips, communication is not impeded, and the vocabulary used is sufficient to convey the numerical data and trends effectively.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases (e.g., 'If we analyze it, the maximum members are full-time students...'). There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasing choices, such as 'the maximum percentage of users are full-time students; while, others constitutes' (incorrect punctuation with semicolon and comma, plus subject-verb agreement error) and 'academic staff and distance learning student at bottom contributing'. Punctuation around transitional phrases is occasionally faulty. However, the errors rarely impede overall communication, placing this securely in Band 6.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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