Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-26
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The bar chart below shows the top ten countries for the production and consumption of electricity in 2014.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The given bar graph compares the production and consumption of electricity across various countries in the year 2014. China is the largest producer and consumer of electricity in this year, and Korea , Rep. is the lowest producer and consumer of electricity among the 10 countries compared in 2014.
A point to be noted is the country Germany ranking 9th is the only country with consumption of electricity more than production.
An interesting point to be noted is difference between the top 2 countries and the rest top 8 countries. There is almost 400% increase in both consumption and production from 3rd to 2nd highest country.
Approximately the top 2 countries (China and United States) produce 9500kWh and the next 8 produce approximately 5500kWh electricity. So China and United States combined produce approximately 63% of the world's electricity. This statistic is almost correct for the consumption of the electricity too.
Taking the population of China the numbers makes sense but for the population of united states the consumption is very high.
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 response covers the main features of the bar chart, identifying the top producers and consumers and noting the exception of Germany. However, the analysis is somewhat limited. The claim that there is a '400% increase' between the 3rd and 2nd highest countries is mathematically inaccurate based on standard interpretation of such charts, and the final paragraph introduces personal commentary ('the numbers makes sense') which is inappropriate for an Academic Task 1 report. To reach a higher band, you should focus on objective reporting of the data rather than subjective interpretation or external knowledge about population.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into short paragraphs, which helps readability. However, the progression of ideas is somewhat disjointed. The use of cohesive devices is basic and occasionally repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'A point to be noted is'. The transition between the general overview and the specific data points could be smoother. While the overall arrangement is coherent, the lack of sophisticated linking words and the somewhat mechanical structure of the paragraphs prevent a higher score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. You rely on simple descriptors like 'largest', 'lowest', and 'interesting'. There are some inaccuracies in collocation, such as 'the numbers makes sense' and 'the rest top 8 countries', which sounds unnatural. To improve, you should incorporate more precise terminology related to data analysis, such as 'surpass', 'account for', 'a significant proportion', or 'marginal difference'. The range of vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main points but does not demonstrate the flexibility required for higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'China is the largest producer... in this year' (should be 'that year'), 'the numbers makes sense' (subject-verb agreement), and 'for the population of united states' (missing article). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the spacing around commas. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the message, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Increasing the use of error-free complex sentences would improve this score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.