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 bar graph portraits information about the top ten countries for the production and consumption of electricity during 2014.
Overall, China and United States were major producers and consumers in the ranking. While Korea Republic and Germany were at the bottom at the ranking.
China's production and consumption was almost same with 5398 billion kWh and 5322 billion kWh. While United States was followed by China with production of 4099 billion kWh and consumption of 3866 billion kWh. However, Russia's production and consumption of Electricity was not even half of United States'. Even the rest of the countries were similar to Russia.
However, India ranked at 5th position and Japan was after it.
Most of the western countries ranked after India from 6th position apart from Korean Republic.
While Korean Republic placed at the bottom of thee graph with production of electricity 485.1 billion kWh and consumption of 449.5 billion kWh.
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 data, identifying China and the US as the leaders and noting the significant gap between them and the remaining countries. However, the report is somewhat superficial. The comparison between the top two and the rest is clear, but the description of the remaining eight countries is vague, relying on general statements like 'similar to Russia' rather than highlighting specific data points or trends. To reach a higher band, you should group the data more effectively and provide more precise comparisons between the middle-ranking countries, rather than simply listing their positions.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into paragraphs, and there is a logical progression from the overview to specific details. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and occasionally repetitive. For example, the word 'However' is used to start three consecutive sentences, which disrupts the flow. Referencing is sometimes unclear, such as in the phrase 'Even the rest of the countries were similar to Russia', which lacks a clear link to the specific data. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear thematic focus would enhance the overall coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the reader to understand the data. You use some subject-specific terms like 'production', 'consumption', and 'billion kWh' correctly. However, there are instances of awkward phrasing and word choice, such as 'portraits information' (should be 'portrays' or 'presents') and 'at the bottom at the ranking' (should be 'at the bottom of the ranking'). The range of vocabulary is somewhat limited, and there is a lack of more sophisticated synonyms or collocations that would demonstrate a higher level of lexical control.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. Examples include 'China's production and consumption was almost same' (missing 'the' and 'the' before 'same'), 'Korea Republic' (should be 'the Republic of Korea'), and 'thee graph' (spelling error). Additionally, there are issues with article usage and prepositional phrases. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the response from reaching a higher band score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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