Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-07

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 chart illustrates the production and consumption of electricity, in billion kWh, for the top ten countries in the year 2014.

Overall, China has the highest rate of consumption and production of electricity among all the countries, followed by the second-highest, the United States, in the production and consumption of electricity. Then, the least amount of usage and production is in Korea.

At first, China has the highest amount of electricity consumption, at around 5,398 billion kWh, and its production for electricity is at 5,322 billion kWh. Secondly, the United States' electricity consumption is 4,099 billion kWh, and electricity production is approx. 3,866 billion kWh. Then comes Russia, with consumption of 1,057 billion kWh and production of 1,038 billion kWh. In Japan, the usage of electricity was 936.2, and its production was around 856.7 billion kWh. India's usage was 871 billion kWh, and its production was only 698.8 billion kWh.

In Canada, usage was around 618.9 billion kWh, and production was approx 500 billion kWh. Then France with usage of 561.2 billion kWh and production of 462.9 billion kWh, and Brazil's usage was 530.7 billion kWh, and production of 455.8 billion kWh. In Germany, the usage is at 526.6 billion kWh, and

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the chart’s subject and give an overview that China and the United States lead, while Korea is among the lowest. However, several key figures are assigned to the wrong series: for China, 5,398 is production and 5,322 consumption, but your report reverses them; the same reversal occurs for the United States, Russia, Japan, India, and other countries. The response also stops during the Germany comparison, omitting Germany’s consumption figure and Korea’s data, and it does not highlight the notable exception that Germany consumes more than it produces. These inaccuracies and omissions mean the main features are only minimally reported. Check each bar against its legend and complete the comparisons, especially the outlier.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and paragraphs that move through the countries. This gives the reader a basic route through the information. However, the progression is largely a country-by-country list, and connectors such as “At first,” “Secondly,” and repeated “Then” make the sequencing mechanical rather than showing meaningful comparisons. The final paragraph ends abruptly after “and,” so the report has no complete ending and the last information is difficult to follow. Grouping countries by output level or by whether production exceeds consumption would create clearer progression. Use linking phrases to express contrasts and comparisons, and ensure the final sentence and paragraph are complete.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “production,” “consumption,” “highest,” “least amount,” and “approx.” The meaning is generally understandable, and you vary “usage” and “electricity consumption” to some extent. However, several phrases are repetitive or imprecise: “amount of electricity consumption” and “usage of electricity” recur where concise chart language would be more natural. “Rate” is not the best choice for a total quantity, and “least amount of usage and production” is awkward. Aim for more precise collocations such as “generated,” “consumed,” and “output,” while avoiding repeated wording. The vocabulary is sufficient for the task, but greater precision and flexibility would make comparisons clearer.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple statements and more developed structures, including “Overall, China has the highest…” and the clause “followed by the second-highest, the United States.” Most sentences communicate their intended meaning, showing a workable level of grammatical control. Some errors remain in tense and sentence construction. For example, “At first, China has…” shifts awkwardly from the past-year context to the present, while “Then France with usage…” is a fragment rather than a complete sentence. The final construction, “In Germany, the usage is at …, and,” is also unfinished. Keep the reporting tense consistent and make each comparison a complete sentence; combining figures with accurate clauses will improve range without sacrificing clarity.

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