Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-11

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 5.0)

The given bar chart delineates the list of several countries ranked by contribution and distribution of electricity in the year 2014.

From the chart, we observed that country China had contributed 5,398 billion kWh of energy and consumed 5,322 kWh which was almost up to the mark of what they produced. Moreover, country United States had exhibited 4,099 billion kWh of energy while used 3,866 kWh shows they left with some sort of energy. Furthermore, country Russia has produced and consumed almost similar of about 1000 kWh. Japan produced 936 kWh and consumed 856 kWh.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The response identifies the chart’s subject and reports several relevant figures, including China’s production and consumption and the approximate similarity between Russia’s two values. However, it covers only four of the ten countries and gives no clear overview of the main pattern across the chart. The comparison that the United States “left with some sort of energy” is vague, and the figures are inconsistently labelled: consumption values are given as kWh rather than billion kWh. The response is also 55 words below the required minimum, which contributes to its limited coverage and underdeveloped comparisons. To improve, include an overview, compare the leading countries with the lower-ranked group, and report the notable exception of Germany consuming more than it produced.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is a basic sequence: an introductory sentence is followed by comments on China, the United States, Russia and Japan. Linking expressions such as “Moreover” and “Furthermore” help signal the movement between examples. However, the response has no distinct overview or concluding summary, and the progression is mainly a list rather than a comparison organised around the chart’s main features. Some links feel formulaic, while “From the chart, we observed” does not clearly connect the introduction to a central finding. Grouping the countries by scale or by whether production exceeds consumption would make the organisation more purposeful. A separate overview paragraph followed by a paragraph of selected comparisons would also improve progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The response uses a reasonable range of task-related vocabulary, including “ranked,” “contribution,” “consumed,” and “produced,” and the meaning is generally understandable. It also attempts more formal phrasing, such as “delineates” and “exhibited.” However, some choices are unnatural or imprecise: “contribution and distribution of electricity” does not accurately describe production and consumption, and “almost up to the mark” is an awkward way to express that the figures are close. “Left with some sort of energy” is vague and informal for an academic report. Use precise chart language consistently, such as “generated,” “used,” “slightly higher than,” and “the difference was relatively small.” This would make the limited comparisons clearer and more appropriate in register.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response includes both simple statements and attempts at longer structures, and several sentences communicate the figures clearly. However, control is uneven in the more complex sentences. In “country United States had exhibited 4,099 billion kWh of energy while used 3,866 kWh shows…,” the clause after “while” lacks a clear subject, and the sentence’s structure becomes difficult to follow. “From the chart, we observed that country China had contributed…” also uses an awkward tense and article pattern for describing a static chart. There are some errors in number and unit phrasing, such as “consumed 5,322 kWh,” where the unit should match the chart’s billion-kWh scale. Prefer clear present-tense reporting and check that each clause has a subject and a complete verb.

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