Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-17
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The chart below shows the value of one country’s exports in various categories during 2015 and 2016. The table shows the percentage change in each category of exports in 2016 compared with 2015.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The bar graph illustrates the difference in exports in different categories from 2015 to 2016. While the table demonstrates the percentage increase or decrease in the export of these items in 2016 with respect to 2015. There is a steady increase in all exports except the gems and jewellery.
Overall, it can be seen on the one hand the textile industry have highest increase in the exports which is 15.24% , but on the other hand agricultural products have the minimum increase of 0.81% in the exports in the year 2016. It is crucial to note that there is a decrease of 5.18% in the industry of gems and jewellery.
The percentage increase in the exports of the petroleum and agricultural products is below 5% in which the former contributes the 3% while the latter contributes only 0.81%. Both of these are not able to balance the percentage decrease of 5.18% in the gems and jewellery.
There is a significant role in the hike of exports in 2016 compare to the 2015 due to the contribution of two major fields: engineered goods and textiles. Textiles have maximum increase in percentage leaving the engineered goods and second and agricultural products at least percentage increase table.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| 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, such as the highest and lowest growth categories and the decline in gems and jewellery. However, the report lacks a clear overview of the actual values (the bar chart data), focusing almost exclusively on the percentage changes from the table. The prompt asks to report on both the value of exports and the percentage change. By omitting the actual export values (e.g., billions of dollars), the response fails to fully address all parts of the task. The summary is present but could be more comprehensive by integrating the two data sources more effectively.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is logically organized into paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. Cohesive devices such as 'on the one hand', 'on the other hand', and 'it is crucial to note' are used to link information. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical or awkward, such as the sentence fragment starting with 'While the table demonstrates...' in the introduction. Additionally, the referencing in the final paragraph is slightly confusing, particularly the phrase 'leaving the engineered goods and second and agricultural products at least percentage increase table', which lacks clarity and impacts the flow of information.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task, with terms like 'illustrates', 'steady increase', and 'contribution'. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, but word choice is occasionally imprecise, such as 'hike of exports' or 'at least percentage increase table'. These errors do not impede communication, but they highlight a need for more precise collocations. The repetition of 'percentage increase' and 'exports' suggests a limited range of synonyms, which prevents the response from reaching a higher band.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'the textile industry have highest increase' (subject-verb agreement) and 'compare to the 2015' (incorrect preposition/tense). The introduction contains a sentence fragment ('While the table...'). Despite these errors, the meaning remains clear throughout the response. To improve, the student should focus on subject-verb agreement and ensure that every sentence contains a main clause, avoiding fragments.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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