Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-18

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 chart compares the export earnings of one country in various categories (Petroleum products, Engineered goods, Gems and jewellery, Agricultural products and Textiles) during 2015 and 2016.

The table illustrates the variations in the exports proportion of each category in 2016 compared with 2015.

Overall, it is evident that, the bar graph depicts the petroleum products earned high rates during both years, while the Textiles earned low rates in 2015 and Agricultural products and Textiles both were at lowest earnings in 2016. The table shows that, the Textiles accounted for major percentage changes in values from.2015 to 2016, where as Agricultural products represented minore variations.

The value of the export earnings for petroleum slightly increased from nearly 60 billions in 2015 to 62 billions in 2016. In contrast, germs and jewellery earnings dipped marginally to approximately 42 billions in 2015 to 40 billions in 2016. The figure for Agricultural products remained almost unchanged to around 31 billions in 2015 and 32 billions in 2016. However, the value for engineered goods was almost 58 billions and 27 billions in 2015 respectively, it surged to approximately 61 billions and 31 billions in 2016 correspondingly.

There was percentage change in export values in 2016 with compare to 2015. The percentage value of Gens and jewellery significantly reduced to 5.18%. However, the value for petroleum products, engineered goods, agricultural products and Textiles grew up to 3%, 8.5%, 0.81% and 15.24%. In which Textiles experienced major growth in proportion, while agricultural products accounted for minore rose in proportion of exports values.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers all parts of the task by summarizing the main features of both the bar chart and the table. You successfully identified key trends, such as the growth in petroleum and the significant percentage change in textiles. However, the analysis is slightly marred by inaccurate data reporting; for instance, you state engineered goods were '58 billions and 27 billions in 2015', which misinterprets the chart. Additionally, the overview is a bit cluttered with specific data points that belong in the body paragraphs rather than the summary. To reach a higher band, ensure data accuracy and focus the overview on the most significant trends rather than listing figures.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. There is a clear progression of ideas. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'In which Textiles experienced major growth'. Referencing is occasionally unclear, particularly when discussing the table data. While the paragraphing is appropriate, the transition between the description of the bar chart and the table could be smoother to improve the overall flow of the report.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'variations', 'surged', and 'marginally'. However, there are several spelling errors ('germs' instead of 'gems', 'minore' instead of 'minor') and some awkward collocations, such as 'earned high rates' and 'with compare to'. While these errors do not impede communication, they limit the precision of your writing. To improve, focus on using more precise terminology for data trends and ensure you proofread for basic spelling mistakes.

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 'the bar graph depicts the petroleum products earned high rates' (missing 'that') and 'remained almost unchanged to around' (preposition error). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with unnecessary commas and issues with decimal points (e.g., '.2015'). While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focus on subject-verb agreement and correct preposition usage to enhance accuracy.

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.