Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-22
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 illustrates about export earnings in various categories in one country from 2015 to2016. While the table compares the change in percentage of exports in bothe years.
Overall, the bar chart describes considerable variations in export earnings in various products like petroleum products, engineered goods, gems and jewellery, agricultural products, and textiles. While the table describes about percentage increase or decrease in the values of products.
The bar chart demonstrates that the exports in petroleum products and engineered products shows maximum earings in both 2015 and 2016.While the engineered products shows slight fall in 2015 and rised to61 billion in 2016. On the other hand, gems and jewellery and agricultural products showed slight shifts in earnings of about 42 billions and 32 billions in 2015 and 2016. However, the textiles showed decreased exports of almost 23 billion in 2015 and then increased to 31 billion in 2016.
The table demonstrates about the percentage rise in the export of textiles and engineered products with 15.24% and 8.5% respectively. On the other hand, the petroleum products and gems and jewellery showed a decline in the percentage in both years while agricultural products shows a negligible rise in its export values that is 0.81 % further the petroleum products illustrates 3% rise in exports from 2015 to 2016.
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 all parts of the task by summarizing the bar chart and the table. You have identified the main features, such as the highest earners (petroleum and engineered goods) and the trends for textiles. However, the analysis is somewhat inconsistent. For instance, you mention that petroleum products showed a decline in the table, but the table actually shows a 3% increase. Additionally, the data points mentioned for gems and jewellery (42 billion) do not align clearly with the provided chart. To reach a higher band, ensure that your data reporting is precise and that you clearly distinguish between the static values in the chart and the percentage changes in the table.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response 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 repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'While' and 'On the other hand' to start sentences. Some transitions are slightly awkward, such as 'further the petroleum products illustrates', which disrupts the flow. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that referencing is precise will help improve the overall cohesion of your writing.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the main points, using terms like 'export earnings', 'variations', and 'negligible rise'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'illustrates about' (should be 'illustrates') and 'rised' (should be 'rose'). There is also some repetition of basic verbs like 'shows' or 'demonstrates'. To improve, try to incorporate more precise reporting verbs and avoid redundant prepositions after verbs like 'illustrate' or 'describe'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'the exports... shows', 'engineered products shows', 'agricultural products shows') and verb tense consistency (e.g., 'rised' instead of 'rose'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with missing spaces after periods (e.g., 'to2016', 'bothe years'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and proofreading for basic mechanical errors will significantly improve your 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.