Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-01

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 5.0)

The given bar chart shows the value of one country's exports in various categories during 2015 and 2016:

The first category is petroleum products, in 2015 60 billion dollars are exported whereas in 2016, 62 billion dollars is the export income.

The second category is engineered goods in 2015, the export earning is 55 billion dollars whereas in 2016, about $ 62 billion is the export income.

The third category is gems and jewellery in 2015, the export earning is 42 billion dollars whereas in 2016, the earning is 40 billion dollars.

The fourth category is agricultural products in 2015, $ 30 billion is spent on export earning whereas in 2016, 32 billion dollars are spent on export earning.

The last category is textiles, in 2015 22% of income is spent on textiles, whereas in 2016, exactly 30% of income is spent on textiles.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, which significantly impacts the task achievement score. Furthermore, the content is largely a repetitive list of data points rather than a summary of main features or trends. You have not included an overview, which is essential for a Band 6 or higher in Academic Task 1. Additionally, there is a significant misinterpretation of the data: you describe the textile category as 'percentage of income spent,' whereas the prompt refers to export values. The failure to synthesize the information or provide a clear comparison between the two years prevents a higher score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The response is organized into short, repetitive paragraphs that lack logical progression. There is a lack of cohesive devices to link the ideas; instead, you rely on a mechanical 'The [ordinal] category is...' structure for every sentence. This makes the text feel like a list rather than a cohesive report. To improve, you should group related data together—such as categories that increased versus those that decreased—and use transition words like 'in contrast,' 'similarly,' or 'whereas' more effectively to connect your sentences and paragraphs.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is very limited and repetitive. You use the phrase 'export earning' or 'export income' in almost every sentence, which demonstrates a lack of lexical variety. There is also a lack of precision in describing the data; for example, you use 'spent on export earning,' which is factually incorrect in the context of export values. To reach a higher band, you need to use a wider range of vocabulary to describe trends, such as 'witnessed a growth of,' 'experienced a decline,' or 'remained stable,' and avoid repeating the same nouns and verbs throughout the response.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The grammatical range is limited, consisting mostly of simple, repetitive sentence structures. There are frequent errors in subject-verb agreement and preposition usage, such as '60 billion dollars are exported' (should be 'is') and 'spent on export earning.' The punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the placement of dollar signs and spaces. The response lacks complex sentence structures, which are necessary to demonstrate control over grammar. Focusing on varying your sentence structure and ensuring subject-verb agreement will help improve your accuracy and range.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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