Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-26
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 chart illustrates the value of one country’s exports in various categories during 2015 and 2016.
Overall, the table shows the percentage change in each category of exports in 2016 compared with 2015. The percentage of petroleum products, engineering goods, agricultural products and as well as textile increased whereas gems and jewelry decreased.
The percentage of petroleum products increased from by 3%, engineered goods went up to 8.5%, agricultural products slightly increased by 0.81% and texile increased significantly by 15.24% between the period of 2015 and 2016.
Meanwhile, the proportion of figures for gems and jewelry decreased by 5.18%. Petroleum goods and engineered goods remain the popular categories in export earnings, whereas gems and jewely and agricultural products remained stable textile were the least popular category between 2015 and 2016. However, textile increased by 15.24 percentage points making it the highest earning from all.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The response attempts to cover the main features of the chart and table, identifying categories such as petroleum products, engineered goods, and textiles. However, there are significant issues with data interpretation and accuracy. For example, the student confuses absolute export values from the chart with percentage changes from the table, stating that 'petroleum products increased from by 3%' (the chart shows billions of dollars, while the table shows percentage change). Additionally, the word count is 144 words, falling just short of the 150-word minimum requirement, which incurs a penalty. While an overview is attempted, these errors in data reporting prevent the response from achieving a higher band.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The essay is divided into short paragraphs, attempting an introduction, overview, and body paragraphs. However, the logical progression is hindered by confusing data and repetitive structures. Cohesive devices are used, but sometimes inaccurately or mechanically, such as the awkward transition 'Meanwhile, the proportion of figures for gems and jewelry decreased'. Referencing between the chart values and the percentage table is occasionally muddled, making it difficult to follow the relationships between categories. Paragraphing is present, but overall the organization lacks a smooth, coherent flow.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary relevant to the visual data, including terms such as 'categories', 'export earnings', 'percentage change', and 'proportion'. However, there are notable word choice errors and typos, such as 'texile' instead of 'textiles', and misuse of statistical terms (e.g., confusing billions of dollars with percentages). Less common vocabulary is attempted with mixed success, and lexical control is limited, resulting in occasional inaccuracies that require the reader to interpret the intended meaning.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The text displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'The percentage of petroleum products increased... whereas gems and jewelry decreased.' However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward phrasings, including 'increased from by 3%', 'remain the popular categories', and 'textile were the least popular category' (subject-verb agreement error). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but grammatical inaccuracies persist throughout the text, impacting overall accuracy.
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