Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-29
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 exports in 2015 with 2016. So first of all, we start with 2015 and analyse the bar chart. In 2015, petroleum product earnings were something around 60.1 billion dollars, and engineered goods earnings were 50.7 billion dollars. Then, moving forward to gems and jewellery, export earnings were 40.3 billion dollars, and agricultural products almost earned 30.1 billion dollars. Looking at textiles, their earnings were 20.6 billion dollars. If we see the highest export earnings, petroleum products earned the most, and the least export earnings were from textiles. However, the bad thing is that if you see the 2015 export earnings graph, there was no increase in anything; every export earning was less than the previous one.
Let's start the analysis of 2016 export earnings. In 2016, petroleum product export earnings increased from 60.1 to 60.3 billion dollars, and engineered goods also increased from 50.7 to 60.2 billion dollars. Additionally, gems and jewellery diminished from 40.3 to 40.1, and agricultural products increased from 30.1 to 30.2 billion dollars, while textiles increased their export earnings from 20.6 to 30.2 billion dollars.
Overall, petroleum products had the highest export earnings in both 2015 and 2016, while textiles had the lowest earnings in 2015. Most of the export categories experienced an increase in 2016, except for gems and jewellery, which showed a slight decrease. The most noticeable increases were seen in engineered goods and textiles.
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 student covers the main parts of the task by reporting figures for both years and identifying general trends and extremes, such as petroleum products having the highest earnings and textiles the lowest in 2015. However, there are several inaccuracies in the data reporting. For instance, the student states that petroleum products in 2015 were 'around 60.1 billion dollars' when the chart shows 61 billion, and claims that 'every export earning was less than the previous one' in 2015, which misunderstands the visual information. Furthermore, some data points are misread compared to the reference transcription (e.g., textiles in 2016). While an overview is included at the end, the misinterpretation of data trends impacts the overall accuracy of task completion. This performance aligns best with Band 5.5, rounded to 5.0 due to factual inaccuracies and confusion regarding chart values.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The text is organised into clear paragraphs separating the introduction, body details for 2015 and 2016, and an overall summary. There is a logical progression from year to year, and basic cohesive devices such as 'Then, moving forward to', 'Additionally', and 'Overall' are employed to guide the reader through the data. However, paragraphing could be structured more effectively, and some transitions feel overly conversational or mechanical (e.g., 'So first of all, we start with 2015 and analyse the bar chart'). Referencing is mostly clear, but the overall logical flow is occasionally hindered by imprecise data descriptions. This represents the characteristics of Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully incorporating topic-specific terms like 'export earnings', 'petroleum products', 'engineered goods', and 'agricultural products'. However, expression is frequently affected by repetitive phrasing and awkward collocations, such as 'the bad thing is that' and 'gems and jewellery diminished'. There are also occasional lexical inaccuracies when describing trends and numerical changes. The vocabulary is minimally adequate to convey the basic message, but lacks the precision, flexibility, and range expected at higher bands. This performance fits the Band 5.5 descriptor, rounded to 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and comparative constructions (e.g., 'petroleum products had the highest export earnings in both 2015 and 2016'). There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasings present throughout the text, such as 'textiles increased their export earnings from 20.6 to 30.2' and conversational intrusions like 'if you see the 2015 export earnings graph'. Despite these errors, they rarely impede overall communication, and basic grammatical control is maintained. This profile corresponds securely to Band 6.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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