Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-11

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 earning of various export products between two years. The table illustrates the percentage change in each category of export in 2016 contrasted with 2015.

Overall, petroleum products recorded with the highest earning whereas agricultural products and textile had lowest figures.

The highest earning was seen with petroleum products and engineered goods in 2016. The highest earning that had seen was more than 60 billions $. Petroleum products remained steady at highest from 2015 to 2016.In 2015 engineered goods was not highly earning export product but it had increased and become the highest earning product. Textiles rose 15.24% from the value that was recorded in 2015. The greatest and only decrease had recorded in gems and jewellery is 5.18%.

The lowest earning was seen with textiles and agricultural products with almost 32 billions $. In 2015 textiles was the only product with lowest profit that was more than 15 billions $ but it had improved in 2016 and matched with the earning of agricultural products. Agricultural products profit almost remained constant with the slight increase of 0.81%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main categories and report several relevant comparisons, including petroleum as the leading export, textiles’ strong rise, and the decline in gems and jewellery. The overview is present, but it is not fully accurate: agricultural products and textiles were the lowest in 2015, while in 2016 textiles and agricultural products were equal at about $31.5 billion; petroleum remained the highest, not merely “steady at highest.” The claim that engineered goods “become the highest earning product” is also incorrect: they reached about $62 billion, still just below petroleum at $63 billion. You include useful percentage changes, but some comparisons and figures are unclear or underdeveloped. More precise reporting of the ranking and the small changes would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs describing higher- and lower-value categories. This gives the reader a basic route through the information. However, progression within the body is sometimes difficult to follow because several comparisons are placed together without a clear organising principle. For example, the paragraph beginning “The highest earning was seen…” moves from 2016 rankings to the 2015 position of engineered goods, then to textiles and gems. Some linking and referencing are also awkward, such as “the value that was recorded in 2015,” which makes the comparison less direct. Grouping categories consistently by trend or value, and using clearer transitions, would improve cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “percentage change,” “remained constant,” “increased,” and “decrease,” so the main trends are generally understandable. However, several word choices and collocations are unnatural or imprecise, such as “the earning of various export products,” “highest earning,” and “lowest profit.” Exports are better described in terms of value or earnings, rather than profit, and “earnings” is more suitable than the repeated singular “earning.” There is also some repetition of “highest” and “product.” The phrase “more than 60 billions $” is not idiomatic. A broader set of accurate terms for values, rankings, and changes would make the description clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, and the overall meaning can usually be followed. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly with articles, agreement, verb forms, and sentence boundaries. For example, “petroleum products recorded with the highest earning” has an incorrect verb pattern, while “In 2015 engineered goods was” has a subject–verb agreement error. The sentence “The greatest and only decrease had recorded…” uses an incorrect passive construction, and “textiles was” should agree with the plural noun. Punctuation is also inconsistent, as in the missing space after “2016.” These errors do not generally prevent understanding, but more reliable control of sentence patterns and agreement would strengthen the response.

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.