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 countries exports in different goods categories in the year 2015 and 2016 and percentage change in value from 2015 to 2016.

Overall, it is crystal clear that in both the years country have the highest exports in petroleum products as compared to any other goods moreover in percentage change in values there was only decline in Gems and jewellery.

In the year 2015 petroleum products exports were of 60 billion dollars which increased in 2016 with 2 billion dollars as this is the only product which have the highest export. In the Engineered goods there was less export of it in 2015 which later in next year increased and reached at 61 million dollars from 58 million dollars. In the gems and jewellery there was decline in its exports from 2015 to 2016 asper in 2015 it was having export of around 42 billion dollars which lateron comes at only 40 billion dollars. In agriculture everthing was different there was no change in its products export.

In the talbe of percentage change in value there was 3% rise in petroleum, 8.5% in Engineered goods, 0.81% in agriculture. Whereas Gems and jewellery is only one which showed fall in it percentage change in values with 5.18%.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.0
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main leader—petroleum products—and correctly note that gems and jewellery was the only category to decline. You also report several percentage changes accurately. However, the account is only partial: the overview does not mention that textiles had the strongest percentage growth, and the final paragraph omits textiles’ 15.24% rise. Some figures and descriptions are inaccurate: petroleum exports rose by about $2 billion, not simply “with 2 billion dollars” as phrased; engineered goods reached about $62 billion, not $61 million; and agriculture increased slightly rather than showing “no change.” The response also gives limited comparison across categories. Include the key high and low values, the notable textile increase, and accurate units to make the summary more complete and clear.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, a paragraph describing the chart, and a final paragraph on percentage changes. This helps the reader identify the topic and the broad direction of the report. However, progression within the body is uneven: the chart paragraph moves through categories one by one, then agriculture is left as a vague aside, while textiles are not discussed. Linking is also repetitive, particularly the repeated use of “In the…” and “which later,” and some connections are unclear, as in “moreover in percentage change.” Grouping the largest categories together and then comparing the smaller ones would create a clearer progression. Use concise transitions to show contrast and change rather than relying on repeated sequencing phrases.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary such as “exports,” “percentage change,” “increased,” and “decline,” so the reader can follow the general subject. There is also some attempt to vary description with phrases such as “showed fall.” However, word choice and collocation are often awkward or imprecise: “in the percentage change in values,” “less export of it,” and “there was no change in its products export” do not express the data naturally. “Million” is also the wrong unit for engineered goods, which are measured in billions. Spelling errors such as “talbe,” “asper,” and “lateron” further reduce accuracy. Build a more precise range of chart language, including “stood at,” “rose to,” “remained broadly stable,” and “recorded the largest increase.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, including clauses with “which” and contrast introduced by “whereas.” Nevertheless, errors are frequent, and some longer sentences are difficult to follow. Examples include “in both the years country have,” where the subject and verb do not agree and an article is missing, and “the only product which have,” which also has agreement problems. The sentence beginning “In the year 2015 petroleum products exports were…” has an unclear comparison structure, while “there was no change in its products export” is grammatically awkward. Articles, plurals, verb forms, and punctuation need more consistent control. Practise writing shorter, accurate comparisons first, then combine them using clauses such as “while” or “whereas.”

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

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