Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-19

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 elaborates the estimation earnings by exporting various commodities of a country. The table delineates the fluctuation of percentage varies by several commodities in both year 2015 and 2016.

The valuation of petroleum earnings was approximately 60 billion dollars in 2015, we observed a moderate increase in earnings accounts for 62 billion dollars. Moreover, the profits earned by engineered goods was noted approximately 55 billion dollars, while in 2016 it reached gradually at 61 billion dollars. In category of gems and jewellery, we demonstrated a slightly declined in earnings from 42 billion to 40 billion dollars. Agricultural products depict stagnant growth among the years. At last, we can clearly noted a dramatic incline from 25 billion dollars to 31 billion dollars.

The table illustrates the percentage varies in values, petroleum products depicts an increase of 3% in both years, whereas gems and jewellery accounted for 5.18% decrease. Moreover, the proportion of engineered goods and textiles accounted for highest range of percentage change in earnings, 8.5% and 15.24% respectively.

Overall, commodities such as engineered goods and textiles contributed resonable in proportion of earning, whereas pertroleum and gems comprised least. Agricultural products contributed close to zero however, it varies stagnant.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You cover the main categories and report several relevant figures, including the fall in gems and jewellery and the strong rise in textiles. However, some details are inaccurate: engineered goods rose from about $57 billion to $62 billion, not from $55 billion to $61 billion, and the table gives the 3% increase for petroleum products, not “in both years.” The overview also misidentifies the leading and lowest earners: petroleum products were highest in both years, while textiles were lowest in 2015; agricultural products were not among the least-valued categories. The overview should clearly summarise the main pattern, including that most categories increased while gems declined, and distinguish value from percentage change.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, a paragraph describing chart figures, a paragraph on the table, and a concluding overview. This gives the reader a coherent overall arrangement. However, progression is weakened by unclear or mechanical links such as “Moreover,” “At last,” and “Overall,” and some references are difficult to follow—for example, “the proportion of engineered goods and textiles accounted for highest range” does not clearly state that these are percentage increases. The final overview also introduces a comparison that conflicts with the figures already reported. Grouping the largest earners together, then the lower-value categories, and using precise links between chart values and table percentages would make the organisation clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt a range of formal vocabulary, including “delineates,” “fluctuation,” “stagnant,” and “dramatic incline,” but several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for describing a chart. “Elaborates the estimation earnings” and “percentage varies” obscure the intended meaning, while “profits earned” is less suitable than “export earnings.” There are also spelling errors, including “resonable” and “pertroleum.” These issues make some comparisons harder to interpret, despite the reader generally understanding the categories and trends. Prefer precise, conventional chart language such as “shows,” “export value,” “rose,” “fell,” and “remained stable,” and check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including comparisons with “while” and “whereas,” but control is inconsistent. Several sentences contain faulty clause construction: “The valuation of petroleum earnings was approximately 60 billion dollars in 2015, we observed…” joins two independent clauses with only a comma. Verb forms and agreement are also problematic in “we demonstrated a slightly declined” and “we can clearly noted,” while “Agricultural products depict stagnant growth among the years” has an unclear grammatical pattern. These errors sometimes make relationships between figures difficult to follow. Build sentences around a clear subject and verb—for example, “Petroleum earnings rose from about $60 billion to $63 billion”—and check tense consistency, articles, and sentence boundaries.

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.