Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-04

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The table below shows the numbers of visitors to Ashdown Museum during the year before and the year after it was refurbished. The charts show the result of surveys asking visitors how satisfied they were with their visit, during the same two periods.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The table compares the number of visitors to Ashdown Museum before and after the refurbishment while the pie chart alongside represents the surveys of satisfaction of visitors during the same time.

Overall, the total visitors to Ashdown Museum has significantly increased after it was refurbished. However, the visitors voting for dissatisfaction has gone down sharply.

Talking about the visitors to Ashdown Museum, the refurbishment played huge role in the total visits. The increment in number of visitors clearly shows positive signs about the improvements carried out there.

The proportion of people being very satisfied with the place has increased at an accelerating rate and a slight increment in satisfied visitors as well and the rate of dissatisfied visitors has declined rapidly. which is a positive sign. Along with it, very dissatisfied visitors ratio has also declined marginally. There has been no change to the ratio of visitors having no response at all.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response attempts to address the prompt by reporting the main features of the table and charts, noting the rise in visitor numbers from 74,000 to 92,000 and mentioning the shift in satisfaction ratings. However, the details remain somewhat limited and under-developed. For instance, the student states that the proportion of very satisfied visitors increased significantly, but fails to incorporate key specific data points or accurate percentages from the visual data. The overview provides a general summary, but the development of ideas lacks precision. To reach a higher level, the response should systematically select and report precise data figures, such as exact visitor numbers and comparative percentages, and provide a more fully extended analysis of all significant trends shown in the charts rather than relying on vague generalisations.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays some overall organisation, attempting to group ideas into an introduction, an overview, and separate body paragraphs for the table and charts. However, there is a lack of clear overall progression between sentences and paragraphs, making the logical flow feel disjointed. Cohesive devices are used minimally and at times inaccurately, such as starting a sentence with a dangling fragment: 'which is a positive sign.' Additionally, paragraphing is somewhat irregular, with very short, fragmented paragraphs that hinder the flow of ideas. To improve coherence and cohesion, the student should ensure that each paragraph develops a clear central topic with appropriate cohesive links, avoiding sentence fragments and ensuring smoother transitions between the numerical data and the survey findings.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The lexical range is limited but minimally adequate for the task, successfully communicating basic concepts using vocabulary such as 'refurbished,' 'significantly increased,' and 'proportion.' However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation issues, such as 'the total visitors... has significantly increased' instead of 'the total number of visitors' and 'visitors voting for dissatisfaction' rather than 'visitors reporting dissatisfaction' or 'dissatisfied respondents.' There are also awkward phrasings like 'played huge role' which lack the necessary article. To achieve a higher score, the student needs to incorporate a wider and more precise range of vocabulary related to data reporting (such as 'surge,' 'proportion,' or 'considerable rise') and ensure correct word formation and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response shows a limited range of sentence structures, with frequent reliance on simple or faulty complex constructions. There are several grammatical errors that cause difficulty or require rereading, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('the total visitors... has' instead of 'have'), missing articles ('played huge role'), and punctuation errors like fragmenting a dependent clause with a full stop ('...declined rapidly. which is a positive sign.'). Attempts at complex structures often result in grammatical slips. To improve in this area, the student must exercise better control over basic grammatical boundaries, articles, and subject-verb agreement while incorporating a greater variety of error-free complex sentence forms to describe statistical trends accurately.

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.