Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-14
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The graph below shows average carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per person in the United Kingdom, Sweden, Italy and Portugal between 1967 and 2007.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The average carbon dioxide emission from 1967 to 2007 in the United kingdom, Sweden, Italy, and Portugal per individual has mentioned in the given line graph, measured in metric tonnes.
Overall, it can be observed that the UK shows slow declining pattern for contributing in the emission throughout the years whereas Sweden illustrates dramatic downward trend. By contrast, Italy and Portugal both presents steady rise over the period of time.
In 1967, approximately 11 metric tonne CO2 produced by the UK per person while it started to fell down and recorded at 10 metric tonne in the year 1987. The carbon dioxide level accounted for about 8.5 metric tonne in the last year. On analysing the data, Portugal constituted for around 8.5 metric tonne emission in 1967. After that, it surged to nearly 10.5 metric tonne before declining for upcoming years. The emission of carbon dioxide noticed closed to 5.5 metric tonne in 2007 through the Sweden and Portugal both. In contrast, around 4.1 metric tonne emission was released by Italy in the year 1967. It gradually increased, reached by nearly 7 metric tonne and very close to 8 metric tonne in 1987 and 2007 respectively. Similarly, Portugal contributed at about 1 metric tonne in 1967 and around 3 metric tonne in 1987 which was the lowest figures compared to other countries.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers all requirements of the task by identifying the main trends and making relevant comparisons. You successfully highlighted the contrasting patterns between the UK/Sweden (declining) and Italy/Portugal (increasing). However, there are some inaccuracies in the data reporting. For instance, you stated that Portugal started at 1 metric tonne in 1967, whereas the graph shows it was closer to 1.5, and your description of the 2007 figures for Sweden and Portugal is confusingly phrased. To reach a higher band, ensure that data points are extracted with greater precision and that comparisons between countries are clearly articulated without ambiguity.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction and an overview. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'By contrast', and 'Similarly' are used to guide the reader. However, the progression within the body paragraphs is occasionally hindered by awkward phrasing, such as 'On analysing the data, Portugal constituted for around 8.5 metric tonne'. The referencing is sometimes unclear, particularly when discussing multiple countries in the same sentence. Improving the flow between sentences and ensuring that pronouns or linking words clearly refer to the intended subject would enhance the overall coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'declining pattern', 'dramatic downward trend', and 'surged'. However, there are several instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'contributing in the emission' instead of 'contributing to emissions' and 'reached by nearly 7 metric tonne'. Additionally, there is some repetition of 'metric tonne' and 'emission'. To improve, focus on using more varied reporting verbs and ensuring that collocations are natural. Expanding your range of synonyms for 'increase' and 'decrease' would also be beneficial.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement and preposition usage (e.g., 'Portugal constituted for', 'fell down and recorded at'). There are also issues with pluralization, such as '11 metric tonne' instead of 'tonnes'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on consistent verb tense usage and ensuring nouns are correctly pluralized after numbers will help improve your accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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