Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-19
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 information provided in line graph illustrates the emissions of average carbon dioxide (CO2) per person in four different countries the United Kingdom, Portugal, Italy, and Sweden, throughout the past 60 years from 1967 to 2007.
Overall, it is clear that the United Kingdom is the highest rate of carbon dioxide emission rate in the initial stage, while Portugal is showing themselves is a low rate as compare to Italy and Sweden.
In 1967, the United Kingdom was significantly high emission rate up-to 11 tonnes, but in the later time it was gradually decline. While the Portugal is showcasing moderately low rate at 1 metric tonnes in their starting point, but dramatically rose over the following decades. Moreover, Italy and Sweden also have dominant carbon dioxide emission rate per person, for each it was 5 and 12 metric tonnes.
In 2007, The trends has completely changed, Sweden and United Kingdom was substantially felling down their emission rate at 5 and 9, while Italy and Portugal was significantly rose the carbon dioxide emission rate up-to 7 and 5. But the United Kingdom is steel remain the highest emission rate as compare to the other countries.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the graph, identifying the trends for all four countries. However, there are significant inaccuracies in the data reporting. For example, you state the UK was at 11 tonnes in 1967, which is correct, but then claim it fell to 9 in 2007, while the graph shows it closer to 8. Furthermore, you state Sweden was at 12 tonnes in 1967, but the graph shows it significantly lower than the UK. These data misinterpretations prevent a higher score. While the overview is present, the lack of precision in reporting the figures hinders the clarity of the summary.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. Cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'While', and 'In 2007' are used to link ideas. However, the progression of ideas is sometimes mechanical, and there are issues with referencing. For instance, the phrase 'showing themselves is a low rate' is awkward and disrupts the flow. The use of paragraphing is appropriate, but the internal cohesion within sentences is occasionally strained by grammatical errors, making the text feel slightly disjointed in places.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'significantly', 'gradually decline', and 'dramatically rose'. However, there are frequent errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'United Kingdom is the highest rate' (instead of 'has the highest rate') and 'substantially felling down' (instead of 'falling'). The phrase 'steel remain' is a spelling error for 'still'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the general meaning, the inaccuracies in word form and collocation limit the score to the 5.5–6.0 range.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('Sweden and United Kingdom was substantially felling') and incorrect verb tenses ('The trends has completely changed'). Punctuation is generally functional, but the misuse of articles and prepositions is common. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher band score. You should focus on ensuring that subjects and verbs agree and that verb tenses are used consistently when describing past trends.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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