Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-22

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 given graph depicts carbon dioxide emission per person in four different countries between the year 1967 and 2007. Details showed population of two countries increased emission average per person and the two countries decreased emission by 2007.

Portugal and Italy line graph showed steadily rose started from one metric tonne to near about 7 metric tonne respectively. Sweden and United Kingdom, both the countries reflected major downfall of carbon dioxide emissions per person from nearly 8.6 metric tonnes to 11 metric tonnes respectively.

Sweden country emissions per person rose in 1967 by 8 metric tonne to near about 11 in 1977 before declined rapidly to half of it in year 2007, whereas emission of United Kingdom kept declined from year 1967 to 2007.

Portugal and Italy showed almost parallel rose from year 1967 to 2007 with some fluctuation during the years from 1 metric tonne to little higher than 5 and from 4 metric tonnes to nearly 8 metric tonnes respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response provides a summary of the main trends, but the accuracy of the data reporting is inconsistent. For instance, you state the UK and Sweden reflected a 'major downfall' from 8.6 to 11 metric tonnes, which contradicts the graph where these figures represent the starting points rather than the end points. Additionally, the overview is slightly confusing, as it mentions two countries increased and two decreased, but the specific data points provided for Italy and Portugal are imprecise. To improve, ensure you carefully verify the figures against the graph and provide a clearer, more accurate overview of the overall trends.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which is a positive step. However, the logical progression is hindered by awkward phrasing and a lack of effective cohesive devices. Transitions between sentences are often mechanical or missing, making the flow feel disjointed. For example, the transition between the general overview and the specific country details is abrupt. Using a wider range of linking words (e.g., 'In contrast', 'Furthermore', 'Consequently') would help connect your ideas more fluidly and improve the overall structure of your report.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. You rely on repetitive phrasing such as 'metric tonne' and 'emissions per person'. There are also some word-choice errors, such as 'major downfall' (which is slightly unnatural in this context) and 'parallel rose' (which is grammatically incorrect). To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more varied verbs and nouns to describe trends, such as 'fluctuated', 'peaked', 'remained stable', or 'a gradual increase'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

There is a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but the accuracy is inconsistent. You frequently omit articles (e.g., 'Sweden country emissions') and struggle with verb tenses and subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'Details showed population... increased emission'). There are also issues with word order and preposition usage, such as 'rose started from' and 'declined from year 1967'. These errors occur frequently and occasionally make the meaning slightly difficult to follow, though they do not completely impede communication.

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

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