Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-18

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 6.0)

The line graph illustrates the average carbon dioxide emissions per person in the United Kingdom,Sweden,Italy and Portugal from 1967 to 2007. Carbon dioxide emissions measured in metric tonnes.

Overall, the United Kingdom showed the greatest carbon dioxide emissions over the period in metric tonnes as compared to other countries.Portugal and Italy increased gradually over the given period.Whereas, sweden showed fluctuations over the given years.

Portugal was at the lowest point as compared to other countries in the year 1967 around 1 metric tonnes which rose gradually to reach approximately 5 metric tonnes in 2007. Italy also climbed from almost 4 metric tonnes to 7 metric tonnes in the year 1967 and 2007 respectively.

However, Sweden was about 9 metric tonnes in 1967 which further increased to its peak point about 10 metric tonnes and further decreased dramatically over the next years from 1987 to 2007 and in 2007 was about half from its peak point. The United kingdom fall slightly from 11 metric tonnes in 1987 to 9 metric tonnes in 2007 approximately.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student covers all four countries and provides an overview of the main trends, satisfying the core requirements of Task 1. Key features such as Portugal's rise and Sweden's peak and subsequent drop are mentioned. However, there are some inaccuracies and omissions in the data reporting. For instance, the second sentence is an incomplete fragment ('Carbon dioxide emissions measured in metric tonnes.'), and the description of the United Kingdom contains vague or slightly inaccurate figures, stating it fell from 11 metric tonnes in 1987 (actual 1987 is around 10.1) to 9 metric tonnes in 2007 (actual 8.7). Furthermore, the overview could be more clearly structured. These minor omissions and data imprecisions place this response firmly at Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is arranged into four paragraphs, moving from an introduction and overview into specific body paragraphs detailing individual country trends. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Overall', 'Whereas', and 'However', though some transitions feel a bit mechanical or repetitive. Paragraphing is attempted appropriately, separating the overall summary from the detailed body points. However, referencing can sometimes be slightly disjointed, and the logical progression between sentences occasionally falters due to abrupt shifts in data points. Overall, the organization is coherent enough to follow without difficulty, matching the descriptor for Band 6.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student attempts some less common vocabulary and appropriate topic-specific language, such as 'carbon dioxide emissions', 'metric tonnes', 'fluctuations', 'peak point', and 'dramatically'. However, there are noticeable lexical errors and awkward word choices, such as 'greatest carbon dioxide emissions over the period in metric tonnes as compared to other countries' and grammatical collocation slips like '1 metric tonnes' (instead of '1 metric tonne'). Spelling is generally accurate, but the range of vocabulary is somewhat restricted for higher bands, making Band 6 an appropriate and fair score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and contrasting conjunctions like 'Whereas' and 'However'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors and punctuation oversights throughout the text. Examples include missing articles or pluralisation errors ('1 metric tonnes'), fragment sentences ('Carbon dioxide emissions measured in metric tonnes.'), and awkward phrasing like 'Italy also climbed from almost 4 metric tonnes to 7 metric tonnes in the year 1967 and 2007 respectively' (where the temporal mapping is slightly off). Despite these errors, communication is rarely impeded, warranting a Band 5.5 score.

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

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