Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-28

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 4.5)

The graph illustrates average gases emissions per head in the four countries between 1967 and 2007.

Overall, the most noticeable feature is that Italy showed upward trend, while Portugal also climbed, whereas others two rapidly declined.

In 1967, United kindom began with 11 metric tonnes and continuously decreased then reached roughly 9 tonnes, whereas Sweden initially approximately 9 matric tonnes after that it rose above 10 tonnes in 1977 then decreased 1987 to 2007 with 5 tonnes.

In 1967, Italy began from 4 matric tonnes and increased

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The response is severely under-length, containing only 87 words against the minimum requirement of 150 words. Because of this, the description of the visual data is heavily truncated. While the student attempts an overview and mentions some initial and final figures (e.g., noting that the UK began with 11 metric tonnes and decreased, while Italy and Portugal climbed), the response breaks off mid-sentence and fails to fully cover all countries or adequately develop comparisons across the entire period. In accordance with IELTS marking guidelines, this significant under-length impacts the task achievement score considerably, leading to a band 4.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The text attempts a logical structure with a brief introductory sentence and an overall overview. However, due to the incomplete nature of the response, paragraphs are fractured and cut off abruptly, particularly the final sentence which ends mid-thought ('In 1967, Italy began from 4 matric tonnes and increased'). Cohesive devices are basic ('whereas', 'then'), and referencing is sometimes unclear ('others two'). Because the piece is incomplete, overall progression is disrupted, resulting in a band 4.5.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The student demonstrates an adequate basic vocabulary for discussing data trends, utilising terms like 'illustrates', 'upward trend', and 'continuously decreased'. However, there are notable spelling errors and typos such as 'matric' instead of 'metric', 'kindom' instead of 'kingdom', and inaccurate collocation or phrasing such as 'gases emissions per head'. The lexical range is limited and repetitive due to the short length of the text, but the terms used are generally understandable. This performance aligns with band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures using conjunctions like 'whereas' and 'while'. However, control is inconsistent, and several structural errors occur, such as missing verbs and incomplete clauses (e.g., 'Sweden initially approximately 9 matric tonnes' and the trailing final sentence). Punctuation and articles are also occasionally mishandled. Because the text is extremely brief, it is difficult to fully assess grammatical range, but the frequency of errors in the generated sentences keeps the score at band 5.0.

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

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