Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)
The line graph illustrates the individual's average footprints of carbon dioxide (CO2) across four different european countries namely; United Kingdom, Sweden, Italy and Portugal over a period of forty-year from 1967.
Overall, carbon emission decreased significantly in the Sweden, whereas approximately an equivalent emission increased in Portugal. A minimal decrease in United Kingdom is observed.
On the one hand , Both UK and Sweden has reduced their carbon emission in these four decades. Sweden surged in the first decade, but then hit down to 5 metric tonnes in 2007. UK minimised its carbon emission by 2 metric tonnes per person from almost 11 to 9 in these forty years.
On the other hand, Italy and Portugal had increased their carbon emission significantly. Italy soared from 4 to almost 8 metric tonnes per person, while the major emitter individuals belong to Portugal % metric tonnes per person is a dramtic change
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The student covers all four countries and provides an overview, identifying the main general trends such as the decrease in the UK and Sweden and the increase in Italy and Portugal. However, there are some inaccuracies in reporting specific data points and minor misinterpretations of the visual data. For instance, the student states that carbon emissions decreased significantly in 'the Sweden', whereas Sweden started at 8.6, peaked around 10.3, and ended at 5.4. Additionally, the final sentence contains a fragmented and garbled expression ('Portugal % metric tonnes per person is a dramtic change'). Despite these lapses, the key features are selected and an overall picture is successfully presented, placing the response solidly within Band 6.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The response is structured into four paragraphs, including an introduction, an overall summary, and two body paragraphs comparing the countries. There is a logical overall arrangement, although the progression is occasionally disrupted by awkward transitions and referencing issues, such as 'On the one hand' followed awkwardly by 'On the other hand' without a clear contrasting dichotomy between the two paired groups. Cohesive devices are attempted, but mechanical linking and punctuation errors (e.g., unnecessary spaces before commas) detract from the flow. Paragraphing is present and serves to separate the ideas, satisfying the criteria for Band 6.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student attempts a range of vocabulary relevant to the task, including terms like 'carbon emission', 'metric tonnes', and 'surged'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'individual's average footprints of carbon dioxide', 'hit down to 5 metric tonnes', and punctuation/spelling slips like 'european' and 'dramtic'. The phrase '% metric tonnes' appears to be a typographical or transcription error that impedes clear comprehension in the final sentence. Because the vocabulary is adequate to convey the general message despite these inaccuracies, a score of 5.5 is appropriate.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as relative clauses and subordinate structures ('while the major emitter individuals belong to...'). However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are issues with subject-verb agreement ('Both UK and Sweden has reduced'), missing articles ('in the Sweden'), and fragmented or ungrammatical clauses ('while the major emitter individuals belong to Portugal % metric tonnes per person is a dramtic change'). While these errors do not completely obscure the meaning, they are frequent enough to prevent the response from reaching Band 6, placing it firmly at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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