Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-08

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 5.0)

The line graph compares the amount of carbon dioxide emissions per individuals in four countries from 1967 to 2007.

Overall, co2 emissions per person in Italy and Portugal followed an upward trend over the peroid of time whereas, Sweden and United kingdom followed an downward trend. Hower, united kingdom figures remained highest throughout the give time.

In 1967, the portugal average emissions per is person is just above 1% and gradually increased to 2% and around 3% in 1977 and 1987 respectively. Moreover, sharply rised to approxmetly to 6% in 1997 and subsequently remained unchanged at this level until 2019.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You identify the graph’s subject and give a relevant overview: Italy and Portugal rise, while Sweden and the UK decline, with the UK remaining highest. However, the report covers only part of the data. The detail paragraph discusses Portugal alone, and its figures are inaccurate: the graph shows about 5.2 tonnes in 1997 and 5.4 in 2007, not around 6 and unchanged until 2019. The response also omits the important patterns for the UK, Sweden and Italy. The required minimum of 150 words is not met, which contributes to the limited coverage. To develop the response, report the main changes and comparisons for all four countries, using accurate years and approximate values.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and a detail paragraph. The overview usefully groups the countries by direction of change, and linking words such as “Overall,” “Moreover” and “subsequently” help signal relationships. However, the progression is incomplete because the final paragraph focuses only on Portugal and does not move through the other key series or compare them. Some linking is also awkward or unnecessary, as in “Moreover, sharply rised,” which leaves the relationship between the figures unclear. Organise the details into a fuller sequence—for example, compare the UK and Sweden, then Italy and Portugal—and use clear references to years and countries so the reader can follow each trend.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant topic vocabulary, including “line graph,” “emissions,” “upward trend” and “remained highest,” so the main subject is generally understandable. There is some variation in how you describe change, such as “increased” and “rised,” but several spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision: “pero id,” “Hower,” “approxmetly,” and “per individuals.” The use of “%” is also inappropriate because the graph reports metric tonnes, not percentages. “Amount” is less precise for emissions than “level” or “quantity.” Aim for accurate, natural collocations such as “emissions per person,” “rose sharply,” and “approximately 5 tonnes,” and check spelling and units carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including the overview sentence beginning “Overall” and the sequence describing Portugal’s changes. The main ideas can usually be understood, but errors in sentence construction and grammatical forms are evident. For example, “whereas, Sweden and United kingdom followed an downward trend” has faulty punctuation, article use and agreement, while “the portugal average emissions per is person is” contains a confused noun phrase and verb pattern. The final sentence also combines several time references without a clear grammatical structure. Practise forming accurate comparisons and past-tense descriptions, such as “Portugal’s emissions rose from just over one tonne in 1967 to about five tonnes in 2007.” Use consistent capitalisation and punctuation to make sentence boundaries clear.

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