Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-09

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 compares the average carbon dioxide emission from four different countries between 1967 to 2007.

Overall, United Kingdom stood at first place in all years for carbon dioxide emission per person. Where Sweden gradually decreased the emission over the period, but Italy and Portugal increased the through out the period. Measured in metric tonnes.

Looking at the detail, initially United Kingdom releases 11 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide in 1967 but it got dipped over the period and stood at nearly 8 metric tonnes in 2007. While Sweden released 8.5 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide in 1967 and increased to its peak, more than 10 metric tonnes in 1977 then gradually declined through out the years to 5.5 metric tonnes.

Meanwhile, Italy emits 4.3 metric tonnes of CO2 in 1967 and rose up to 7.8 metric tonnes in 2007. Portugal releases 1.5 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide in 1967 and raised to 5.5 metric tonnes.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main overall pattern: the UK remains the highest emitter, Sweden declines after its 1977 peak, and Italy and Portugal rise. Most figures you include are close to the chart, and the overview gives the reader a useful summary. However, some trends are reported less fully than others. Italy’s rise is described only from 1967 to 2007, so its increase to about 6.7 in 1987 and then to around 7.6 in 1997, where it levels off, is missed. Portugal’s steady rise is also not clearly traced across the period. The claim that the UK “stood at first place” is accurate, but the overview could compare the countries’ changing positions more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure, moving from an introduction and overview to details about the four countries. Paragraphing helps distinguish the summary from the figures, and linking expressions such as “Meanwhile” and “While” show an attempt to connect information. This meets the lower-band expectation of coherent overall arrangement and also shows some stronger progression. However, cohesion is occasionally mechanical or unclear: “Where Sweden gradually decreased…” is an awkward fragment, and “Measured in metric tonnes” is detached from the preceding sentence. The final paragraph groups Italy and Portugal but gives little comparison between them. Use complete sentences and clearer links to show how their trends relate.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “emission,” “metric tonnes,” “peak,” “declined,” and “increased,” and the meaning is generally clear. There is some variation in how you describe movement, rather than relying on a single verb throughout. However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural for describing a graph: “stood at first place” is less suitable than “had the highest emissions,” and “got dipped” is informal and awkward. “Raised” is also not the natural intransitive verb for Portugal’s figures, while “emits” and “releases” are repeated. More precise collocations and consistent use of “emissions” would make the account more fluent and accurate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses linked with “but,” “while,” and “then,” and the main comparisons remain understandable. Some sentences are controlled, such as the description of Sweden’s rise to a peak followed by a decline. However, errors in tense, sentence construction, and articles recur. For example, “between 1967 to 2007” uses the wrong preposition pattern, and “Where Sweden gradually decreased…” is not a complete sentence. The overview also shifts awkwardly between “stood” and “decreased,” while “Italy emits” does not match the past time period. Aim to use consistent past-tense forms and check that each sentence has a complete main clause.

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