Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-11

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 provided graph demonstrates the mean of carbon dioxide emitted per a single individual across four Countries---United Kingdom, Sweden, Italy, and Portugal between 1967 and 2007.

Overall, the United Kingdom experienced a long-term marginal decline across the years but still peaked in 2007, whereas, Sweden significantly increased before dropping sharply then marginally. Italy and Portugal both maintained a long-term upward trend during this periods.

In 1967, the average emission of CO2 person was around 12 metric tonnes, consistently maintained a marginal decrease across the years and is at approximately 9 metric tonnes in 2007. Sweden began at around 9 metric tonnes, inceased steadily up until 1977 before dropping sharply to about 7 metric tonnes in 1987.

on the other hand, in 1967, Italy started at slightly above 4 metric tonnes per individual, experienced a sharp upward trend up till 1977 then maintained a gradual growth till 199 and finally stayed consistent throughout. Portugal reported around 1 metric tonnes per person in 1967 but experienced a rise all through to 1997 before slightly changing to marginal growth.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the four countries and give a broad overview: the UK declines, Sweden rises and then falls, and Italy and Portugal increase. However, some key details are inaccurate or unclear. The UK did not peak in 2007; it had its highest figure at the start, then fell to about 8.7 tonnes. Italy rose to around 7.6 by 1997 and then levelled off, but “199” is incomplete and the final period is not clearly reported. Portugal continued rising to about 5.4 in 2007, rather than merely showing “marginal growth.” The overview also omits the useful comparison that the UK remained highest while Portugal began lowest. Select and report the main trends more precisely, with a few accurate comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview and paragraphs describing the data. This helps the reader follow the general purpose of the report. However, progression is uneven: the second body paragraph discusses the UK and Sweden, while the final paragraph shifts to Italy and Portugal but leaves several trends unfinished. Linking phrases such as “Overall” and “on the other hand” are used, but the latter does not express a clear contrast between the two rising countries, and the lowercase opening after a paragraph break disrupts presentation. Grouping the countries by trend or describing each series consistently from beginning to end would make the organisation clearer. Use linking expressions only where they accurately show the relationship between the information.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of vocabulary for describing a line graph, including “long-term,” “decline,” “upward trend,” “dropping sharply” and “maintained.” These choices communicate the broad movements and show some variety beyond basic terms. Some expressions are inaccurate or awkward for this task, however: “peaked in 2007” misrepresents the UK data, while “marginal growth” and “slightly changing to marginal growth” are unclear descriptions of Portugal’s continued rise. “Mean of carbon dioxide emitted per a single individual” is also unnecessarily wordy, and “Countries” is incorrectly capitalised mid-sentence. Aim for precise graph language and natural collocations, such as “average emissions per person,” “rose steadily,” and “levelled off.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including the overview sentence contrasting the countries’ trends. However, complex structures are often not controlled accurately, and errors sometimes make the timeline difficult to follow. For example, “In 1967, the average emission … was around 12 metric tonnes, consistently maintained…” joins a complete clause to an incomplete description; “Sweden … inceased steadily” also lacks a clear grammatical link to the following time phrase. Tense and agreement are inconsistent in “the United Kingdom experienced … but still peaked” and “Italy and Portugal … during this periods.” There are also sentence-boundary and punctuation problems, including the lowercase “on the other hand” and the unfinished “199.” Build shorter, complete sentences first, then add subordinate clauses with clear subjects and verbs.

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