Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-14

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 6.5)

The line graph illustrates and compares per individual carbon emissions among four different world populations i.e british, swedish, italian and portuguese, from 1967 to 2007. The units used are metric tones.

In general, there had been variation in carbon footprint among all four countries but Britain remained highest on the graph while Sweden showed an initial increase before the levels finally went down. Italy and Portugal somehow remained steady in the later years.

UK has highest CO2 releases in 1967 which remained steady uptil late 70's to early 80's before going down to a level somewhere around 8 metric tones. Surprisingly, Sweden showed a sharp increase in gas emissions reaching somwhere close to 10 from 1967 till 1977, before a drastic decline in 1987 until it got gradual in the following years. While Italy and Portugal were among the lowest nations in gas releases in 1967, former standing somewhere close to 2 units while the later close to 4 units but they showed an upward yet gradual rise until they become steady from late 90's onwards.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main overall pattern: the UK remains the highest emitter, Sweden rises and then falls, and Italy and Portugal increase. This gives the response a relevant overview, and the comparison between the countries is clear in broad terms. However, some details are inaccurate or too general. Italy and Portugal were the two lowest in 1967, but their figures are reversed: Italy was about 4.3 tonnes and Portugal about 1.2, not the other way around. The claim that both became steady from the late 1990s also overlooks Portugal’s continued rise to about 5.4 by 2007; Italy, by contrast, levelled off. More precise reporting of these contrasting endpoints and trends would make the account more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and a paragraph describing the country trends. Linking expressions such as “In general,” “before,” and “While” help show contrast and sequence, so the reader can follow the main points. The progression is not fully controlled, however. The final sentence combines the countries’ low starting positions with their later trends, and “former” and “later” make the reversed figures harder to notice. Some transitions, such as “Surprisingly,” add a reaction rather than a useful comparison. Separate the Italy and Portugal trends, and use clear country names and time markers to make the relationships between details more precise.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of topic vocabulary, including “carbon footprint,” “emissions,” “sharp increase,” and “gradual rise.” These choices communicate the subject and show attempts to vary wording. Some expressions are imprecise or informal for an academic graph summary: “world populations” does not accurately describe the four countries, “gas releases” is vague, and “somehow remained steady” sounds conversational. There are also spelling errors in “tones,” “somwhere,” and “uptil,” and “metric tonnes” is the appropriate unit spelling. Aim for consistent, precise terms such as “per-capita emissions” and “emissions per person,” and avoid substituting several loosely related phrases for CO₂ emissions.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including a subordinate clause in “before a drastic decline in 1987” and a contrast structure beginning “While Italy and Portugal…”. The main meaning is generally understandable, but some grammatical choices reduce precision. “There had been variation” uses an awkward tense for describing a graph covering a completed period; “Britain remained highest” needs an article or a more complete construction; and “until they become steady” shifts tense within a past-time account. The final sentence also has an unclear “former…later” reference, which affects grammatical clarity. Use the past simple consistently for the period and check articles, agreement, and tense when joining clauses.

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