Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-17

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 provided graph illustrates the changing trend of the emission of carbon dioxide(CO2) per person in foure different countries United Kingdom, Swwden, italy and portugal over the duration of 40 years from 1967 to 2007, in the measuring unit of CO2 emission in metric tonnes per person. Overall, it could be observed the emission of carbon dioxide in Portugal and Italy increased moderately as compared with sweden. which fell down sharply, while emission of gas decreased slightly in United kingdom.

In 1967, the UK discharged around 11 tonnes of CO2 per person, which gradually declined after 1977 to around 9 tonnes in 2007. Sweden, which started at 8.5 tonnes in the beginning and reached the highest with over 10 tonnes in 1977, then experienced a sharp decline to approximately 5.5 tonnes in the last year.

Italy and Portugal, however, followed an upward trend in CO2 emissions. Italy's discharges rose steadily from just over 4 tonnes in 1967 to nearly 8 tonnes by the end of the period. Portugal, which started with the lowest emissions at about 1.5 tonnes, saw the most dramatic increase, reaching nearly 6 tonnes in 2007. Notably, by 2007, Portugal ended at the same level as Swede

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main overall patterns: emissions fall in the UK and Sweden, while Italy and Portugal rise. The key comparisons are mostly accurate, including Sweden’s peak in 1977 and Portugal’s lowest starting point. You also report useful approximate figures across the period. However, the overview says Italy and Portugal increased “moderately,” which understates Italy’s rise, and the final comparison is cut off at “same level as Swede”; it should clearly state that Portugal and Sweden were both about 5.4 tonnes in 2007. The response covers the task, but some features are less fully or clearly reported than others. A complete final sentence and a more precise overview would strengthen the summary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction and overview are followed by paragraphs describing the declining and rising series. This grouping helps the reader compare the countries, and transitions such as “however” and “Notably” signal relationships between points. The progression is generally logical, but the overview’s sentence break after “sweden.” interrupts the flow, and the final sentence ends abruptly, leaving its comparison incomplete. Some linking is also a little mechanical, particularly the repeated use of “which” to add information about each country. To improve, ensure each sentence is complete and use clearer links between the overview and the detailed comparisons; the paragraph structure is already a useful foundation.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a reasonable range of topic vocabulary, including “emissions,” “declined,” “upward trend,” and “dramatic increase,” so the main trends are understandable. However, several spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision: “foure,” “Swwden,” “Swede,” and inconsistent capitalisation of country names are noticeable. Some expressions are also unnatural or imprecise for describing a graph, such as “discharged” and “reached the highest,” while “emission of gas” is less specific than “CO2 emissions.” These issues fit a developing but limited level of control: meaning is usually recoverable, though the errors distract. Aim for standard graph-reporting collocations and proofread names and key terms carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex structures, including relative clauses (“which gradually declined”) and contrastive sentences (“Italy and Portugal, however…”). Most of the trends remain understandable, but some grammatical errors and punctuation problems are evident. For example, “Overall, it could be observed the emission…” is missing “that,” and “which fell down sharply” is separated from the preceding sentence by an incorrect full stop. The opening sentence also lacks clear punctuation between the country list and the time period. The final sentence is incomplete, so its comparison cannot be fully understood. Work on complete clause structure, sentence boundaries, and consistent punctuation while retaining the complex forms you are attempting.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.