Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-19

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 given line chart illustrates the information amount of carbon dioxide emissions per person in four different countries from 1967 to 2007.

Overall, United Kingdom and Sweden experienced a downward trend whereas Italy and protugal showed an upward trend over the period. Furthermore, United Kingdom had the highest figure but portugal recorded the lowest of the period.

Looking at the decreasing figure in more details, in 1967, the CO2 emission in United Kingdom was over 10 metric tonnes. Gradually it decreased to just over 8 metric tonnes. which was the highest value among all countries of the period. Similarly, Sweden ranked second position of carbon emission in 1967. The value of carbon emission over 8 metric tonnes in the beginning. This figure incerased steadly to just over 10 metric tonnes in 1977 and experienced a significant fall to below 8 metric tonnes by 1987. Again, it decreased gradually and the value was under 6 metric tonnes in 2007.

Turning to the increasing figure, in 1967, Italy had 4 metric tonnes carbon emission. It increased gradually and reached a peak to nearly 8 metric tonnes by 2007. Simillarly, portrugal recorded nearly 2 metric tonnes in 1967 and gradually rose to near 6 metric tonnes by 2007.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main overall contrast accurately: emissions fell in the UK and Sweden, while they rose in Italy and Portugal. You also note that the UK remained highest and Portugal began lowest, and most reported figures and trends match the graph. This covers the task well, with a clear overview and relevant supporting details. To make the account more complete, develop the comparisons between countries at the end: Italy reached about 7.6 tonnes by 1997 and then levelled off, while Portugal continued rising to roughly 5.4 tonnes, almost matching Sweden. The claim that Portugal recorded the lowest figure “of the period” is imprecise, since it was lowest at the start, not throughout; by 2007 it was level with Sweden. These omissions and imprecisions limit the overview’s precision.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for declining and rising trends. This makes the main grouping easy to follow, and transitions such as “Looking at” and “Turning to” help signal the shift in focus. The progression is generally logical, but some linking and referencing are mechanical or unclear. For example, “This figure” follows several possible values in the Sweden discussion, and “Similarly” is used to introduce Portugal even though its trend differs substantially from Italy’s in scale. The sentence beginning “which was the highest value” is also detached from the preceding sentence. Connect that comparison directly and use more precise references and transitions to make the flow smoother.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “downward trend,” “significant fall,” “gradually,” and “metric tonnes,” so the reader can understand the main patterns. However, the range and control are uneven, with repeated reliance on “figure,” “value,” and “carbon emission,” and several inaccurate or misspelled forms. “Information amount” is an unnatural way to describe what the chart presents, while “reached a peak to” is an incorrect collocation. Spelling errors such as “protugal,” “incerased,” “steadly,” and “Simillarly” are noticeable. More precise terms for emissions and changes, alongside careful proofreading, would make the description more fluent and exact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more developed sentence forms, including contrastive clauses such as “whereas Italy and protugal showed an upward trend.” The overall meaning is usually clear, but errors in sentence boundaries, articles, and clause construction remain noticeable. For example, “which was the highest value among all countries of the period” is a fragment after a full stop, and “United Kingdom had the highest figure” needs an article before the country name. The phrase “Italy had 4 metric tonnes carbon emission” also lacks a grammatical link between the measurement and the noun phrase. Use complete sentences, check articles and prepositions, and vary structures while keeping each clause controlled.

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