Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The charts below show the proportions of British students at one university in England who were able to speak other languages in addition to English, in 2000 and 2010

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The pie charts visual the percentage of British students in England at a certaain university who were able to communicate with other language rather than English.

Overall, it's noticable that the majority were only speaking English and have no second language. In addition, the majority of proportions increased by 5% (only English, only French, two other languages, and another language), whereas Spanish speakers dropped roughly by 10% from 20% to only 10%, and German speakers percentage remains the same.

According to the chart, In 2000, Spanish were the 2nd spoken language compared to others, after English, it was spoken by 20%. However, German language is the least spoken language so far compared to French, Spanish and English.

In terms of 2010 chart, Students who speak only English still the highest percentage by 35%, Whereas German still steady as 10%. even thogh that Spanish was the highest language, it dropped roughly at 2010 to 10%.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several important features, including the rise in students reporting no other language (30% to 35%), the fall in Spanish (20% to 10%), and the unchanged German figure (10%). However, the overview is partly inaccurate: “the majority were only speaking English” is not supported, since this group is 30% in 2000 and 35% in 2010, not a majority. The claim that French increased is also incorrect; French fell from 15% to 10%. Your account gives limited coverage to the other-language and two-other-languages categories, and the comparisons are not consistently precise. A clearer overview and accurate reporting of the main categories would make the response more complete and better supported.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic structure, with an opening, an overview, and separate comments on 2000 and 2010. This gives the reader some sense of organisation. However, progression is uneven: the overview lists several changes, while the later paragraphs repeat or confuse points, such as saying Spanish was “the highest language” in 2010 after noting its decline. Linking words such as “Overall,” “According to,” and “In terms of” are used, but connections between ideas are sometimes mechanical or unclear. Grouping the categories by whether they rose, fell, or stayed stable would create a more logical comparison, and clearer references would reduce repetition.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “percentage,” “dropped,” “remains the same,” and “least spoken,” so the main topic is generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, including “visual the percentage,” “other language,” and “German speakers percentage.” “Only English” is also an imprecise label for the chart category “No other language.” Spelling errors such as “certaain,” “noticable,” and “thogh” are noticeable and weaken the overall control. Aim for accurate chart-reporting phrases such as “accounted for,” “the proportion of students,” and “remained unchanged,” while checking spelling and using the category labels consistently.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a mixture of simple statements and longer sentences, including a contrast with “whereas” and a clause beginning “even though.” However, errors in sentence structure, agreement, articles, and punctuation are frequent enough to make some sentences difficult to follow. Examples include “Spanish were the 2nd spoken language,” “German language is the least spoken,” and “Students who speak only English still the highest percentage,” where the verb structure is incomplete or inaccurate. Capitalisation after commas is also inconsistent, as in “According to the chart, In 2000.” Build more reliable simple comparison sentences first, then add subordinate clauses; check subject–verb agreement and ensure each sentence has a complete main verb.

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

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