Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-17

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 7.0)

The pie charts compare the proportions of British students at university in England who could speak other languages apart from English in 2000 and 2010.

Overall, Spanish was most popular in both periods, while the share of students who spoke no other language declined in 2010 by a margin of 10%. Speakers of two other languages and another language increased their share by 5% in 2010. German was the only language whose percentage remained constant in both eras.

In both periods, Spanish remained the highest, while there was a relative 5% increase in 2010, and it jumped from 30 to 35%. French and another language had the same position at the start of the 21st century, but at the end of the first decade, another language surpassed French with the difference of 10%. The contribution of multilingual students who spoke two languages rose significantly from 10 to 15%.

In contrast, the percentage of students who spoke no other language fell in the next ten years from 20 to 10%. The number of students speaking another language experienced an upward trend and showed a slight increase of 5% at the end of the decade. The proportion of German speakers remained stable in both periods.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response effectively identifies the main features and makes relevant comparisons between the two years. You have clearly highlighted the trends for Spanish, French, and the 'no other language' category. The overview is concise and captures the key shifts, such as the decline in students speaking no other language and the rise in multilingual students. However, the report could be improved by ensuring the data points are consistently accurate; for instance, you mention a 'relative 5% increase' for Spanish, but the jump from 30% to 35% is a 5 percentage point increase, which is a common distinction in data reporting. Overall, the task is well-addressed with a clear summary of the provided information.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs that group information effectively. You use cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'Overall', and 'In both periods' to guide the reader through the data. The progression of ideas is smooth, and each paragraph has a clear focus. To reach a higher band, ensure that the transition between sentences is more varied, as some structures feel slightly repetitive. The use of referencing is generally clear, and the paragraphing is appropriate for a report of this length.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the information clearly. Phrases like 'remained constant', 'surpassed', and 'upward trend' are used appropriately. There is some minor repetition of words like 'period' and 'share'. To improve, try to incorporate more precise academic collocations to describe data changes, such as 'a marginal decline' or 'a significant surge'. The vocabulary is accurate and allows for a natural flow, though it lacks the sophisticated, less common lexical items that would characterize a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.0

The response shows a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. You have maintained a high level of accuracy throughout the text, with very few grammatical errors. Examples such as 'The number of students speaking another language experienced an upward trend' are well-constructed. While the grammar is generally error-free, the range of complex structures is somewhat limited. To achieve a higher score, you could experiment with more varied subordinating conjunctions or passive voice constructions to describe the data, which would demonstrate greater flexibility in your grammatical control.

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.