Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-24
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)
Those two pie charts illustrate a comparison between the proportions of british students who had the ability to communicate by more than english in 2000 and 2010.
Overall , the proportions of students show a wide range of languages including: french, german, spanish and other unknown languages. Furthermore, we notice changes in proportions of languages in 2010 compared to 2000 while the biggest part belongs to no other language in the same compared year .
In 2000, we notice that the biggest proportion goes to people who don't speak other language by 30% , afterwards, there is spanish with the 2nd best proportion by 20% , we notice that the 3rd best proportion goes to french and another language with 15% each and finally the last proportion goes to the bilingual students with one-fifth proportion .
On the other hand , french speaking student had decreased in 2010 leaving the best proportion that is reserved for no other language unchanged with a slight increasing by 5% , afterwards, there is another language that reserves the 2nd best proportion with 20% followed with bilingual peoples with 15 % increasing slighly to its last value ,while spanish , french and german speaking students have the same proportions with 10%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the charts, but the analysis is somewhat inconsistent. While you identify the key categories, the description of the data is occasionally confusing, particularly when comparing the two years. For example, stating that 'no other language' remained 'unchanged' while also noting a 'slight increasing' is contradictory. Furthermore, the term 'bilingual students' is used to describe a category that is not clearly defined in the prompt, leading to potential misinterpretation of the data. To improve, ensure that your comparisons are mathematically accurate and that you clearly distinguish between the categories provided in the charts rather than introducing ambiguous labels.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'afterwards, there is' and 'the 2nd best proportion'. The logical progression between sentences is sometimes hindered by these repetitive structures. While the overall arrangement is coherent, the flow could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words and ensuring that referencing (e.g., 'the same compared year') is precise and clear. The transition between the 2000 data and the 2010 data is functional but lacks sophistication.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks precision. You rely on repetitive phrases like 'best proportion' and 'the 3rd best proportion', which are not standard ways to describe statistical data. There are also some awkward collocations, such as 'bilingual peoples' and 'one-fifth proportion'. While the meaning is generally clear, the range of vocabulary is limited, and there is little evidence of less common lexical items or sophisticated phrasing. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise statistical terminology such as 'the largest share', 'a significant minority', or 'remained stable'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Issues include incorrect article usage ('the 2nd best proportion'), subject-verb agreement ('french speaking student had decreased'), and awkward phrasing ('by more than english'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with unnecessary spaces before commas. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to distract the reader. To improve, focus on mastering basic sentence construction and proofreading for common errors like pluralisation and article placement.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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