Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-03
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 6.5)
The two pie charts illustrate 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.
Overall, the percentage of students speaking only English increased over the years. In contrast, the share of graduates speaking one more language and two other language increased slightly in 2010, while the proportion of individuals speaking Spanish and French decreased over the same period.
In 2000, students spoke only English language accounted for 30%, which increased significantly to 35% in 2010. Additionally, individuals knew French only along with English represented 15% in 2000. This figure decreased to just 10% in 2010. Moreover, the students spoke German language apart from English reported only 10% in 2000, which remained stable in 2010.
On the other hand, bachelors who able to speak Spanish language along with English accounted for 20%, which stood at just 10% by the end of 2010. In addition, the students knew another language represented 15% in 2000. This share rose to 20% in 2010. Furthermore, 10% of the total graduates were able to speak two other languages along with English, before increasing considerably to 15% in 2010.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0
The response covers all parts of the prompt well, providing a clear overview and effectively selecting and reporting the main features of the two pie charts. Key trends, such as the increase in students speaking no other language and the shifts in specific language percentages between 2000 and 2010, are accurately cited from the visual data. The comparisons made are relevant and supported by specific data points, such as the rise in 'No Other Language' from 30% to 35% and the drop in French only from 15% to 10%. However, there is a minor contradiction in the overview where it states that the share of graduates speaking 'one more language' increased, while the individual breakdown correctly notes decreases in Spanish and French; this minor inconsistency prevents the score from reaching a higher band.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5
The response has a clear overall arrangement and logical progression, moving from an introductory statement to an overview, and then into detailed body paragraphs for each year and category. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate ideas. Cohesive devices are used to link information, such as 'Overall', 'In contrast', 'Additionally', and 'On the other hand'. However, referencing and cohesion occasionally feel slightly mechanical rather than entirely smooth, reflecting the characteristics of a solid intermediate performance that bridges into higher organizational skills.
Lexical Resource: Band 6.0
The vocabulary used is adequate and generally appropriate for the task, successfully conveying statistical information using terms like 'proportions', 'percentage', 'share', and 'remained stable'. The student attempts less common vocabulary such as 'considerably', 'graduates', and 'bachelors', though some word choices and collocations are slightly unnatural or inaccurate, such as using 'bachelors' to refer to university students generally. Spelling is generally accurate, and vocabulary errors do not impede communication, meeting the requirements of an adequate lexical range.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0
The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and subordinate structures successfully, such as 'who were able to speak other languages' and 'which increased significantly'. There are some grammatical errors, particularly with missing or awkward parts of speech in phrases like 'students spoke only English language' instead of 'students who spoke only English' or 'students speaking only English'. Punctuation and verb tense control are generally maintained across past reference timeframes, but recurring structural slips keep the grammatical accuracy at a middle tier.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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