Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-28

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 compare the proportion of British learners at university in England who was skilled to speak languages in addition to English, in years 2000 and 2010.

Overall, no other languages dominates in both years. German stayed constant and least in both years. while the two other and another languages increased and French was combined with Spanish in chart because both ratio decreased.

To begin with, German speaking students stayed constant in both years by adding up 10% in total In addition, the majority of individuals who were not speaking any other languages accounted for 30% in 2000 which rose up to 35 in 2010.The Spanish alone was contributing 20% in 2000 which decreased down to 10% and 10% of French was combined with it in 2010 figure was 15% in 2000. However the two other and another languages both increased by 5% . Another languages stood at 15% in 2000 which rose to 20% in 2010 while students who was speaking two other languages increased to15% from 10%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main overall pattern: the share reporting no other language is largest in both years, while German remains unchanged and the two “other” categories rise. Most figures are reported accurately, including no other language (30% to 35%), Spanish (20% to 10%), and the increases in another language and two other languages. However, the overview is partly unclear: “French was combined with Spanish” incorrectly suggests the categories were merged, and the French figures are presented confusingly. French fell from 15% to 10%; it was not combined with Spanish. The claim that German was “least” is also inaccurate, since it tied with two other languages in 2000 and with French in 2010. Clarifying these points and comparing the categories more precisely would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview, and a paragraph giving details. This helps the reader follow the broad comparison, and phrases such as “In addition” and “However” show an attempt to connect information. However, progression within the detail paragraph is uneven: the discussion moves from German to no other language, then Spanish and French, before returning to the two rising categories. Some links are also unclear, especially “French was combined with Spanish” and “10% of French was combined with it.” Use a more systematic order—for example, first the categories that declined or stayed stable, then those that increased—and make each comparison explicit. This would improve the flow and reduce the need for the reader to infer relationships.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant chart vocabulary, including “proportion,” “accounted for,” “decreased,” and “increased,” so the main trends are generally understandable. However, word choice and collocation are often imprecise or repetitive. “Was skilled to speak” is not a natural way to describe language ability, while “adding up 10% in total” does not clearly express that German remained at 10%. The phrase “French was combined with Spanish” gives the wrong impression about the chart categories, and “another languages” is an inaccurate form. Aim for precise reporting verbs and category labels, such as “accounted for,” “fell to,” and “students speaking another language.” More accurate collocations would make the comparisons clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including clauses linked with “which” and “while,” and the overall meaning can usually be followed. However, errors in agreement, sentence boundaries, and punctuation recur. For example, “British learners … who was skilled” has a subject–verb agreement problem, and “students who was speaking” should use a plural verb. The sentence beginning “The Spanish alone…” runs several comparisons together without clear punctuation, making the relationship between the figures difficult to follow. There are also inconsistent sentence starts after full stops, as in “while the two other…” in the overview. Check agreement carefully and divide long comparisons into shorter, correctly punctuated sentences while retaining some varied structures.

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.