Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-17
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The take below gives information about the underground railway systems in six cities.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Underground Railway Systems
City Date opened Kilometers of route Passengers per year (in millions) London 1863 394 775 Paris 1900 199 1191 Tokyo 1927 155 1927 Washington DC 1976 126 144 Kyoto 1981 11 45 Los Angeles 2001 28 50
Student answer (Band 4.0)
The pai chart is details in underground railway systems under the six cities. firstly the city of London opened in 1863 but kilometers of route is 394 and passengers according to year 775 in millions. than secondely is Paris, it is started to 1900 from the kilometers to 199, and continues public per year 1191. that is the upper level railway information.
Nextely, the Tokyo is starting date is 1927 also the kilometers mentioned to 155 and customers is 1927. forthly Washing ton DC is 1976, that is the down level of kilometers 126 and per year is 144. there is much of the down level. that is simple matter. do up or down show and mentioned it.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 4.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.0 |
| Overall | 4.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0
The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, which significantly impacts the score. Furthermore, the content is incomplete; it fails to mention Kyoto and Los Angeles entirely. The summary lacks a clear overview of the main trends, such as the relationship between the age of the system and its usage. The information provided is presented as a list of facts rather than a comparative analysis, and the misidentification of the table as a 'pai chart' indicates a lack of attention to the task prompt.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0
The response is poorly organized. While there is an attempt at paragraphing, the logical flow is disrupted by repetitive and mechanical transitions such as 'firstly', 'than secondely', and 'nextely'. The use of cohesive devices is often inaccurate or confusing, such as 'that is the upper level railway information' and 'that is simple matter', which do not effectively link ideas or provide a clear progression of information. The lack of a cohesive structure makes the text difficult to follow.
Lexical Resource — Band 4.0
The vocabulary is very limited and often inappropriate for an academic report. The student uses informal or incorrect terminology, such as 'customers' instead of 'passengers', and 'down level' to describe data points. There are also significant errors in word choice and spelling, such as 'than' used instead of 'then', and 'Washing ton' written as two words. The range of vocabulary is insufficient to convey the data accurately or professionally.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0
The grammatical control is weak, with frequent errors that often impede clarity. There are consistent issues with sentence structure, such as 'the city of London opened in 1863 but kilometers of route is 394', which lacks proper subject-verb agreement and logical connection. Punctuation is inconsistent, and there is a lack of complex sentence structures. The writing relies on simple, fragmented sentences that are often grammatically incorrect, such as 'do up or down show and mentioned it'.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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