Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-22
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 5.5)
The given data represents the underground railway systems in six cities around the globe. Tokyo experiences the highest passengers every year while the passenger load at Kyoto is least although being cities from the same countries. This difference represents the variance in economic activities in those cities.
Just because the route is lengthy, the passengers it serves need not be the highest. This is represented by the records of London. Furthermore, the number of passengers utilizing the railway per year seemes independent to the year of establishment of the system. The oldest railway doesn't receive the highest number of passengers.
The ratio of passesngers received per year to kilometers of the railway is found to be higher in Japanese cities while lower in American cities. This represents higher popularity of subways as a mean of transportation among Japanese citizens while American citizens are not much fond of utilizing the railway system.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response attempts to summarise the data and make comparisons, noting key features such as Tokyo having the highest passenger numbers and Kyoto having the lowest despite being in the same country. However, the student includes personal analysis and speculation, such as stating 'This difference represents the variance in economic activities in those cities' and claiming American citizens 'are not much fond of utilizing the railway system.' In Task 1 Academic, candidates should report and describe the data objectively without offering outside explanations or causes. Furthermore, key details such as the overall figures for London and Paris are omitted. These issues place the response at Band 5.5 for addressing the task partially and drifting into unwarranted interpretation.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The text is divided into three brief paragraphs, which provide a basic structure. Cohesive devices are used to connect ideas, such as 'Furthermore', 'This is represented by', and 'The ratio of passesngers received'. However, referencing is sometimes unclear, particularly with pronouns like 'it' in sentences such as 'Just because the route is lengthy, the passengers it serves need not be the highest.' The overall progression feels slightly disjointed due to the speculative nature of the commentary rather than a systematic presentation of data. Paragraphing is present, but the logical flow between sentences could be significantly improved. This performance aligns well with Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is generally adequate for conveying basic comparative concepts, including terms like 'underground railway systems', 'variance', 'independent', and 'popularity'. However, there are notable spelling errors, such as 'passesngers' and 'seemes', as well as collocation issues like 'highest passengers every year' (instead of 'highest number of passengers') and 'mean of transportation' (instead of 'means of transportation'). The range is somewhat limited and repetitive, and these lexical inaccuracies prevent the score from reaching a higher band. Overall, the vocabulary is sufficient for the task but contains noticeable errors, meriting a Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, attempting structures like conditional and comparative clauses ('Just because the route is lengthy, the passengers it serves need not be the highest' and 'The ratio of passesngers received per year to kilometers of the railway is found to be higher...'). There are grammatical errors present, such as 'seemes independent to' (instead of 'independent of') and spelling slips that affect accuracy. While some sentences are error-free, the overall control of complex structures is inconsistent. These errors rarely impede communication entirely, placing the response squarely at Band 6.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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