Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-12
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The chart below shows the results of a survey about people’s coffee and tea buying and drinking habits in five Australian cities.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The bar graph indicates findings of a survey on individual's coffee and tea purchasing and consuming patterns in several cities of Australia.
Overall, it can be observed that, people who bought fresh coffee was lowest in all urban centres, while who drank it in a shop was highest in most cities except one which was Adelaide.
To commence with, the Sydney and Melbourne had the largest number of humans who drank recently prepared coffee, which was nearly 44 percent. The Brisbane and Adelaide was almost similar in the same case which was approximately 34%, and Hobart city had around 39%. In addition, people who consumed coffee and tea in coffee shop was higher than 60 percent in Sydney, Melbourne, and Hobart.
On the other hand, in Brisbane this category was exact 50 percent, and Adelaide was the only city where this ration was dominated by individuals who purchased immediate coffee. The people who bought instant coffee was close to 41 and 48 in Sydney and Melbourne respectively. The Brisbane and Hobart had this percentage under 55.
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 data, such as the general trend of coffee shop visits versus buying fresh coffee. However, the reporting of data is inconsistent and occasionally inaccurate. For instance, you mention '44 percent' for Sydney and Melbourne, but the chart shows different values for these cities. Additionally, the description of 'instant coffee' is confusing, as the chart labels refer to 'fresh coffee' and 'coffee/tea in a shop'. The lack of precision in interpreting the data points hinders the clarity of the report. To improve, ensure you carefully cross-reference the labels with the specific bars to avoid misrepresenting the statistics provided in the prompt.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. You use some cohesive devices like 'Overall', 'To commence with', and 'On the other hand' to signal transitions. However, the flow within paragraphs is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the sentence 'The Brisbane and Adelaide was almost similar in the same case'. Improving the use of cohesive devices to link ideas more fluidly rather than relying on simple transition words will help achieve a higher band. Ensure that pronouns and references clearly point back to the specific data categories being discussed.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but there are instances of unnatural word choices and inaccuracies. For example, 'humans' is inappropriate in this context; 'people' or 'residents' would be better. The phrase 'ration was dominated' is likely a misuse of 'ratio'. There is also some repetition of basic terms like 'coffee' and 'cities'. To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more precise vocabulary related to data description, such as 'proportion', 'majority', 'minority', or 'figures', and ensure that collocations are accurate to avoid awkward phrasing.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and some attempted complex structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that affect the accuracy of the writing. Subject-verb agreement is a recurring issue, such as 'The Brisbane and Adelaide was' (should be 'were') and 'people who bought... was lowest' (should be 'were'). There are also errors with articles and pluralisation, such as 'individual's' instead of 'individuals'' and 'in a shop' versus 'in shops'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to limit the score. Focusing on basic subject-verb agreement and article usage will significantly improve your accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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