Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-15

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 chart provides information about the collection of data in which people's coffee and tea puchasing and habits across five Australian cities.

Overall, the percentage of bought fresh coffee in last four weeks was the higest in Sydney, while instant coffee purchased in last four weeks was in Hobart. On the other hand, higest proportion was collected of those people who went to a cafe for coffee or tea in last four weeks.

It is quite evident from the bar chart that maximum fresh coffee purchased in Sydney around 44%. In contrast, declined in fresh coffee in last four weeks at 42% in Melbourne. The number of residents visited to a cafe for cofee or tea in last few weeks around 63% in Melbourne.

Futhermore, a very small Australians visited to a cafe for coffee or tea in last four weeks around Adelaide, followed by the Brisbane increased around 56%. However, minimum residents purchased instant coffee in last four weeks around 46% in Sydney.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the chart, such as the highest and lowest values for the three categories. However, the analysis is somewhat superficial and lacks a clear, logical comparison between the cities. For instance, the report mentions specific percentages like '44%' and '42%' but fails to effectively group or contrast the data trends across the five cities. The overview is present but slightly confusing in its phrasing. To improve, ensure that the main trends are clearly identified and that comparisons are made more explicitly between the cities rather than just listing isolated figures.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which is a positive step. However, the flow of ideas is often disjointed due to awkward phrasing and a lack of effective cohesive devices. Transitions like 'On the other hand' and 'Futhermore' are used, but they do not always logically connect the sentences that follow. The referencing is sometimes unclear, making it difficult for the reader to follow the comparison between the cities. Improving the use of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear thematic focus would significantly enhance the coherence of the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The range of vocabulary is limited and repetitive. There are several instances of awkward word choices and spelling errors, such as 'puchasing', 'higest', 'cofee', and 'Futhermore'. The student relies on basic vocabulary to describe the data, which prevents the response from achieving a higher score. To improve, the student should focus on using more precise terminology for describing trends (e.g., 'fluctuated', 'remained stable', 'accounted for') and ensure accurate spelling of key terms related to the task.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. There are issues with sentence structure, such as missing verbs ('declined in fresh coffee... at 42%') and incorrect preposition usage ('visited to a cafe'). The range of sentence structures is quite limited, consisting mostly of simple sentences with some errors in subject-verb agreement. To reach a higher band, the student needs to focus on constructing complete, grammatically correct sentences and reducing the frequency of basic errors in tense and word order.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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