Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-24

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 6.5)

The bar diagram illustrates the outcomes of a survey about people's buying and drinking habits of tea and coffee in five cities of Australia.

Overall, it is evident that the largest proportion of people living in Melbourne prefer visiting a cafe for tea and coffee. Additionally, highest number of residents prefer to buy instant coffee in Hobart and fresh coffee in Sydney.

In terms of visiting a cafe for tea or coffee, Melbourne accounted for 63%, making it the highest figure. It is then followed by Hobart and Sydney, which stood at 62% and 61% respectively. Furthermore, Adelaide represented only 49% of citizens who preferred to visit cafe. Regarding the people who bought instant coffee throughout the period, the maximum percentage of residents stood at 54% in Hobart, which was followed by Brisbane and Adelaide. Additionally, Melbourne and Sydney stood at 48% and 46% respectively.

Turning to the citizens who bought fresh coffee in last four week, Brisbane and Adelaide stood at roughly 34%, making them the lowest figure compared to other cities. However, Sydney accounted for approximately 44% of citizens who bought fresh coffee, making it the highest figure. Additionally, the percentage of people buying fresh coffee in Melbourne and Hobart stood at roughly 42% and 38% respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The student covers all parts of the task well, providing an overview and selecting key features from the chart to report and compare. The main trends are successfully identified, such as Melbourne leading in café visits and Hobart showing high figures for instant coffee. However, there are minor inaccuracies in the reported data when compared to the visual reference. For instance, Melbourne's café visits are cited as 63% (chart shows ~63.5%), Hobart's as 62% (chart shows 63%), and Adelaide's instant coffee as undefined while Brisbane is omitted from that specific breakdown. Despite these slight numerical discrepancies, the response successfully fulfills the core requirements of Task Achievement, earning a solid Band 7.0 for addressing all parts with clear comparisons and a discernible overview.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response is logically organized with a clear overall progression. It begins with an introductory paragraph, moves into a well-crafted overview, and then details specific categories in separate body paragraphs. Cohesive devices are used reasonably well, such as 'Additionally', 'In terms of', 'Furthermore', and 'Turning to', which help guide the reader through the data. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different survey categories. However, referencing is occasionally a bit mechanical, and some transitions feel formulaic. Overall, the logical structure and clear flow warrant a Band 7.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary suitable for an Academic Task 1 response, using phrases like 'proportion of people', 'accounted for', 'highest figure', and 'respectively'. There is some attempt to use less common vocabulary, though it is occasionally repetitive ('stood at', 'highest figure'). Word choice and collocation are generally accurate, and minor slips (such as 'in last four week' instead of 'in the last four weeks') do not impede communication. The lexical range is adequate for flexibility and precision, placing it comfortably in the Band 6.5 to 7.0 range. A score of 6.5 is awarded here due to the repetition of framing verbs.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response exhibits a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over relative clauses and comparative structures. There are frequent error-free sentences, alongside a few minor grammatical errors such as missing articles ('visit cafe' instead of 'visit a cafe') and a singular/plural mismatch ('in last four week' instead of 'in the last four weeks'). Punctuation is generally sound, and the errors do not impede communication or obscure the meaning of the text. Because there is a good variety of complex structures with generally good control, a Band 6.5 is well-deserved.

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