Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below shows the number of tourists visiting a particular Caribbean island between 2010 and 2017.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

This graph compares the number of tourists in millions, visiting a certain Caribbean island for a eight year period, from 2010 to 2017.

Overall, Total number of visitors, recorded an upward trend throughout the period. Furthermore, it attracted most visitors. On the other hand,visitors staying on cruise ships and on island, kept flactuating.

On the one hand, visitors staying in cruise ships, climbed slightly in 2011 but sharply dipped in 2012 to its initial number in 2010. However, it picked and steadily rose to about 2 million in 2017.

On the other hand, the visitors staying on island had the highest number of visitors in 2010 compared to the one on cruise. It became constant for next one year, but eventually climbed in 2011 Upto 2013 where it became constant until 2015. It falled in 2016 but rose again in 2017. The total number of visitors, shows a steady increase of visitors thought the entire period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers the main features of the graph, identifying the upward trend and the fluctuations in visitor numbers. However, the analysis is somewhat superficial. For example, the description of the 'visitors staying on island' category is confusing, particularly the phrase 'Upto 2013 where it became constant until 2015'. The data points are not always clearly linked to the years, and the comparison between the two categories could be more precise. While the overview is present, it lacks a clear synthesis of the data, and some figures are described vaguely, which limits the overall impact of the report.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly unnatural, such as the repetitive use of 'On the one hand' and 'On the other hand'. Furthermore, the referencing is occasionally unclear; for instance, 'the one on cruise' is a weak reference. The progression of ideas is generally logical, but the internal flow within paragraphs is hindered by awkward phrasing and some abrupt transitions between sentences, which prevents the response from reaching a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. There are several spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'flactuating' (fluctuating) and 'falled' (fell). The student relies on basic descriptive terms like 'climbed', 'rose', and 'constant'. While these are relevant, the range is limited, and the lack of more sophisticated collocations or precise terminology for describing trends (e.g., 'plateaued', 'marginal increase') restricts the score. The errors do not impede communication, but they are noticeable throughout the text.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('the visitors staying in cruise ships') and verb forms ('It falled', 'Total number of visitors, recorded'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with unnecessary commas appearing in several places, such as 'Overall, Total number of visitors, recorded'. While the meaning remains clear, the frequency of these errors indicates a lack of control over complex structures, keeping the score in the mid-range.

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

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