Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-20

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)

The line graph illustrates total number of tourist travelling to a Caribbean island between 2010 and 2017 in three categories( visitors staying on cruise ships, visitors staying on island and total) , measured in millions.

Overall, the island increased continuously over the given period. Despite starting at a lower number than visitors staying on island, those who were staying on cruise ships surpassed them in the middle of 2015 and 2016.

In 2010, visitors staying on island were more common around 0.75 million, this figure remained the same in 2011. Until 2013, the number of people increased dramatically accounting for 1.5million before staying the same for three years. Then in 2016, it fell around 0.25 million to approximately 1.25 million of visitors before going up to 1.5 million in the last year.

Staying on cruise ships were less popular in 2010, merely 0.25 million. This number doubled in the next year before falling back to its original number in 2012 at around 0.25million. In the following three years, it increased considerably by 1 million to around 1.25 million of visitors in 2015. This trend continuoud surpassing the visitors staying on island in the middle of 2015. In the last year, in 2017, this figure reached 2 million people having half million visitors more on cruise ships than island

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response successfully identifies the main trends and makes relevant comparisons between the two categories of tourists. You have highlighted the key features, such as the growth in cruise ship visitors and the fluctuations in island-staying visitors. However, the overview is slightly inaccurate; you state the island 'increased continuously,' but the data shows periods of stagnation and decline for island-staying visitors. To improve, ensure your summary reflects the overall trend of the total figures rather than implying every category increased every year. The data points are generally well-selected, though the description of the crossover point could be more precise.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized into an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. The progression of ideas is clear, and you use cohesive devices such as 'In 2010,' 'Until 2013,' and 'In the following three years' to guide the reader through the timeline. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally ambiguous, such as in the final sentence where the comparison between cruise and island visitors is a bit cluttered. Using more varied linking phrases would help improve the flow between sentences and paragraphs.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'surpassed,' 'dramatically,' and 'considerably.' There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'visitors staying on island were more common' (should be 'more numerous') and 'this trend continuoud' (spelling error). While you attempt to use less common vocabulary, some phrasing is slightly unnatural. Expanding your range of synonyms for 'increase' and 'decrease' and ensuring accurate collocations will help you reach a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical slips, such as 'total number of tourist travelling' (should be 'tourists'), 'accounting for 1.5million before staying the same' (dangling modifier), and 'having half million visitors more' (missing article). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are minor errors in spacing and article usage. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles with numerical data.

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