Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-25

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 how many people visited a Caribbean island in the year 2020 and 2017.

Overall, the total number of visitors experienced an upward trend throughout the period, while the number of visitors staying on the island showed a downward trend at the start and end of the period. Although visitors staying on the cruise ships initially had a lower rate, it outpaced island visitors at the end of the period.

The rate of tourists who stayed on the island remained stable at around 0.7 million from 2010 to 2011. Then it rose to almost 1.3 million in 2012, which showed a gradual increase to 1.5 million in 2013 and remained stable till 2015. However, it gradually decreased to roughly 1.4 million in 2016, before maintaining its position again in 2017.

From 2010 to 2011, visitors staying on cruise ships slightly increased by around 0.3 to 0.5 million, before falling in 2012. After 2013, it started increasing sharply from 0.5 to 2 million visitors in 2017. Whereas the total number of tourists grew dramatically from 1 million to 3.5 million by the end of the period, 2017.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the graph, including the overall upward trend and the crossover point between cruise and island visitors. However, there is a significant factual error in the introduction, where you state the period is '2020 and 2017' instead of 2010 to 2017. Additionally, while you identify key trends, the data points are sometimes imprecise or slightly misread (e.g., the cruise ship figures). To reach a higher band, ensure that the data reported matches the graph exactly and that the overview clearly highlights the most significant trends without needing to list too many specific figures.

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 'Although', 'However', and 'Whereas' to link information. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the two categories of visitors. To improve, ensure that the transition between sentences is smoother; some sentences feel slightly disjointed, and the use of referencing could be more precise to avoid repetition of 'it' or 'the rate'.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'upward trend', 'downward trend', 'outpaced', and 'remained stable'. There are some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as using 'rate' when referring to the number of tourists, as 'rate' usually implies a percentage or speed rather than a raw count. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey the meaning clearly, but it lacks the more sophisticated, precise collocations required for higher band scores.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the 'Although...' clause in the second paragraph. There are some grammatical slips, such as 'in the year 2020 and 2017' (which is factually incorrect and grammatically awkward) and 'maintaining its position again' (which is slightly unnatural in this context). However, these errors do not impede communication. To improve, focus on ensuring subject-verb agreement and using more varied complex structures to demonstrate greater control.

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

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