Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-26

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 6.5)

The line graph illustrates the figure of visitors of a specific Caribbean island from 2010 to 2017.

Overall, the number of tourists increased significantly over the period. The number of visitors staying on cruise ships surpassed visitors staying on land and reached the highest figure, even though they started with a lower number on the chart.

The total number of visitors commenced at just 1 million in 2010 but increased exponentially, reaching its peak at 3.5 million in 2017 after a slight drop to around 2.6 million in 2016. In terms of visitors staying on island, it began at about 0.8 million people in 2010 and stayed in that level in the next year before experiencing dramatic increase to 1.5 million in 2013. The number of visitors plateaued at this level until the remaining timeline but showed a mild decrease to around 1.3 in 2016.

The number opting for visitors staying on cruise ships experienced some fluctuations in the initial years but started rising since 2013 (0.5 million), a trend that continued year on year, soaring to its peak at 2 million tourists.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response successfully identifies the main trends and provides a clear overview of the data. You have highlighted the key features, such as the overall growth and the crossover point between cruise and land-based visitors. However, the report could be improved by ensuring all data points are accurate; for instance, the peak for cruise ship visitors is stated as 2 million, but the graph shows it reaching 2 million in 2017. The description of the 'total' is clear, but ensure that comparisons between the two categories are more explicit throughout the body paragraphs to better meet the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs focusing on specific categories. Cohesive devices such as 'In terms of', 'even though', and 'a trend that continued' are used effectively to guide the reader. The progression of ideas is generally smooth, though the transition between the total visitor count and the specific categories could be slightly more refined. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different data sets, which aids readability.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a good range of vocabulary, including terms like 'surpassed', 'exponentially', 'plateaued', and 'fluctuations'. These choices are appropriate for an academic report. There are minor issues with word choice, such as 'figure of visitors of' (should be 'number of visitors to') and 'staying on island' (should be 'staying on the island'). Despite these minor inaccuracies, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the information clearly and with some precision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While there are some grammatical errors, such as 'stayed in that level' (should be 'stayed at that level') and 'the remaining timeline' (should be 'the rest of the period'), these do not impede communication. The use of complex structures like 'even though they started with a lower number' shows good control. Most sentences are error-free, and punctuation is generally handled well, supporting the overall clarity of the report.

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

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