Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-31
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 5.5)
The graph illustrates the number of visitors visiting a Caribbean island over the period from 2010 to 2017.
Overall, total number of tourists increased substantially over the period. Visitors who stayed on ships and island experienced some fluctuations before rising.
The proportion of visitors staying on cruise ships stood at approximately 0.25 million in 2010 and rose steadily to around half million in 2011 before declined to around 0.2 million in 2012.It then increased sharply, reaching about 1 million in 2014 and 1.5 million in 2016, before rising further to around 2 million in 2017. Similarly, The firgue for visitors staying on island experienced substantial growth, increasing from roughly 0.7 million in 2010 and remained stable until 2011. Then figure climbed to around 1.5 million in 2015 and declined slightly to about 1.3 million before reaching a peak of 1.5 million in 2017.
In contrast, total number of visitors icreased more gradually, from around 1 million in 2010 in 1970 to 2.7 million
in 2015 before reaching the higest point around 3.5 million in 2017.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers all parts of the task by identifying the main trends and providing relevant data points. You successfully highlighted the overall growth and the specific fluctuations for cruise ship and island visitors. However, the report is slightly hindered by inaccuracies in data interpretation. For instance, you mention '1970' in the final paragraph, which is outside the provided timeframe of 2010–2017. Additionally, some figures are presented with slight inconsistencies compared to the graph. To reach a higher band, ensure that all data points are transcribed accurately and that the overview clearly synthesizes the most significant trends without including irrelevant external information.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs focusing on specific categories. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Similarly' and 'In contrast' to link ideas. However, the flow is occasionally disrupted by mechanical phrasing and minor errors in referencing. For example, the transition between the cruise ship data and the island visitor data is a bit abrupt. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of linking words and ensure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence that guides the reader through the data comparison.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'fluctuations,' 'substantial growth,' and 'declined slightly.' There are, however, some spelling errors ('firgue' for figure, 'icreased' for increased, 'higest' for highest) and minor word choice issues. While these do not impede communication, they prevent the response from reaching a higher band. To improve, focus on proofreading for spelling and try to incorporate more precise academic collocations to describe trends, such as 'witnessed a sharp upward trajectory' instead of just 'increased sharply.'
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you successfully use complex sentences to describe trends, there are several grammatical errors, such as 'The firgue for visitors staying on island' (missing article) and 'before declined' (incorrect verb form). Additionally, there are punctuation issues, such as the missing space after the period in '2012.It'. The majority of sentences are understandable, but the frequency of these minor errors limits the score. Focus on subject-verb agreement and ensuring that complex structures are grammatically sound.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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