Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-03
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 provided line chart illustrates the number of tourists who have visited the Caribbean island during the period of 2010 to 2017. The data shows three kinds of visitors and the numbers are given in millions.
Overall, tourist numbers were grown significantly throught the period excluding the visitors who stayed in island. Although the number of visitors who stayed in island is decreased later but the total number of tourist grown more than a thrice.
In 2010, there were total 1 millions of tourist have visited the island and out of them less then 0.5 million of tourist stayed on a cruise ships and around 0.7 millions of people stayed on island. After that, total number of visitors increased slightly and among them who stayed in island remained same in compared to visitors who stayed on cruise ships. In 2012, numbers of Visitor stayed in cruise ship, slight declined. In contrast Stayed on island visitors increased and reached about 1.3 millions.
In 2013, cruise ship staying, island staying and total number of visitors, all the numbers increased in compare to 2012 and reached 0.5 millions, 1.5 millions and 2 millions respectively. After that, total visitors and cruise ship staying number increased but stayed on island visitors remained same.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the graph, identifying the total number of tourists and the two categories (cruise ship and island stayers). However, the analysis is somewhat inconsistent. For instance, the statement that tourist numbers grew 'excluding the visitors who stayed in island' is confusing, as the data shows growth in both categories. Additionally, the description of the trends in 2012 and 2013 is slightly inaccurate compared to the visual data provided. While the main trends are identified, the lack of precision in reporting figures and the slight misinterpretation of the data trends prevent this from reaching a higher band. The overview is present but could be more clearly articulated to highlight the overall growth trajectory.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'In 2010', 'After that', and 'In contrast', which help guide the reader. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly repetitive. Referencing is occasionally unclear, particularly in the second paragraph where the comparison between cruise ship and island visitors becomes muddled. The progression of ideas is generally logical, but the flow is occasionally interrupted by awkward phrasing, which makes the relationship between some sentences less clear than it could be.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe trends (e.g., 'increased', 'declined', 'remained same'). However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'tourist numbers were grown' instead of 'grew', and 'more than a thrice' which is non-standard. The repetition of 'stayed in island' and 'staying' indicates a limited range of vocabulary for describing data. While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of precision and the presence of errors in word formation prevent a higher score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('tourist numbers were grown'), incorrect preposition usage ('stayed in island' instead of 'on the island'), and article misuse ('total 1 millions of tourist'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to be noticeable. The control over complex structures is inconsistent, and the punctuation is generally functional but occasionally lacks precision. More attention to basic sentence construction and verb tenses is required.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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