Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-11

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 compares the number of tourists visiting a particular Caribbean island between 2010 and 2017.

Overall, it is clear that the total number of visitors increased over the period. Furthermore, visitors staying on cruise ships grew dramatically, overtaking those staying on island by the end.

In 2010, visitors staying on island stood at 0.75 millions, which was substantially higher than those on cruise ships at just 0.25 million. Subsequently, the figure for island visitors remained relatively stable, fluctuating around 1.5 millions until 2015, before falling to 1.25 millions in 2017. By contrast, crise ship visitors saw a steady increase to 1.25 millions in 2015.

Meanwhile, cruse ship visitors witnessed a dramatical growth and reached 2 millions in 2017, surpassing island visitors. The total number of tourists also rose dramatically from 1 millions in 2010 to 3.5 millions in 2017, reaching its peak at the end of the period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features and making relevant comparisons. The overview accurately highlights the overall upward trend in total visitors and the shift in popularity where cruise ship visitors overtook those staying on the island. Key data points, such as figures for 2010 and 2017, are correctly selected and contrasted. However, there are some minor numerical confusions and repetitions in the body paragraphs, such as inconsistent tracking of the island visitors and cruise ship figures. Despite these minor discrepancies, the response provides a clear and well-supported summary of the graph, fulfilling the core requirements of Task 1 effectively, aligning closely with a Band 7 performance level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is logically organized with a clear overall progression. It begins with an appropriate introductory sentence, followed by an overview paragraph that sets out the main trends. Information is grouped reasonably well into distinct body paragraphs comparing different categories of tourists. Cohesive devices are used to signal shifts and comparisons, such as 'Furthermore', 'Subsequently', 'By contrast', and 'Meanwhile'. However, paragraphing and logical flow are slightly hindered by repetition regarding the cruise ship visitors in the third and fourth paragraphs, which disrupts the seamless progression of ideas. Overall, referencing and cohesion are generally clear, placing the response solidly in the Band 6 to 7 range, deserving a 6.5 for minor mechanical flaws in organization.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, successfully using terms such as 'substantially higher', 'fluctuating', 'surpassing', and 'peak'. However, there are several noticeable vocabulary and spelling errors throughout the text, including pluralization issues ('0.75 millions', '1.5 millions', '1 millions') and spelling mistakes ('crise' instead of cruise, 'cruse' instead of cruise, and 'dramatical' instead of dramatic). While these errors do not severely impede communication, they demonstrate limitations in precision and word choice that prevent the score from reaching the higher bands, making Band 6 an accurate descriptor.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases effectively (e.g., 'visitors staying on island stood at 0.75 millions, which was substantially higher...'). There are several grammatical and mechanical errors, particularly with noun-verb agreements, plural forms of numerical quantities, and repeated spelling errors. Despite these errors, the majority of simple sentences are clear, and complex structures are attempted with varying degrees of success. The errors do not impede communication, matching the Band 6 descriptor well where a mix of structures and some grammar errors are present.

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