Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-15

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 describes the number of tourists who visited a particular Caribbean island between 2010 and 2017.

Overall, the total number of tourists steadily increased throughout the period, despite remaining stable during 2015 and 2016. The visitors staying on cruise ships experienced a significant growth and made a large share of total visitors. In contrast, the visitors staying on the island showed a slight increase and remained stable most of the years.

Regarding visitors staying on cruise ships. the number stood at 0.25 million in 2010 and showed a slight increase to 0.5 million in 2011, before falling at 0.25 million again in 2012. In the next year, it showed a continuous slight increase and reached just over 1.25 million in 2015. In 2016, it rose to 1.5 million, reaching 2 million in the final year.

The number of visitors stayed on island stood at 0.75 million in 2010 and 2011. It increased to 1.25 million in 2012, reaching 1.5 million in 2013, where it remained stable until 2015. In 2016, it fell to 1.25 million, before reaching 1.5 million in 2017.

The total number of visitors stood at 1 million 2010 and reached 1.5 million in 2012. It then increased to 2 million in 2013, before reaching 2.5 million in 2014. In the next year, it rose to just under 3 million, where it remained stable until 2016, before a sharp increase to 3.5 million in 2017.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response successfully covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features, trends, and making relevant comparisons between the two categories of tourists and the total. An overview is clearly presented in the second paragraph, outlining the overall upward trend and the contrasting patterns of the two groups. Key data points, such as the starting and ending figures and notable fluctuations (e.g., visitors staying on cruise ships rising from 0.25 million to 2 million), are accurately cited from the graph. The student effectively selects and reports data without unnecessary raw listing, aligning well with the Band 7 and 8 descriptors for Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The report displays clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Information is grouped logically by category into distinct paragraphs, starting with an introduction and overview, followed by separate paragraphs for cruise ship visitors, island stay visitors, and the total figures. Cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'Regarding', and 'It then increased' are used appropriately. However, there is a minor punctuation error in the third paragraph ('Regarding visitors staying on cruise ships. the number...') where a full stop is mistakenly used instead of a comma, slightly disrupting cohesion. Paragraphing is otherwise used sufficiently and appropriately.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The student uses an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for a Task 1 response, including terms like 'fluctuated', 'remained stable', 'significant growth', and 'sharp increase'. There are some attempts at less common phrasing, though occasional slight inaccuracies occur, such as 'visitors stayed on island' instead of 'visitors staying on the island'. Overall, the vocabulary is precise enough to convey the trends clearly and communicate the data without difficulty, supporting a solid Band 6.5 or 7.0 performance.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating subordinate clauses and appropriate time markers (e.g., 'before falling at 0.25 million again in 2012'). Control over grammar is generally good, though there are occasional minor preposition errors, such as 'falling at 0.25 million' instead of 'falling to 0.25 million', and a dangling modifier/awkward phrasing in 'The number of visitors stayed on island'. Punctuation is mostly accurate apart from the aforementioned period error. The majority of sentences are grammatically sound and errors do not impede communication.

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