Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-17
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 line graph illustrates the number of tourists visiting a particular Caribbean island from 2010 to 2017. Visitors are measured in millions.
Overall, the total number of visitors visiting island increasedrapidly. Visitors staying on cruise ships were the least in the initial years, however surpassed the visitors staying on island after five years.
In 2010, the least number of people stayed on cruise ships approximately 0.3 million, which slightly rose upto 0.5 million in 2011 and decreased in the following year. After 2013, visitors staying on a cruise ships increased rapidly up to 2 million,that surpassed people staying on island in between 2015 and 2016.
In 2010, people staying on island was about 0.7 million, which remained the same in the next year and skied up to 1.5 million in 2013. However, it remained same till 2015 and gradually declined in 2016 and remained the same in the following year. However, the visitors visiting the island increased rapidly from 1 million to 3.5 million in 2017.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The student covers all major parts of the task by reporting the trends for both categories and the total number of visitors. An appropriate overview is provided, noting the overall upward trajectory and the shift between the two groups. Key data points are correctly cited, such as the initial figures in 2010 and the final peaks in 2017 (e.g., total visitors reaching 3.5 million). However, the analysis occasionally misses precise comparative nuances, such as grouping cruise ship visitors overtaking island stay visitors slightly loosely. Nevertheless, the main features are successfully selected, reported, and supported with appropriate data from the chart, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6.5 to 7.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response has a clear overall progression, starting with an introductory statement, followed by an overview paragraph, and then breaking down the data into distinct categories across subsequent sentences. Cohesive devices such as 'In 2010', 'however', and 'After 2013' are used to link ideas, though paragraphing is somewhat under-utilized since the body is grouped into dense blocks rather than clearly separated paragraphs per category or time period. Referencing is generally clear, but mechanical transitions occasionally make the flow slightly disjointed, placing this safely in the Band 6.0 range.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common lexical items and descriptive verbs such as 'increased rapidly', 'surpassed', and 'declined'. However, there are notable word-choice and phrasing inaccuracies, such as 'visitors visiting island increasedrapidly' (missing articles and spacing issues) and 'skied up to', which is an awkward collocation for describing data trends. Spelling is generally acceptable, but lexical control is inconsistent, placing the response at Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases (e.g., 'In 2010, the least number of people stayed on cruise ships approximately 0.3 million...'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly missing articles ('stayed on island', 'stayed on a cruise ships'), comma splices (e.g., 'up to 2 million,that surpassed...'), and missing verbs ('which remained same'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they affect the overall control of grammar and punctuation, typical of a Band 5.5 to 6.0 performance.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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