Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)
The line graph illustrates how the number of visitors in Caribbean island changed over the 7-year from 2010 to 2017.
Overall, the total number of tourists increased over the period despite a mild dip in the begining of the timeframe. It can be seen that visitors staying on cruise ships remained consistently the most preferable activity compared with staying on island.
The total number of people who visited the island experienced a dramatic rise over the 7-year. The number of visitors fluctuated between 0.25 million and 0.5 million from 2010 to 2013 before rising rapidly to reach a peak of million by 2017. Staying on cruise ships remained the most popular activity throughout the period, in 2010, there were 1 million visitors stayed on cruise, growing sharply to just over 2.5 millon by 2015 and stayed around this figure until 2016 when it surged again to peak at 3.5 million by 2017.
In contrast, staying on island was less attracted activity. From 2010 to 2011, just over 0.5 million doing this activity, this figure rose to 1.5 million in 2013 and remained stable until 2015 before declining by 0.5 million. By 2017, the number of people doing this activity had grown to 1.5 million.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the task by summarizing the main trends in the line graph concerning visitors to a Caribbean island from 2010 to 2017. An overview is provided, noting the upward trend and comparing cruise ship visitors versus staying on the island. However, there are significant data misinterpretations and factual inconsistencies when compared against the prompt. For instance, the student states that visitors staying on cruise ships reached a peak of 'million by 2017' (missing the number) and later claims 'in 2010, there were 1 million visitors stayed on cruise', whereas the actual figure for cruise ships in 2010 was 0.25 million (1 million was the total). These data confusions across categories hinder accurate reporting and prevent a higher band score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response is organized into four paragraphs, including an introduction, an overall statement, and two body paragraphs covering specific data details. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'In contrast', and 'before rising rapidly' are used to structure the essay. However, logical progression suffers due to confused data referencing. For instance, jumping between the total number of visitors and specific category data within the same sentence creates confusion for the reader. Paragraphing is present and generally attempts to group information logically, but overall cohesion is strained by inaccurate referencing and awkward phrasing.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student demonstrates a minimally adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting words like 'fluctuated', 'surge', and 'dramatic rise'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation errors that impact precision. For example, the student writes 'less attracted activity' instead of 'less attractive activity' or 'less popular option'. There are also awkward expressions like 'doing this activity' repeated multiple times instead of referring to the visitors or tourists. Spelling and basic word forms are generally acceptable, but lexical control is limited.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including subordinate clauses introduced by 'while', 'before', and 'when'. However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent, with frequent errors such as missing articles ('in Caribbean island'), incorrect prepositions ('in the begining of the timeframe'), and dangling or incomplete clauses ('reach a peak of million by 2017'). Sentence structures often become convoluted, leading to a breakdown in clarity. While the meaning can usually be discerned with effort, the high frequency of errors places this response firmly in the Band 5 category.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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