Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-20
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 graph illustrate the number of people visited Caribbean island between 2010 and 2017 .
Overall, total number of tourists soared between 2010 and 2015 before plateau for one year and again increased significantly. Maximum number of visitors stayed on island in 2010 and 2011 .whereas, half of the tourists stayed in cruise ships. Stay on the island rose sharply over next 2 years before it stabilize and then fluctuate.
In 2010,total 1 million tourists visited Caribbean island out of which 0.75 million of people stayed on island and 0.25 million stayed on cruise ships.
In 2011,people stayed in cruise ships doubled over next year. while, tourist stayed on island stabilize .Over next 2 years visitors who stayed on island increased and reached to 1.5 million. In contrast tourist on cruise ship dropped significantly and reached to 0.5 million.
Between 2013 and 2017,number of people stayed on island fluctuated .
On the other hand people who stayed on cruise ships keep on rising and reached to 2 million by 2017 .
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student attempts to cover all parts of the task by reporting the main trends and making some comparisons between visitors staying on the island and those on cruise ships. However, there are notable inaccuracies in reading the data. For instance, the text states that 'Maximum number of visitors stayed on island in 2010 and 2011', whereas the graph shows island visitors were actually lower during these years (0.75 million) compared to later years. Additionally, some statements about specific years contain contradictions or misinterpretations of the trends. An overview is present, but the lack of accurate data reporting pulls the score down into the Band 5.5 range, as key features are not fully or accurately developed.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response is organised into paragraphs, beginning with an introduction and an overall trend summary, followed by body paragraphs detailing specific years. However, the logical progression is frequently disrupted by confusing temporal references and abrupt shifts between years (e.g., jumping between 2010, 2011, and 2013 without clear transitions). Cohesive devices are used minimally and sometimes inappropriately, such as 'whereas' used incorrectly at the start of a sentence. Paragraphing is attempted, but the internal cohesion within paragraphs lacks smooth management, resulting in a somewhat disjointed reading experience that aligns best with Band 5.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate vocabulary range to describe basic trends, employing words such as 'soared', 'fluctuated', and 'increased significantly'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors throughout the text, such as 'people visited Caribbean island' (missing articles and preposition), 'plateau' used as a verb instead of 'plateaued', and 'stabilize' instead of 'stabilised'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey a general meaning, these persistent errors and limited flexibility in less common lexical items restrict the score to a Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response displays a mix of simple and some attempted complex sentence forms, but grammatical accuracy is weak. There are frequent missing articles ('The graph illustrate', 'visited Caribbean island', 'tourist on cruise ship'), tense inconsistencies ('people stayed in cruise ships doubled over next year. while, tourist stayed on island stabilize'), and punctuation errors. Complex structures are often faulty. Because errors are frequent and occasionally cause some difficulty for the reader in tracking the timeline, the performance fits the Band 5.0 descriptors.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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