Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-22

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 GIVEN LINE CHART ILLUSTRATES THE INFORMATIN ABOUT HOW MANY VISITORS VISITED CARIBBEAN ISLANDS BETWEEN 2010 TO 2017 . THE DATA HAS BEEN MEASURED IN MILLIONS.

TO START WITH, STAYING ON CRUISE SHIPS, 0.3 MILLION INDIVIDUALS STAYING ON SHIPS IN 2010 THEN INCREASE WITH 0.5 MILLION IN 2011.AFTER SMALL DECREASE IT RAPIDLY INCREASE WITH 2 MILLION FROM 2013 TO 2017 . STAYING ON ISLAND, SOME INDIVIDUALTS INTERETED IN STAYING ON ISLAND IN THE STARTING YEAR WITH 0.7 MILLION . SIMILAR TREND WAS SEEN FROM 2013 TO 2015 WITH1.5 MILLION VISITORS THEN FLUCTUATE IN 2016 WITH 1.3 MILLION.

MOVING FURTHER, TOTAL, IT STARTS WITH 1 MILLION IN 2010. THEN SIGNIFICANTLY RISE WITH 1.5 TO 2.6 MILLION FROM 2012 TO 2015. IT REMAIN STABLE IN 2016 THEN ROSE WITH 3.5 MILLION VISITORS IN 2017.

OVERALL, SOME FLUCTUATION WAS SEEN IN STAYING ON CRUISE SHIPS BUT SIMILAR TREND WAS SHOWED IN STAYING ON ISLAND AND SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN TOTAL.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all key parts of the task by reporting the main trends and making comparisons between the categories. The writer correctly identifies the starting and ending points as well as key movements for cruise ship tourists, island stay tourists, and the total figure. However, the use of all-caps throughout the text detracts from the professional presentation, and some data points contain minor inaccuracies, such as reporting 2 million from 2013 to 2017 for cruise ships instead of a rise reaching 2 million by 2017. Nevertheless, a clear overview is provided at the end, satisfying the core requirements of Task 1 at a functional level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into four paragraphs, including an introduction and a concluding overview. However, the overall progression is somewhat disjointed due to poor mechanical cohesion and abrupt transitions, such as 'TO START WITH, STAYING ON CRUISE SHIPS' and 'MOVING FURTHER, TOTAL'. The use of cohesive devices is frequently faulty or mechanical, and referencing is occasionally unclear, making the flow choppy. Paragraphing is present, but the internal logical links between sentences need greater flexibility and control to reach a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, incorporating terms such as 'fluctuate', 'significant', and 'trend'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'the informatin about how many visitors visited' and 'some individualts intereted in staying'. The range of vocabulary is limited, and spelling or lexical errors appear frequently, though they do not completely impede communication. To improve, the writer should incorporate a wider variety of precise synonyms and ensure correct spelling and word forms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar is weak. There are frequent grammatical errors and missing essential verbs, such as '0.3 million individuals staying on ships in 2010 then increase with 0.5 million' and 'then significantly rise with 1.5 to 2.6 million'. Punctuation is also heavily compromised by the use of all-capital letters throughout the entire response and spaces before punctuation marks. These frequent errors cause some difficulty for the reader and restrict the score to this band.

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