Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · 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 7.5)

The line graph illustrates the number of tourists who visited a particular Caribbean island between 2010 and 2017, with figures given in millions. It also shows the numbers of visitors who stayed on the island and those who stayed on cruise ships.

Overall, the total number of tourists increased considerably over the period. While the number of visitors staying on the island rose gradually at first before levelling off, the figure for cruise-ship visitors experienced a much sharper increase and eventually became the larger group.

The total number of tourists stood at 1 million in 2010 and increased steadily to 1.5 million in 2012. It then climbed more rapidly, reaching 2 million in 2013 and approximately 2.6 million in 2014. The figure continued to rise to around 2.8 million in 2015, before remaining unchanged in 2016. Finally, it increased sharply to approximately 3.6 million in 2017, which was the highest figure recorded.

The number of tourists who stayed on the island was about 0.75 million in 2010 and 2011, before rising to 1.25 million in 2012. It then reached 1.5 million in 2013 and remained stable through 2015. However, this figure fell slightly to around 1.25 million in 2016, before recovering to 1.5 million in 2017. In contrast, cruise-ship visitors increased substantially, from roughly 0.25 million in 2010 to 0.5 million in 2012, and then to 1 million in 2013. The figure continued to rise to 1.25 million in 2014 and 1.5 million in 2015, before reaching 2 million in 2016 and 2017. Thus, cruise-ship visitors overtook those staying on the island in the final two years.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response7.5
Coherence and Cohesion7.5
Lexical Resource7.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy7.5
Overall7.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The student has successfully covered all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the line graph, including the overall trend, the two distinct visitor categories, and the total figures. The information is fully supported by accurate references to the data, such as noting that cruise-ship visitors grew from 0.25 million in 2010 to 2

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The response is logically organized with a clear overall progression. An introductory paragraph is followed by a well-crafted overview paragraph that captures the main trends. Body paragraphs are logically sequenced, separating the total figures from the specific categories. Cohesive devices are used naturally and effectively, such as 'While', 'It then', 'However', and 'In contrast', ensuring smooth transitions between ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.5

The student demonstrates a wide and flexible lexical range suitable for an academic task. Less common vocabulary items are used with good awareness of style and collocation, such as 'considerable', 'levelling off', 'sharper increase', 'remaining unchanged', and 'substantially'. Word choices are precise, and spelling is accurate throughout the response.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

A wide variety of complex structures is employed effectively, including relative clauses, subordinate clauses ('While the number of visitors...'), and participial phrases. The majority of sentences are error-free, and grammatical control is excellent throughout. Punctuation is accurate, and no errors impede communication or strain the reader.

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