Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-05

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 compares the visitors staying on cruise ship, visitors staying on island and total in a particular caribbean island between 2010 and 2017.

Overall, The number of visitors increased between 2010 and 2017. visitors staying on island recorded the lowest figure at the end of the period, while visitors staying on cruise ships recorded the lowest figure in the beginning and overtaked the visitors staying on cruise ships. Moreover, total visitors staying increased rapidly throughout the period.

In 2010, visitors staying on cruise ships accounted the lowest figure, at approximately 0.25 million of visitors. However, visitors staying on island recorded the second highest figure increased from 0.75 million to 1.5 million in 2015 and in 2017 recorded same figure because of fell in 2016, staying on island overtaken by staying on cruise ships stood at 2 million of visitors.

Total staying visitors recorded the highest figure, at 1 million of visitors and increased rapidly and reach 3.5 million of visitors in 2017.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the task only partially because, while it attempts to cover the main categories in the chart, some parts are underdeveloped or confused. For instance, the overview mentions that visitors staying on cruise ships recorded the lowest figure at the beginning and 'overtaked the visitors staying on cruise ships', which is contradictory and reveals confusion in reading the data. The details also contain inaccuracies, such as stating that total staying visitors started at 1 million in 2010 when that is the combined total, but the descriptions of individual trends lack precision and extension. To move to a higher level, you should ensure the overview clearly outlines the main overarching trends without contradictions, and accurately report key data points such as peaks and troughs without confusing the categories.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some organisation, but the response lacks a clear overall progression. The writing is broken down into paragraphs, but the logical flow between sentences is disrupted by mechanical and repetitive phrasing, such as starting multiple sentences or clauses with similar structures. Reference words are sometimes confusing or inaccurate, as seen in the sentence 'overtaked the visitors staying on cruise ships', which creates ambiguity about which trend is being referred to. Additionally, cohesive devices are inadequate and repetitive throughout the text. To achieve a higher score, you should ensure that ideas follow a logical sequence with smoother transitions between sentences, and use referencing pronouns carefully so the reader can easily track which category of visitor you are discussing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is limited but minimally adequate for the task. You attempt some less common terms and descriptive verbs, such as 'increased rapidly' and 'approximately', but there are noticeable errors in word choice and form, including 'overtaked' instead of 'overtook' and 'because of fell' instead of 'due to a fall'. Spelling and word choice errors occur with some frequency, which occasionally causes confusion for the reader. To improve in this area, you should focus on learning the correct forms of irregular past tense verbs and expanding your range of synonyms for describing data changes, ensuring that your lexical choices are precise and appropriate for academic writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a very limited range of structures, relying mostly on simple sentences with frequent attempts at complex forms that are often faulty. There are frequent grammatical errors in verb forms, prepositions, and clause structures, such as 'accounted the lowest figure' missing the preposition 'for', and 'increased from 0.75 million to 1.5 million in 2015 and in 2017 recorded same figure because of fell in 2016', which lacks proper clause coordination and articles. These errors can cause some difficulty for the reader. To progress, you need to use a wider variety of accurate complex sentence structures, pay closer attention to articles and prepositions in data descriptions, and ensure that your verb tenses and forms are grammatically controlled.

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