Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-09

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 4.5)

The graph compares the number of tourists visiting Caribbean island from the year 2010 to 2017.

Overall, the total number of tourists visited a Caribbean island has significantly increased each year, from 0.25 million in 2010 to 3.5 million at the end the period, while some visitors stayed on cruise ships and other stayed on island.

The visitors stayed on cruise ships also rose significantly after

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The opening identifies the chart’s subject and time span, and you attempt an overview by noting that the total rose and that visitors used two types of accommodation. However, the response is incomplete and does not adequately summarise the main features: it stops mid-sentence at “rose significantly after” and gives no comparison of the two visitor groups. There is also a key factual error: the total was about 1 million in 2010, not 0.25 million; 0.25 million refers to cruise-ship visitors. The total reached about 3.5 million in 2017. The required minimum of 150 words is not met, leaving too little information to fulfil the task. Include a complete overview and selected figures for both groups and the total.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: an introductory sentence is followed by an overview, and “Overall” signals a shift to the main summary. The ideas are broadly relevant, but the progression is very limited because the response ends abruptly after “The visitors stayed on cruise ships also rose significantly after”. No details paragraph develops the trends, and the relationship between the total and the two accommodation groups is not explained. The phrase “while some visitors…” introduces a comparison but does not complete one. To make the organisation clearer, use a short introduction, a complete overview, and a paragraph comparing the figures and changes across the period, with linking phrases used to show contrasts and developments.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The response uses relevant basic terms such as “graph”, “number of tourists”, “total number” and “significantly increased”, so the topic remains understandable. However, the vocabulary range is narrow and some expressions are awkward or imprecise, including “visiting Caribbean island” and “stayed on island”. The repeated use of “visitors” and “tourists” also limits variety, while the unfinished final sentence prevents the trend description from being expressed fully. Use more precise chart language and natural collocations to describe movement and accommodation, such as “the figure for cruise-ship visitors climbed” or “tourists staying on the island”. This would make the account more specific without requiring unnecessarily complex vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a longer sentence with a contrast in “Overall, the total number … has significantly increased …, while…”, showing some ability to connect ideas. However, the response relies mainly on simple structures, and several grammatical problems affect accuracy. In “tourists visiting Caribbean island”, the singular countable noun needs an article; “the end the period” is missing “of”; and “other stayed” needs a plural form or determiner. The past-tense construction “tourists visited” is also not well matched to the chart description, while “The visitors stayed … also rose” uses an awkward tense pattern. Practise describing chart trends consistently in the past simple, and check articles, plurals and prepositions when editing.

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