Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-13

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)

In this bar graph,It illustrates that number of visitors staying on cruise ships and number of vistors staying onisland during 2010 to 2017 in caribbean island. This figures are given in millions.

Overall, It shows significant growth in total number of visitors from 1 millions to 3.5 millions during 2010 to 2017. There are some flutuations seen in tourists who are staying on island. However, there is a constant growth measures in visitors who are staying on cruise ship.

In 2010, around 0.2 millions of people stay on ship. In 2011, It increses with double ratio. From 2011 to 2013 it decreases with almost 0.25 millions. After 2013, It shows significant growth and reached at 2 millions.

In 2010, Almost 0.7 millions of visitors staying on island. It demonstrates drastic surge from 0.7 millions to 1.5 millions. It shows constant propotion of visitors during 2013 to 2015. In 2016, It droped byalmost o.5 millions. At the end it reaches at 1.5 millions.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You provide an overview of the main direction of change, noting that the total rose from 1 million to 3.5 million and that island-based visitors fluctuated while cruise-ship numbers generally increased. You also include relevant figures for both categories. However, some details are inaccurate: cruise-ship visitors did not decrease from 2011 to 2013; they rose from 0.5 million to 0.5 million after dipping to 0.25 million in 2012. The island figure in 2016 fell by about 0.25 million, not 0.5 million. The overview could also make the key comparison clearer: cruise-ship visitors overtook island visitors in 2016 and drove much of the final increase. More precise reporting of these features would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs describing the two visitor groups. This makes the information broadly easy to follow, and phrases such as “Overall” and “At the end” help signal progression. However, some links between dates and changes are unclear or misleading, particularly “From 2011 to 2013 it decreases,” which does not accurately describe the sequence. Repeated use of “It” also leaves the reference unclear: the reader must infer whether it means the number of visitors, the trend, or the category. Organise each data paragraph around a clear sequence of years and use explicit references such as “the cruise-ship figure” to improve cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “visitors,” “fluctuations,” “growth,” and “surge,” and you attempt to describe changes rather than simply list figures. However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “double ratio,” “growth measures,” “constant propotion,” and “reached at.” Spelling errors, including “vistors,” “flutuations,” “increses,” and “droped,” also reduce precision. The range is sufficient to communicate the general trends, but repeated reliance on “shows” and “It” limits flexibility. Aim for accurate trend language and check spelling; for example, use “doubled,” “remained stable,” and “reached” in the appropriate contexts.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more developed sentence forms, including “Overall, it shows…” and a contrast introduced by “However.” The main meaning is generally recoverable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “This figures are given” has a subject–verb agreement error, while “number of visitors” needs an article or plural construction. Tense and sentence construction are also inconsistent in “people stay on ship” and “It demonstrates drastic surge.” Capitalisation and punctuation are uneven, including unnecessary capital letters after commas and the run-on opening “In this bar graph,It illustrates…”. Use consistent past-tense reporting, check articles and agreement, and separate the opening into a complete, correctly punctuated sentence.

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