Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-20

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 6.5)

The line graph displays the number of viewers who visited a specific Caribbean island from 2010 to 2017.

Overall, the total number of tourists increased over the year and it significantly increased in the final year. In addition, visitors who staying on the cruise ships increased constantly from 2012 to onward, while the number of tourists who stayed on island moderately fluctuated.

Start with the total number of visitors on a Caribbean island. It started at 1 million in 2010 which steadily increased until 2015 and reached at approximately 2.7 million and remained constant in following year before rocked up to 3.5 million visitors in 2017.

Turning to those visitors who stayed on the cruise ships. It stood at very low numbers in 2010 which slightly increased to 0.5 million before came back there in 2012. After that, it steeply increased for the rest of the following years and ended on 2 million in 2017. In contrast, the tourists who stayed on island fluctuated between 0.7 million (approximately) to 1.5 million and the numbers were highest in years 2013 to 2015 and 2017, while the lowest in 2010 and 2011. However, in 2010, the visitors stayed on ships were lower than those stayed on island but this trend reversed after mid of 2015 to 2016 and continue until the final year.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

The response selects the main features and gives a clear overview: total visitor numbers rose overall, cruise-ship visitors grew strongly, and island-staying figures fluctuated within a narrower range. The key figures are generally accurate, including the total reaching about 2.7 million in 2015–16 and 3.5 million in 2017, and the cruise-ship figure ending at 2 million. The comparison that cruise visitors overtook island visitors by the later years is also relevant. To make the account more precise, avoid saying cruise numbers increased “constantly from 2012 onward,” since they fell from 0.5 million to 0.25 million between 2011 and 2012. The overview and supporting details are well chosen, though a few descriptions could be more exact.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The information is organised in a clear sequence: an overview is followed by the total, cruise-ship visitors, and island-staying visitors. This makes the main comparisons easy to follow, and transitions such as “Turning to” and “In contrast” help signal shifts between series. The final comparison also links the two visitor groups effectively. Some cohesion is less controlled, however: “Start with the total” is an awkward transition, and “this trend” in the final sentence could refer more explicitly to the change in which group had more visitors. The overview also repeats information that is developed in the body. More concise linking and clearer references would make the progression smoother while retaining the effective paragraph structure.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

There is an adequate range of vocabulary for describing trends, including “steadily increased,” “fluctuated,” “remained constant,” and “reversed.” These choices communicate the main movements, and the writer attempts more vivid language. However, some expressions are imprecise or unnatural for an academic report: “viewers” is not the right term for tourists, “rocked up” is too informal, and “stood at very low numbers” is an awkward collocation. “Increased constantly” also does not accurately describe the series. Aim for precise, neutral trend language and natural collocations; this would improve the report’s academic tone without requiring more elaborate vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response uses both simple and more extended sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “while” and “before,” and the meaning is generally understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly in verb forms and sentence construction. For example, “visitors who staying” needs a finite verb, while “before came back there” lacks a subject and auxiliary structure. “It started at 1 million … which steadily increased” also creates an unclear relative-clause reference. There are further issues with articles and prepositions in “stayed on island” and “ended on 2 million.” Work on complete clauses, consistent past-tense forms, and article use; greater accuracy in these patterns would make the varied sentences more controlled.

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