Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-21

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 proides information on the number of tourists visit a certain Caribbean island over an seven-year period from 2010 to 2017.

Overall, the most striking aspect shown in this followed an upward trend whereas total visitors significantly increased while tourists staying on cruise ships and tourists staying on island steadily increased.

The time period between 2010 and 2016 xexperienced a sharply rise in total visitors, which was went up from 1 millions tourists to approximately 2.7 millions of toourists. Total visitors increased draatically from 2.7 million of visitors in 2016 to 3.5 millions visitors in 2017.

in terms of visitors staying on cruise ships increased slowly from just over 0.5 millions of tourists in 2010 to 1.5 millions of tourists in 2017. The time period between 2010 and 2012 experienced a slow rise in visitors staying on island, which went up from almost 0.3 millions of tourists to almost 0.4 millions of visitors. Visitors staying on island witnessed a dramatic rise from 0.4 millions of visitors to peak at 2 million of tourists in 2017.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the overall rise in total visitors and attempt to describe both accommodation groups, so the response is relevant to the graph. However, several key figures and trends are misreported, which limits how fully the task is addressed. For example, island-staying visitors rose from about 0.75 million in 2010 to 1.25 million in 2012, not from 0.3 to 0.4 million, and they did not peak at 2 million in 2017; the figure was about 1.5 million. Cruise-ship visitors began at about 0.25 million, rather than just over 0.5 million. The overview is also unclear and does not highlight that island visitors were higher until cruise-ship numbers overtook them in 2016–17. Check each series against the graph before selecting comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate descriptions of the total and visitor categories. This gives the reader some organisation, and phrases such as “Overall” and “in terms of” signal a shift in focus. However, progression within the paragraphs is uneven. The overview sentence is difficult to follow because it repeats “increased” without clearly distinguishing the trends, while the final paragraph moves from cruise-ship visitors to island visitors without a clear transition. Some linking expressions are also used mechanically, such as repeating “The time period between…” rather than connecting the figures directly. Group the main trends more clearly and use concise comparisons, for example, noting when cruise-ship visitors overtook island visitors.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “upward trend,” “dramatically,” and “peak,” and you attempt to vary how changes are described. However, the range is limited by repeated wording such as “visitors” and “increased,” and several spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision: “proides,” “xexperienced,” “toourists,” and “draatically.” Some expressions are also unnatural, including “a sharply rise” and “millions of tourists” when describing values below one million. Use accurate forms such as “a sharp rise” and “0.75 million visitors,” and vary verbs with care—for example, “climbed,” “remained stable,” or “overtook.” Proofreading spelling and collocations would make the account clearer and more appropriate to an academic report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple statements and longer clauses, including “which went up from…” and “whereas…,” but control is inconsistent. Errors occur in sentence structure and verb forms, as in “the most striking aspect shown in this followed an upward trend” and “which was went up.” There are also problems with articles, agreement, and number: “over an seven-year period,” “a sharply rise,” and “1 millions tourists.” Capitalisation at the start of the final paragraph is inconsistent, and some sentences are difficult to parse because clauses are joined awkwardly. Practise building clear subject–verb sentences first, then add subordinate clauses only when their relationship is clear. Check articles, singular/plural forms, and verb patterns during proofreading.

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