Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-06

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below shows the average monthly change in the prices of three metals during 2014.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Average monthly change in prices of copper, nickel and zinc (2014)

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The table illustrate the average monthkly change of prices of copper,nickel and zinc during 2014.

Overall,Nickel had shown the sharpe decreased from early stage where as copper and zinc remained constant to each other.They both showed some ups and down,

Nickel had shown the 6% hike in price from the previous month,after that it gradually went down to 4% in the very next month and then eventually showed more drop in price and reached to 1% and after that it showed a dramatically decrease in the 6th month.Eventually from that ,slow and steday it reached again at 1% at the very end of year.

While on the other hand,copper and zinc started from 2% and 1% respectively, from the start copper showed a minimally decrease and went below the base price but from that it went up to again at the price where it stand an year ago.Also zinc showed little surged in price and reacged at 2% but after that it showed decrease and at the close at the 2%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the three metals and include an overview, noting that nickel fell sharply while copper and zinc fluctuated. You also report several relevant figures, including nickel’s opening rise to about 6% and copper and zinc starting at roughly 2% and 1%. However, the overview is unclear and does not capture the main pattern precisely: copper and zinc did not remain constant, and nickel’s steepest fall was to around -3% in June, not simply a general decrease. The later descriptions also miss important comparisons, such as all three metals becoming negative around June and recovering towards the end of the year. Select the key highs, lows and shared trends, and describe them accurately.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and two paragraphs grouping nickel separately from copper and zinc. This gives the reader a basic route through the information. Some connections, however, are mechanical or unclear. For example, “Overall” is followed by a broad claim that is difficult to interpret, while “after that” and “eventually” recur without always making the sequence precise. The final paragraph combines several movements in long sentences, so the reader has to work to follow the comparisons. Use clearer topic sentences and divide the descriptions into shorter stages—for example, the first-half decline and the late-year recovery—while using references such as “this figure” only when their meaning is clear.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “hike,” “decrease,” “surged” and “reached,” and you attempt to describe changes over time. However, the range is limited and several word choices or forms are inaccurate, which sometimes makes the trend difficult to understand. “Sharpe decreased” is not a natural description, and “remained constant to each other” does not clearly express the relationship between copper and zinc. Spelling errors such as “monthkly,” “steday” and “reacged” also reduce accuracy. Build a reliable set of trend expressions and use them precisely: for example, “fell sharply,” “fluctuated,” “recovered” and “ended at.” Check spelling and collocations when editing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt longer sentences and use time clauses, as in “after that it gradually went down,” but control is inconsistent. Errors in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence construction occur throughout: “The table illustrate” needs a singular verb, and “Nickel had shown” is not the appropriate tense for describing the graph. Several sentences also lack clear grammatical links, particularly “from that it went up to again at the price where it stand an year ago.” Punctuation and spacing around commas are inconsistent, and the overview contains a sentence fragment-like construction. Practise accurate past-simple descriptions and build shorter sentences with a clear subject and verb before adding more complex clauses.

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