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Writing Academic Task 1 Band 9.0 Example

Original task prompt, user essay, band score, and related examples in the same report workspace.

206 words AcademicTask 1Line Graph
Task 1

Illustrative target band for this original model answer.

Plan your answer

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Ideas to explore

  • Petroleum was the leading fuel throughout, reaching about 140 in the mid-1980s, dipping around 1990–91, then recovering to a similar level.
  • Coal had a sharp early fall, a partial rebound, and then a longer decline to about 35 by 2000.
  • Natural gas stayed near 40 for much of the 1980s, rose strongly after 1991, and ended at about 100, above coal but below petroleum.

Suggested structure

  1. Introduce the graph by naming the three fuels, the UK, the years and the unit.
  2. Give an overview of the overall ranking and the contrasting directions of change.
  3. Describe petroleum’s rise, dip and recovery with key dates and approximate figures.
  4. Compare coal’s decline with natural gas’s later growth, including their end values.
Useful vocabulary & examples
remain the leading source
continue to have the highest production level among the categories.

Petroleum remained the leading source throughout the period.

fall sharply
decrease quickly and substantially over a relatively short interval.

Coal production fell sharply to around 40 in 1984.

recover to approximately
rise again after a decline to reach a similar or specified level.

Petroleum recovered to approximately 140 in 1996.

overtake
become greater than another category after previously being lower.

Natural gas overtook coal in the early 1990s.

Task Prompt

The graph below shows the production levels of the main kinds of fuel in the UK between 1981 and 2000. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparison where relevant.
IELTS Writing Task 1 visual

User Essay Analysis

Review the public answer with report-style highlights.

Band 9.0

The provided graph illustrates the levels of fuel production in the UK over the period from 1981 to 2000. The graph outlines the production quantities of coal, natural gas, and petroleum in the UK from 1981 to 2000, measured in energy units (where 1 unit equals the energy from 1 million tons of oil). Coal output began at roughly 80 units and remained close to that level until 1983, before dropping sharply to about 40 in 1984. It then recovered to around 60 in 1986, but generally declined thereafter, ending at approximately 35 units in 2000. Natural gas production, by contrast, was around 40 units for most of the 1980s. It rose gradually in the early 1990s, then increased more quickly to about 75 in 1994 and reached 100 by 2000. Petroleum was the highest-producing fuel for most of the period. Output climbed from roughly 90 units in 1981 to 140 in the mid-1980s, fell to around 100 by 1990, and then recovered, reaching about 140 in 1996. It fluctuated slightly around this level and finished close to 145 units. Overall, petroleum remained the leading source, while coal fell substantially. Natural gas ended the period at its highest level, having overtaken coal in the early 1990s.

Targeted Improvement Tips

1
Replace the two introductory sentences with one concise sentence naming the fuels, place and time span; retain the unit definition only if it is useful to the reader.
2
Place the overall comparison directly after the introduction: identify petroleum as the leading fuel, coal’s decline and natural gas’s late rise.
3
Check each approximate figure against the plotted line, then use a small set of distinct verbs such as “fell,” “recovered,” “overtook” and “fluctuated” to explain the trends without repeating general descriptions.

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