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User-written IELTS example

Writing Academic Task 1 Band 7.0 Example

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

235 words AcademicTask 1Line Graph
Task 1

Illustrative target band for this original model answer.

Plan your answer

Try your own response before reading the samples.

Ideas to explore

  • Compare which series begins higher and which one ends higher; here, production starts slightly above consumption, but consumption finishes much higher.
  • Identify the different rates of change: production rises gradually, while consumption accelerates after the early plotted years.
  • Mention the axis-label problem: the task’s stated dates do not match the displayed years, and the last year is printed twice.

Suggested structure

  1. Introduce the graph, measures, and units.
  2. Give an overview of the overall direction and the main contrast between the two lines.
  3. Describe production’s starting level, plateau, and gradual later rise.
  4. Describe consumption’s early stability and sharper increase, then compare the final plotted values.
  5. Briefly note that the displayed dates are inconsistent or duplicated where this affects interpretation.
Useful vocabulary & examples
rose gradually
increased slowly over time

Oil production rose gradually after remaining near 3 million barrels per day.

remained stable
stayed at approximately the same level

Production remained stable at around 3 million barrels per day for a period.

increased substantially
went up by a large amount

Consumption increased substantially and reached about 6.3 million barrels per day at the final plotted point.

the gap widened
the difference between two values became greater

The gap between oil consumption and production widened as consumption climbed.

Task Prompt

The line graph below shows the oil production and consumption in China between 1982 and 2006.
IELTS Writing Task 1 visual

User Essay Analysis

Review the public answer with report-style highlights.

Band 7.0

The given graph illustrates how much oil was produced and consumed in China from 1982 to 2006. Overall, it can be seen that China witnessed an upward trend in both the production and consumption of oil over 24 years. In addition, oil consumption grew remarkably faster than its production during the period shown. At the first plotted point, production was about 2 million barrels per day, only slightly higher than consumption, at just under 2 million. Production then climbed to 3 million by the second point and remained close to this level for most of the period, ending at approximately 3.5 million. By contrast, consumption increased only modestly at first, reaching around 2 million, before rising much more steeply. It overtook production around the middle of the chart, at just over 3 million, and continued to climb to about 4 million and then 5 million. At the final plotted point, consumption stood at a little above 6 million barrels per day, nearly twice production. Thus, the most notable feature is not simply that both measures rose, but that the gap between them widened substantially after consumption passed production. One caution is that the task statement gives 1982–2006, while the chart’s visible horizontal labels appear to run from 1965 to 2010 and repeat 2010 at the end. The values and trend can be described, but exact year-to-point matches cannot be confirmed from this image.

Targeted Improvement Tips

1
Before drafting, compare the task’s stated years with the axis labels; if they conflict, describe the plotted sequence without assigning unsupported years and note the discrepancy clearly.
2
Use the overview to state both the shared upward trend and the key difference: consumption rises more sharply and finishes well above production.
3
Check each comparison for a clear referent and one unit of measurement; for example, state production and consumption figures in parallel when describing the first and final points.

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