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User-written IELTS example

Writing Academic Task 1 Band 9.0 Example

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

199 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

  • Highlight the main crossover: Japan leads in the earlier years, while China overtakes it between 2005 and 2010.
  • Contrast China’s steep late increase with Japan’s gradual decline.
  • Note that the smaller series do not follow one pattern: the US fluctuates, whereas India rises to a peak and then falls.

Suggested structure

  1. Paraphrase what the graph measures and give the years covered.
  2. Summarise the overall ranking change and the main trends without listing every figure.
  3. Compare Japan and the US, using starting points, changes and final values.
  4. Describe China and India together, emphasising China’s sharp late rise and India’s smaller peak and decline.
Useful vocabulary & examples
accounted for
formed a particular percentage or share of the total

Japan accounted for about 26% of Australian exports in 1990.

rose sharply
increased quickly and substantially

China’s share rose sharply after 2005.

fluctuated
went up and down rather than changing steadily in one direction

The percentage for the US fluctuated over the period.

peaked at
reached its highest point at a particular value

India’s share peaked at about 7% in 2010.

Task Prompt

The line graph shows the percentages of Australian export with four countries. The graph below shows the percentage of Australian exports to 4 countries from 1990 to 2012
IELTS Writing Task 1 visual

User Essay Analysis

Review the public answer with report-style highlights.

Band 9.0

The provided line graph illustrates the percentage of Australian exports to Japan, the US, China, and India from 1990 to 2012. Overall, the export trends varied significantly. Exports to Japan decreased steadily from 25% in 1990 to around 15% in 2012. Conversely, exports to China surged dramatically, rising from 5% to nearly 30% over the period. China's share then continued to rise, reaching about 28% in 2012, and it overtook Japan between 2005 and 2010 to become Australia's largest export destination among the four. The US figure began at approximately 11% in 1990, fell to 8% in 1995, recovered to 11% in 2000, and then declined to 5% in 2010 before ending at 7%. India's share remained close to 1% until 2000, after which it climbed to 5% in 2005 and peaked at 7% in 2010, before falling to 5% in 2012.

In comparison, Japan was the leading destination at the beginning, but its share fell to about 17% by 2010 and remained stable through 2012. China showed the opposite pattern, with the sharpest overall growth. By the end, China ranked first and Japan second, while the US and India were at similar levels, at 7% and 5% respectively.

Targeted Improvement Tips

1
Before writing, note the approximate start and end values for every line; in particular, verify Japan's endpoint against the plotted 2012 value.
2
Use the overview to name the main contrast directly: China rises strongly, Japan declines, and the US and India finish at comparatively low levels.
3
Reduce repetition by grouping Japan and China in one comparison paragraph and the US and India in another, while selecting only the most informative turning points.

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