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User-written IELTS example

Writing Academic Task 1 Band 6.0 Example

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

205 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 6.0

The line graph elaborates on the exports of Australia to Japan, the US, China, and India from 1990 to 2012. The data is given in percentages. Overall, after observing the figure closely, it is evident that China was the highest importer from Australia in 1990. Whereas, India was lowest at the beginning of the survay. However, this initial comparison is inaccurate: Japan, not China, accounted for the largest share in 1990, at about 26%, while China was only around 2%. Japan's figure then fell to 20% in 1995 and approximately 18% in 2000 and 2005, before declining slightly to 17% by 2010, where it remained in 2012.

By contrast, China's share rose gradually to 5% in 2000, then reached about 11% in 2005. It climbed sharply thereafter, overtaking Japan by 2010 at 25%, and finished at roughly 28% in 2012, the highest figure shown. The US followed a more fluctuating but generally downward pattern: from around 11% in 1990, it fell to 8% in 1995, recovered to 11% in 2000, and then dropped to 5% in 2010, before rising to 7% at the end. India's share was lowest initially, at roughly 1%, and increased to 7% in 2010 before falling back to 5% in 2012.

Targeted Improvement Tips

1
Check the first and last data points before writing the overview: Japan is highest in 1990, while China is highest by 2010 and 2012.
2
Group the main trends into two contrasts: Japan versus China, then the smaller movements in the US and India.
3
After drafting, check that every sentence has a complete main clause and proofread graph-related vocabulary and spelling.

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