IELTS Academic Writing Task 1: How to get a band 7 or higher in task achievement

Write a clear introduction to describe what you see.

Present irrelevant information (E.g. the x-axis, the y-axis, the grey line represents female unemployment, the black triangle is males)

Paraphrase the question prompt. Use synonyms and phrases for non-key information. (E.g. unemployed = people who are unemployed / 1970-2000 = over three decades from 1970 to 2000.)

Copy the question prompt word-for-word (E.g. phrases from the question)

Use keywords in your introduction (E.g. dates, times, countries, genders).

Change the keywords in the question to inaccurate synonyms (E.g. unemployed females in Australia to unemployed girls in Oz.)

Introduce all charts, diagrams or tables.

Table

The table illustrates employment numbers in Australia over a thirty-year period from 1970 to 2000.

Chart

The chart compares the number of cars that were made in France, Germany and Norway over a decade from 2000 to 2010.

Diagram

The diagram shows how car parts are assembled.

Process

The cycle shows how man-made fibres are produced.

Map

The maps illustrate changes in an English village over a century from 1915 to 2015.

Graph

The graph presents data from Ireland showing cinema attendance in major cities in 2016.

Two charts

The pie charts show the main energy resources used to generate power in a town in Australia, while the table shows how much energy was consumed by the community in 1989.

Band 7

Presents a clear overview, the data are appropriately categorised, and main trends or differences are identified

Band 6

A relevant overview is attempted

Band 5

There may be a tendency to focus on details (without referring to the bigger picture)

Use linking words to summarise what you see. (E.g. Overall, To summarise, In summary)

Include data or figures in your overview. Only include a summary of the main trends or features.

Look for trends in the diagram(s). Is there an overall increase, decrease or fluctuation in the visual diagram? Are there any high or low points? Is it stable?

Identify everything in the overview. It should just be a summary statement of the most noticeable features in the diagram.

If the visual diagram shows future predictions, summarise the future trends in your overview.

Highlight key features with data (figures).

Highlight any change in the overall trend of the visual diagram. (For example, a dip)

Table

The table illustrates employment numbers in Australia over a thirty-year period from 1970 to 2000.
 Overall, it can be clearly seen that the numbers of people employed have increased over the period, whereas the unemployed figures have remained stable.

Chart

The chart compares the number of cars that were made in France, Germany and Norway over a decade from 2000 to 2010.
In brief, Germany was the major producer of vehicles over this period followed by France and Norway.
 

Diagram

The diagram shows how car parts are assembled.
It can be seen that there are four main stages to car manufacturing. To be specific, these are moulding, machining, joining and shearing.
 

Process

The process shows how man-made fibres are produced.
It can clearly be seen that there are six steps involved in the production of cloth starting with the raw materials and ending with the final product.
 

Map

The maps illustrate changes in an English village over a century from 1915 to 2015.
In summary, in one hundred years, the village has experienced major changes transforming it from a small farming village to an industrial town.
 

Graph

The graph presents data from Ireland showing cinema attendance in major cities in 2016.
To summarise, it can be seen that the younger age groups visit the cinema most, whereas older people rarely attend.
 

Two charts

The pie charts show the main energy resources used to generate power in a town in Australia, while the chart shows how much energy was consumed by the community in 1989.
Overall, by looking at the charts it can be seen that oil is used the most as an energy source in this town and that most power is required for domestic cooling.
 

Band 7

Key features which are selected are covered and clearly highlighted

Band 6

Key features which are selected are covered and adequately highlighted

Band 5

Key features which are selected are not adequately covered

Band 4

Few key features have been selected

Present the figures given in the visual diagram

Present the data mechanically (E.g. In 1992, it was 2%. In 1993, it was 3%. And in 1994, it was 6%...)

Present the correct number scale shown on the visual diagram (E.g. hundreds, thousands, ten-thousand, hundred-thousand, millions, tonnes)

Present data inaccurately. Make sure you read the Y-axis carefully to see what data is shown.

Write the correct number format when presenting figures from the visual diagram (E.g. 100; 1,000; 10,000; 100,000; 1,000,000)

Use calculations to respond to the task (E.g. calculate averages, add or subtract numbers). Remember to present the data as given.

Use the correct data set represented in the visual diagram (E.g. percentage, number, barrels per day, grams, kilograms, people)

Misread the data and present it incorrectly. (For example, saying females instead of males - 72% of females play football)