📊 IELTS Writing Task 1 Band Score Explained (Academic)

To succeed in IELTS Writing Task 1 (Academic), it's essential to understand how your response is scored. The IELTS examiner evaluates your writing based on four main criteria. Each criterion is weighted equally (25%) and contributes to your overall band score.

📏 The Four Band Score Criteria

Task Achievement (TA)
Coherence and Cohesion (CC)
Lexical Resource (LR)
Grammatical Range and Accuracy (GRA)

🧩 1. Task Achievement

This criterion measures how well you fulfill the task. To score well here, you must:

✔️ Fully describe the most important features
✔️ Include accurate data comparisons
✔️ Paraphrase the question in your introduction
✔️ Write an overview summarizing the main trends

Tip: Do not include every number. Focus on comparisons and trends.

🔗 2. Coherence and Cohesion

This refers to how well your ideas are organized and connected. To score well:

✔️ Use clear paragraphs (Intro → Overview → Body 1 → Body 2)
✔️ Use linking words: however, whereas, in contrast, overall, etc.
✔️ Group related information logically

Tip: Avoid repeating linkers like “also” or “and” too often.

🧠 3. Lexical Resource

This refers to your vocabulary range and precision. You need to:

✔️ Use a variety of words for trends: rise, increase, climb, peak, etc.
✔️ Avoid repeating basic words (“big,” “high,” “go up”)
✔️ Use the right word forms (e.g., “a significant increase” not “a significantly increase”)

Tip: Learn nouns, verbs, and adverbs for describing data.

✍️ 4. Grammatical Range and Accuracy

This looks at how well you use grammar. To get a higher score, you must:

✔️ Use a mix of sentence structures (simple, complex, compound)
✔️ Maintain subject–verb agreement
✔️ Use correct tenses (usually past simple)
✔️ Minimize grammar and punctuation errors

Tip: Practice writing with fewer errors before trying to write longer sentences.

📊 Example Band Descriptor Comparison

Band	What It Means
Band 5	Describes only part of the task, weak structure, limited vocab, frequent grammar issues
Band 6	Addresses the task but with some inaccuracy, limited range of grammar/vocabulary
Band 7	Covers all aspects well, uses a good range of words and structures, few errors
Band 8+	Fully satisfies all criteria, clear logic, wide vocabulary, precise grammar

📌 Final Tips to Boost Your Score

✔️ Plan your response (2 minutes planning saves time)
✔️ Practice each visual type: line graph, bar chart, pie chart, table, map, process
✔️ Get feedback from a teacher or writing service
✔️ Focus on clarity and structure — not fancy vocabulary

Understanding the IELTS Writing Task 1 scoring system helps you write with purpose. Aim to meet the expectations in each category, and your band score will naturally improve with time and practice.

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