These are official writing samples from IELTS. I’ve colour-coded the errors based on their seriousness, i.e. based on how much they affect your score.
- Yellow = Awkward language/minor grammar issue
- Orange = Moderate language/grammar issue
- Red = Serious language/grammar issue
Even without reading them, you can tell the difference from a distance.
Band 5
IELTS Official Writing Task 1 Sample – Band 5
Errors are highlighted: yellow represents awkward language or minor grammar issues; orange represents moderate language/grammar issues; red represents major accuracy/language/grammar issues.
The examiner gave this a Band 5 for the following reasons:
- It’s too short and low on detail. There are no specific references to the data.
- Overall, it’s difficult to understand.
- There are major sentence structure problems (highlighted in red).
Band 6
IELTS Official Writing Task 1 Sample – Band 6
Errors are highlighted: yellow represents awkward language or minor grammar issues; orange represents moderate language/grammar issues; red represents major accuracy/language/grammar issues
The examiner gave this a Band 6 for the following reasons:
- Some information is missing.
- Some information is inaccurate.
- Cohesion problems: connections between some ideas are unclear.
- Awkward language
- Lack of sentence structure variety
Band 7
IELTS Official Writing Task 1 Sample – Band 7
Errors are highlighted: yellow represents awkward language or minor grammar issues; orange represents moderate language/grammar issues; red represents major accuracy/language/grammar issues.
The examiner gave this a Band 7 for the following reasons:
- Lack of sufficient detail in the general overview
- Awkward expressions
- Minor issues with word forms
Can you go up one Band quickly? Yes, you CAN go up one Band quickly with the right training.
Yes, you can go up one band score quickly IF you only need help with writing and your problems are with content and arrangement, rather than grammar and vocabulary. If your issues are with grammar and vocabulary, it will take you longer to prepare. Get in touch for an in-depth assessment:
$95 Canadian gets you detailed feedback and a band score on Writing Task #1 and Writing Task #2, full access to my course, and a one-hour in-depth consultation on how to take your writing to Band 7 level. Many students have jumped from 6.5 to 7 on writing after this ONE consultation.
https://torontoieltsprep.com/product/ielts-writing-assessment/
