Ucalearn.

com

Academic Writing
TASK 1

Band

7+
Greg Archer
 Ucalearn.com

Experts together
Our aim is to deliver the materials you tell us you need. Exclusive insights from test
development and candidate performance guarantee expert content. The result is a
unique Exam Journey in each course, ensuring every student is ready on exam day.
From skills development to exam tasks, language discovery to real-world usage,
we create better learning experiences, together.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022

Version 1

First published 2022

Acknowledgements
The authors and publishers acknowledge the following sources of copyright
material and are grateful for the permissions granted. While every effort has
been made, it has not always been possible to identify the sources of all the
material used, or to trace all copyright holders. If any omissions are brought to
our notice, we will be happy to include the appropriate acknowledgements on
reprinting and in the next update to the digital edition, as applicable.

Text
Band Descriptors sourced from IELTS.org. British Council, IDP: IELTS Australia and
Cambridge English Language Assessment. Reproduced with permission.

Typesetting
Typeset by Blooberry Design Limited.

Editorial Services
Alyson Maskell and Alicia McAuley
 Ucalearn.com

Contents

Introduction 3

Task Achievement 6

Coherence and Cohesion 16

Lexical Resource 19

Grammatical Range and Accuracy 26

Answer Key 33

weloveielts.org

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022

 Ucalearn.com

Introduction
Which IELTS test should I take?
If your aim is to study at undergraduate or postgraduate level, or if you are seeking
professional registration, you should book an Academic IELTS test.

If you intend to migrate to an English-speaking country, you should book a General

Training IELTS test. If you want to study or train below degree level, you will probably need
to take the General Training IELTS test, but you should check with the institution first.

What is the Writing test format?

Both the Academic and the General Training Writing tests consist of two tasks. Candidates
should aim to spend about 20 minutes on Task 1, which requires them to write at least 150
words, and 40 minutes on Task 2, which requires them to write at least 250 words. Task 2
contributes twice as much as Task 1 to the Writing score.

In Task 1 General Training, candidates are asked to respond to a given situation with a
letter requesting information or explaining the situation. They are assessed on their ability
to engage in personal correspondence, provide general factual information, express
needs, wants, likes and dislikes, express opinions, complaints, etc.

Task 1 Academic requires candidates to look at a diagram or some data (in a graph, table
or chart) and to present the information in their own words. They are assessed on their
ability to organise, present and possibly compare data, and are required to describe the
stages of a process, describe an object or event, or explain how something works.

In Task 2, both sets of candidates are presented with a point of view, argument or problem.
They are assessed on their ability to outline a problem and present a solution to present
and justify an opinion, and to evaluate and challenge ideas, evidence or arguments.
Candidates are also assessed on their ability to write in an appropriate style, and they may
also need to provide general factual information (General Training) or compare and
contrast evidence and opinions (Academic).

How is the Writing test assessed?

The assessment is based on a candidate’s performance in four areas:
1. Task Achievement (TA) in Task 1 or Task Response (TR) in Task 2
2. Coherence and Cohesion (CC)
3. Lexical Resource (LR)
4. Grammatical Range and Accuracy (GRA)
A candidate is given a score from 1 to 9 in each of the four categories. These, taken together,
give an overall score which is also from 1 to 9, but can also include .5 scores (e.g. 6.5).

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 3

 Ucalearn.com

To assess the quality of a written test, IELTS examiners refer to band descriptors for
each category (TA/TR, CC, LR, GRA). In each band descriptor, there are between one
and four short descriptions (of what a candidate must do in order to be given that
particular score.
For example, here are the Band 6 descriptors for Grammatical Range and Accuracy (GRA):
• uses a variety of complex structures
• produces frequent error-free sentences
• has good control of grammar and punctuation but may make a few errors
If the examiner is sure that a candidate has achieved all three bullet points in their essay
or letter, that candidate will be given a score of Band 6 for GRA. However, if, for example,
the examiner decides that the candidate has achieved the second and third bullet points,
but has not included a ‘variety of complex structures’ – i.e. if their sentence forms are
limited or too basic – they will not qualify for a Band 6 score, so a Band 5 is more likely.

If the essay or letter achieves all of the descriptors for a Band 6, the examiner must then
decide if the candidate has done enough to be given a Band 7 for GRA. The descriptors
for this are as follows:
• uses a wide range of structures
• the majority of sentences are error-free
• makes only very occasional errors or inappropriacies
Let’s take the second bullet points in each band as an example of how an examiner will
use the descriptors:

Band 6 Band 7

●● produces frequent error-free sentences ●● the majority of sentences are error-free

Consider the difference in meaning between ‘frequent’ and ‘the majority of’. While the
Band 6 descriptor suggests that the candidate often produces error-free sentences, the
Band 7 one suggests that the sentences are mostly correct.
It is up to the examiner to decide which best applies to the paper that they are assessing,
but the difference between ‘often’ and ‘mostly’ correct can be the difference between
getting a Band 6 or a Band 7 for GRA.

When you consider that the examiner will be assessing your writing by using each of
the four categories – TA/TR, CC, LR and GRA – in the same level of detail, you can see
how helpful it can be for candidates to be able to read, understand and refer to the band
descriptors when they are preparing to take an IELTS test and practising their writing
skills.

The full public band descriptors for Task 1 and Task 2 can be found on www.ielts.org.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 4

 Ucalearn.com

How do I use the Band Buster?

The aim of the Band Buster is to help you to become more familiar with the way IELTS
examiners assess a Writing test and then give it a score. Once you have a better idea of
what examiners look for, and can understand why an essay has been given a 5.0 rather
than a 6.0, for example, you can then apply this knowledge to your own writing and,
hopefully, improve your own chances of a higher score.

Each Band Buster presents you with three separate answers to a Task 1 or Task 2 question.
These essays are all genuine responses that were written in real IELTS tests by real
candidates, and the overall score for each answer is the one that was given by the IELTS
examiner. All three answers in the Band Buster will have received the same overall score.

There are four sections in each Band Buster. The first section looks at Task Achievement
or Task Response, the second focuses on Coherence and Cohesion, then Lexical
Resource, and finally, Grammatical Range and Accuracy.

Start from the beginning and work your way through each section to increase your
knowledge of how IELTS examiners assess every IELTS Writing task. All sections refer
to the relevant bullet points from the band descriptors and you are given a series of
questions that will help you understand why each candidate was given the score that they
received, and not higher. These questions take you through the main reasons why the
candidate’s answer received a 5.0, 6.0 or 7.0, and there are exercises to complete which
suggest ways in which each candidate might have been able to get an improved score.

Try not to answer the questions too quickly, and avoid checking the answer immediately
after reading a question. The Band Busters have been written to encourage self-
assessment, so if you take the time to analyse and understand the reasons why the
candidate did not get a higher score, you will have a greater chance of improving your
understanding of the band descriptors and through that becoming more confident
finding ways in which your answers could be improved.

Guide to symbols

The Strategy Box summarises the most important advice to

remember from each section.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 5

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

TASK ACHIEVEMENT

Essay 1
1 In every Task 1 Writing test paper, examiners need to consider Task
Achievement (TA). Which TWO of the options a–h do you need to ensure for a
high score in Task Achievement?
a correct punctuation
b accurate spelling
c a variety of vocabulary
d correct use of data
e avoidance of repetition
f equal-length paragraphs
g keeping close to the given word count
h careful selection of the most important information

2 Look at the task for Essay 1 and answer the questions below.

The table below gives information about the underground railway systems in six cities.
i
ii Write at least words.

Underground Railway Systems

City Date opened Kilometres of route Passengers per year
(in millions)
London 1863 394 775
Paris 1900 199 1191
Tokyo 1927 155 1927
Washington DC 1976 126 144
Kyoto 1981 11 45
Los Angeles 2001 28 50

The box above the table contains the ‘rubric’ – the instructions that explain what you have to do
in this part of the test. Which of the sentences below, a–c, do you think will be included in the
second part of the rubric (i)? Why?
a Write an essay including all the figures given and make comparisons between the highest and
lowest numbers.
b Compare the geographic sizes of each city and suggest reasons for the differences between the
underground railway systems.
c Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant.
In the final part of the rubric (ii), which number appears in the gap: 150, 200 or 250?

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 6

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

Don’t include all of the information that is on the page (unless, of course, there are
only a few data points presented) – this would not count as ‘summarising’ the data.
You should also avoid incorporating your own knowledge on the given topic or
speculating as to the reasons why a particular trend occurred, for example. Some
candidates do this as they believe it will support their interpretation of the data, while
others assume that it shows off a wide range of vocabulary. Both assumptions are wrong.

3 Answer the questions to help you choose some of the main features of the
table in the task above.
a What specific information is given about the underground railway systems in the six
cities?
b In each column, which two cities represent opposite extremes (e.g. earliest/latest)?
c The third column represents the total number of journeys made each year in millions:
true or false?
d How might some of the data be compared in size or number?
Hint: Look at the total distance of both systems in London and Paris, for example.

Always try to look for notable information that is not immediately clear on your
initial reading of the data. One way to do this is to identify ways in which data can be
grouped together. For example, compare (1) ‘London and Paris were the first cities to
construct underground railway systems’ with (2) ‘The earliest underground railway
systems were constructed in the two European cities.’ Doing so – as in the case of
sentence number (2) – shows the examiner that you can ‘illustrate key features […]
appropriately’ (Band 8), and not just ‘clearly present key features’ (Band 7).

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 7

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

4 Read Essay 1. Does the candidate summarise the main features correctly?
Essay 1

The table shows the details regarding the underground railway systems in six cities.
London has the oldest underground railway systems among the six cities. It was
opened in the year 1863, and it is already 140 years old. Paris is the second oldest,
in which it was opened in the year 1900. This was then followed by the opening of
the railway systems in Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Los Angeles has the newest
underground railway system, and was only opened in the year 2001. In terms of the size
of the railway systems, London, for certain, has the largest underground railway systems.
It has 394 kilometres of route in total, whick is nearly twice as large as the system in
Paris. Kyoto, in contrast, has the smallest system. It only has 11 kilometres of route,
whick is more that 30 times less than that of London.
Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest
number of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris has
the second greatest number of passengers at 1191 millions passengers per year. The
smalest underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the smallest number of passengers
per year as predicted.
In conclusion, the underground railway systems in different cities vary a lot in the size
of the system, the number of passengers served per year and in the age of the system.

5 Complete the Task Achievement band descriptors for Bands 7 and 8 by

choosing the correct options in 1 to 3. What do the differences in word choice
suggest examiners will be looking for in order to make a distinction between a
Band 7 and a Band 8 essay?

Band 7 Band 8

● covers 1 requirements of ● covers 1 requirements of

the task the task sufficiently
● clearly presents and 2 key ● presents, 2 key features/
features/bullet points 3 bullet points 3

1 all / the
2 highlights / highlights and illustrates
3 clearly and appropriately / but could be more fully extended

6 At this point, do you think Essay 1 deserves to be awarded Band 7 or 8 for Task
Achievement?

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 8

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

7 Read the strategy box below, then look again at the beginning of Essay 1. Has
the candidate included an effective introduction?

Your Task 1 essay should begin with a sentence or two that introduces the
information you are going to write about. To do this, you need to rephrase the first
sentence of the rubric. Avoid at all costs simply copying all or part of it onto your
answer sheet.
One strategy that works for many candidates is to imagine that you are writing the essay
for someone who has not even seen the original rubric and table/graph/chart (of course,
the examiner assessing your essay will have). This might help you to concentrate on
writing with clarity.

8 Task 1 essays also require the candidate to write an overview of the data – a
brief, one- or two-sentence summary of the most important features. Circle
TRUE or FALSE for the sentences below.
a Candidates are penalised by the examiner for not including an overview. TRUE FALSE

b The overview should always appear at the end of the essay. TRUE FALSE

c Data/figures should never be included in an overview. TRUE FALSE

Before you write the overview, and try to take a bird’s-eye view of the table/
graph/chart as a whole. Ask yourself, ‘What one (or two) essential point(s) does this
information convey?’

9 Look again at the overview from Essay 1. What improvements could the
candidate have made to increase their chances of getting a Band 8 score for
Task Achievement?
Hint: Compare the distance and passenger numbers for the three oldest systems with the three
newest systems.

In conclusion, the underground railway systems in different cities vary a lot in the size of
the system, the number of passengers served per year and in the age of the system.

10 Rearrange the phrases below to form an overview that skilfully ‘presents,

highlights and illustrates key features’ (Band 8).
with the oldest three systems / vary a great deal in each of the given criteria, / In conclusion,
/ than the three most recently constructed. / the underground railway systems / being
greater both in size and passenger numbers served per year

11 Following the descriptors above, which band do you think Essay 1 would
achieve for Task Achievement?

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 9

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

Essay 2
1 Look at this question. How is it similar to / different from the question in the
Essay 1 task?

The first chart below shows the results of a survey which sampled a cross-section of 100,000
people asking if they travelled abroad and why they travelled for the period 1994–98. The
second chart shows their destinations over the same period.
Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information shown below.
You should write at least 150 words.

VISITS ABROAD BY UK RESIDENTS BY PURPOSE OF VISIT (1994–98)

1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Holiday 15,246 14,898 17,896 19,703 20,700
Business 3,155 3,188 3,249 3,639 3,957
Visits to friends and relatives 2,689 2,628 2,774 3,051 3,181
Other reasons 982 896 1,030 1,054 990
TOTAL 22,072 21,610 24,949 27,447 28,828

DESTINATIONS OF VISITS ABROAD BY UK RESIDENTS

BY MAIN REGION (1994–98)

Western Europe North America Other areas Total

1994 19,371 919 1,782 20,072
1995 18,944 914 1,752 21,610
1996 21,877 1,167 1,905 24,949
1997 23,661 1,559 2,227 27,447
1998 24,519 1,823 2,486 28,828

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 10

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

2 Read the first half of Essay 2 and answer the questions below.
Essay 2

According to statistical information, the main reason for traveling abroad

is holidays, business, and visits to friends and relatives. Indeed, there is a
steady increase in the number of holiday makers; while in 1996 there were
about 17,896 of the sample in 1998 there were about 20,700 of them. Moreover,
with the introduction of more countries within the EC market, travelling for
business has also increased.
Although there is not a big decrement 3,957 traveled abroad for business
during 1998 compared with 3,249 in 1996. Finally, traveling abroad for visiting
friends and relatives shows a steady increase over the period 1994–1998. While
there were about 2,628 travelers in 1995 in 1998 the number increased to 3,181
in 1998. Consequently, there is a steady increase in three main reasons for
travelling abroad; Holidays, business, or to visit relatives and friends.

Has the candidate:

a presented a clear introduction?
b attempted to include all of the figures given or to present the main features?
c provided any information that is not given in the tables, but instead comes from their own
prior knowledge?

3 Complete whatever information you can in the table below only by reading the
first part of the essay, and without referring to the original table in Exercise 1.

VISITS ABROAD BY UK RESIDENTS BY PURPOSE OF VISIT (1994–98)

1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Holiday
Business
Visits to friends and relatives
Other reasons
TOTAL

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 11

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

4 Answer questions a–d, referring to the table in Exercise 3 above.

a Is the candidate’s approach to presenting and highlighting the main trends clear? Why/
Why not?
b What would be a more logical approach, given that there is a considerable amount of
information supplied in the table?
c The candidate notes that ‘there is a steady increase in three main reasons for travelling
abroad’, but which important feature have they failed to include with regard to this
increasing trend between 1994 and 1998?
Hint: Is there anything unusual about the figures for 1995?
d Which features of the table has the candidate not included any information for?

Try to identify any aspect of the data that does not follow the general trend, or which
is unusual or noticeably different from the rest. It might be the case, for example, that
there is a single point at which the given figures are all the same (or thereabouts); or, as in
this table, that there is one year in which the figures decreased, despite there being a clear
rising trend overall.

5 Now read the second half of the essay. Has the candidate presented and
highlighted the main features more successfully than they did in the first half?
Why/Why not?

In addition, there is also an increased change in the destinations which

people tend to prefer for travelling. The area which appear to be more
popular among travellers is Western Europe. Indeed, while in 1994 only 19,371
of the sample preferred to spend their holiday (or other reasons) in that
main region, there was an increase to 24,519 in 1998. North America and other
areas appeared also favourable. In 1996, there were 1,167 going to North
America and 1,905 to other areas. These numbers increased to 1,823 and
2,486 accordingly. Statistical figures prove that Western Europe seems to
be the most favourable place for holiday makers while North America and
other areas follow behind.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 12

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

6 With all this in mind, decide whether the candidate ‘covers the requirements
of the task’ (Band 7) or ‘covers all requirements of the task sufficiently’ (Band
8)? Does the candidate ‘clearly present and highlight key features’ (Band 7) or
merely ‘present and adequately highlight key features’ (Band 6)?
7 In terms of presenting an overview, which of the following descriptors is most
appropriate for Essay 2?
a The candidate presents a clear overview of the main trends, differences or stages. (Band 7)
b The candidate presents an overview with information clearly selected. (Band 6)
c The candidate recounts detail mechanically with no clear overview. (Band 5)

Essay 3
1 Look at this Task 1 question. How is it similar to / different from the tasks in
Essays 1 and 2?

The graph below shows the unemployment rates in the US and Japan between March 1993
and March 1999.
Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information shown below.

Unemployment Rates: US and Japan

7.5
7.0
6.5
Percentage of work force

6.0 US

5.5
5.0
4.5
4.0
3.5
Japan
3.0
2.5
2.0
Mar 93 Mar 94 Mar 95 Mar 96 Mar 97 Mar 98 Mar 99

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 13

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

2 Read the first three paragraphs of Essay 3 and answer questions a–c below
(you will read the final paragraph later).

Essay 3

According to the results of the labour-force research published

recently, the following conclusions can be drawn from it:
In March, 1993, United States had seven percent of their
workforce which might not seem disastrous until compared with
Japan, where 2.5% were unemployed. However, the unemployment
rates in United States began declining slowly since March 1993,
and reached 5% mark in the middle of 1996. Japan turned out to
be less lucky, as their unemployment rate doubled in three years.
From then on, the percentage of unemployed workforce in United
states remained roughly the same – about 5% until March 99,
although there were minor falls and rises in the unemployment
rate.
As for Japan, the percentage of unemployed fell rapidly by
0.5–0.6% after March 1996, but from summer 1996 and onwards
it grew steadily and without any falls to reach 5.0% boundary in
March 1999.
The major conclusion that I’ve drawn using the graph, is that
number of unemployed in USA decreased by about 2.0% in the
course of six years, while in Japan it actually increased by 2.5%
percent. As a result, in March 99, both Japan and US had about
5% of their workforce unemployed.

The candidate’s answer to this Task 1 question:

a presents / partially presents an introduction.
b focuses successfully / too closely on the details in the graph.
c fails to compare / compares the trends and general differences between the figures for the
USA and Japan.
d presents no clear overview / a clear overview of the main trends, differences or stages.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 14

 Ucalearn.com
Task Achievement

3 Look at the Band 8 descriptor below. Then read again the paragraph that
begins, ‘As for Japan …’. Are all of the key features presented correctly?

Band 8

●● presents, highlights and illustrates key features/bullet points clearly and appropriately

4 Has the candidate failed to include any key features that could have helped
them reach Band 8 for Task Response?
Hint: What happened between March 1998 and March 1999 that did not occur at any other point?

5 Make a list of three things that you will remember to do in future essays to
increase your chances of getting higher than Band 7 for Task Achievement.

1
2
3

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 15

 Ucalearn.com
Coherence and Cohesion

COHERENCE AND COHESION

1 After Task Achievement (TA), examiners assess your essay for Coherence and
Cohesion (CC).
Look at the Band 7 descriptors in the box and answer the questions.

Band 7

● logically organises information and ideas; there is clear progression throughout

● uses a range of cohesive devices appropriately although there may be some under-/
over-use

a If the examiner sees ‘clear progression throughout’, this means that:

i the candidate develops their essay skilfully by introducing and developing their ideas
and arguments and providing a strong introduction and conclusion
ii the candidate has included their notes and planning for the essay on the answer sheet
so the examiner can check these have been followed
b Which of the following words/phrases are examples of ‘cohesive devices’? Which are the
two most commonly used (and would therefore get the least credit from an examiner)?
Which two are not suitable for a Task 1 essay and why?
‘As for’, ‘By this I mean’, ‘Consequently’, ‘However’, ‘In addition’, ‘Interestingly’, ‘In terms
of’, ‘On the contrary’
c Which group of words, i or ii, are examples of ‘referencing’ (a second type of cohesive
device)?
i ‘show’, ‘comparison’, ‘note’, ‘relevant’
ii ‘it’, ‘one’, ‘so’, ‘this’, ‘such’

To get a good score in Coherence and Cohesion, your essay should be easy for the
examiner to read. It should not contain a lot of repetition of words or phrases and your
sentences and paragraphs should follow on logically from the previous ones.

2 Read this paragraph from Essay 1 again. Does the candidate ‘logically organise
information and ideas’ (Band 7), or could it be said that they ‘sequence
information and ideas logically’ (Band 8)?

London has the oldest underground railway systems among the six cities. It was
opened in the year 1863, and it is already 140 years old. Paris is the second oldest,
in which it was opened in the year 1900. This was then followed by the opening of
the railway systems in Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Los Angeles has the newest
underground railway system, and was only opened in the year 2001. In terms of the size
of the railway systems, London, for certain, has the largest underground railway systems.
It has 394 kilometres of route in total, whick is nearly twice as large as the system in
Paris. Kyoto, in contrast, has the smallest system. It only has 11 kilometres of route,
whick is more that 30 times less than that of London.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 16

 Ucalearn.com
Coherence and Cohesion

3 Read the Band 6 descriptor below and answer the question below.

Band 6

● uses cohesive devices effectively, but cohesion within and/or between sentences may
be faulty or mechanical

One of the ways in which cohesion can be ‘faulty or mechanical’ is if there is an excess of
repetition. How could the candidate have avoided this in the above paragraph from Essay 1,
thereby improving their chances of a higher score?
Hint: Which phrases could be removed or substituted with another word or phrase without affecting
the meaning in any way?

4 Which word, a–c, could have been used in the gap in the sentence below, not
only to enable the candidate to avoid missing out important data (i.e. helping
their Task Achievement score), but also to show a good command of cohesion?
This was then followed by the opening of the railway systems in Tokyo, Washington DC and
Kyoto, in 1927, 1976 and 1981 .
a respectively
b accordingly
c consequently

5 Look at the next paragraph from Essay 1. How could it have been improved in
terms of Coherence and Cohesion?
Hint: Again, which words can be removed or substituted without causing any problems of
understanding for the reader?

Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest
number of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris has
the second greatest number of passengers at 1191 millions passengers per year. The
smalest underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the smallest number of passengers
per year as predicted.

6 In the sentences below from Essay 2, decide whether the candidate ‘manages
all aspects of cohesion well’ (Band 8)? How could it have been improved?

North America and other areas appeared also favourable. In 1996, there
were 1,167 going to North America and 1,905 to other areas. These numbers
increased to 1,823 and 2,486 accordingly.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 17

 Ucalearn.com
Coherence and Cohesion

7 Look at the Band 8 descriptor below. What, given the focus on Coherence and
Cohesion, do you think the missing word is – a, b or c?

Band 8

● uses sufficiently and appropriately

a punctuation
b complex sentences
c paragraphing

8 Read again the main section of Essay 3. Does it fulfil the requirements of the
Band 8 descriptor in Exercise 7 above? If not, how could the candidate have
improved their chances of getting a Band 8 score?

In March, 1993, United States had seven percent of their

workforce which might not seem disastrous until compared with
Japan, where 2.5% were unemployed. However, the unemployment
rates in United States began declining slowly since March 1993,
and reached 5% mark in the middle of 1996. Japan turned out to
be less lucky, as their unemployment rate doubled in three years.
From then on, the percentage of unemployed workforce in United
states remained roughly the same – about 5% until March 99,
although there were minor falls and rises in the unemployment
rate.
As for Japan, the percentage of unemployed fell rapidly by
0.5–0.6% after March 1996, but from summer 1996 and onwards
it grew steadily and without any falls to reach 5.0% boundary in
March 1999.

9 Make a list of three things that you will remember to do in future essays
to increase your chances of getting higher than Band 7 for Coherence and
Cohesion.

1
2
3

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 18

 Ucalearn.com
Lexical Resource

LEXICAL RESOURCE
1 After Coherence and Cohesion (CC), examiners assess your essay for Lexical
Resource (LR).
Which of the strategies, a–d, should you use if you want to achieve a high score
for Lexical Resource?
a focus on spelling all words correctly
b try to use four or five long, complicated words per paragraph
c include technical language and jargon if you have extensive knowledge of the topic given
d include examples of higher-level vocabulary (e.g. less-common collocations) that is
relevant to the topic

A collocation is a combination of words formed when two or more words are used
together in a way that sounds correct (for example, ‘heavy rain / strong wind’, as opposed
to ‘heavy wind / strong rain’). Correctly using less-common collocations will increase your
chances of achieving Band 7 or above for Lexical Resource.

2 Choose the two correct options which form collocations in each of these
sentences.
a Tokyo’s underground network, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves /
accommodates / carries the greatest number of passengers per year. (verb–noun
collocation)
b Travelling abroad for visiting friends and relatives shows a steady / marked / firm increase
over the period 1994–1998. (adjective–noun collocation)
c According to the results of the labour-force research published recently, the following
conclusions can be applied / drawn / reached. (noun–verb collocation)

3 Use the words and phrases in the box to complete these Lexical Resource
descriptors for Bands 7 and 8.
a sufficient range a wide range flexibility and precision
fluently and flexibly precise meanings

Band 7 Band 8

● uses 1 of vocabulary to ● uses 3 of vocabulary

allow some 2 . 4
to convey 5 .

4 The Coherence and Cohesion section focused on avoiding repetition in the

following section from Essay 1. Focusing now on Lexical Resource, replace
the words and phrases in bold with options a–f to move the candidate towards
Band 8 according to the descriptor in Exercise 3.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 19

 Ucalearn.com
Lexical Resource

Interestingly, Tokyo, 1 which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest
number of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris
2
has the second greatest number of passengers, at 1191 millions passengers
3
per year. The 4 smalest underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the 5 smallest
number of passengers per year as 6 predicted.

a annually
b fewest
c least extensive
d might be expected
e occupies second place in the table
f with a mere

5 Which of the descriptors below are for Band 7 and which are for Band 8?

A B C D
● produces rare ● may produce ● uses less common ● skilfully uses
errors in spelling occasional errors lexical items with uncommon
and/or word in word choice, some awareness of lexical items
formation spelling and/or style and collocation but there may
word formation be occasional
inaccuracies in
word choice and
collocation

6 In Essay 1, which of the following, a or b, did the candidate write? In which

one might the examiner consider the Lexical Resource to be good enough for
a Band 8 (or above)? Why?
a

London has the oldest underground railway systems among the six cities. It was
opened in the year 1863, and it is already 140 years old. Paris is the second oldest,
in which it was opened in the year 1900. This was then followed by the opening of
the railway systems in Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Los Angeles has the newest
underground railway system, and was only opened in the year 2001.

London paved the way for the other five cities, having established its underground
railway network in 1863; as such, it is already 140 years old. Paris is the site of the
second-oldest system, which welcomed its first passengers in the year 1900. This was
followed by the opening of the networks in Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Los Angeles
is the most recent city to construct its own subway system, which was declared open to
the public in the year 2001.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 20

 Ucalearn.com
Lexical Resource

7 Read Essay 1 again. Are the mistakes in spelling and word formation ‘rare’
(Band 8) or ‘occasional’ (Band 7)?

The table shows the details regarding the underground railway systems in six cities.
London has the oldest underground railway systems among the six cities. It was
opened in the year 1863, and it is already 140 years old. Paris is the second oldest,
in which it was opened in the year 1900. This was then followed by the opening of
the railway systems in Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Los Angeles has the newest
underground railway system, and was only opened in the year 2001. In terms of the size
of the railway systems, London, for certain, has the largest underground railway systems.
It has 394 kilometres of route in total, whick is nearly twice as large as the system in
Paris. Kyoto, in contrast, has the smallest system. It only has 11 kilometres of route,
whick is more that 30 times less than that of London.
Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest
number of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris has
the second greatest number of passengers at 1191 millions passengers per year. The
smalest underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the smallest number of passengers
per year as predicted.
In conclusion, the underground railway systems in different cities vary a lot in the size
of the system, the number of passengers served per year and in the age of the system.

8 Reread this extract from Essay 2 and answer the questions below.

According to statistical information, the main reason for traveling abroad

is holidays, business, and visits to friends and relatives. Indeed, there is a
steady increase in the number of holiday makers; while in 1996 there were
about 17,896 of the sample in 1998 there were about 20,700 of them. Moreover,
with the introduction of more countries within the EC market, travelling for
business has also increased.
Although there is not a big decrement 3,957 traveled abroad for business
during 1998 compared with 3,249 in 1996. Finally, traveling abroad for visiting
friends and relatives shows a steady increase over the period 1994–1998. While
there were about 2,628 travelers in 1995 in 1998 the number increased to 3,181
in 1998. Consequently, there is a steady increase in three main reasons for
travelling abroad; Holidays, business, or to visit relatives and friends.

a Are there ‘occasional errors in word choice’ (Band 7)?

b Are there any spelling errors?
c Are there any examples of less-common vocabulary that conveys precise meanings?

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 21

 Ucalearn.com
Lexical Resource

9 Highlight the phrases in the extract in Exercise 8 which are used too frequently
for the examiner to assess it as Band 8.
10 Rewrite the phrases you highlighted so as to display a wider range of
vocabulary and reach Band 8.
11 In this paragraph from Essay 3, find two examples where the candidate
displays ‘some awareness of style’ (Band 7), but not enough awareness to be
given a Band 8. How could these be improved?
Hint: Task 1 essays should be written in an objective, neutral (and not informal) style.

In March, 1993, United States had seven percent of their

workforce which might not seem disastrous until compared with
Japan, where 2.5% were unemployed. However, the unemployment
rates in United States began declining slowly since March 1993,
and reached 5% mark in the middle of 1996. Japan turned out to
be less lucky, as their unemployment rate doubled in three years.
From then on, the percentage of unemployed workforce in United
states remained roughly the same – about 5% until March 99,
although there were minor falls and rises in the unemployment
rate.

12 Look again at the above paragraph from Essay 3.

a How many spelling errors does the candidate make?
b Does the candidate use a wide range of vocabulary ‘fluently and flexibly’ (Band 8) or do
they use ‘a sufficient range of vocabulary to allow some flexibility and precision’ (Band 7)?
c Which band is this paragraph more likely to be assessed at, 7 or 8?

If you are aiming for a Band score of 7 or above, you should look for opportunities to
show a wide range of language when reporting data, rather than writing only the numbers
given in the graph, table or chart. For example, you would demonstrate a better control of
Lexical Resource by writing ‘the overwhelming majority (97%)’ rather than simply ‘97%’.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 22

 Ucalearn.com
Lexical Resource

13 Use the verbs and phrases from the box to describe the changes in the table.

doubled halved rose by a quarter grew/increased by a third quadrupled trebled

a 20% ➞ 40%

b 20% ➞ 60%

c 20% ➞ 80%

d 20% ➞ 10%

e 20% ➞ 27%

f 20% ➞ 25%

14 Complete Phrases a and b to create alternatives to the underlined words in

this sentence from Essay 1.

It has 394 kilometres of route in total, whick is nearly twice as large as the system
in Paris.

a d e the s e of
b d et t of

15 Read the second and third paragraphs of Essay 3 again and answer the
questions below.

In March, 1993, United States had seven percent of their

workforce which might not seem disastrous until compared with
Japan, where 2.5% were unemployed. However, the unemployment
rates in United States began declining slowly since March 1993,
and reached 5% mark in the middle of 1996. Japan turned out to
be less lucky, as their unemployment rate doubled in three years.
From then on, the percentage of unemployed workforce in United
states remained roughly the same – about 5% until March 99,
although there were minor falls and rises in the unemployment rate.
As for Japan, the percentage of unemployed fell rapidly by
0.5–0.6% after March 1996, but from summer 1996 and onwards
it grew steadily and without any falls to reach 5.0% boundary in
March 1999.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 23

 Ucalearn.com
Lexical Resource
Underline where the candidate has used:
a words or phrases that describe ‘going up’.
b words or phrases that describe ‘going down’.
c words or phrases that describe ‘not changing’.
d words or phrases that describe ‘going up and down’.

16 Are the words and phrases you found in Exercise 15 examples of the candidate
using ‘a sufficient range of vocabulary to allow some flexibility and precision’
(Band 7) or ‘using an adequate range of vocabulary for the task’ (Band 6)?
17 Which of the conclusions below (a–c) did the candidate originally write as a
final paragraph for Essay 3? Which would be most likely to be given a Band 8
score for Lexical Resource?
a

The major conclusion that I’ve drawn using the graph, is that
number of unemployed in USA decreased by about 2.0% in the
course of six years, while in Japan it actually increased by 2.5%
percent. As a result, in March 99, both Japan and US had about
5% of their workforce unemployed.

The main conclusion to be drawn from the graph is that the

number of unemployed in USA declined by around 2.0% during
the period in question, while, conversely, in Japan it actually
increased by 2.5% percent. As a consequence, in March 99, in
both Japan and the US approximately 5% of their labour force
was out of work.

The best conclusion is that number of unemployed in USA

decreased by about 2.0% between 1993 and 1999, but in Japan it
actually increased by 2.5% percent. So, in March 99, both Japan
and US had about 5% of workers unemployed.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 24

 Ucalearn.com
Lexical Resource

18 Make a list of three things that you will remember to do in future essays to
increase your chances of scoring higher than a Band 7 for Lexical Resource.

1
2
3

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 25

 Ucalearn.com
Grammatical Range and Accuracy

GRAMMATICAL RANGE AND ACCURACY

1 Correct the grammar mistakes in these sentences.
a Paris is the second oldest, in which it was opened in the year 1900.
b North America and other areas appeared also favourable.
c In March, 1993, United States had seven percent of their workforce which might not seem
disastrous until compared with Japan, where 2.5% were unemployed.

2 Look at the band descriptors (A–D) for Grammatical Range and Accuracy
(GRA) below. Which TWO descriptors describe a Band 7 answer, which TWO
describe a Band 8?

A B C D
● produces ● uses a wide range ● uses a variety of ● the majority of
frequent error- of structures complex structures sentences are
free sentences error-free

Candidates aiming for Band 7 or above often make basic grammar mistakes in their
writing (e.g. missing punctuation), often due to the pressures they feel in the test room, and
lose credit from the examiner as a result. So make sure you leave enough time to check your
essay for mistakes at the end of the test.

3 Read the second paragraph from Essay 1 again. Has the candidate done
enough here to be given Band 8 for Grammatical Range and Accuracy? Why?

London has the oldest underground railway systems among the six cities. It was
opened in the year 1863, and it is already 140 years old. Paris is the second oldest,
in which it was opened in the year 1900. This was then followed by the opening of
the railway systems in Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Los Angeles has the newest
underground railway system, and was only opened in the year 2001. In terms of the size
of the railway systems, London, for certain, has the largest underground railway systems.
It has 394 kilometres of route in total, whick is nearly twice as large as the system in
Paris. Kyoto, in contrast, has the smallest system. It only has 11 kilometres of route,
whick is more that 30 times less than that of London.

4 Look at the third paragraph of Essay 1. How has the candidate combined these
three pieces of information into one sentence? Why would this have been
likely to gain credit from the examiner for Grammatical Range and Accuracy?
Tokyo:
only has 155 kilometres of route.
serves the greatest number of passengers per year.
carries 1927 million passengers per year.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 26

 Ucalearn.com
Grammatical Range and Accuracy

Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest
number of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris has
the second greatest number of passengers at 1191 millions passengers per year. The
smalest underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the smallest number of passengers
per year as predicted.

5 Has the candidate made any basic errors in their third paragraph?
6 In the conclusion to Essay 1 (below), how could the candidate have shown an
even greater range of structures by using the noun form of ‘vary’?

In conclusion, the underground railway systems in different cities vary a lot in the size
of the system, the number of passengers served per year and in the age of the system.

7 Which Band (7 or 8) is being presented in the descriptors in Columns A and B?

A B
● makes only very occasional errors or ● has good control of grammar
inappropriacies and punctuation but may make a
few errors

8 Here are three extracts from Essay 2. Why are they likely to have limited the
candidate’s Grammatical Range and Accuracy score to Band 7?

while in 1996 there were about 17,896 of the sample in 1998 there were about
20,700 of them.

Although there is not a big decrement 3,957 traveled abroad for business
during 1998 compared with 3,249 in 1996.

While there were about 2,628 travelers in 1995 in 1998 the number increased to
3,181 in 1998.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 27

 Ucalearn.com
Grammatical Range and Accuracy

It is important to be consistent in your use of tenses. Either report what you can see
(present tense) or explain what happened (past tense). Mixing your tenses won’t necessarily
affect your score if you are happy with Band 7, but if you are aiming for Band 8, ‘the majority
of sentences’ need to be ‘error-free’.

9 Read the third paragraph of Essay 2 again and answer the questions.

In addition, there is also an increased change in the destinations which

people tend to prefer for travelling. The area which appear to be more
popular among travellers is Western Europe. Indeed, while in 1994 only 19,371
of the sample preferred to spend their holiday (or other reasons) in that
main region, there was an increase to 24,519 in 1998. North America and other
areas appeared also favourable. In 1996, there were 1,167 going to North
America and 1,905 to other areas. These numbers increased to 1,823 and
2,486 accordingly. Statistical figures prove that Western Europe seems to
be the most favourable place for holiday makers while North America and
other areas follow behind.

a Are all verb forms correct?

b Are all adverbs used correctly?
c Which is the most complex grammatically correct sentence?
d Are there any mistakes in punctuation?
e Are there any missing articles (‘a’, ‘an’, ‘the’)?
f Are the majority of sentences error free (Band 8)?

10 Improve the Grammatical Range and Accuracy for the following sentence by
changing one of the verbs to the ‘-ing’ form. Make any other changes needed to
ensure that the sentence is completely correct.

However, the unemployment rates in United States began

declining slowly since March 1993, and reached 5% mark in the
middle of 1996.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 28

 Ucalearn.com
Grammatical Range and Accuracy

11 In Coherence and Cohesion, Exercise 5, you considered how to adapt the

following extract from Essay 1 to improve your chances of a higher score.
Look in the answer key to remind yourself of the changes that were made.

Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest
number of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris has
the second greatest number of passengers at 1191 millions passengers per year. The
smalest underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the smallest number of passengers
per year as predicted.

12 How could you change the section above in a different way to improve your
chances of a higher score for Grammatical Range and Accuracy?
Hint: Could you connect two of the sentences by using the ʻ-ingʼ form of the verb?

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 29

 Ucalearn.com
Grammatical Range and Accuracy

13 Compare Essay 3 (Example A) with the improved version (Example B). In

Example B, highlight the places where changes have to be made to move this
essay from a Band 7 to a Band 8/Band 9 for Grammatical Range and Accuracy.
Note: these changes focus exclusively on Grammatical Range and Accuracy; changes suggested in the
Task Achievement, Coherence and Cohesion and Lexical Resource sections are not included here.

Example A

According to the results of the labour-force research published

recently, the following conclusions can be drawn from it:
In March, 1993, United States had seven percent of their
workforce which might not seem disastrous until compared with
Japan, where 2.5% were unemployed. However, the unemployment
rates in United States began declining slowly since March 1993,
and reached 5% mark in the middle of 1996. Japan turned out to
be less lucky, as their unemployment rate doubled in three years.
From then on, the percentage of unemployed workforce in United
states remained roughly the same – about 5% until March 99,
although there were minor falls and rises in the unemployment
rate.
As for Japan, the percentage of unemployed fell rapidly by
0.5–0.6% after March 1996, but from summer 1996 and onwards
it grew steadily and without any falls to reach 5.0% boundary in
March 1999.
The major conclusion that I’ve drawn using the graph, is that
number of unemployed in USA decreased by about 2.0% in the
course of six years, while in Japan it actually increased by 2.5%
percent. As a result, in March 99, both Japan and the US had
about 5% of their workforce unemployed.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 30

 Ucalearn.com
Grammatical Range and Accuracy

Example B

According to the results of the recently published labour-force

research, the following conclusions can be drawn:
In March, 1993, the United States had seven percent of their
workforce without a job, which might not seem disastrous until
compared with Japan, where 2.5% were unemployed. However,
there was a slow decline in the United States’ unemployment
rate from March 1993, reaching the 5% mark in the middle
of 1996. Japan turned out to be less lucky, with a doubling in
their unemployment rate over three years. From then on, the
percentage of the workforce unemployed in the United States
remained roughly the same – about 5% – until March 99, despite
there being minor falls and rises in the unemployment rate
during the period in question.
As for Japan, the unemployment rate fell rapidly by 0.5–0.6%
after March 1996, but from summer 1996 onwards it grew steadily
and without any falls to reach, in March 1999, the 5.0% boundary.
The major conclusion to be drawn from the graph is that the
number of unemployed people in the USA decreased by about
2.0% in the course of the six years, while in Japan there was
actually a 2.5% increase. As a result, in March 99, both Japan and
the US had about 5% of their workforce unemployed.

14 Make a list of three things that you will remember to do in future essays to
increase your chances of getting higher than a Band 6 for Grammatical Range
and Accuracy.

1
2
3

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 31

 Ucalearn.com
Grammatical Range and Accuracy

15 Look at all three essays again. Use the checklist below and then decide on an
overall score for each essay. The items you don’t tick will give you an idea why
each essay did not receive an overall Band 7 score.
Does the candidate:
correctly record all figures (e.g. numbers, dates, percentages)?
clearly present, highlight and illustrate all key features?
include a clear overview of main trends, differences or stages?
use paragraphing sufficiently and appropriately?
avoid repetition?
organise the information logically, showing clear progression throughout?
use all cohesive devices and reference appropriately?
use a wide range of vocabulary fluently and flexibly to convey precise meanings?
show a high level of awareness of style and collocation?
avoid spelling mistakes?
use verb forms correctly almost all of the time (or with only rare mistakes)?
use punctuation correctly almost all of the time (or with only rare mistakes)?
use a wide range of complex grammar structures?

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 32

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key

ANSWER KEY
TASK ACHIEVEMENT
Essay 1
1 d, h
2 i Option c
Option a – For one thing, Writing Task 1 tests your ability to summarise information, not
your ability to transfer the figures into a separate format. For another, there is too much
data in this table to include everything you see. Moreover, if the only comparison you
made was between the highest and lowest figures, you would be missing out most of the
main features.
Option b – Task 1 exercises do not require you to offer your opinions or ideas on a topic.
(That’s what you do in Task 2.) Nor do they encourage you to suggest any reasons why
the figures are as given. You only need to report what you see. You will not be tested
on any prior knowledge of the information given (i.e. in this case, you would not be
expected to know anything about the sizes of these cities).
ii 250
3 a Date opened, Kilometres of route, Passengers per year (in millions)
b Date opened: London (earliest), Los Angeles (latest)
Kilometres of route: London (longest), Kyoto (shortest)
Passengers per year (in millions): Tokyo (most), Kyoto (fewest)
c False. ‘Passengers per year’ is not necessarily the same as ‘total number of journeys
made each year’.
d Suggested answer: London’s underground railway system is almost twice as long as the
one in Paris.
4 On the whole, yes. The candidate selects and reports the main features without
mentioning every single figure, makes comparisons and provides a good summary.
5 Band 7: 1 the 2 highlights 3 but could be more fully extended
Band 8: 1 all 2 highlights and illustrates 3 clearly and appropriately
6 Student’s own answer
7 Yes, they have paraphrased the rubric effectively.
8 a TRUE. Refer to the Band 5 descriptor: ‘recounts detail […] with no clear overview’.
b F
 ALSE. The overview can appear at the end of the essay, but many candidates choose to
include it immediately after the introduction. Either is perfectly acceptable.
c F
 ALSE. Data/figures can, in theory, be included in the overview, but only if they are
integral in supporting the summary. You should avoid using specific data/figures that
are also presented in the main body of the essay.
9 Student’s own answer. See Exercise 10 for suggested changes.
10 In conclusion, the underground railway systems vary a great deal in each of the given
criteria, with the oldest three systems being greater both in size and passenger numbers
served per year than the three most recently constructed.
11 Essay 1 is very close to a Band 8 for Task Achievement. The candidate only needed to
present a stronger overview.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 33

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key

Essay 2
1 Similar – The data is set out in table format.
Different – There are two sets of data to comment on and to compare. The data is also
presented in terms of chronological changes, so the candidate needs, in this case, to write
about trends and developments. Although the candidate in Essay 1 presented the data in
a chronological way, the table didn’t set out any trends or developments for individual
stations in the same way as ‘purpose of visit’ is shown in the table in the Essay 2 task.
Additionally, there is a great deal more data presented than for Essay 1, so the candidate
needs to be more even more selective about what they include.
2 a No. The first line is perhaps meant as an introduction, but it does not make it clear to
the reader which statistical information in particular they will be referring to.
b The candidate has wisely chosen not to present all of the data given, but to present only
the main features.
c Yes, in the sentence about the EC market. There is no information in the charts
to confirm this – it is a case of the candidate speculating about the reasons for the
increase.
3 VISITS ABROAD BY UK RESIDENTS BY PURPOSE OF VISIT (1994–98)

1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Holiday 17,896 20,700
Business 3,249 3,957
Visits to friends and relatives 2,628 3,181
Other reasons
TOTAL

4 a N
 o. It is not logical to report the trends only from the middle to the end of the
period given.
b A more logical approach would be to report data from 1994 to 1998, selecting the main
features of the years in between.
c There is, indeed, a steady overall increase in the main reasons for travelling abroad.
However, the candidate makes no mention of the fact that, in 1995, all but one of the
figures dropped in comparison to the previous year, and that this was the only year of
any when there was such a fall.
d ‘Other reasons’ and ‘Total’.
5 Slightly more successfully. However, there still seems to be no logic in how the candidate
has selected which years to begin with when reporting trends.
6 The candidate ‘covers the requirements of the task’ (Band 7) and ‘presents and adequately
highlights key features’ (Band 6).
7 b
Band 7 would not have been given for Task Achievement, as the overview does not
clearly present the main trends, differences or stages. For example, the second overview,
‘Statistical figures prove that Western Europe seems to be the most favourable place for
holiday makers while North America and other areas follow behind’ only focuses on the
overall trends for people travelling on holiday.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 34

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key
Additionally, the candidate includes two overviews, one at the end of each paragraph.
Doing so means that there is a risk of being given Band 5 (‘no clear overview’). However, as
the data is not reported mechanically, the descriptor for Band 6 is the most appropriate.

Essay 3
1 Similar – The candidate will need to report the data in terms of trends/chronological
change (as is the case in Essay 2).
Different – The data is presented as a line graph, rather than as a table. Only two sets of
data are given (US and Japan).
2 a partially presents b successfully c compares d a clear overview
3 No. The candidate states: ‘from summer 1996 and onwards it grew steadily and without
any falls’. This is incorrect – there was clearly a fall between March 1998 and March 1999.
4 The candidate has failed to notice or include the fact that, between March 1998 and March
1999, the unemployment rate in Japan briefly overtook the rate in the US. This was the
only point in the six-year period where this was the case.
Identifying and reporting details like this can often be the difference between a Band 7
and Band 8 score for TA.
5 Suggested answers
1 Ensure that the main information is appropriately and logically selected
2 Present a clear overview that highlights the key features of the data
3 Consider how to combine data into groups so that it can be presented in different ways

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 35

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key

COHERENCE AND COHESION

1 a i
b All are cohesive devices. The most simple or commonly used are ‘However’ and ‘In
addition’. ‘By this I mean’ and ‘On the contrary’ are better suited to Task 2 essays, where
they can be used to support the candidate’s argument.
c ii – Referencing means referring to people or things that have already been mentioned.
2 There is a clear sense of organisation of information in this paragraph. What is more,
the candidate has chosen to set out the data chronologically, beginning with the order of
opening, followed by a focus on the main features of the differences in length (which is
clearly signalled with the cohesive device, ‘In terms of the size of the railway systems, …’).
For logical organisation alone, the paragraph deserves a Band 8.
3 Suggested amendments
London has the oldest underground railway systems among the six cities. It was opened
in the year 1863, and it is already 140 years old. Paris, is the second oldest, in which it was
opened in the year 1900. This was then followed by the opening of the railway systems
in Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Los Angeles has the newest underground railway
system, and was only opened in the year 2001. In terms of their size of the railway
systems, London, for certain, has the largest underground railway systems. It This
particular network has 394 kilometres of route in total, whick is nearly twice as large as
the system one in Paris. Kyoto, in contrast, has the smallest system. It, with only has 11
kilometres of route, whick is more than 30 times less than that of London.
4 a
5 Suggested amendments
Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest number
of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris has the second
greatest number of passengers, at 1191 millions passengers per year. The smalest
underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the smallest number of passengers per year as
predicted.
6 No. There is quick repetition of ‘North America’ and ‘other areas’ and the word
‘accordingly’ is used incorrectly.
Suggested amendments
North America and other areas appeared also favourable. In 1996, there were 1,167 going
to North America the former and 1,905 to other areas the latter region. These numbers
increased to 1,823 and 2,486 accordingly respectively.
7 c
8 The candidate focuses on the figures for both the US and Japan in the first paragraph,
but only Japan in the second. A paragraph break before the words ‘From then on’ would
have helped to demonstrate a greater control of paragraphing, as it would signal that the
candidate was moving on to deal with the second half of the graph.
9 Suggested answers
1 Use paragraphing appropriately, i.e. in a way that logically presents information in
sections
2 Use referencing and less-common cohesive devices appropriately
3 Make sure sentences and paragraphs follow on logically from each other

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 36

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key

LEXICAL RESOURCE
1 a, d
2 a serves, carries
b steady, marked
c drawn, reached
3 1 a sufficient range
2 flexibility and precision
3 a wide range
4 fluently and flexibly
5 precise meanings
4 1 f, 2 e, 3 a, 4 c, 5 b, 6 d
5 B and C – Band 7, A and D – Band 8
6 The candidate wrote a. There is too much repetition of ‘(underground) railway system(s)’
(three times) and ‘opened’ or ‘opening’ (four times) to be awarded Band 8.
Paragraph b is a rewrite of a, including a range of examples of ‘uncommon lexical items’
(Band 8), such as ‘paved the way’, ‘welcomed … passengers’, ‘declared open to the public’.
Paragraph b also includes a range of synonyms used to avoid repetition (e.g. ‘network’,
‘established’).
7 Rare. There are only two mistakes (‘whick’ and ‘smalest’).
8 a No.
b No.
c Yes – ‘decrement’.
9 According to statistical information, the main reason for traveling abroad is holidays,
business, and visits to friends and relatives. Indeed, there is a steady increase in the
number of holiday makers; while in 1996 there were about 17,896 of the sample in 1998
there were 20,700 of them. Moreover, with the introduction of more countries within the
EC market, travelling for business has also increased.
Although there is not a big decrement 3,957 traveled abroad for business during 1998
compared with 3,249 in 1996. Finally, traveling abroad for visiting friends and relatives shows
a steady increase over the period 1994–1998. While there were about 2,628 travelers in 1995 in
1998 the number increased to 3,181 in 1998. Consequently, there is a steady increase in three
main reasons for travelling abroad; Holidays, business, or to visit relatives and friends.
10 According to statistical information, the main reason for traveling abroad is holidays,
business, and visits to friends and relatives. Indeed, there is a stable rise in the numbers
of holiday makers; while in 1996 there were about 17,896 of the sample in 1998 there were
20,700 of them. Moreover, with the introduction of more countries within the EC market,
business travel has also increased.
Although there is not a big decrement 3,957 took time away from the UK for business
purposes during 1998 compared with 3,249 in 1996. Finally, trips overseas to visit friends
and relatives were on the increase over the period 1994–1998. While there were about
2,628 travelers in 1995 in 1998 the number increased to 3,181 in 1998. Consequently, there
is stable growth in three main areas for foreign travel; Holidays, business, or to visit
relatives and friends.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 37

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key
11 1 T
 he phrase ‘which might not seem disastrous until compared with Japan’ is not
appropriate for this type of essay. The adjective ‘disastrous’ is used to express an
opinion and should therefore be avoided in Task 1. An alternative might be, ‘which
compares not unfavourably with Japan’.
2 The phrase ‘Japan turned out to be less lucky’ is a little too informal. It is more suited
to spoken English. Alternatives might be: ‘Japan, conversely, was less fortunate’; or ‘In
Japan, on the other hand’.
12 a None.
b They use ‘a sufficient range of vocabulary to allow some flexibility and precision’ (Band 7).
c Although there are no spelling or word-formation errors, the vocabulary is too limited
in range to be given a Band 8 score (also, there are two inappropriate phrases, as noted
in Exercise 11). It is likely that this paragraph would be given a Band 7 score for Lexical
Resource.
13 a doubled
b trebled
c quadrupled
d halved
e grew/increased by a third
f rose by a quarter
14 a double the size of
b double that of
15 a doubled, rises, grew (steadily and without any falls)
b declining (slowly), falls, fell (rapidly)
c remained roughly the same
d there were minor falls and rises
16 On the whole, the candidate uses ‘a sufficient range of vocabulary to allow some flexibility
and precision’, but there is a problem with the adverb ‘rapidly’ – a fall from 0.5% to 0.6% is
not falling ‘rapidly’. A more suitable alternative would be ‘marginally’.
17 The candidate wrote conclusion a. Conclusion b presents a wider range of less-common
vocabulary, and would be more likely than the others to be given Band 8.
18 Suggested answers
1 Use a wide range of less-common vocabulary
2 Check for spelling mistakes before handing in the essay
3 Use higher-level collocations where appropriate

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 38

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key

GRAMMATICAL RANGE AND ACCURACY

1 Suggested answers
a Paris, which is the second oldest, was opened in the year 1900.
b North America and other areas also appeared favourable.
c In March, 1993, the United States had seven percent of their workforce unemployed,
which might not seem disastrous until compared with Japan, where 2.5% were
unemployed.
2 A and C – Band 7, B and D – Band 8
In terms of the IELTS band descriptors, ‘a variety of’ means ‘different examples of’, while
‘a wide range of’ means ‘a number of different examples of’.
Similarly, if the ‘majority of’ sentences are error free, this will get more credit than error-
free sentences being merely ‘frequent’.
3 The majority of sentences are error free, and the candidate shows a high level of control
over grammar, specifically:
• a mix of active and passive sentence forms, all used correctly
• a range of comparative structures (the final sentence is a particularly good example of
a complex sentence)
• embedded clauses (e.g. ‘Kyoto, in contrast, has the smallest system’, rather than the
more simple structure, ‘In contrast, Kyoto has the smallest system’)
• use of noun phrases (e.g. ‘This was then followed by the opening of the railway
systems in Tokyo’)
Judging by this paragraph alone, the candidate has a good chance of being given higher
than a Band 7 for Grammatical Range and Accuracy.
4 ‘Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest number
of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers.’
The candidate has shown how well they can control punctuation and main/subordinate
clauses in order to form a complex sentence.
5 Yes – they use ‘millions’ twice. The word ‘million’ is always used in the singular when
giving exact numbers.
6 Suggested answer
In conclusion, there is a great deal of variation in the underground railway systems in
different cities, the number of passengers served per year and in the age of the system.
7 A describes Band 8; B decribes Band 7
8 There are a number of punctuation errors (namely with commas) that would have limited
the score for Grammatical Range and Accuracy:
while in 1996 there were about 17,896 of the sample, in 1998 there were 20,700 of them.
Although there is not a big decrement, 3,957 traveled abroad for business during 1998,
compared with 3,249 in 1996.
While there were about 2,628 travelers in 1995, in 1998 the number increased to 3,181
in 1998.

© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 39

 Ucalearn.com
Answer Key
Also, the candidate uses a mix of present- and past-tense verbs. This happens throughout
the essay, and therefore it cannot be the case that ‘the majority of sentences are error-free’
(Band 8).
9 a No. Again, there is a mix of present and past tenses (e.g. ‘appear’/‘appeared’). Also, ‘The
area which appear appears to be more popular …’
b No – ‘appeared also favourable’ should read ‘also appeared favourable’.
c ‘Indeed, while in 1994 only 19,371 of the sample preferred to spend their holiday (or
other reasons) in that main region, there was an increase to 24,519 in 1998.’
d Yes, one. ‘Statistical figures prove that Western Europe seems to be the most favourable
place for holiday makers, while North America and other areas follow behind.’
e No.
f No, for the following reasons:
• mix of present/past tense
• misplaced ‘also’
• missing punctuation
10 Suggested answer
However, the unemployment rate in the United States began declining slowly from March
1993, reaching the 5% mark in the middle of 1996.
11 These are the changes that were made:
Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest number
of passengers per year, at 1927 millions passengers. The system in Paris has the second
greatest number of passengers, at 1191 millions passengers per year. The smalest
underground railway system, Kyoto, serves the smallest number of passengers per year as
predicted.
12 Interestingly, Tokyo, which only has 155 kilometres of route, serves the greatest number of
passengers per year, at 1927 million, with the system in Paris having the second greatest
number, at 1191 million per year. The smallest, Kyoto, serves the fewest passengers per year.
13 According to the results of the recently published labour-force research, the following
conclusions can be drawn:
In March, 1993, the United States had seven percent of their workforce without a
job, which might not seem disastrous until compared with Japan, where 2.5% were
unemployed. However, there was a slow decline in the United States’ unemployment
rate from March 1993, reaching the 5% mark in the middle of 1996. Japan turned out to
be less lucky, with a doubling in their unemployment rate over three years. From then
on, the percentage of the workforce unemployed in the United States remained roughly
the same – about 5% – until March 99, despite there being minor falls and rises in the
unemployment rate during the period in question.
As for Japan, the unemployment rate fell rapidly by 0.5–0.6% after March 1996, but from
summer 1996 onwards it grew steadily and without any falls to reach, in March 1999, the
5.0% boundary.
The major conclusion to be drawn using the graph is that the number of unemployed
people in the USA decreased by about 2.0% in the course of the six years, while in Japan
there was actually a 2.5% increase. As a result, in March 99, both Japan and the US had
about 5% of their workforce unemployed.
14 Suggested answers
1 Make sure to use a wide range of structures
2 Try to keep all sentences error free
3 Use a range of verb forms and tenses
15 Student’s own answers
© Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2022 IELTS Band Buster | 40
 Ucalearn.com

All you
need for
IELTS
success!
If you’re preparing for IELTS we’re here to help:

Develop the English language skills you need

Learn test strategies from expert IELTS teachers
Find preparation materials right for you

weloveielts.org