Academic writing task 1

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ACADEMIC WRITING TASK 1 and , furthermore , in addition,
In Academic Task 1 of the Writing module, you are expected to write a short descriptive report
based on visual information or data. This visual information is most commonly presented as
line and bar graphs, pie charts or tables. Process , map, evolution process ( life cycle)
You might be asked to describe two graphs or charts. If this is the case, you need to compare
and contrast the information and make connections between the two. Cohesion
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The graph below shows the changes in maximum number of Asian elephants between
1997 and 2004.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons
where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Your IELTS writing is checked and marked on these four criteria
1Task achievement , 2 cohesion and coherence, 3 lexical vocabulary, 4 grammatical range.
Model answer:
The bar graph depicts/ illustrates/ reveals the estimated maximum population of elephants in a
range of, 9, Asian countries in both 1997 and 2004. From 1997 to 2004., a period of seven years
Overall, in most of the countries included in the graph, the population fell. This was most
noticeable in Malaysia and Thailand, where the number of elephants was thought to be less
than half the figure in 1997. In the former, the number of elephants dropped as low as 1000.
India remained the country with by far the largest elephant population, however experienced a
dramatic fall in numbers so that in 2004 there may have been as few as 7500. Despite its size,
Suman Poudel 1 suman.ielts@gmail.com Mob :- 9867100523

China had a very small population of at most 500 elephants by 2004, it is in the verge of
extinction.
Although the trend was downwards overall, elephant populations were thought to have
remained stable in Laos and Vietnam at approximately 1200. The only country where elephants
showed signs of recovering was Cambodia, where numbers may have risen by up to 200.
The diagram below shows the process by which bricks are manufactured for the building
industry. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and
make comparisons where relevant.
Brick manufacturing
model answer:
The process by which bricks are manufactured for the building industry can be outlined in
seven consecutive steps.
First the raw material, clay, which was just below the surface of soil in certain clay-rich areas,
has to be dug up by a digger.
Then the lumps of clay are placed on a metal grid in order to break up the big chunks of clay
into much smaller areas, which fall through the metal grid onto a roller, whose motion further
segregates the bits of clay. Sand and water are added to make a homogenous mixture, which is
then either formed in moulds or cut into brick-shaped pieces by means of a wire cutter.
Those fresh bricks are then kept in a drying oven for at least 24 and a maximum of 48 hours,
several dozen if not hundreds of bricks at a time. The dried bricks are then transferred to a
so-called kiln, another type of high temperature oven. First they are kept at a moderate

temperature of 200C – 1300C. This process is followed by cooling down the finished bricks for
48 to 72 hours/ 2 – 3 days in a cooling chamber.
Once the bricks have cooled down and have become hard, they get packaged and delivered to
their final destination, be it a building site or storage. (217 words)
Band 9
This response fully satisfies the requirements of the task. All key features of each stage of the
process are appropriately and accurately presented. An excellent overview is given at the
beginning of the response and this skilfully incorporates part of the rubric, changing the
grammatical function, to give a brief summary of the whole process. The message is very easy
to read with seamless cohesion that attracts no attention. Paragraphing, linking and referencing
are all skilfully managed. The language used is very fluent and sophisticated. A wide range of
vocabulary and structures are used with full flexibility and accuracy. Only rare minor
‘slips’ can be found and these do not detract from the high rating.
This script is a good example of a Band 9 performance.
The bar chart below shows the production of the world’s oil in OPEC and non-OPEC
countries.
Write a short report for a university lecturer describing the information shown below.
model answer:
The bar graph gives past, present and future data concerning the production of world’s oil on
OPEC and non-OPEC countries.

The figures indicate that while the production of oil in Middle Eastern OPEC countries is
predicted to increase considerably, oil production elsewhere is likely to fall.
To begin with, between 1980 and 2000, most of the world’s oil came from non-OPEC
countries; only two million barrels per day were produced by OPEC countries. Since then,
these figures have changed considerably. Between 2000 and 2010 it was observed that
approximately 10 million barrels came from Middle Eastern OPEC countries, while a further 10
million barrels have been provided by other OPEC or non-OPEC countries.
Although forecasters predict that oil production is likely to stabilize between 2010 and 2020,
a lot more of this oil is expected to come from the Middle Eastern OPEC countries, and under 5
million barrels per day from other areas.
(149 words)
The bar charts below show the Marriage and Divorce Statistics for nine countries in 1981
and 1994.

model answer:
Firstly, as we can see from the information, there was a general trend for the number of
marriage to decrease over 13 years in most of the countries. In 1981, the USA had the most
marriages (almost 10.6 per thousand) but by 1994 this had fallen to 9.1 per thousands. The
number of marriages also fell substantially in Finland and France. The only country where there
was an increase in the number of marriage was Denmark.
In contrast to that, /By comparison / the rate of divorce increased in most countries over the
same period. The only exceptions to this trend were Germany, where there was no change, and
the USA and Denmark, where the figure fell. The country with the fewest divorce in both 1981
and 1994 was Italy. (123 words) .
The table below gives statistics about the size of US households over a number of years.
(Household = all the people living together in one house.) Study the information and
answer the question.

US household by size 1790-1990
Year
Per cent distribution of number of households Average
population per
household
1
person
2
person
3
person
4
person
5
person
6
person
7
person
1790 3.7% 7.8% 11.7% 13.9% 13.9% 13.2 35.8% 5.4
1890 3.6% 13.2% 16.7% 16.8% 15.1% 11.6% 23.0% 4.9
1990 24.6% 32.2% 17.2% 15.6% 6.7% 2.3% 1.4% 2.6
model answer:
overall, the table illustrates that households in the US have become much smaller over the last
200 years. Households in 1790 had an average of 5.4 members but by 1990 the figure had fallen
by about half to only 2.6.
In 1790,35.8% of all households had seven members. This was still the most common
household size in 1890 but the proportion had dropped slightly to 23%. One-person households
were the least common, representing less than 4% of the total in both 1790 and 1890.
In contrast to this in the year 1990, however, there had been a major change. Now merely about
1% of household had seven members, while 56.8% of all households consisted of only one or
two people.

The diagrams below show UK students' responses to the question of to what extent they
would describe themselves as financially organized.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.
Very
organised
%
All students 21
Age up to
22 years
18
Age 23-25
years
26
Age over 26
years
35
Exam Tip:
In IELTS Writing Task 1, you do not need to describe all the information given. To summarise, you must select the main
features from what is shown. Information is often given in the form of a graph, a chart, or a table. Read any headings, key
and sources for the data to understand what it relates to. The data may show differences or changes over time, between
places, or between groups of people. Try to identify significant contrasts, similarities, or trends.
model answer:
The two diagrams show students’ responses to the question of how good they are at managing their finances. The pie
chart illustrates the ability of UK students to manage their finances and the table shows the proportion of students, by age,
who think they are very organized at managing their finances. ( Financial matters, conscious with their finance)
More than three-quarters of students (76%) believe they are either ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ organized financially, while one in
five (20%) say they are not very organized in this area. Merely 4% of students rate themselves as ‘not at all’ competent.
Mesmerizing , spellbound . Seemingly
The ability to manage one’s finances well would seem to develop with age and experience as older students are almost
twice as likely to say they are ‘very’ organized than younger ones (35% of students aged 26 or over compared to just 18%
for those aged up to 22).
Finally, to sum up, the findings suggest that students generally manage their finances well. The sense of doing that grows
along with the age.

(151 words)
The chart below gives information about global population percentages and distribution
of wealth by region.
model answer:
The chart compares population shares in various regions of the world with the distribution of
wealth in these same regions. It can be seen that population shares in almost all cases do not
relate to the distribution of wealth.
Even though North America has only approximately 6% of the world’s population, it boasts
nearly 34% of global wealth. A similar situation can be seen in Europe, which has 15% of the
global population but 30% of global wealth, and the rich (high income) Asia-Pacific countries
with 5% of the world’s population but 24% of its wealth.
On the other hand, the total wealth of people in China, India, Africa, Latin America and
Caribbean, and the other poor (lower income) countries in Asia-Pacific is far less than their
shares of the world population. This is most striking in India, where 16% of the world’s
population own only 1% of the world’s wealth and in China, which has the highest percentage
of global population (24%) but only 3% of the world’s wealth.
To sum up, it is clear from the graph that there is an uneven distribution of wealth.

(170words)
The table shows the worldwide market share of the mobile phone market for
manufactures in the years 2005 and 2006.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
Worldwide Mobile phone Sales in 2005 & 2006 (% share of market)
Company
2005 % Market
share
2006 % Market
share
Nokia 32.5 35
Motorola 17.7 21.1
Samsung 12.7 11.8
Sony Ericsson 6.3 7.4
L.G 6.7 6.3
BenQ Mobile 4.9 2.4
Others 19.2 16.2
TOTAL 100.0 100.0
model answer:
The table gives information on the market share of mobile phone manufactures for two
consecutive years, 2005 and 2006.
In both years, Nokia was clearly the market leader, selling 32.5% of all mobile phones in 2005,
and slightly more (35%) in 2006. This is a greater market share than its two closest competitors,
Motorola and Samsung, added together.
Motorola increased its market share from 17.7% in 2005 to 21.1% in 2006. In contrast,
Samsung saw its share of the market decline slightly from 12.7% to 11.8%.
The other companies listed each had a much smaller share of the market. Sony Ericsson’s share
increased from 6.3% in 2005 to 7.4% in 2006 whereas L.G decreased slightly from 6.7% to

6.3%. BenQ Mobile’s share more than halved from 2005 to 2006; from 4.9% of the market to
only 2.4%.
Other mobile phone manufactures accounted for 19.2% of the market in 2005- more than all the
companies mentioned except Nokia. However, in 2006 the other companies only made 16.2%
of mobile phone sales- less than both Nokia and Motorola.
(176 words)
The table below gives information about rail transport in four countries in 2007.
Country
Number of People
using rail transport
(not including metro)
Passenger
kilometres
per head of
population
Cargo
carried
(billions of
tons)
Malaysia 5.9 770 22.2
Canada 0.3 80 2820
China 27 1980 23.01
UAE 5.5 780 21.9
model answer:
The table shows details for four countries concerning the percentage of the population who use
the railways, how many kilometres each person travels on average, and the number of tons of
cargo the railways carry.
What is surprising is that very few Americans use rail- less than half of one per cent- and they
do not travel far (just 80 kilometres). However, the Canada carries by far the most cargo, nearly
3 thousand billion tons. This contrasts greatly with China, where 27% of the population use rail,
and they each travel further (1980 kilometres) than any of the other countries. On the other
hand, less than 25 billion tons of freight is carried.
The two countries which are most similar are the Malaysia and UAE. Both have between 5 and
6% of people who use trains, they travel between 770 and 780 kilometres and the amount of
freight is approximately the same (22.2 and 21.9 billion tons respectively).

In general it can be seen that while citizens of the Canada use rail transport the least, they
transport the most amount of cargo by rail.
(184 words)
The flow chart illustrates the consequence of deforestation. Summarise the information by
selecting and reporting the main features.
Write at least 150 words
model answer:
The flow chart shows what typically occurs as a consequence of deforestation. When trees are
removed, there are four main immediate effects, which eventually result in flooding, degraded
vegetation and a loss of biodiversity.
One immediate effect is soil which has been compacted by heavy equipment. The result hard,
‘baked’ soil contributes to the run off of rain water and, eventually, flooding.
Another immediate consequence of logging is a reduction in the number of roots holding the
soil together. This leads to soil erosion. As a consequence, the quality and variety of vegetation
is compromised.

The third immediate effect is burning, both deliberate and a consequence of an increased risk of
forest fires. The waste that remains after loggings is destroyed and the microorganisms that feed
on this material are lost. This leads to degraded vegetation.
The final immediate consequence is a reduction in the amount of moisture plants return to the
air. Because there is less moisture in the air, there is less precipitation and an increased
incidence of drought. This too reduces plant growth and ultimately results in degraded
vegetation and a loss of biodiversity.
(187 words)
The table shows the worldwide market share of the mobile phone market for
manufactures in the years 2005 and 2006.
Worldwide Mobile phone Sales in 2005 & 2006 (% share of market)
Company
2005 % Market
share
2006 % Market
share
Nokia 32.5 35
Motorola 17.7 21.1
Samsung 12.7 11.8
Sony Ericsson 6.3 7.4
L.G 6.7 6.3
BenQ Mobile 4.9 2.4
Others 19.2 16.2
TOTAL 100.0 100.0
model answer:
The table gives information on the market share of mobile phone manufactures for two
consecutive years, 2005 and 2006.

In both years, Nokia was clearly the market leader, selling 32.5% of all mobile phones in 2005,
and slightly more (35%) in 2006. This is a greater market share than its two closest competitors,
Motorola and Samsung, added together.
Motorola increased its market share from 17.7% in 2005 to 21.1% in 2006. In contrast,
Samsung saw its share of the market decline slightly from 12.7% to 11.8%.
The other companies listed each had a much smaller share of the market. Sony Ericsson’s share
increased from 6.3% in 2005 to 7.4% in 2006 whereas L.G decreased slightly from 6.7% to
6.3%. BenQ Mobile’s share more than halved from 2005 to 2006; from 4.9% of the market to
only 2.4%.
Other mobile phone manufactures accounted for 19.2% of the market in 2005- more than all the
companies mentioned except Nokia. However, in 2006 the other companies only made 16.2%
of mobile phone sales- less than both Nokia and Motorola.
(176 words)

model answer:
The diagram shows how fresh applet is canned. First the apple is picked from trees by hand. It
is then transported to the cannery by large trucks. At the cannery the apple is washed and
quality checked, and any poor quality apple is rejected. Discarded cheap KISS
The good quality apple is put into cold storage. When it is ready for canning the apple is
weighted and graded. The grading ensures that the apple of a similar size is kept together. After
this the apple is peeled and the cores are removed. It is then sliced into the required sizes and
put into cans. Juice or syrup is also added to the cans.
Once the cans have been filled they are sealed and cooked, over heat to ensure that the cans are
sterilized. When the cans are cool, a label is attached and they are placed into storage. The
canned apple is now ready to be dispatched to supermarkets and sold.
(158 words)
The bar chart shows different methods of waste disposal in four cities; Toronto, Madrid,
Kuala Lumpur and Amman. Summarize the information by describing the main features
of the chart and making comparisons where appropriate.

model answer:
The bar chart depicts four types of waste disposal in four cities. Landfill was the most popular
method of waste disposal in Toronto and Amman. Toronto used landfill for disposing of about
three-quarters of its waste with the remaining quarter split between incineration, recycling and
composting.
Amman used landfill for disposing of almost half of its waste with most of the rest being
incinerated. Incineration was the most popular method of waste disposal in Madrid and Kuala
Lumpur.
Kuala Lumpur disposed of more than half its waste by incineration with less than one quarter
going for recycling and even less still going for landfill and composting. Recycling was the
second least popular method of waste disposal.
No cities disposed of more than 25% of its waste by recycling and in the case of Toronto, it was
less than 10%. Composting was the least common method of waste disposal. No cities disposed
of more than 10% of its waste by compositing and Amman hardly did any composting.
(166 words)
The table below gives information on internet use in six categories by age group.
Describe the information in the table and make comparisons where appropriate.

Internet activities by age group
Age group
Activity% Teens 20s 30s 40s 50s 60s 70+
Get News 76 73 76 75 71 74 70
Online
games
81 54 37 29 25 25 32
Downloads 52 46 27 15 13 8 6
Product
research
0 79 80 83 79 74 70
Buying a
product
43 68 69 68 67 65 41
Searching
for people
5 31 23 23 24 29 27
model answer:
Comparing activities, we can see that getting news is the most popular activity with users of all
ages. At least 70% of people use the internet to get news.
Whilst 80% of teenagers play online games, this table drops to 54% of people in their twenties
and 37% of people in their thirties. Online gaming reaches a low of 25% with people in their
fifties and then increases in popularity with older people.
Downloads activity display a similar trend to internet games, but they are less popular in
general and decline markedly with people over age 40. Only 6% of people over age 70
download.
Online Product research is made by over seventy percent of all people except for teenagers who
do not research product. Product research peak in the forties age group, when almost three-
quarters of people research for product in this way.
Buying a product online is equally popular with all internet users except those at either end of
the age scale: teens and internet users age 70 or older. Searching for people online is done by
between one-quarter and one-third of people depending on age, except for teenagers who make
only five searches out of every 100.

The pie charts below show the percentage of housing owned and rented in the UK in 1991
and 2007. Summarize the information by describing the main features of the charts and
making comparisons where appropriate.
Housing owned and rented in the UK
model answer:
The pie charts compare home ownership and renting for 1991 and 2007 in percentage terms. In
1991, home owner were the most popular type of housing, accounting for 60%, or more than
over half of all homes. The next largest sector was social rented homes, amounting to 23% or
nearly one-third of homes. The remaining homes were mostly privately rented (11%) with a
tiny fraction being social housing (6%).
Sixteen years later, in 2007, the number of home owners had risen to 70%, or almost three
quarters of all homes. This was an increase of 10% compared with 1991. Much of the increase
in home ownership can be explained by the decrease in social rented homes, which had dropped
from 23% to 17%.
The percentage of privately rented homes had remained unchanged at 11%. However, there
were 5 million more homes in 2007 compared with 1991 so the number of rented homes had
increased despite the same percentage. Social housing has decreased three-fold from 6% in
1991 to 2% in 2007, and it remains the least popular type of housing.

(180 words)
The graph gives information about drinking habits of the US population by age.
model answer:
The bar chart shows information about people’s drinking behavior by age group in the US.
Several trends are evident.
The highest proportion of those who never drink (nearly two-thirds) was in the 16 to 24 years
group. The proportion tended to decrease with age. Only 40 per cent of people aged 65 to 74
had never drink.
On the other hand, the percentage of those who had quit drinking tended to increase with age.
Only 5 per cent of those in the youngest age group (16 to 24) were ex-drinkers, as opposed to
roughly 40 per cent of those aged 65 to 75.
The percentage of those classed as heavy drinkers also showed a distinct pattern. People in
middle age (35 to 54) tended to be the heaviest drinkers – approximately 13 per cent of the total.
A relatively small proportion of those in the youngest age group, and an even smaller
percentage of those in the oldest group (roughly 3 per cent) drink heavily.
Overall, age appears to be a significant factor in patterns of drinking behavior.
(177 words)

The table shows the average length of YouTube video advertisements and average length
of time viewers spend watching them. Summarise the information by selecting and
reporting the main features.
Average YouTube Video ad length and time viewed
Type of YoTube ad
Average length
of YoTube ad
(seconds)
Average time
viewed(seconds)
Public service 66.7 28.1
Business and finance 35.1 24.6
Entertainment and
news
30.8 26.5
Travel 28.7 23.0
Technology 39.3 20.9
Retail 26.5 20.1
Consumer
electronics
24.9 17.3
Clothing 23.4 16.6
Pharmaceuticals 21.8 16.0
Lifestyle 33.7 14.3
Overall 38.1 20.4
model answer:
The table shows the average length of YouTube video advertisements by sector and average
length of time viewers spent watching these advertisements.
The average length of the advertisements varied from a low of 21.8 seconds for pharmaceuticals
to a high of 66.7 for public service advertisements. With the exception of government- and
technology- related advertisements, in general, products and services which required a large
financial commitment tended to have longer advertisements. Entertainments, financial services
and travel advertisements, for example, were all twenty eight seconds on average or longer.

Less expensive products, on the other hand, such as consumer electronics, clothing and
medicines, tended to have shorter advertisements.
Adverts for more expensive products or services also tended to be watched for longer than
adverts for less expensive items. Viewers on average watched more than 50 per cent of
advertisements for entertainment, travel, business and finance. In contrast, viewers tended to
watch less of government advertisements and advertisements for cheaper goods such as
consumer electronics, clothing and medicines.
Overall, length of YouTube video advertisements and length of time spent viewing such
advertisements appears to be associated with the perceived cost of the product or service being
advertised.
(195 words)
The table shows the percentage of journeys made by different forms of transport in four
countries, The bar graph shows the results of a survey into car use.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons
where relevant.
Journeys
made by
Canada Belgium Germany Netherland
Car 90% 72% 68% 47%
Bicycle 1% 2% 2% 26%
Public
transport
3% 12% 18% 8%
On foot 5% 11% 11% 18%
Other 1% 3% 1% 1%
Most cited reasons people travel to work by car (Canada)

model answer:
The table compares modes of transport used in four countries: Canada, Belgium, Germany and
the Netherlands. Percentage of journeys made by car, bicycle, public transport and on foot are
given. The bar chart shows the results of a survey into reasons people in the Canada travel to
work by car.
As can be seen from the table, cars were the most frequently used from of transport in all four
countries. However, the proportion of journeys made by car ranged from a low of 47 per cent in
the Netherlands to a high of 90 per cent in the Canada. Figures for the other forms of transport
also varied considerably. Not surprisingly, in the Netherlands, a high proportion of trips were
made by bicycle (26%) and on foot (18%). The highest rate of public transport use was
in Germany, where nearly one in five journeys was made by public transport.
The bar chart provides information that may help explain why car use in the Canada. The most
frequently cited reason was lack of any other alternative (38%). Although a sizeable percentage
said it was more convenient (12%), the other factors listed appeared to relate more to need than
preference, e.g. working night shift.
Overall, the figures show considerable variation in modes of transport used, though the car
continues to dominate in most contexts.
(223 words)
The bar graph below shows the numbers of male and female research students studying
six computer science subjects at a US university in 2011.
Summarise the information by selecting and report in the main features, and make

model answer:
The bar chart shows the gender distribution of students doing computer scientific research
across a range of disciplines at a US university in 2011.
In five of the six disciplines, males outnumbered females. Male students made up a particularly
large proportion of the student group in subjects related to the study of programming objects:
mathematics, programming, and engineering. The gender gap was particularly large in the field
of mathematics, where there were five times as many male students as female students.
Men and women were more equally represented in subjects related to the study of computer
science: natural sciences, psychology, and linguistics. In natural science, there were nearly as
many women [approximately 200] as men [approximately 240]. This was also true of
psychology. Linguistics was the only discipline in which women outnumbered men [roughly
110 women vs. 90 men].
Overall, the chart shows that at this university, computer science subjects continue to be male-
dominated; however, women have a significant presence in fields related to psychology and the
computer sciences.
(169 words)

The pie charts show the average consumption of food in the world in 2008 compared to
two countries; China and India.
Write a report to a university lecturer describing the data.
model answer:
The graphs illustrate the consumption of 4 types of food used in the world in 2008. The figures
are compared to the amounts of food used in china and India in the same year.As an overall
trend, the two countries showed different food consumption from the world average, while
processed food consumption still had the largest percentages in all the three charts.
In particular, processed food consumption was the highest in the world, accounting for 41%,
which was followed by vegetables and fruits at 29% and animal food at a quarter. Merely 4%
consisted of nut and seeds consumption.
Likewise, India used processed food in the largest proportion of 39%. Animal food showed the
same figure as the world’s average, 25%. Vegetable and fruits was used at 23% while nuts and
seeds showed less than a half figure. Two halves
In China, processed food and vegetables and fruits were used the most in the year 2008 with
percentages of 34% and 32% respectively, nuts and seeds used in this country showed the
largest proportion among the three charts given, making up 19% at this time.

(185 words)
The diagram shows the procedure for university entry for high school graduates.
Write a report for a university or college lecturer describing the information.
model answer:
The flowchart illustrates the various steps that a high school student must follow to enter
university.
Once the high school has been obtained, students need to complete an application for university
entrance. This can be downloaded from the university website. The completed application
should then be sent to the administration.
Applicants receive a reply two weeks later which is provisional acceptance, a rejection or an
acceptance. If a rejection is received, students can either cancel their application altogether or
complete an application for an alternative course and send to the administration office.

A provisional acceptance means that more documentation is required. Applicants in this
situation should complete the additional documentation and submit them to the office. When an
acceptance is received, the applicant should complete the enrolment form and select which
subjects he or she wishes to undertake and register with the dean. When all this is completed the
applicant may enter university.
(194 words)
The graphs show changes in spending habits of people in UK between 1971 and 2001.
Write a report to a university lecturer describing the data.Write at least 150 words
model answer:
The pie charts show changes in UK spending patterns between 1971 and 30 years later, 2001.
As an overall trend, increased amounts of money spent on cars, computers and eating out were
made up for by drops in expenditure on food and books.
In detail, food and car made up the two biggest item of expenditure in both years. Together they
comprised over half of household spending in the UK. Food accounted for 44% of spending in
1971, but this dropped by two thirds to 14% in 2001. However, the outlay on cars doubled,
rising from 22% in 1971 to 43% in 2001.
Other areas changed significantly. Spending on eating out doubled, climbing from 7% to 14%.
The proportion of salary spent on computers increased dramatically, up from 2% in 1971 to
12% in 2001. However, as computer expenditure rose, the percentage of outlay on books
plunged from 6% to 1%.

(151 words)
The pie chart below shows the proportion of different categories of families living in
poverty in UK in 2002.
Proportion of people from each household type living in poverty
model answer:
The pie chart examines the different type of families who were living in poor conditions in UK
in the year 2002.
As an overall trend, 14% of the entire households in UK at that time were in conditions of
poverty. In general, single people struggled more than couples.
In particular, as far as people with children are concerned, sole parents showed the highest
percentage of 26% among all the given categories while couples with children accounted for a
relatively smaller percentage of 15%.
When it comes to people with no children, single people made up a large percentage of 24%,
which is almost the same figure for single people with children. On the other hand, only 9% of
the couples without any children suffered from poverty in

2002. In terms of aged people, singles had a slightly higher percentage than couples. Only 7%
and 5% of the aged population had hardships in their living circumstances.
(155 words)
The bar charts below give information about the railway system in six cities in Europe.
model answer:

The bar charts illustrate comparable information related to railway systems in six capital cities
in Europe; Paris, Stockholm, Lisbon, Rome, Madrid and Berlin.
In general, railway systems in different cities vary in terms of the start dates of each system, the
sizes, and the numbers of passengers using the systems in a year.
As far as the ages are concerned, Paris has the oldest railway system among the six cities. It was
opened in the year 1863, which is incomparable to the other cities. On the other hand, Berlin
has the newest railway system which was opened in Europe 2001.
In terms of the sizes, Paris, for certain, has the longest route, 394km, which is nearly twice the
figure for Stockholm. Madrid, in contrast, has the shortest route in its railway system, only
28km.
When it comes to the numbers of people using the railway system in each, Lisbon shows the
largest number of 1927 million passengers in a year while Madrid serves the smallest number of
railway users, 45 millions.
(170 words)
The bar graph indicates sales figures for reading materials from 2002 to 2012.
Write a report to a university lecturer describing the information shown below.
model answer:

The graph shows the changes in the sales of four different types of publications for a decade
since 2002.
In general, all the given categorise except hobbies book showed a rising trend in the sales over
the period. The sales of history books were the highest while those of art books were the lowest.
In particular, the sales of the biggest sellers, history books, experienced an overall growth
during the period. The sales were around 4500 copies in 2002, and then reached a peak of
10000 in 2008. Although the figure dropped slightly after then, history books remained the
greatest sellers with around 9000 copies sold in 2012.
The sales of art books and entertainment books showed a similar pattern of a steady growth.
The figure for art books increased slowly from around 1500 copies in 2002 to just under 4000
in 2012 while that for entertainment books went through a moderate rise from approximately
1300 copies in 2002 to 3000 in 2012.
On the other hand, the last category, hobbies book, did not show an upward trend. The sales of
hobbies book showed the lowest sales figures, and the figure generally remained constant at
between 500 and 700 copies.
(199 words)
The graphs show figures relating to hours worked and stress levels amongst professionals
in eight groups.
Describe the information shown to a university or collage lecturer.

model answer:
Two graphs give different information related to eight professional groups. The bar graph
indicates the number of weekly work hours done by the groups while the pie chart illustrates the
percentages of people suffering from stress related illness in the different professions given.
In general, business men work the longest among the eight groups while the smallest amount of
time is normally worked by lecturers. According to the pie chart, lecturers struggle the most
with work-related stress. Although their average working hours is smaller than any other group
in the chart, lecturers suffer from the highest level of stress caused by their job.
The bar graph shows that business men and movie producers work the most at about 70 hours
and 62 hours per week respectively. At the opposite end of the scale, lecturers work only around
25 hours. Working hours of other professionals varied with doctors, writers, programmers,

lawyers and chefs working approximately 52, 46, 35 and 32 hours per week in the name
ordered.
The pie graph shows that the professional who has the highest incidence of stress related
illnesses is lecturers at 25%. Movie producers and doctors also have high rates with 18% and
15% each. The figures for business men, lawyers, chefs and writers can be grouped into
percentages between 11 and 8%. The lowest rate of stress illness is attributed to programmers at
only 5%, which is only a fifth the figure for lecturers.
(239 words)
The table below gives information about changes in modes of travel in Netherland
between 2001 and 2006.
Describe the information in the table and make comparisons where appropriate.
Average distance in miles travelled per person per year, by mode of travel
2001 2006
Walking 255 237
Bicycle 51 41
Car 3199 4806
Local bus 429 274
Local distance bus 54 124
Train 239 366
Taxi 13 42
Other 450 585
All modes 4740 6475
model answer:
The chart illustrates average distance travelled by various modes of transport in Netherland in
2001 and 2006. The figures are given in miles and to show how people’s preference changed
over time.
In general, people in Netherland travelled more in the year 2006 than in 2001. Cars showed
unparalleled figures among the given categories. Except walking, using bicycles and taking
local buses, most of the categories showed overall increases in the distance travelled.

In detail, a person driving his own car travelled 3,199 miles on average in 2001, and the average
distance showed a moderate rise to 4,806 miles in 2006. Apart from cars, taking trains, using
long distance buses and taxis also experienced an overall growth in their figures from 289 miles
to 366, from 54 miles to 124, and from 13 miles to 42 respectively in the order named.
On the other hand, walking and rising bicycles were not more favored by Dutch people. Both
categories showed a moderate decline in their figures. Meanwhile, the number of people who
used local buses must have dropped significantly as the average distance experienced a dramatic
fall from 429 miles in 2001 to 274 miles in 2006.
(195 words)
The graphs indicate the source of complaints about the bank of America and the amount
of time it takes to have the complaints resolved.
Summarise the information by selecting and report in the main features, and make

model answer:
The two graphs depict different information related to complaints within the bank of America.
The pie graph shows the sources of complaints, while the bar graph illustrates the average time
taken between investigation into complaints and final action taken.
In general, by far the highest number of complaints against the bank of America originated from
the public. The bar graph shows the average time period between investigation and action is
around 5 months.
63% of all complaints against the bank of America are lodged by the public. Of the remaining
37% of complaints, the figures can be grouped into percentages between 11 and 8%, which are
made up of government agencies, out-of-state agencies, and insurance companies. Then
interestingly, media and bank employee made up and equal figure, 3% in the chart.

The bar graph shows that 2001 had the highest waiting time for complaints of medical
misconduct at 6 months. Although there is a significant drop from 6 months in 2001 to 5
months in 2002, all previous and proceeding years display an average waiting period of 5
months. Despite this, over time the average waiting period is decreasing.
(189 words)

Academic writing task 1

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