IELTS Writing Task 1-

Academic

LINE GRAPH
The graph below shows waste recycling rates in the U.S. from 1960 to 2011.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.

Model Answer:
The graph depicts waste recycling rates in the U.S. from 1960 to 2011, in both percentage and
tons.

Between 1960 and 1970, the percentage of garbage being recycled annually remained
relatively steady at just over 6%. It then rose slightly over the next 15 years to 10.1% in 1985.

On the other hand, the amount of garbage being recycled tripled during the same period, from
5.6 million tons in 1960 to 16.7 million tons in 1985. Following this sharp increase, the amount of
waste material being recycled has risen significantly between 1985 and 2011 when it peaked at
86.9 million tons.
Similarly, the recycling rate continued to grow sharply from 1985 to 1995, and then at a slower
rate over the next 15 years until it reached a peak of 34.7% in 2011. However, this figure is still
disappointing compared to the total amount of waste being recycled each year.
 BAR GRAPH
The chart below shows the percentage change in the share of international students
among university graduates in different Canadian provinces between 2001 and 2006.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.

Model answer
The chart shows changes in the share of international students who graduated from universities
in different Canadian provinces over a period of 5 years.

In 2001, this share had a relatively narrow range, from 3% in Ontario to 7.0% in New Brunswick.
Nova Scotia had the second highest proportion at 6.5%. Five years later, the figures for most
provinces had risen, with the exception of Alberta. There, the figures fell by 1% to just over 4%.

By 2006, some parts of Canada experienced a considerable increase in their share of

international graduates. Growth in this share was especially strong in the case of New Brunswick,
where the figures rose from 7% to 12%. The largest growth occurred in British Columbia, where it
more than doubled to 11%.

Over this five-year period, changes in the proportion of international graduates have been very
uneven across the provinces of Canada. However, New Brunswick remained the province with
the highest percentage overall.
 BAR GRAPH
The graph below gives information about the preferred leisure activities of Australian
children.
Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information shown.

Model answer:

The graph shows the preferred leisure activities of Australian children aged 5-14. As might be
expected, it is clear from the data that sedentary pursuits are far more popular nowadays than
active ones.

Of the 10,000 children that were interviewed, all the boys and girls stated that they enjoyed
watching TV or videos in their spare time. In addition, the second most popular activity, attracting
80% of boys and 60% of girls, was playing electronic or computer games. While girls rated
activities such as art and craft highly – just under 60% stated that they enjoyed these in their
spare time – only 35% of boys opted for creative pastimes.

Bike riding, on the other hand, was almost as popular as electronic games amongst boys and,
perhaps surprisingly, almost 60% of girls said that they enjoyed this too. Skateboarding was
relatively less popular amongst both boys and girls, although it still attracted 35% of boys and
25% of girls.
 PIE CHART
The pie charts below give information about world population in 1900 and 2000.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.

Model Answer
The pie charts illustrate changes in the population of different areas of the world between 1900
and 2000. The major regions are represented as percentages of the total world population.

From 1900 to 2000, the percentage of people living in Africa more than doubled from 4.5% to
10%, while Latin America’s proportion almost tripled in the same period. On the other hand, the
percentage of population in Europe and Asia decreased over the last century. Europe’s
percentage dropped from 25% to 14%, while Asia declined from 60% to 54%. North America’s
percentage however, remained constant at 5% in 1900 and 2000. The Middle East and North
Africa, a new category in 2000, represented 6% of world population.

Overall, this represents a huge increase in the number of humans on the planet, from 1.6 billion
to 6 billion in just one century. Most of this population growth has occurred in developing
countries.
 DIAGRAM

The following diagram shows how greenhouse gases trap energy from the Sun. Write a
report for a university lecturer describing the information shown below.

Model Answer

Energy from the Sun reaches the Earth as heat. Some of this heat energy is subsequently
radiated into space, while some of it is trapped by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and
reflected back to Earth. This is a natural process, but in recent decades, human activities have
led to an increase in the amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which is now trapping
too much heat.

One of the main greenhouse gases is carbon dioxide, and extra quantities of this are
released/have been released into the atmosphere as a result of burning fossil fuels as a source
of energy in power stations, factories and homes. Exhaust gases from cars and lorries result
in/have resulted in further emissions of carbon dioxide.

Plants serve to remove some of the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by absorbing it through
their leaves. However, as large areas of forest are (being) felled/have been felled in the Amazon
and elsewhere, less carbon dioxide is removed in this way.
 FLOW CHART

The flowchart illustrates the production of coloured plastic paper clips in a small factory.
Write a report for a university tutor describing the production process.

Model answer
There are four main stages in the production of plastic paper clips from this small factory. Two of
these stages involve actual preparation of the clips, while the other two consist of quality control
before the clips are sent out from the factory.

To begin with, molten plastic is poured into three different moulds depending on the colour
required; the colours are red, blue and yellow. Once these clips emerge from the moulds a
quality control machine checks them for strength. Unsatisfactory clips are rejected.

In the third stage in the process the clips are stored by hand into two groups, mixed and single
colours. When this stage is complete the groups are checked a second time to ensure that the
colour mixtures are divided correctly into single colours and mixed colour batches. Finally, the
clips are packed and dispatched to the markets.
 TABLE

The table below gives information about Favorite Pastimes in different countries.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.

Model Answer

This table clearly presents and compares favorable pastimes in eight different countries. The
pastimes, across the top of the table, are analyzed in relation to each country.

As can be seen, about 60% of Canadians, Australians and Americans like watching television.
On the other hand, this figure is quite low for China where only 15% of people watch television.
Predictably, Americans like music at 23%, whereas only 2 to 5% of people in the other countries
feel the same way. 20% of people in England enjoy sleeping as a pastime whereas in Canada
and the USA, for example, the figure is only 2%. Interestingly, the Chinese like hobbies the most
at 50%, as opposed to only 20% in France. It isn’t surprising that the highest percentage of
beach-lovers is in Australia and the USA at 30%.

It seems that pastimes of people of different nationalities may be influenced by a number of

factors such as the socio-economic situation or the climate. These factors influence cultural
differences between different nationalities and make cross-cultural experiences more interesting.
 PROCESS

The diagram illustrates the process that is used to manufacture bricks for the building
industry. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and
make comparisons where relevant.

Model Answer

The diagram explains the way in which bricks are made for the building industry. Overall, there
are seven stages in the process, beginning with the digging up of clay and culminating in
delivery.

To begin, the clay used to make the bricks is dug up from the ground by a large digger. This clay
is then placed onto a metal grid, which is used to break up the clay into smaller pieces. A roller
assists in this process.

Following this, sand and water are added to the clay, and this mixture is turned into bricks by
either placing it into a mould or using a wire cutter. Next, these bricks are placed in an oven to
dry for 24 – 48 hours.

In the subsequent stage, the bricks go through a heating and cooling process. They are heated in
a kiln at a moderate and then a high temperature (ranging from 200c to 1300c), followed by a
cooling process in a chamber for 2 – 3 days. Finally, the bricks are packed and delivered to their
destinations.
 MAP

The two maps below show an island, before and after the construction of some tourist
facilities.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.

Model Answer
The map illustrates the changes on an island after the construction of some tourist facilities. Generally
speaking, the island was deserted as no tourists facility was there, but after the renovation, tourist
amenities like the pier, restaurant, several accommodations, reception on the island, roads etc. made it
tourists friendly.

The first map shows nothing on the island except some trees but the second map illustrates the changes
after the construction of facilities. A pier for the boats to land could be seen and from there, a vehicle track
leads to the reception area and then the restaurant. Vehicle track ends near the restaurant and the
footpath leads tourists to the accommodation areas and to the beach. Residential areas are located on
both sides of the reception with footpath connecting them.

It is worth noticing that no woodcutting took place as trees are present in both maps. On the left side of the
reception, the residential area is connected to the beach via the footpath. Swimming facility is available
there as well.
To summarise, the map summarises that a deserted island had been turned into a tourist spot for the
recreation and amusement of people without destroying natural beauty.
 TABLE & PIE CHART
The diagrams below give information on transport and car use in Edmonton.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons
where relevant.

People’s reasons for using the

car in city

Commute to work 55%

Shopping 15%

Leisure activities 15%

Taking children to school 40%

Business 45%

Car – 45%, LRT -35%, Bus 10%, Taxi – 10%

Model Answer

The table shows the reason why people in Edmonton use their cars in the city and the pie chart explains
what type of transport people prefer to use most of the time.

Looking at the pie chart first, it is clear that the car is the most popular means of transport in this city. 45%
of the people say that they prefer to commute by car. The second most popular form of transport is the
LRT, while busses and taxis are the main means of transport for the rest of the people.

The table gives more detailed information about why people use their cars. Surprisingly, 55% of the people
need to commute to work by car. Cars are also used a lot for taking children to school or business
purposes. Only 15% of drivers are doing their shopping and, similarly, 15% need to travel by car for leisure.

Overall, people in Edmonton make good use of alternative methods of transport but there is a heavy
dependence on cars for work.
 LINE GRAPH & BAR GRAPH

The graphs below provide information on global population figures and figures for urban
populations in different world regions. Summarise the information by selecting and
reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Model answer
The first graph shows the trend in world
population growth between 1800 and 2100,
while the second graph gives predicted urban
population figures for the next 25 years.
The world population has experienced
continuous growth since 1800. Between 1800
and 1950, the population grew slowly from just
under 1 billion to 2.5 billion people. After that,
the growth rate increased and currently the
figure is around 6.5 billion. Projections show a
continued increase in population in the near future, but a steady decline in the population growth
rate. The global population is expected to peak at 8.2 billion by 2050, and then decline to around
6.2 billion by 2100.

The predictions also show that almost all urban population growth in the next 25 years will occur
in cities of developing countries. In developed regions, on the other hand, the urban population is
expected to remain unchanged at about 1.3 billion people over the next two decades.
The graphs show that the global population increase will not occur evenly throughout the world,
but will be greater in some areas than others.
 LINE GRAPH & TABLE

The graph and table below give information about water use worldwide and water
consumption in two different countries. Summarise the information by selecting and
reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Irrigated Water consumption

Model answer Country Population
land per person
The graph shows how the amount of
water used worldwide changed
between 1900 and 2000.
26,500
Throughout the century, the largest Brazil 176 million 359 m³
km²
quantity of water was used for
agricultural Purposes, and this
increased dramatically from about 500
Democratic
km³ to around 3,000 km³ in the year Republic 5.2 million 100 km² 8 m³
2000. Water used in the industrial and of Congo
domestic sectors also increased, but
consumption was minimal until mid-
century. From 1950 onwards,
industrial use grew steadily to just over 1,000 km³, while domestic use rose more slowly to only
300 km³, both far below the levels of consumption by agriculture.
The table illustrates the differences in agriculture consumption in some areas of the world by
contrasting the amount of irrigated land in Brazil (26,500 km³) with that in the D.R.C. (100 km²).
This means that a huge amount of water is used in agriculture in Brazil, and this is reflected in
the figures for water consumption per person: 359 m³ compared with only 8 m³ in the Congo.
With a population of 176 million, the figures for Brazil indicate how high agriculture water
consumption can be in some countries.
 BAR GRAPH & PIE CHART
The Bar Chart shows CO2 emissions for different forms of transport in the European
Union.
The Pie Chart
shows the percentage
of European Union funds
being spent on different
forms of transport.

Model Answer
The chart shows CO2 emissions per
passenger kilometre for variuos
methods of transport in the European
Union while the pie chart shows
European Union spending on
transport. Flying by air produces by
far the greatest CO2 emissions,
approximately three times as much
as passenger cars which are the next
largest producers. Very little is spent
by the EU on air travel while roads
make up more than half of the EU transport budget.
Trains produce about three times less CO2 emissions per passenger kilometre than passenger
cars and eight times less than air travel. Nearly a third of EU transport funds are spent on
railways.
Ships are a clean form of transport and produce about the same amount of CO2 per passenger
kilometre as trains do. However, only 2 percent of EU funds are spent on ports. A further one
percent is spent on inland waterways.
Coaches are the cleanest form of transport. Emissions of CO2 per passenger kilometre from
coaches are half those of buses. Buses emit less than half as much CO2 per passenger
kilometre as cars. The European Union spends 10 percent of its transport budget on public
transport, such as buses and coaches.
 PIE CHART & LINE GRAPH
The chart and graph below give information about sales and share prices for Coca-Cola.
Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information shown below.

Model answer:

The pie chart shows the worldwide distribution of sales of Coca-Cola in the year 2000 and the
graph shows the change in share prices between 1996 and 2001.

In the year 2000, Coca-Cola sold a total of 17.1 billion cases of their fizzy drink product
worldwide. The largest consumer was North America, where 30.4 per cent of the total volume
was purchased. The second largest consumer was Latin America. Europe and Asia purchased
20.5 and 16.4 per cent of the total volume respectively, while Africa and the Middle East
remained fairly small consumers at 7 per cent of the total volume of sales.

Since 1996, share prices for Coca-Cola have fluctuated. In that year, shares were valued at
approximately $35. Between 1996 and 1997, however, prices rose significantly to $70 per share.
They dipped a little in mid-1997 and then peaked at $80 per share in mid-98. From then until
2000 their value fell consistently but there was a slight rise in mid-2000.