IELTS WRITING 2

DESCRIBING TRENDS

A – Analyzing the Task

 Work in pairs. Complete the phrases that describe the trends on the line graph
below with words from the box. Sometimes more than one word is possible.

decrease fall increase peak rise

Student enrolment Lees College 2011

a 3 ..................
250

200 a sharp 4 ..................

a dramatic
150
numbers

2 .................

100

50
a slight
1 .................... a gradual 5 ..................
0
J F M A M J J A S O N D
month

 Complete this paragraph about the graph using words and phrases from
Exercise 1.
The graph shows the changes in student numbers at Lees College over a one-year
period.

Between January and March, there was a 1. …slight increase….. in student numbers.
This was followed by a 2. ………………in numbers over the next three months.

In June, enrolments reached a 3. …………....

After that, there was a 4. …………….. in numbers.

Finally, there was a 5. ………………. in numbers from August to December.

1
Over the year, there was a lot of fluctuation in the numbers.

 It is important to include an overview of the graph or chart. This usually comes

at the end of your answer, though it may fit somewhere else, such as after the
introduction. Circle the correct word in italics to complete the overview of the graph
below.

World illiteracy
38%

30%

22%

14%

10%

1970 1980 1990 2000 PRESENT

Overall, there has been an upward / a downward / a stable trend in world illiteracy over
the past 40 years.

B – Writing Skills
• Using Nouns
You can use nouns instead of verbs to report data and add variety to your writing.

Practice
Provide the noun forms of the verbs below.

Verbs Nouns
increase
rise
decrease

2
 fall
decline
drop
fluctuate
improve
reduce
grow

• Describing Trends
IELTS candidates often use a verb phrase (i.e. rose rapidly) to describe a trend.

[Noun phrase] + [Verb] + [Adverb]

Ex: The unemployment rate rose rapidly

The cost of living fell dramatically

Trends can also be written using a noun phrase:

[There is/are] + [Noun phrase]

Ex: There was a rapid rise in unemployment NOTE

There was a dramatic fall in the cost of living Remember to use

the correct tense of
Practice
there is/are when
Rewrite sentences a-h using the correct form to describe describing trends.
trends.

a. Spice exports from Africa fluctuated wildly over the period.

There were ______________________________________________________
b. The development of new products fell gradually.
There was _______________________________________________________
c. There has been a noticeable decrease in research investment.
Research investment ______________________________________________
d. The purchases of tickets dropped significantly last month.
There was _______________________________________________________

3
 e. There was a sudden decrease in the sale of mangos.
The sale _________________________________________________________
f. On the Internet, the number of sites rose dramatically.
There was _______________________________________________________
g. There was a gradual decline in sugar imports.
Sugar imports ___________________________________________________
h. The number of air travelers fluctuated remarkably.
There __________________________________________________________

• Using Adjectives and Adverbs

You can use these Adjectives and Adverbs to add detail about how the data changed
over time.

UP OR DOWN QUICKLY ↑↓ UP OR DOWN MORE SLOWLY ↗↘

ADJ ADV ADJ ADV

rapid rapidly steady steadily

quick quickly slow slowly
sudden suddenly gradual gradually
sharp sharply slight slightly
dramatic dramatically moderate moderately
significant significantly minor
considerable considerably

Practice
Complete the description and overview of the chart below.

According to the chart, the amount of money received by schools in Australia 1. …………..
from 3.6 to 6 billion dollars between 1996 and 2003. It then 2. …………………. to 9.7
billion dollars in 2008. There was a general 3. …………………… trend in government
funding between 1996 and 2008.

4
 Australian government schools funding 1996 to 2007-08
12

9.7
10 9.3
8.5
8 7.4
6.7
$ billions

5.8 6
6 5.3
4.8
3.9 4.1
3.6
4

year

C – Writing Practice
 Look at this graph and complete the summary below by putting the verbs in
brackets into the correct tense.

Unemployment rate for adults

12

10
percent unemployed

0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
present
year

college graduates high-school leavers

5
 The graph 1. …………... (give) information about unemployment among college
graduates and high-school leavers. It 2. …………….. (show) the trends between 2000
and the present day.
These trends have followed a similar pattern since 2000. However, more high-
school leavers have always been unemployed than graduates.
In 2000, 1.5 percent of graduates and 3 percent of school leavers 3. ………………
(not have) a job. Between 2000 and 2003, these percentages 4. …………… (rise) to 3
and 5.5 respectively. After that, there was a gradual fall in numbers until 2006, when
figures 5. ………… (remain) stable for a year.
Since 2007, the percentage of unemployed high-school leavers has risen
dramatically and 6. ……………. (reach) 10 percent. Although the figure for graduates
is lower, it has also increased to 4 percent.
Overall, there has been an upward trend in unemployment rates for young
students. However, the difference between school leavers and graduates has become
much greater in recent years.

 Work in pairs. Look at the Writing task below.

1. What does the graph show?
2. Which key trends should you describe?
3. What comparisons will you make?
4. How many paragraphs will you need?
5. What will your overview include?

The graph below shows the number of library books read by boys and girls at
Starmouth School from 2006 to the present.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and
make comparisons where relevant.

6
 Starmouth School Library
160

140
number of books read

120

100

80

60

40

20

0
2009 2010 2011 2012
year

boys girls

 Now work alone and write your summary of the chart in the exercise above.
You should write at least 150 words.

Exam advice
Writing Task 1
• Think about and analyse the information in the graph(s) before you
write.
• Organise the information into paragraphs and include a general
overview.
• Make sure that you describe the trends and compare information
in the graph(s).
TIPS:

• Don’t copy the Writing task. Instead, paraphrase the question.

• Use the past simple (increased, fell) for past years, and 'will' or 'is expected/predicted
to' for future years.