Writing Task 1

Introduction

In Writing Task 1, test takers may be asked to describe facts or figures presented in one or
more graphs, charts or tables on a related topic; or they may be given a diagram of a machine,
a device or a process and asked to explain how it works. They should write in academic or
semi-formal /neutral styles and include the most important and the most relevant points in the
diagram. Some minor points or details may be left out.

Test takers should spend no more than 20 minutes on this task. They are asked to write at least
150 words and will be penalized if their answer is too short. While test takers will not be
penalized for writing more than 150 words, they should remember that a longer Task 1
answer may mean that they have less time to spend on Task 2, which contributes twice as
much to the Writing band score.

Test takers should also note that they will be penalized for irrelevance if the response is off-
topic or is not written as full, connected text (e.g. using bullet points in any part of the
response, or note form, etc.). They will be severely penalized for plagiarism (i.e. copying
from another source).

Types of questions

1 Graphs

There are two types of graphs. A) Line graph. B) Bar graph. A) An

example of a bar graph is given below.

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B) An example of a line graph is given below.

2. Charts

There are three types of charts. A) Pie chart. B) Table. C) Flowchart A) An

example of a pie chart is shown below.

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B) An example of a table is shown below.

C) An example of a flow chart is given below.

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3. Descriptions

There are 2 types of description questions. A) Labelled diagram. B) Comparing maps.

A) An example of a labelled diagram is shown below.

B) An example of comparing maps is shown below.

4 Processes

There are two types of process questions. A) Artificial process. B) Natural process. A) An

example of an artificial process is given below.

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B) An example of a natural process is shown below.

Analyzing the graph

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Identify topic and take note of additional information from the graph to build introduction;
note the salient features like, trend (changes over time), pattern (similarity/difference),
highest, lowest or any exception.

Planning

Decide the tense based on time reference. For situation question, tense can be present or past
depending on the tense used in the question.
For trend, it could be past or future depending on time references. Present and past perfect
tenses can also be used wherever appropriate.

TENSES

Present tense is used when the question gives a situation or does not specify a year. It is used
for reporting trends that have no specific time and occur regularly (e.g. every day; such as
average passengers at a station at different times of day), or for reporting the present value or
figure of a variable.

Example: There is a significant rise at 6 am every morning. Then, the figure increases sharply
at 8 am.
Example: The number of people suffering from diarrhea now stands at 158.

Present perfect is used for reporting trends that started in the past and have continued until the
present time or will continue into the future

Example: There has been a significant rise since 2013, and the figure now stands at
15000

Example: The Sale has risen significantly since 2013, and is expected to reach 15000 in 2020.

Past tense is used for reporting trends and events in the past.

Example: There was a significant rise in 1964. Then, the figure dipped sharply in 1980.
Past perfect tense is used for reporting what happened (e.g. the figure reached) by a given
time in the past:

Example: There was a significant rise in 1985. Then, the figures dipped sharply and had
reached 5 by 1990.
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Future forms are used to describe trends that are predicted and projected for future times and
dates. You should note that none of these predictions are certain, and therefore a certain level
of uncertainty is desirable in your report.

Parts of a report

There should be 3 parts in a report namely, introduction, overall paragraph and body
paragraphs. The number of body paragraphs may vary according to the question.

1. Introduction

Paraphrase the question sentence in your introduction. Don't use the word ‘below’ while
paraphrasing. Paraphrasing is a conversion of content of the question into your own words
without changing the meaning and without adding or removing any information given in the
question. In case of questions with numerical values, in order to extract information from the
question, ask questions such as what, when, and where. You may reverse the order or
rearrange the order of what where and when from the question in order to form paraphrased
sentence. Consider the following examples to see how a question sentence can be
paraphrased.

Example: information about gold sales is in the graph. It shows how much gold is sold in
Dubai in 2002.

Paraphrased sentence: The given line graph provides information about sales of gold. It
shows the value of gold sold in Dubai in the year of 2002.

You can also convert active voice into passive voice in order to paraphrase the question.

Example (Active): The provided bar graph shows the gender wise proportion of teachers in
2010 in the UK in 6 types of educational settings.

Example (Passive): The gender wise proportion of teachers in 2010 in the UK in 6 types of
educational settings is shown in the provided bar graph.

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Vocabulary for Introduction
The given Graph Shows

The shown Chart Illustrates

The provided Table Provides data on

The presented Map Describes the steps

Diagram Give information about

Depicts

Presents details about

Indicates
Highlights Compares
Presents
provides information about
represents
elucidates information on

2. Overall paragraph

This paragraph gives an overall idea about the given data. Write the most prominent feature
or main idea in one sentence. You should never use numerical values except year in an
overview paragraph. Look for a general trend such as an increase, a decrease, remain steady,
fluctuation, similarities or differences.

There are questions that can mainly show a trend with two or more time periods. For such
questions, use words like increased or decreased. Other type of question may show situation
with one or no time period given. For such questions use words like more, less, high or low.

Use signposting to mark overview and body paragraphs

Mark overall using words or phrases:

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Overall,……..
At a glance…..
It is clear/apparent from the graph that……..
In broad terms, the chart indicates that……..
The main trend displayed indicates that (TREND)
The dominant trend indicates that (TREND) In an
overview,…………………….
It is evident from the line graph that.………, while the pie chart shows……(for two charts)

Example: Overall, gold sales in Dubai had fluctuations throughout the year 2002.

Example: At a glance, the proportion of male and female teachers was similar in secondary
school, college and private teaching institute, where as, it was considerably different in other
educational settings.

For a process diagram or a flowchart you may write an overview in the following format.

It is observed that the process of __________consists of ___________steps starting with

_________and ending at____________

3. Body paragraphs

Number of body paragraph may vary depending on the question. You must write at least 2 or
maximum 3 body paragraphs. Do not simply list the values given, instead, make comparisons
wherever possible. Only use the main features. Do not state all the values given, especially if
there is a large number of data. Try to split the body paragraphs on the basis of a logical
reason. Always use the correct tense depending on the question that is, if the question is about
a past year you should then write the report in past tense. If it is a projection or prediction for
the future, then you have to write it in future tense.

Start with the most important category in the first body paragraph, and describe its trend or pattern and then
write similar trends or patterns using appropriate phrases or conjunctions (e.g. Similarly, Likewise...). Next
paragraph will have the other trend or pattern observations in a similar fashion stating similarities. You can
start the second body with the phrase in comparison
Exceptions can be mentioned in the end as noteworthy or interesting feature.

MARKING (signposting) body paragraphs

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First body paragraph- If only one chart or one category is given you may follow this pattern.
According to the chart, the greatest proportion of the shop sales are DVDs.

Second body paragraph -In comparison/contrast, there was a decline in the sales of …..

If two charts are given you can follow the following style-
First body paragraph- From the first(bar/pie) chart, it is evident that….
Second body paragraph-Turning to the second graph, it is clear that…..
Moving to the next category, it can be seen that (the figures indicate that)……
When it comes to, As regards, With regard to, ….

Comparisons should constitute a major part of your answer, be it trend or situation (static) question.
Express your points using ideal sentence types which should include description and
supporting figures. Comparisons can be done in following different forms.

1. Superlative form.

Example: Revenue from bananas was the highest in the UK, at $15 million.

2. Comparative form.

Example: Company A has nearly a quarter of the total number of workers.

Example: Five million fewer red cars were sold than blue cars

3. Similarity

The percentages of females and males who studied English at university were very similar, at
around 40%.
4. Difference

The greatest contrast is between the prices for red and green cars. The figure for the former is
2 million, whereas it is 10, 000 for the latter.

Use connecting terms like in comparison, in contrast…, however.., on the other hand…

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1 Vocabulary for trend questions.
Trend Vocabulary

Increase Rise, rose, climb, climbed, hike, hiked, shoot

up shot up, soar, soared, surge, surged,
elevate, elevated, escalate, escalated, go up,
went up.

Decrease Fall, fell, drop, dropped, decline, declined, go

down, went down, plunge (sudden decrease),
plummet, dip, dipped.

Fluctuate Vary, varied, oscillate, oscillated, palpitate,

inconsistent, unstable and unsteady.

Steady Constant, consistent, remain

unchanged, plateau, reached a plateau, level
off, levelled off, stable.

2. Description of change
Rapid change Drastic, dramatic, sharp, quick, speedy,
swift, accelerated, sudden, large,
significant.

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Moderate change Gradual, sequential.

Small change Slight, minor, trivial, minute, insignificant.

3.Varying the vocabulary

i) After 2005, there was a dramatic increase in the population.

ii) After 2005, the population increased dramatically.

i) There was a significant drop in sales in 1998.

ii) Sales dropped significantly in 1998.

4.Fractions and percentages

2x - doubled, increased 2 fold

3x - tripled, increased three fold

4x - quadrupled, increased four fold

5x - quintupled, increased 5 fold

25% - quarter of, one fourth of

33% - one third of, third of

50% - half of

66% - two thirds of

75% - three quarters of, three fourth

45% - more than two fifths

40% - two fifths

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35% - more than a third

20% - a fifth, one fifths

10% - one in ten

5% - one in twenty

80% - four fifths

Above 80% - major value

85% - an overwhelming proportion

Between 60% to 80% - a large proportion

Between 30% to 40% - a significant proportion

Below 10% - trivial / an insignificant proportion

Example of proper usage of proportion

Half of the population (correct)

Half the percent of population (incorrect)

5. Vocabulary of approximation

Almost, around, about, approximately, roughly, nearly

6.Vocabulary for maps

A. Positional vocabulary

Opposite to, in front of, to the left, towards the right, adjacent to, behind, along the road /
river, directly opposite / behind, besides

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B. Directional vocabulary

On the Western side

Towards the north

The North Eastern side C.

Elements of a map

a. Buildings

- Was constructed / built / put up / erected.

- Modified / altered / expanded/ restructured / renovated/converted/

added/reconstructed

- Demolished / pulled down/knocked down

b. Roads / railways

- Was built /was laid /was constructed/ was paved

- Was extended to/was widened (road)

- Removed

c. Plants / forest / crops

- Was cultivated/grown

- Cut down/logged/dropped down/filled/ cleared ( farm land)

6. Vocabulary for processes and flowchart

- Firstly, the first step, in the beginning, initially.

- Next, then, after that/this, afterwards, thereafter, following this, subsequently, it is

succeeded by.

- Finally, at last.

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 - Meanwhile, simultaneously, at the same time.

- Before.

7. For values in future years

- It is estimated to reach ___

- The value is projected to increase to_____

- The value of sales is expected to be____

- The calculated value for 2050 is___

8. Different ways to compare and contrast along with values and figures

1. There was a considerable difference in the literacy rate of China (72%) and Japan (89%).

2. There was a considerable difference in the literacy rate of China and Japan, the former at
72% and the latter at 89%.

3. China and Japan were far apart in literacy rates, 72% and 89% respectively.

4. At/with 72% and 74%, China and Japan were close together in literacy rates.

5. Having started at 225 million, the sales increased sharply to reach 700 million in 2009.

6. At 72%, China had a substantially lower literacy rate than the 89% of Japan.

7. The sales of laptops went through a period of critical / swift decrease from 1000 units in
1990 to 400 units in 2000

8. In comparison with men, women had the higher per capita income ( 70000 dollars for men
and 74000 dollars for women).

9. While the cost of coffee powder decreased, the cost of rice increased.

10. There was a dramatic growth in the number of factories in Japan to 12000 in 2010,
followed by a sharp decrease to 1000 in 2015.

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11. The number of factories in Japan experienced an increase to 12000 in 2010, before
hitting a free fall to thousand in 2015.

12. In comparison with the number of factories in Japan, which witnessed a dramatic
increase to 12000 in 2010, the same in Korea plummeted to 2000 at this time.

13. The number of factories in Japan went through a period of dramatic increase to 12000
in 2010, exceeding the number in Korea which was only 2000.

14. Although, sales reached 20 million in 1993, it crashed to just 1 million in 1994.

15. No countries had as many visitors as Australia

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Sample answers

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2. Bar graph

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3. Pie chart

The given pie chart provides information about the proportion of people using digital
networking according to age group for Jamestown for the year 2018.

Overall, the general trend of Jamestown’s social media users during 2018 was that the older a
person was, the less likely they were to use digital networking

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In terms of the most significant feature of the chart, the largest category of digital
communicators was the group aged 13 to 25, which accounted for 40% of the total users. In
addition, the next important segment of the population using social media, was those aged
between 26 and 35. This group’s contribution was slightly lower at 35%. Moreover, added
together, these two categories made up more than half of all those who used social media
platforms in 2018, in Jamestown. They accounted for the vast majority of users, at 75%.

In stark contrast, the category with the lowest percentage of users, people older than 55,
comprised a tiny 2% of all users. Furthermore, those between 46 and 55 years of age
contributed 10% and people aged 36 to 45 made up 18 per cent.

4. Table

The table below gives information about consumer spending different items in five different
countries in 2002.

The table illustrates the proportion of national expenditure in Ireland, Italy, Spain
Sweden and Turkey on three types of consumer items in 2002

Overall, the category of consumer goods that all countries spent most on was food, drinks and
tobacco, which was three times higher than on the other types of goods.

The lowest spending could be in the category of leisure and education in all five countries.
The outlay of Turkey was generally higher than the other four countries

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In terms of food, drinks and tobacco Turkey spent the most at 32.14% The expenditure of
Ireland was also huge (28.91%) compared to Sweden, which spent the least (15.77 %). Spain
and Italy spent 18.80% and 16.36% respectively. On the other hand, the lowest expenditure
was on leisure and education which accounted for under 5% in all countries. Turkey spent
most on these items at just 4.35% of national expenditure which is around double that of
Spain (1.98%).

Clothing and footwear was the third category of consumer goods and outlays for those items
were between 9% in Italy and 5.4% in Sweden. The national spending in this area for the
remaining countries averaged around 6.5%

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5. Flow chart

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6. Labelled diagram.

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7. Comparing maps

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8. Artificial process

The diagram given depicts the process of preparing red wine.

Overall there are 10 steps to making of red wine which starts with the selection of Grapes and
ends with bottled wine ready to be marketed.

Firstly good quality grapes are selected for the winemaking process. These grapes are then
kept in anaerobic conditions for two to three weeks. Followed by this, the grapes are crushed

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in a crushing machine and subsequently, they are fermented in pot ale with skin. After this,
the skins and stems are separated from the mixture, and the mixture is further pressed and
drained in a drainer and free-run juice is collected.

After collecting the free-run juice, it is fermented again without skin in pot ale. This is
followed by a clarification process, where the juice is filtered in a filter. The filtered juice is
then kept in oaken cask for 6 to 24 months for maturation. At the end of the maturation
process, the wine's taste is adjusted using acid and sugar. Once the process is over the wine is
bottled and sent to the vendors for marketing.

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9. Natural process.

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