Academic IELTS Writing Skills Course

1 Task 1: Bar graphs

Writing Skills: Summarising data ▪ Academic IELTS task 1 structure

Situation
You are writing a 150 word report for an Academic IELTS exam.

The information in IELTS writing task 1 may come in one of these 5 formats.
.

table bar graph pie chart line graph diagram

IELTS tip
Try NOT to repeat words. Use synonyms to show your range of vocabulary.

Preparation task
Match the synonyms and write them in the boxes below.

figures illustrate statistics

highlight numbers the population

data show the people

demonstrate the public

Extra practice
For more information and advice about IELTS writing task 1, look online.

http://tiny.cc/g0vxdx or http://tiny.cc/b1vxdx

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 Academic IELTS Writing Skills Course

IELTS tip
Underline key words in the question. This will help you write answer the question.

Question 1
Read the IELTS task 1 question and answer the 4 questions below.

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The chart below shows the number of men and women in further education in Britain
in three periods and whether they were studying full-time or part-time.

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

Write at least 150 words.

Men Women
Men and Women in further education

1400

1200

1000
(thousands)

800

600

400

200

0
1970 / 71 1980 / 81 1990 / 91 1970 / 71 1980 / 81 1990 / 91

Full-time Part-time

1. You should write a maximum of 150 words. True False

2. You should summarise the MAIN FEATURES True False

3. You should COMPARE the number of men and women in education. True False

4. You should refer to the data by writing NUMBERS and DIFFERENCES. True False

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IELTS tip
There is no set formula for structuring an IELTS writing task. It is suggested that
in Task 1 you write 3 clear paragraphs (see model answer).
Paragraph 1 – Re-wording of the question and explanation of the data.
Paragraph 2 – Summary of the main trends.
Paragraph 3 – Comparisons and reference to specific data or numbers.

Model Answer

The bar graph illustrates the number of male and female students in higher
education and shows whether they studied full-time or part-time. The data was
collected in Britain over three decades from the 1970s to the 1990s.

It is immediately apparent that the number of women studying in further education

increased rapidly from the early 70s to the early 90s. Whilst the number of men
studying in colleges and universities full-time also grew there was an overall drop in
the number of men studying part-time from 1970/71 to 1990/91.

It is worth noting that in 1990/91 there were 220,000 more women in further
education than men. This shows a distinct change from 1970/71 when men
outnumbered women by 320,000. In the early 70s, there were only 750,000 part-
time and 70,000 full-time women pursuing higher qualifications yet by the early 90s
this number had rocketed to 1,150,000 and 250,000 respectively. Despite a slight
spike in 1980 the number of men engaged in higher education part-time fell by
80,000 to reach 920,000 in 1990/91. Interestingly there was an equal number of
men and women studying full-time by the nineties.

Word count: 187

Question 2
Find the synonyms for these two phrases in the model text and complete the gaps.

further education in 1990/91

………………………… education the early ………………….

colleges …………………………………. ……………… nineties

………………. higher qualifications

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Question 3
Read the sentences from the model answer and complete the gaps.

The bar graph …………………………… the number of …

It is …………………………… apparent that the number of …

there was an …………………………… drop in the number of …

It is …………………………… noting that in 1990/91 there were …

This shows a …………………………… change from 1970/71 when

… this number had rocketed to 1,150,000 and 250,000 …………………………… .

Despite a slight …………………………… in 1980 the number of …

…………………………… there was an equal number of …

IELTS tip
Try to COPY and USE the sentences above in your own writing.

Question 4
Look at the example below to see how to re-word the question for paragraph 1.

IELTS Task 1 – Question

The chart below shows the number of men and women in further education in Britain in
three periods and whether they were studying full-time or part-time.

Your paragraph 1 – Overview

The bar graph illustrates the number of male and female students in higher education and
shows whether they studied full-time or part-time. The data was collected in Britain over
three decades from the 1970s to the 1990s.

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 Academic IELTS Writing Skills Course

Question 5
Re-write these questions to practice writing the overview for paragraph 1.

IELTS Task 1 – Question

The line graph shows the amount of fast food consumed by teenagers in the UK between
1975 and 2000, a period of 25 years.

Your paragraph 1 – Overview

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

IELTS Task 1 – Question

The bar graph gives information about the percentage of the population living in urban
areas across six continents.

Your paragraph 1 – Overview

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Question 6
Match the words to make a useful collocation as used in the model answer.

increased (verb) change (noun)

immediately (adverb) rapidly (adverb)
slight (adverb) noting (verb)
distinct (adverb) apparent (adj)
worth (adverb) spike (noun)

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Writing Task
Read and answer the Academic IELTS task 1 question.

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The graph below shows the changes in the number of Asian elephants between 1997
and 2004.

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

Write at least 150 words.

Estimated maximum population of Asian Elephants

Myanmar

Thailand

India

Sri Lanka

0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000 12,000

2004 1997

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Checklist
Have you finished? Read the questions and answer Yes or No.

I used some phrases and collocations from Question 3 and Question 6. Yes No
I checked my grammar, spelling and punctuation. Yes No

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