Academic

Task 1
Bar chart
There are 5 steps to writing a good IELTS bar chart essay:

1)  Analyse the question

2)  Identify the main features

3)  Write an introduction

4)  Write an overview

5)  Write the detailed paragraph

The bar chart below shows the sector contributions to India’s gross domestic
product from 1960 to 2000.

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

Write at least 150 words.

 Step 1 – Analyse the question

The format of every Academic Task 1 question is the same. Here is our practice
question again with the words that will be included in all questions highlighted .

The bar chart below shows the sector contributions to India’s gross domestic

product from 1960 to 2000.

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

Every question consists of:

 Sentence 1 – A brief description of the graphic

 Sentence 2 – The instructions

 The graphic – chart, graph, table, etc.

Sentence 2 tells you what you have to do.

You must do 3 things:

1.     Select the main features.

2.     Write about the main features.

3.     Compare the main features.

All three tasks refer to the ‘main features’ of the graphic. You do not have to write
about everything. Just pick out 2 or 3 key features and you’ll have plenty to write
about.

Our practice graphic is a dynamic bar chart. That is, it includes a timeline giving
data from several different points in time.

So, for this question, we need to identify the main trends (that is, the general
developments or changes in situation) in the three key sectors of the Indian
economy – agriculture, industry and service – between 1960 and 2000.
Alternatively, a bar chart may be static with the data coming from one point in
time, as in the example below. For this graphic, we would need to compare the
different variables, that is, the different leisure activities favoured by Canadian
boys and girls.

Step 2 – Identify the Main Features

The graphic in IELTS bar chart questions should not be difficult to interpret. Each
question has been created to test your language skills, not your mathematics
ability.

All you are looking for are the main features. These will usually be the easiest
things to spot. As we’ve just seen, the type of key features will depend on whether
the bar chart is dynamic or static.

There will be lots of information in the graphic to help you identify them. Here are
some useful questions to ask?

 What information do the 2 axes give?

 Is it dynamic or static?

 What are the units of measurements?

 What are the time periods?

  What can you learn from the title and any labels?

 What is the most obvious trend?

 Are there any notable similarities?

There are 3 main features/trends in this IELTS bar chart:

Main feature 1: The contribution of the agricultural sector dropped steadily.

Main feature 2: The contribution of the service sector increased each decade.

Main feature 3: Industry remained static from 1980 to 2000.

The general trends you select will be the starting point for your essay. You will
then go on to add more detail.

With just 20 minutes allowed for Task 1, and a requirement of only 150 words, you
won't be able to include many details.
We’re now ready to begin writing our essay. Here’s a reminder of the 4 part
structure we’re going to use.

Paragraph 1 – Introduction

Paragraph 2 – Overview

Paragraph 3 – 1st main feature

Paragraph 4 – 2nd main feature

Step 3 – Write an Introduction 

In the introduction, you should simply paraphrase the question, that is, say the
same thing in a different way. You can do this by using synonyms and changing
the sentence structure. For example:

Question:

The bar chart below shows the sector contributions to India’s gross domestic
product from 1960 to 2000.

Introduction (Paragraph 1): 

The bar graph illustrates the relative percentage contributions made by the
agricultural, industrial and service sectors to the Indian economy between
1960 and 2000.

This is all you need to do for the introduction.

Ideally, key words such as ‘sector’ and ‘contributions’ should be replaced by

synonyms but there aren’t any obvious words that could be used instead so it’s fine
to repeat them. It’s important that your language sounds natural so never try to
force in synonyms that don’t quite fit.

Step 4 – Write an Overview (Paragraph 2)

In the second paragraph, you should report the main features you can see in the
graph, giving only general information. The detail comes later in the essay. You
should also make any clear comparisons you spot.
This is where we write about the general trends. Here are the ones we picked out
above.

Main feature 1: The contribution of the agricultural sector dropped steadily.

Main feature 2: The contribution of the service sector increased each decade.

Main feature 3: Industry remained static from 1980 to 2000.

Now form these ideas into two or three sentences with a total of around 40 words.
State the information simply using synonyms where possible. No elaborate
vocabulary or grammar structures are required, just the appropriate words and
correct verb tenses.

For example:

Overview (Paragraph 2): 

Over the whole time period, the significance of agriculture declined steadily
while services grew in importance decade by decade. A different patterned
emerged for industry, which initially showed a slowly increasing percentage
but then plateaued from 1980 onwards.

Step 5 – Write the 1st Detail Paragraph

Paragraphs 3 and 4 of your IELTS bar chart essay are where you include more
detailed information about the data in the graphic. In paragraph 3, you should give
evidence to support your first 1 or 2 key features. Don’t forget to make
comparisons when relevant.

Here are our first 2 main features again:

Main feature 1: The contribution of the agricultural sector dropped steadily.

Main feature 2: The contribution of the service sector increased each decade.

And this is an example of what you could write:

Paragraph 3:

In 1960, agriculture contributed by far the highest percentage of GDP,

peaking at 62%, but it then dropped in steady increments to a low of 12% in
2000. The service sector, on the other hand, had a relatively minor impact on
the economy in 1960. This situation changed gradually at first, then its
percentage contribution jumped from 28% to 43% between 1980 and 1990.
 By 2000 it matched the high point reached by agriculture in 1960, showing a
reversal in the overall trend.

Step 6 – Write the 2nd Detail Paragraph

For the fourth and final paragraph, you do the same thing for your remaining
feature/s. We have one main feature left to write about.

Main feature 3: Industry remained static from 1980 to 2000.

Here’s an example of what you could write:

Paragraph 4:

Industry remained a steady contributor to India’s wealth throughout the

period. As a sector, it grew marginally from 16% in 1960 to exactly a quarter
in 1980 then remained static for the next two decades, maintaining a constant
share of the overall GDP.

Here are the four paragraphs brought together to create our finished essay.

The bar graph illustrates the relative percentage contributions made by the agricultural, industrial
and service sectors to the Indian economy between 1960 and 2000.

Over the whole time period, the significance of agriculture declined steadily while services grew in
importance decade by decade. A different patterned emerged for industry, which initially showed a
slowly increasing percentage but then plateaued from 1980 onwards.

In 1960, agriculture contributed by far the highest percentage of GDP, peaking at 62%, but it then
dropped in steady increments to a low of 12% in 2000. The service sector, on the other hand, had a
relatively minor impact on the economy in 1960. This situation changed gradually at first, then its
percentage contribution jumped from 28% to 43% between 1980 and 1990. By 2000 it matched the high
point reached by agriculture in 1960, showing a reversal in the overall trend.

Industry remained a steady contributor to India’s wealth throughout the period. As a sector, it grew
marginally from 16% in 1960 to exactly a quarter in 1980 then remained static for the next two decades,
maintaining a constant share of the overall GDP.

(188 words)
 Line Graph

The graph below shows radio and television audiences throughout the
day in 1992.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features,

and make comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

PIE CHART

The chart below shows the reasons why people travel to work by
bicycle or by car. 
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main
features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
TABLE

The tables below give the distribution of world population in 1950 and
2000, with an estimate of the situation in 2050.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features,

and make comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

MAP

The maps below show the village of Stokeford in 1930 and 2010.Summarise
the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

PROCESS DIAGRAM

The diagrams below show a structure that is used to generate electricity from
wave power.

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

Write at least 150 words.

MULTIPLE CHART

The pie chart shows the main reasons why agricultural land becomes less
productive. The table shows how these causes affected three regions of the world
during the 1990s.

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

Write at least 150 words.