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Writing task one: tables

You will be given one table of figures. Your task is to describe the information given in the
graph by writing a 150 word report. You are not asked to give your opinion. You should
spend around 20 minutes on the task.
What is being tested is your ability to:

objectively describe the information presented in a table

compare and contrast
report on an impersonal topic without the use of opinion
use language appropriate to the description of tables

Sample task

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information in the table below.
Write at least 150 words.

Your task
Complete the Task One report exercise above. Spend only 20 minutes.Then look at the notes and
the sample answer below.

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Guidelines for a good answer

Does the report have a suitable structure?

Does it have an introduction, body and conclusion?

Does it include connective words to make the writing cohesive within sentences and
paragraphs?

Does the report use suitable grammar and vocabulary?

Does it include a variety of sentence structures?

Does it include a range of appropriate vocabulary?

Does the report meet the requirements of the task?

Does it meet the word limit requirements?

Does it describe the whole graph adequately?
Does it focus on the important trends presented in the table?

Sample answers
We will now compare two sample answers, one better than the other. How well does each one
follow the guidelines?

Sample answer
The table shows how people in different age groups spent their leisure time in Someland. It can
be clearly seen that the amount of leisure time available varied considerably across the age
groups.
Teenagers in Someland spent 1,200 hours a year watching TV and those in the over 70s group
spent 100 hours less at 1,100. They spent 150 hours on socialising with 4 or less people
compared with 200 hours at the other end of the scale. They spent 350 hours socialising with 4 or
more people compared with 25 hours. The teenagers spent 450 hours on group exercise but
retired people didnt do any.
In conclusion, we can see that in Someland the teenagers and retired people prefer to spend their
free time in different ways.
Teacher's comments on the sample answer
The report structure is clear and well organised with an introduction, body and conclusion.
The candidate uses repetitive grammatical structures and vocabulary which would bring the mark
down considerably. The tense used is not appropriate as there is no indication on the table that
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the figures refer to the past. Also the reader doesnt know who is being referred to in the two
sentences on socialising. The word prefer in the conclusion is inappropriate because the table
does not give any indication of peoples reasons for spending their time on one activity rather
than another. Someone may choose indoor rather than outdoor activities because of their health
although they would prefer to go outside.
In terms of task requirements the report has serious problems. Although in writing about a table
you will have the difficulty of there being too much information to put into a 150 word report,
you cant solve this problem by ignoring whole sections of the table. In this case the candidate
simply compared two age levels and ignored the rest.

Sample answer
The table shows how people in different age groups spend their leisure time in Someland over
the course of a year. It can be clearly seen that the amount of leisure time available varies
considerably across the age groups and that people of different age levels have very different
ways of spending their leisure time.
According to the figures, as people age in Someland their social lives reduce. Teenagers and
people in their twenties spend on average 500 hours per year on socialising and 350 hours of that
time is with a group of more than 4 people. Although the total hours of socialising in their 30s,
40s, 50s and 60s is fairly constant (between 300-350), socialising with more than 4 people drops
dramatically to 50 hours in the 30s and 40s age groups and only 25 from 50 years old. Group and
individual exercise follow a similar pattern.
People of all ages spend a good part of their leisure time on entertainment such as TV/video
viewing and cinema. In both cases, teenagers and retired people spend around twice as much
time as those who are at working age. Home entertainment ranges from just over a thousand
hours for teenagers and retired people and an average of 600 hours for everyone else. Cinema
accounts for 100 hours of the teenagers and retired peoples leisure time and 25-50 hours for the
rest.
In conclusion we can see there is a significant trend towards solitary and smaller group activities
as people grow older and that teenagers and retired people spend a lot more time on
entertainment than those of working age do.

Strategies for improving your IELTS score

Selecting information
Like the line graphs your report should be structured simply with an introduction, body and
conclusion. Tenses should be used appropriately.
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Use two standard opening sentences to introduce the table and your report. These opening
sentences should make up the first paragraph. Sentence one should define what the table is about;
that is, the date, location, what is being described in the graphs etc. For example:
The table shows how people in different age groups spend their leisure time in Someland over
the course of a year.
Notice that the sample opening sentence does not simply copy the words used on the graphic
material. Copied sentences will not be assessed by the examiner and so you waste your time
including them.
Sentence two (and possibly three) might sum up the overall trend. For example:
It can be clearly seen that the amount of leisure time available varies considerably across the
age groups and that people of different age levels have very different ways of spending their free
time.
Notice the tense used. In this case there is no date given and so we must take the table
information as being current now.
The body of the report will describe the information presented in the table in detail. You will
need to decide on the most clear and logical order to present the material. Generally you will
choose one of the categories given in the table; that is, the age or activity in the example task
above. Your choice would depend on whether you could see the most significant trends
occurring by age group or by activity. In this case distinguishing the age group is your primary
concern in describing this table, and you would do this by highlighting some differences between
the activity preferences of the age groups.
Ideally your report should end with one or two sentences which summarise your report or draw a
relevant conclusion.
Grammar and vocabulary
You will receive a higher mark if your writing uses a range of structures and vocabulary
correctly rather than a limited number.
Selecting your information
In completing this task it is important that you cover all of the information given. However, this
does not mean that you should note every detail. In tables there is invariably too much
information for you to mention each figure. You will therefore need to summarise the table in
meaningful segments. In other words, you will describe the significant trends in your report.
To see the trends in a table, start by finding patterns under the horizontal and vertical headings.
In the sample task you would analyse the age groups and activities. We can see that at different
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times in their lives Someland people have more or less free time and their priorities for how they
spend their free time are different. In analysing the activities we can look for which age groups
spend more time on individual or group, cheap or expensive, home or outdoor, strenuous or
restful activities. By describing trends in this way, we can avoid having to describe every age
group across every activity.

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Sample 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The table shows the Proportions of Pupils Attending Four Secondary
School Types Between Between 2000 and 2009
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main
features and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.

Secondary School Attendance

2000

2005

2009

Specialist Schools

12%

11%

10%

Grammar Schools

24%

19%

12%

Voluntary-controlled Schools

52%

38%

20%

Community Schools

12%

32%

58%

Model Answer
The table illustrates the percentage of school children attending four different types of secondary
school from 2000 to 2009. It is evident that the specialist, grammar and voluntary-controlled
schools experienced declines in numbers of pupils, whereas the community schools became the
most important providers of secondary school education during the same period.
To begin, the proportion in voluntary-controlled schools fell from just over half to only 20% or
one fifth from 2000 to 2009. Similarly, the relative number of children in grammar schools -- just
under one quarter -- dropped by half in the same period. As for the specialist schools, the
relatively small percentage of pupils attending this type of school (12%) also fell, although not
significantly.
However, while the other three types of school declined in importance, the opposite was true in
the case of community schools. In fact, while only a small minority of 12% were educated in
these schools in 2000, this figure increased to well over half of all pupils during the following
nine years.
Words 170

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Sample 2

The table shows percentages of consumer expenditure for three categories of products and services in
five countries in 2002.
It is clear that the largest proportion of consumer spending in each country went on food, drinks and
tobacco. On the other hand, the leisure/education category has the lowest percentages in the table.
Out of the five countries, consumer spending on food, drinks and tobacco was noticeably higher in
Turkey, at 32.14%, and Ireland, at nearly 29%. The proportion of spending on leisure and education
was also highest in Turkey, at 4.35%, while expenditure on clothing and footwear was significantly
higher in Italy, at 9%, than in any of the other countries.
It can be seen that Sweden had the lowest percentages of national consumer expenditure for
food/drinks/tobacco and for clothing/footwear, at nearly 16% and just over 5% respectively. Spain
had slightly higher figures for these categories, but the lowest figure for leisure/education, at only
1.98%.
(155 words, band 9)

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Sample 3
The table below shows the proportion of different categories of families living in poverty in
Australia in 1999.

The table gives information about poverty rates among six types of household in Australia in the
year 1999.
It is noticeable that levels of poverty were higher for single people than for couples, and people
with children were more likely to be poor than those without. Poverty rates were considerably
lower among elderly people.
Overall, 11% of Australians, or 1,837,000 people, were living in poverty in 1999. Aged people
were the least likely to be poor, with poverty levels of 6% and 4% for single aged people and
aged couples respectively.
Just over one fifth of single parents were living in poverty, whereas only 12% of parents living
with a partner were classed as poor. The same pattern can be seen for people with no children:
while 19% of single people in this group were living below the poverty line, the figure for
couples was much lower, at only 7%.
(150 words, band 9)

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Sample 4
The table below gives information about the underground railway systems in six cities.

The table shows data about the underground rail networks in six major cities.
The table compares the six networks in terms of their age, size and the number of people who
use them each year. It is clear that the three oldest underground systems are larger and serve
significantly more passengers than the newer systems.
The London underground is the oldest system, having opened in 1863. It is also the largest
system, with 394 kilometres of route. The second largest system, in Paris, is only about half the
size of the London underground, with 199 kilometres of route. However, it serves more people
per year. While only third in terms of size, the Tokyo system is easily the most used, with 1927
million passengers per year.
Of the three newer networks, the Washington DC underground is the most extensive, with 126
kilometres of route, compared to only 11 kilometres and 28 kilometres for the Kyoto and Los
Angeles systems. The Los Angeles network is the newest, having opened in 2001, while the
Kyoto network is the smallest and serves only 45 million passengers per year.
(185 words Band 9)

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FAST TRACK TO IELTS

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Sample 5

The table compares the numbers of people who cycled to work in twelve areas of the UK in the
years 2001 and 2011.
Overall, the number of UK commuters who travelled to work by bicycle rose considerably over
the 10-year period. Inner London had by far the highest number of cycling commuters in both
years.
In 2001, well over 43 thousand residents of inner London commuted by bicycle, and this figure
rose to more than 106 thousand in 2011, an increase of 144%. By contrast, although outer
London had the second highest number of cycling commuters in each year, the percentage
change, at only 45%, was the lowest of the twelve areas shown in the table.
Brighton and Hove saw the second biggest increase (109%) in the number of residents cycling to
work, but Bristol was the UK's second city in terms of total numbers of cycling commuters, with
8,108 in 2001 and 15,768 in 2011. Figures for the other eight areas were below the 10 thousand
mark in both years

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Sample 6
The table below describes percentages of home schooled students in SomeCountry in 19992004. Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information shown.
You should write at least 150 words.

This table shows homeschooled students in Somecountry in year 1999-2004 in percenages.

The main trend is that all grades including kindergarten is growing forevery year. Kindergarten
started highest at 2.4 and ended highest at 2.9 percent with a constant increase. But grades 1-2
and grades 5-6shows a little different trend, both starts at 1,5 percent in 1999 anddeclines a little
bit in 2000. Both of them increased slowly in 2002 and both it holds that course to 2004 where
grades 1-2 ends at 2,1 percent and grades 5-6 ends at 2.6 percent.
Grades 3-4 has a slow but steady growth througt all six years. It startsat 1.6 percent in 1999
and increases 0.1 every year except in 2003 when it peaks up 0.2 percent. Grades 7-8 starts at 1.6
percent andstays there for three years until they rapidly rose up to 2.2 and peaked at 2.5 in 2004.
Overall, all grades including kindergarten has had a rise at rouglyminimum 1 percent or more in
6 years.
(166 words, Band 7)

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Sample 7
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The table below shows the results of a survey to find out what members of a city sports club
think about the clubs activities, facilities, and opening hours.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make any
comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.

The table illustrates the preference levels of male and female members of a sport club about their
activities, facilities and opening hours. It is clear that the greater proportion of male members
is contented aboutthe clubs activities (91%) whereas this figure is true only for 70% of female
members.
Moreover, more than 85% of both male and female are happy about the facilities and 63% of
male members and 64% female members are extremely satisfied in this regard. In fact, only 14%
of female members and 10% of male members are negative about this.
In addition, opening hours are in the best interest of women as 97% of them are positive about it.
In contrast, more than one third of men have expressed their dissatisfaction in this regard.
In conclusion, it is clear that male and female members hold differentopinion about the activities
and facilities and opening hours of the club.
(151 words, Band 7)

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Sample 8
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The table below shows the proportion of different categories of families living in poverty in
Australia in 1999.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.

The table shows a breakdown of different types of families who were living in poverty in
Australia in 1999.
It is noticeable that 11% of people were living in poverty. However, this figure was considerably
high among the sole parents and single people who did not have children and those percentages
were 21% and 19% respectively. Moreover, this proportion was significantly prominent among
the couples who had children compared with the family structures consisted with couples who
did not have children. In fact, the proportion of couples with children living in poverty was
5%more than that in the family types consisted only with couples. In contrast, this trend favoured
aged people. However, this figure was slightly more (2%) among the single aged people than
that in the family category of aged couples.
In conclusion, it is clear that the proportion of people living in poverty varied according to their
family structures.
(151 words, Band 7)
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Sample 9
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting description of the correlation of the table
that follow.
Write at least 150 words.
Alcohol-Related Deaths 2005

beers consumption
per capita, 2002
(litres)

Total

Male

Female

Lithuania

125,000

112,000

13,000

91

Ireland

582,000

413,000

169,000

104

Czech Republic

1,369,000

900,000

469,000

132

Canada

580,000

505,000

75,000

86

Estonia

383,000

332,000

51,000

98

Germany

1,185,000

986,000

200,000

107

Austria

913,000

783,000

130,000

106

model answer:
There is a clear correlation between the litres of beer consumed per capita and number of alcohol related
deaths. The table shows that the greatest beer consumption in 2002 was to be found in Czech Republic,
Germany and Austria, and that each of these regions also had by far the largest litres of alcohol related
deaths in 2005. Czech Republic, with the greatest beer consumption per litre, namely over hundred and
thirty for 2002, also experienced well over one million litres alcohol-related deaths by 2005. The region
with the second highest beer consumption was Germany, with nearly 107 litres, and it also recorded the
second highest number of alcohol-related deaths, namely 1.185 million.
In all regions except Canada it can be seen that the higher beer consumption, the higher the alcoholrelated mortality rate. It is interesting that in Canada, with the lowest level of beer consumption, at 86 per
capita, the mortality rate was the high as in Ireland, namely 0.58 million, although in the latter the
consumption level was high. Clearly other health or economic factors must be involved. It is also
interesting to note that in each case the number of female death was significantly lower than that of males,
which seems to be a reflection of the fact that in general far fewer women than men drink.
(220 words)

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Sample 10
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The chart below shows the sleep patterns of people in five different occupations according
to a Canadian study.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.

Model answer
Differences in sleep patterns appear to reflect differences in individuals' occupations.
A Canadian study has pointed out, for example, that students typically sleep for a consecutive 8hour period each night, from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. This may be because the central activity in their
lives, study, takes place in normal daylight hours. Similarly, business executives sleep
consecutive hours, but perhaps because their jobs are especially busy and stressful they sleep for
6 hours on average, getting up around 5 a.m.
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By contrast, truck drivers, probably because of their need to keep their trucks on the road over
long periods, tend to sleep in two 3-hour blocks: one between 7 and 10 a.m. and another from 4
to 7 p.m. Another occupation associated with broken sleep schedules is that of doctors. They
tend to retire to bed around 1 a.m. and start their day at 7 a.m., but may be woken up to deal with
emergencies in the middle of the night. Finally, full-time mothers, especially those with young
children, tend to sleep when their babies do. Typically, they will sleep from 10 p.m. and be
awoken at 1 a.m. to comfort their babies for a couple of hours. They then go back to bed to wake
at 6 a.m., but nap for two hours or so in the early afternoon.
Thus the influence on one's sleep pattern is worthy of consideration when choosing an
occupation.
(236 words)

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ST:
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