Tip for IELTS Writing
Showcase your knowledge of grammatical structures, but make sure you use them appropriately. For example, the passive voice is very useful in formal writing for depersonalising what is being said or for foregrounding certain information. However, be careful not to overuse it or use it in ways that are unnatural in English.
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The table below shows the estimated literacy rates by region and gender for 2000-2004.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Model answer
The table shows estimated literacy rates for men and women in 2000-2004 in five regions: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania. It also shows average world literacy rates for both genders for the same years.
According to the table, Europe has the highest literacy rates, reaching almost 99%. There is virtually no difference in literacy rates for European men and women.
In Oceania and the Americas, the figures for both men and women are almost the same. In both regions over 93% of the population is literate.
In both Asia and Africa, there are considerable differences in literacy rates between men and women. In Asia, only 72.5% of women are literate, whereas the figure for Asian men is 13% higher. In Africa, the gap is nearly double, with 53.9% of all African women being literate and 71.6% of the African men being able to read and write.
Overall, around 82% of the world population is literate. In Europe, Oceania and the Americas the literacy rates are the highest, with over 90% of the population able to read and write. Asia and Africa have lower literacy rates than the other regions in the graph.
(194 words)
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The chart gives information on the percentage of women going into higher education in five countries for the years 1980 and 2015.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Model answer
The bar chart shows the percentage of females entering higher education in the years 1980 and 2015. The chart shows the percentages in five countries, the UK, the USA, Australia, South Korea and France. Overall, the proportion of women in higher education increased in the five countries.
In general, there were more female students in 2015 than in 1980, with more than half of women in higher education in all of the countries apart from South Korea. In four of the countries, the percentage of women going into higher education rose.
The most dramatic change was in South Korea, where the percentage doubled from 15% to 30%. The smallest change was seen in France, where the number increased only from 50% to 54%. The only country in which there was not an increase was Australia. Although the percentage of Australian women going into higher education remained the same at 58%, this was the highest in 1980 and equal highest with the USA in 2015.
(164 words)