The pie charts below show the types of music media used from 1990 to 2010.
Sample Response
The given pie charts illustrate the comparison of various music media delivery type for the years 1990, 2000 and 2010. According to the given information, Digital Audio (MP3) became the most popular type of music storage and Cassette fade away starting in 2000. In 1990, over a half of all music was stored on Compact Disc (CD), with 55% of the total music type share over that year. The figures for Cassette and Vinyl Record were very similar with 25% and 20%, respectively. Looking at music storage type in 2000, the most popular form of storage was Compact Disc (CD) with 95% of the portion and a small fraction of 5% remained for Digital Audio (Mp3) in that year. Turning now to the largest music storage kind in 2010, Digital Audio rose significantly from 5% to 60% of the share and Compact Disc (CD) usage dropped considerably from 95% to 35%. Lastly, Vinyl Record accounted for 5% of the music storage portion in that year.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use direct chart verb Original: illustrate the comparison of Suggested revision: compare Why it matters: Compare expresses the function of the charts directly and concisely.
- 2. Use correct plural Original: music media delivery type Suggested revision: types of music media Why it matters: The charts show several media types, so a plural noun phrase is required.
- 3. Signal the overview Original: According to the given information Suggested revision: Overall Why it matters: Overall clearly marks the sentence as a summary of the main trends.
- 4. Use past tense Original: fade Suggested revision: faded Why it matters: The change occurred in the past, so faded is required.
- 5. Clarify disappearance timing Original: starting in 2000 Suggested revision: by 2000 Why it matters: The 2000 chart already shows no cassette share, so by states the timing accurately.
- 6. Remove wrong article Original: over a half Suggested revision: over half Why it matters: Half does not take an article in this percentage expression.
- 7. Use concise share phrase Original: total music type share over that year Suggested revision: total share that year Why it matters: The revised phrase reports the percentage naturally and without redundancy.
- 8. Fix value construction Original: were very similar with Suggested revision: were similar, at Why it matters: At correctly introduces the two percentage values.
- 9. Use plural category Original: music storage type in 2000 Suggested revision: types of music media in 2000 Why it matters: The chart compares multiple media types rather than one storage type.
- 10. Report share naturally Original: with 95% of the portion Suggested revision: accounting for 95% Why it matters: Accounting for is the natural verb phrase for a percentage share.
- 11. Fix share construction Original: a small fraction of 5% remained for Digital Audio (Mp3) Suggested revision: Digital Audio (MP3) accounted for the remaining 5% Why it matters: The rewrite gives the category a clear subject and standardizes the abbreviation.
- 12. Use natural category term Original: largest music storage kind Suggested revision: most widely used music medium Why it matters: Medium is the appropriate singular noun, and most widely used states the ranking clearly.
Suggested Rewrites
- illustrate the comparison of compare
- music media delivery type types of music media
- According to the given information Overall
- fade faded
- starting in 2000 by 2000
- over a half over half
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response accurately reports every proportion and clearly captures the decisive shift from cassettes and CDs towards digital audio. Its main limitation is language control, with recurring problems in noun forms, verb agreement, and awkward expressions for shares and media types; the single-paragraph format also weakens presentation. Prioritise natural percentage language and accurate sentence structures, then separate the overview from the chronological details.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The overview and detailed figures accurately present the main changes in music media across all three years.
Make the overview even sharper by noting that CDs peaked in 2000 before digital audio became dominant in 2010.
Coherence and Cohesion
The report progresses coherently from the overall shift to chronological details, though all information appears in one paragraph.
Place the overview in its own paragraph and group the 1990 details separately from the 2000-to-2010 transition.
Lexical Resource
A sufficient range of trend vocabulary is used, but several expressions for media categories and proportions sound unnatural or repetitive.
Prefer concise phrases such as 'media formats', 'accounted for 95%', and 'CD's share fell to 35%'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mix of structures communicates the data clearly, but errors in noun number, agreement, tense, and clause construction recur.
Correct forms such as 'media delivery types', 'cassettes faded away', and 'the remaining 5% was digital audio'.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The pie charts below show the types of music media used from 1990 to 2010.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.