Understanding Task 1 Academic

Warm-up: Your first 150 words

2 warm-up questions

• Where do you meet charts and graphs in your life — work, news, sports apps, your bank? What was the last one you actually studied?
• First try — imagine a simple chart: in 2010 your city had 200 cafés; by 2020 it had 450, and the average coffee price rose from 1.50 to 2.20 euros. Two minutes: describe that chart to me as if I couldn't see it.

Reading: What Task 1 is really testing

Read a 263-word text about What Task 1 is really testing

What Task 1 is really testing Task 1 Academic gives you a graph, chart, table, map or diagram and 20 minutes to report it in at least 150 words. It is not a maths test and not an essay — it is a precision test: can you SELECT the main features and report them accurately, with comparisons? What you might see: line graphs (trends over time), bar charts (comparing quantities), pie charts (proportions), tables (data in rows and columns) — and sometimes maps or process diagrams. The four marking criteria (25% each): Task Achievement — did you cover the key features and include an overview? Coherence and Cohesion — is the report logically organised? Lexical Resource — varied, accurate data language? Grammatical Range and Accuracy — controlled, varied grammar? Here is what the bands look like in practice. At Band 5, the examiner sees details recited one by one with no overview — the single most expensive omission in Task 1. At Band 6, there is an attempt at an overview and some relevant data, but the report lists rather than compares. At Band 7, a clear overview states the main trends without numbers, the body paragraphs support it with accurately selected figures, and the data is grouped and compared rather than read out row by row. Three rules to hold on to: you are NOT asked for your opinion — ever; you must SELECT the main features, not describe everything; and the overview is not optional — without one, your Task Achievement score is capped regardless of how good your English is.

Vocabulary: Task 1 Essential Vocabulary

6 items

Reading: The finished Band 7 report

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The finished Band 7 report Before any technique, see the finished product. Below is a complete, strong Band 7-style report — about 170 words, four paragraphs, written in 20 minutes. The structural moves are in bold. Read it aloud with your tutor, paragraph by paragraph. The task "The line graph shows the percentage of households with internet access in three countries (the UK, Spain and Poland) between 2000 and 2020. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant." The report The line graph illustrates how the proportion of homes with an internet connection changed in the UK, Spain and Poland over a twenty-year period from 2000. Overall, access rose strongly in all three countries, with the UK remaining the leader throughout. The most striking feature is that the gap between the three nations had narrowed dramatically by the end of the period. In 2000, the UK already had the highest figure, at around 30% of households, whereas Spain and Poland stood at just 15% and 8% respectively. Over the following decade, all three countries experienced rapid growth: the UK reached roughly 75% by 2010, while Spain climbed to 60%. Poland's growth was the most dramatic in relative terms. Having started as the lowest, it more than quadrupled to 55% by 2010 and continued rising to 85% in 2020. By the end of the period, fewer than ten percentage points separated the three countries, with the UK on 93%, Spain on 88% and Poland on 85%. Why this is Band 7, not Band 5 There is a true overview — two sentences, main trends, not a single number. The body paragraphs group the data (the early leader versus the fast climber) instead of walking year by year through every line. Comparisons run throughout: whereas, while, respectively, the narrowing gap. And the verbs vary — rose, climbed, quadrupled, continued rising — where a Band 5 report would repeat "increased" five times.

Discussion: Report it like a Band 7

3 discussion questions

• Mission: go back to the warm-up chart — cafés rising from 200 to 450, coffee prices from 1.50 to 2.20 euros. Describe it again, properly this time: one introduction sentence in your own words, one 'Overall…' sentence with no numbers, then the details with at least one comparison. (Success = the overview comes BEFORE any number. Tutor: interrupt the moment a number appears before 'Overall'.)
• Second take: same data, but you may not use the words 'increase' or 'rise' at all. Force the synonyms: grow, climb, more than double, reach.
• Compare this with your first try at the start. What did your first version lack — the overview, the comparison, or the varied verbs? Name the one habit you'll carry into every Task 1 from now on.