Pick out the main features of this line graph for your overview, write your report on a 20-minute timer, then compare it with a band-8 model answer.
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The graph below shows the percentage of urban and rural households with internet access in one country between 2005 and 2023.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
| Category | Urban | Rural |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 35% | 8% |
| 2008 | 52% | 15% |
| 2011 | 68% | 28% |
| 2014 | 80% | 45% |
| 2017 | 89% | 62% |
| 2020 | 94% | 78% |
| 2023 | 97% | 89% |
GoPrep wrote this practice question in the style of the exam. It is not an official IELTS question.
An overview names the main trends or differences in one or two sentences, without numbers. These are the features a strong answer picks out:
Spend the first few minutes planning, then write.
0 words of 150 minimum
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Write your own answer first, then compare: how it answers the exact question, what each paragraph does, and which phrases you could borrow.
The line graph compares the percentage of urban and rural households with internet access in one country between 2005 and 2023.
Overall, internet access rose substantially in both areas, with urban households ahead at every point. However, rural areas grew faster in later years, so the gap, which widened at first, had narrowed considerably by 2023.
In 2005 just 35% of urban households were connected, compared with only 8% of rural ones. Urban access then rose quickly to 52% in 2008, 68% in 2011 and 80% in 2014, before growth slowed as it approached saturation, at 89% in 2017, 94% in 2020 and 97% in 2023.
Rural access started from a much lower base and grew more slowly in the early years, reaching 15% in 2008 and 28% in 2011. The difference between the two areas therefore widened from 27 percentage points in 2005 to a maximum of 40 points in 2011. After that, rural access accelerated, at 45% in 2014 and 62% in 2017, and then 78% in 2020. It reached 89% in 2023, leaving a gap of just 8 percentage points.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| internet access | the ability to go online |
| rural households | homes in the countryside |
| narrow the gap | reduce the difference |
| near saturation | almost at full level |
| percentage points | units of difference between percentages |
| grow slowly | increase at a gentle pace |
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