IELTSPrep
Task 1 academic Band 8

Task 1 (Academic): Household Internet Access, 2000–2020

Question

The graph below shows the percentage of households with internet access in three countries between 2000 and 2020. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.

Model answer

The line graph compares the proportion of homes connected to the internet in Sweden, Brazil, and Kenya over a twenty-year period beginning in 2000.

Overall, access rose substantially in all three countries, although they started from very different levels. Sweden remained the leader throughout, while Kenya, despite the most dramatic relative growth, finished the period with the lowest figure.

In 2000, just over half of Swedish households were online, a figure that climbed steadily to reach almost 95% by 2020. Brazil began far lower, at around 5%, but grew rapidly after 2005; by 2015 roughly half of Brazilian homes had a connection, and the figure approached 75% at the end of the period, narrowing the gap with Sweden considerably.

Kenya’s starting point was negligible, at under 1%. Growth was slow until about 2008, after which the spread of mobile broadband produced a sharp acceleration: household access doubled roughly every four years, ending the period at just over 40%. Although this remained the lowest of the three countries, it represented by far the largest proportional increase.

How this answer scores
  • Open with a one-sentence paraphrase of the task, not a copy of it.
  • Group the data into two or three clear trends instead of listing every figure.
  • Reserve one sentence for an overview beginning with 'Overall'.
  • Use a range of comparison language: 'twice as high', 'narrowed the gap', 'overtook'.