Overviews confuse people in IELTS Academic Writing Task 1. People who can write very well get lower scores than they expect because they do not know how to write an overview for IELTS Task 1. In this post, we will explain why overviews are important for IELTS Writing and how to write one that meets the band descriptor for a band 7.0 or higher in IELTS writing.

What is an overview for IELTS Task 1 Writing?

An overview is 1-4 sentences describing the main features of the diagram.

• For a dynamic graph or chart e.g. a line graph or a bar chart, table or pie chart that shows change, this means the main changes AND the main comparison
• For a static graph or chart e.g. bar chart, table or pie chart that does not show change, this is just the main comparisons
• For a process or cycle, this is the main steps in the process
• For a maps or floor plan comparison, this is the main changes between the maps.

The overview does NOT contain any of the data from the graph. If you include data, it is NOT an overview

Why do you need to overview for IELTS Academic Writing Task 1?

IELTS Task 1 writing is assessed on four criteria:

• Task Achievement = do you complete the task according to the instructions?
• Coherence and Cohesion = is the text logically organised and clear, and are your sentences linked together well?
• Lexical Resource = do you use relevant vocabulary for the type of diagram? Is there a range of word forms and is the spelling correct?
• Grammatical Range and Accuracy = do you use a range of grammar and is it correct?

To score a band 6.0 in Task Achievement, the band descriptor says:

A relevant overview is attempted.

This means that if your overview is missing, you can only score a band 5.0 in Task Achievement.

If you want to score a band 7.0 or higher in IELTS Academic Writing Task 1, you should meet the band descriptors for a Band 7.0 in Task Achievement. This states

(Academic) It presents a clear overview

This means your overview must include the key features and they must be clearly presented

How can I make my IELTS Task 1 overview clear?

Before you start writing your IELTS Task 1, you need to spend some time analysing the graph or chart for the main features.

For a dynamic graph – What are the main changes? How do the categories compare with each other? Do the changes affect this?

Look at the line graph below from the Cambridge 19 practice test book. What are the main features?

1. Participants at film club were always the highest
2. Participants at film club and martial arts club remained quite stable
3. Participants at table tennis club and musical performances club increased, with table tennis club becoming the second highest at the end
4. Participants at amateur dramatics club decreased to become lowest at the end

Now we need to choose the main changes and comparison to write the overview.

Overall, while the number of participants attending film club and martial arts club remained relatively stable over the 20-year period, the former was always the most popular. Those attending table tennis club and musical performances increased significantly. In contrast, there was a decline in the number of people taking part in amateur dramatics club.

Notice that the overview includes the changes AND the fact that film club was always the most popular.

For a static graph, you need to find the main comparisons for the overview.

Look at this graph from Cambridge IELTS 15. What are the main features?

1. In Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Hobart, more people went to a cafe for coffee and tea than bought fresh or instant coffee.
2. More people bought instant coffee in Adelaide than went to cafes or bought fresh coffee
3. Buying fresh coffee was the least popular choice in all four cities

Overall, going to a cafe for a coffee or tea was more popular than buying fresh or instant coffee in all cities except Adelaide, where buying instant coffee was the preferred way to drink it.

If the task has two or more graphs or charts, the overview needs to combine them.

What are the main features of this graph from Cambridge IELTS 19?

1. Private dance studios are the most common place to attend dance classes, followed by school halls, community halls, and then college based studios
2. Ballet was the most popular dance class with under 11s
3. Modern was the most popular dance class with 11-16 year olds.

Overall, private dance studios were the most common place for people to attend dance classes. While ballet was the most popular choice for under 11s, more 11-16 year olds chose modern.

For a process, the overview will be something like:

Overall, there are seven steps in the process of making pencils, from growing the trees, to preparing the wood and producing the final pencils.

For a maps task, the process describes the main changes. Look for an overall change in use or design

Overall, the town underwent significant changes from largely rural to urban, with the replacement of the woodlands with residential areas and the addition of shopping facilities.

Where should I put my overview in IELTS Task 1 writing?

We strongly recommend that you put your overview at the start of your text, after your introductory sentence. There are several reasons for this:

1. If you run out of time when you are writing Task 1, you will still include the overview. Remember, a missing overview means a band 5.0 for Task Achievement. If you write it at the start, you will not run out of time
2. If you remember the structure: introductory sentence + overview + main body paragraphs you will not forget the overview. Again, a missing overview means a band 5.0 for Task Achievement. When you are stressed in the IELTS writing test, it is easy to get to the end of your description and forget to write the overview.
3. It is more coherent. An overview is a bit like a topic sentence for a body paragraph in a Task 2 essay. It introduces the main features before you go into detail.

Make the overview match the organisation of your body paragraphs

Part of your score for IELTS writing is Coherence and Cohesion. Coherence is about how logically organised your text is. It is more logical to organise the body paragraphs in the same way as the overview. Therefore, for the line graph above, body paragraphs will start with film club, then talk about martial arts. Next, they will describe table tennis and musical performances, and finally amateur dramatics. This way, the reader expects the order you will use and it is clear for them.

Get feedback on your IELTS Task 1 overviews

If you are not sure if you are writing Task 1 overviews correctly to score a band 7.0 or higher in Task Achievement, we can help. We offer a writing assessment where we will check your texts and give you feedback based on the band descriptors. This will include focus on your overview.

We can also offer IELTS writing coaching, to help you improve your writing, including your overviews, to reach the band score that you need. Our past writing coaching students have increased their scores from 6.0 to 6.5 and 7.0-8.0. This blog post has more information about writing coaching.