House Sales - band 7
The line graph provides information regarding the number of houses sold in the country, comparing the East, the West and the North. Interesting trends can be noticed along the four quarters.
First of all, during the first period the East and the West were recording a similar number of properties sold, which were respectively 20 and 30. On the other hand, the North was the strongest seller, with a record of almost 50 houses sold. During the beginning of the second quarter it is shown a slight increase all over the country, whereas the first relevant difference can be seen from the mid second quarter. Indeed, the East, despite being the weakest seller, plummeted up to a tripled number of sellings, which is pair to 90.
Conversely, the rest of the area followed an opposite trend, although not so marked. In fact, their records regularly decreased up until the fourth quarter, in which the number of residences sold was roughly similar to that one recorded in the initial phase. Similarly, the East, despite its rapid peak, was hit by a dramatic drop in sellings, which concluded with a number of houses sold equal to the first period, which is 20.
In conclusion, the East was the area that definitely recorded more significant fluctuations in the housing market, whereas both West and North had more stable trends.
(226 words)
Task Achievement
This is a good report, in which the candidate has identified the main trends and drawn comparisons between the different areas. However, a short overview after the introduction is missing. (6.5)
Coherence & Cohesion
The information is logically organised and divided by the different time periods. The candidate uses linking devices to good effect but needs to include a wider variety for a higher score. (7)
Lexical Resource
The candidate has used some very good descriptive language to talk about the movements of the graph. However, some minor errors in word choice occur. (7.5)
Grammatical Range & Accuracy
Overall, there is a good use of grammatical structures, although there is some inconsistency with past tenses and word order when using the passive. (7)
Overall Comment - how to improve
A very good response, in which key features have been highlighted and illustrated. For a higher score there needs to be a clear overview and tighter grammatical accuracy, but overall, a very good effort.
