Writing Task 1: how to write the overview examiners look for
Without an overview, Academic Task 1 is hard to score above Band 5. What an overview is, where to put it, and examples for charts, tables and processes.
By IELTSora teaching team · Updated · 2 min read
What an overview is
An overview is one or two sentences that describe the main trends, differences or stages, without numbers. It tells the reader the big picture before the details.
Many reports describe every number accurately but never step back to say what is most noticeable. That missing overview is one of the main reasons Task 1 answers stay at Band 5.
Where to put it
Put it straight after your introduction, at the start of the second paragraph. That way it can't be forgotten, and the examiner finds it immediately.
Overview examples
Notice that none of these includes a number:
Three kinds of task
Line graph: Overall, cycling rose steadily over the period, while car use fell, and by the end cycling was the more common way to commute.
Table: In general, households spent the most on housing in all three years, whereas spending on entertainment remained the smallest category.
Process: The process has six stages, beginning with the collection of raw materials and ending with packaging and distribution.
A quick test
Cover the chart. Could someone understand the main story from your overview alone? If yes, it's working.
Useful overview phrases
Start the overview with a signal so the examiner can find it, then name the biggest pattern and one contrast:
- Overall, it is clear that…
- In general, the most striking feature is…
- The most noticeable trend is…, while…
- By contrast, … remained relatively stable.
- The process consists of … stages, starting with … and ending with …