Task 1 of the Academic Module requires you to describe visual information in about 150 words. You have 20 minutes to complete this task.
The visual data could be in the form of a:
- line graph (usually used to show trends)
- bar chart (usually used to show comparison)
- pie chart (usually used to show contribution/share)
- table (used to show all of the above)
- process diagram, flow chart, map or image
Structure of a good report
Your task 2 essay must have an introduction, two or three body paragraphs and a conclusion. Your report should consist of just one or two paragraphs. There is no introduction or conclusion. You only have to interpret the given data. You are not supposed to give your personal opinion. You should not make any conclusions or predictions either.
Start your report with a very brief overview of what the data is about. If there is only one graph, table or chart in the question, you do not have to split your answer into separate paragraphs. If there are two graphs, tables or maps, write one paragraph for each. Conclude the report with a statement summing up the overall change or trend.
Students often have difficulty writing the first sentence of their report. To overcome this problem, they often merely copy words from the task rubric. That is not a good idea because words/phrases copied directly from the task rubric are likely to be deducted from the total word count. This is not exactly a problem if you manage to write 170 or 180 words. However, if you only write 150 words and copied words are deducted from the word count, you will be in trouble.
If you are given a table or chart, the opening sentence of your report should merely state what the table or chart is about.
Here are some opening sentences you can use.
- The chart shows information on…
- The table presents information regarding…
- The pie chart illustrates the proportion of …
- The diagram gives information about…
- The given statistics depict data on…
You can begin the next sentence with an expression like:
- According to the given table / chart…
- As can be seen from the given diagram..
- As is shown in the map…
- It can be seen that the chart / table ….
- We can see from the table / diagram that….
- It is evident / apparent / obvious that…
Use vocabulary appropriate for the context. So, for example, if you are describing a line graph showing trends, you can use words like increase, decrease, fall, rise, drop, plummet, plunge, skyrocket etc.
You can express the same idea in different ways. Consider the sentence given below.
- The number of tourists visiting XLand increased considerably during the last quarter of 2020.
- There was a dramatic increase in the number of tourists visiting XLand during the …
- XLand received a significant number of tourists during the last ….
Words expressing increase
Increase, rise, shoot up, climb up, go up, peak
Words expressing decrease
Decrease, fall, drop, go down, plummet, plunge, decline
Adverbs expressing significant changes
Sharply, dramatically, steeply, significantly, quickly, rapidly
Adverbs expressing small or gradual changes
gradually, steadily, slowly, marginally, slightly
Some more examples are given below
- The revenue from exports touched a record high/low in 2018.
- The number of tourists peaked during the third quarter of the year.
- The number of international tourists pursuing higher studies in Canada reached a new high in…
- Export revenue hit a new high in the fourth quarter of ……………
- After the arrival of smart phones, the sale of digital cameras hit rock bottom.
Bar charts
Bar charts are used to compare data. Here are some possible structures you can use to compare.
- Export revenue of Country A was much higher than that of Country B.
- Country B did not earn as much as Country A from exports.
- Country A earned thrice as much as Country B in export revenue in the year 2010.
- Company A employs twice as many people as Company B.
- Company A has nearly the same number of employees as Company B.
Pie charts
Pie charts generally show the proportion or percentage of things. If the question includes two or more pie charts, you are required to compare the data.
Here are some words and phrases you can use to describe pie charts.
- The amount of water used for agricultural purposes remained steady at 30% throughout the given period.
- The sale of gaming consoles increased during the given period.
- Profits jumped by 15% from 2010 to 2015.
- IT sector contributed considerably more than the service sector in 2020.
- While service sector contributed 20% to the GDP in 2021, the contribution of the IT sector was much higher at 35%.
