The participation of Australian children in sports outside school hours in 2014

IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 - Bar Graph

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IELTS Writing Task 1 Question

The graph below shows the participation of Australian children in sports outside school hours in 2014. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Common Questions for the Bar Graph

1. Graph Type: Column Graph

2. Title: Participation of Australian Children in Sports Outside School Hours (2014)

3. Units of Measurement: Percentage

4. Who: Australian boys and girls

5. When: 2014

6. Where: Australia

7. Topic: Extracurricular sports participation of Australian children

Comparison Showing and Trends

Comparison 1: Participation in Swimming

Details:

1. Swimming was more popular among girls (16%) than boys (13%).

2. Girls had a slightly higher participation rate than boys.

Comparison 2 : Participation in Football

Details:

1. Football was the most popular sport for boys, with 20% participation.

2. Only a small proportion of girls (4%) played football.

Comparison 3 : Participation in Netball

Details:

1. Netball was highly popular among girls (18%) but negligible among boys (2%).

2. This reflects a gender-specific preference.

Comparison 4: Overall Trends

Details:

1. A tiny percentage of boys (4%) and girls (5%) did not participate in any sports.

2. Boys preferred football and basketball, while girls leaned toward swimming and netball.

Sample Answer

The column graph compares the percentage of Australian boys and girls participating in sports outside school hours in 2014. It highlights differences in preferences and participation rates between genders.

Overall, boys and girls exhibited distinct trends in their choice of sports. While boys predominantly played football, netball was overwhelmingly preferred by girls. Swimming emerged as an everyday activity, albeit slightly more prevalent among girls.

Football was the top choice for boys, with 20% participating in it, compared to a mere 4% of girls. In contrast, girls widely favoured netball, with 18% participation, while only 2% of boys opted for it. Swimming saw relatively balanced participation but was slightly more popular among girls (16%) than boys (13%).

Basketball showed nearly equal interest between genders, with 8% of boys and 7% of girls participating. Interestingly, only a very small percentage of boys (4%) and girls (5%) refrained from participating in any sports. This demonstrates a strong inclination toward extracurricular sports among Australian children in 2014.

Top 28 Vocabularies

Vocabulary	Type	Meaning	Synonyms	Examples
Participation	Noun	The act of taking part in an activity	Involvement, engagement	“Participation in swimming was higher among girls.”
Predominantly	Adverb	Mainly or for the most part	Chiefly, primarily	“Football was predominantly played by boys.”
Overwhelmingly	Adverb	To a great extent or majority	Vastly, largely	“Netball was overwhelmingly preferred by girls.”
Inclination	Noun	A tendency or preference	Preference, propensity	“There was a strong inclination toward sports.”
Negligible	Adjective	So small or unimportant as to be not worth considering	Insignificant, minor	“Boys’ participation in netball was negligible.”
Compare	Verb	To examine the similarities and differences	Contrast, Differentiate	“The graph compares the participation rates of boys and girls.”
Trends	Noun	General directions or patterns of change	Patterns, Developments	“Boys and girls exhibited distinct trends in their sports preferences.”
Choice	Noun	An act of selecting among options	Selection, Option	“Football was the top choice for boys.”
Prevalent	Adjective	Common or widespread in a particular area or at a particular time	Common, Widespread	“Swimming was slightly more prevalent among girls.”
Emerged	Verb	To appear or become visible or known	Appeared, Developed	“Swimming emerged as an everyday activity.”
Top	Adjective	Highest in rank, status, or importance	Leading, Primary	“Football was the top choice for boys.”
Contrast	Verb	To show the differences between two or more things	Differentiate, Compare	“The participation rates contrast between boys and girls.”
Widely	Adverb	To a large extent or widely spread	Extensively, Broadly	“Girls widely favoured netball.”
Opted	Verb	To make a choice from a set of options	Chose, Decided	“Only 2% of boys opted for netball.”
Balanced	Adjective	Equal or fair in distribution or treatment	Equal, Even	“Swimming saw relatively balanced participation.”
Interest	Noun	The feeling of wanting to know more about something or being involved	Curiosity, Attention	“Basketball showed nearly equal interest between genders.”
Refrain	Verb	To stop oneself from doing something	Avoid, Withhold	“Only a very small percentage of boys refrained from participating.”
Demonstrates	Verb	To show clearly or make evident	Exhibits, Reveals	“This demonstrates a strong inclination toward sports.”
Extracurricular	Adjective	Activities that are outside the regular academic curriculum	After-school, Non-academic	“Extracurricular activities are vital for child development.”
Distinct	Adjective	Clearly different or unique	Different, Clear	“Boys and girls exhibited distinct trends in their sports choices.”
Activity	Noun	A task or pursuit engaged in for enjoyment or achievement	Task, Pursuit	“Sports activities were a significant part of the children’s routine.”
Strong	Adjective	Having great power, force, or influence	Powerful, Firm	“There was a strong inclination toward sports among Australian children.”
Refrained	Verb	To choose not to do something	Abstained, Avoided	“A very small percentage of girls refrained from participating in sports.”
Inclination	Noun	A natural tendency or preference	Bias, Disposition	“The inclination towards football was very high among boys.”
Overwhelmingly	Adverb	In a way that is very strong or overpowering	Largely, Greatly	“Netball was overwhelmingly preferred by girls in the survey.”
Predominantly	Adverb	For the most part; mainly	Mostly, Chiefly	“Boys predominantly played football outside school hours.”
Prevalence	Noun	The fact or condition of being widespread	Commonness, Ubiquity	“Swimming had a greater prevalence among girls than boys.”
Percentages	Noun	A rate or proportion expressed as a fraction of 100	Proportions, Fractions	“The chart shows the percentage of boys and girls participating in sports.”

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