Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-08-26

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The table below shows the change in some household types in Great Britain from 1971 to 2007.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

PEOPLE IN HOUSEHOLDS BY TYPE OF HOUSEHOLD AND FAMILY

Student answer (Band 6.5)

The table compare the proportions of different characteristic households and families in Great Britain between 1971 and 2007.

Overall, throughout the entire period most households contained couples and in this category, dependent children had the highest percentage. Their proportion decreased overall though. One person and lone parent households were overall the rarest form, but their frequency increased gradually from 1971 to 2007.

In 1971, couples accounted for 90% of the households in the UK. However, this share has declined significantly throughout the years, only summing up to 76 % in 2007. Firstly, the majority of couples have dependent children (52 % in 1971), even though this plummeted to just 36 % in 2007. Secondly, families with no children have tend to turn more common, reaching their peak in 2001 at 25 % and remaining constant for the next 6 years. Lastly, non-dependent children vary between 9 and 11 % throughout the period.

In contrast, households that contain only one person started at 6 % in 1971, doubling their share up to 2007. Furthermore, the proportion of lone parents reached their peak at 12 % too in this year, while having tripled in size over the measurement period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response effectively covers the main features of the data. You have successfully identified the overall trends, such as the decline in couple-based households and the rise in single-person and lone-parent households. The use of data points to support these trends is accurate and relevant. However, the overview could be more precise; for instance, mentioning the specific categories that saw the most significant shifts would strengthen the summary. You have made good comparisons between the categories throughout the period, which demonstrates a clear understanding of the task requirements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, overview, and body paragraphs. The progression of ideas is easy to follow, and you have used a range of cohesive devices such as 'However', 'Firstly', 'In contrast', and 'Furthermore' to link your points. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different household types. While the flow is generally smooth, some transitions feel slightly mechanical. Overall, the structure is coherent, and the information is presented in a way that guides the reader through the data effectively.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You have used a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe the trends, such as 'plummeted', 'varied', and 'tripled'. These choices demonstrate an awareness of style appropriate for an academic report. There are some minor inaccuracies, such as 'have tend to turn more common', which is slightly awkward phrasing. However, these errors do not impede communication. To reach a higher band, focus on more precise collocations and ensure that verb forms are used correctly when describing trends.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. You have demonstrated control over basic grammar, but there are some recurring errors. For example, 'The table compare' should be 'The table compares' (subject-verb agreement), and 'have tend to turn' is grammatically incorrect. Additionally, there are minor punctuation issues, such as the space before the percentage sign (e.g., '76 %'). Despite these errors, the meaning is always clear, and the grammatical mistakes do not significantly interfere with the reader's understanding.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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