Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-09-01
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 5.5)
The table above shows people in households by type of households and family from 1971 to 2007. The table consists of one person household, one-family households, couple, no children, dependent children households, and lone parent households.One person household grew from six percent to twelve percent in the space on thirty six years. The dependent children has more decrease in percentage. As of 1971 it was 52%, 1981 has 47%, 1991 has 41%, 2001 has 39% while 2007 has 36%. Looking at the table both dependent and non-dependent has more visible decrease in percentage as the year goes by. Nothing was recorded for One family households and lone parents maybe there was no visible growth or decrease to be recorded.
Dependent children has the highest percentage over the years, followed by no children. Lone parents has the lowest percentage. There wasn’t any increase or decrease in non-dependent households between 1971 to 1981 it recorded 10%, also there was no change in lone parents between 2001 to 2007 which is 12%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response attempts to summarize the data but fails to provide a clear overview of the main trends. The analysis is fragmented and contains factual inaccuracies; for example, the claim that 'nothing was recorded' for certain categories is incorrect, as the table provides data for all categories. The report focuses heavily on listing individual data points rather than synthesizing the information to highlight significant changes or comparisons. To improve, you should identify the most striking trends—such as the steady rise in one-person households versus the decline in dependent children households—and group these logically rather than listing percentages chronologically.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into paragraphs, but the logical flow is weak. The transition between sentences is often mechanical, and the lack of clear cohesive devices makes the progression of ideas feel disjointed. For instance, the jump between describing one-person households and dependent children lacks a linking phrase. Furthermore, the referencing is sometimes unclear, making it difficult for the reader to follow the comparison. Using a wider variety of linking words (e.g., 'in contrast,' 'meanwhile,' 'consequently') would help to connect your observations more effectively and improve the overall structure of your report.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive. You rely heavily on basic terms like 'growth,' 'decrease,' and 'percentage.' While these are accurate, the range is insufficient to demonstrate a higher level of lexical control. There are also some awkward collocations, such as 'in the space on thirty six years' (should be 'over a period of thirty-six years'). To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more precise vocabulary related to data description, such as 'fluctuated,' 'remained stable,' 'a significant decline,' or 'a marginal increase,' to describe the trends more professionally.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Issues include subject-verb agreement ('The dependent children has more decrease'), incorrect preposition use ('in the space on'), and punctuation errors. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to distract the reader. You should focus on ensuring subject-verb agreement and refining your use of articles and prepositions. Practicing the construction of complex sentences using subordinating conjunctions like 'although' or 'while' will also help improve your grammatical range.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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