Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-09-15

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 given table illustrates the types of people in households in Great Britain from 1971 to 2007.

In Great Britain, the percentage of one person, no children and lone parent gradually increase.The ratio of one person became double in 2001 as compared to 1971 and remained constant upto 2007 on 12%. Percentage of no childern slightly grow and remained same in 2001(25%) and 2007(25%). The ratio of lone parent shoot up upto three fold in 2001(12%) and kept constant at the last of 2007 which is also 12%.

However, the percentage of non-dependent childern and dependent childern fluctuated through out the period. The ratio of non-dependent childern remained equal in first two decades then increased minimally upto 2%. But decreased in 2001 then kept constant till 2007(9%). Perhaps, in dependent childern it declined regularly from 52% to 36% in 1971 and 2007 respectively. But couple and one-family households stayed at zero over the period.

In conclusion, their was fluctuation in some types of households and some were increasing signifecantly through out the period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student covers most of the key features from the table, noting trends for one-person households, couples without children, lone parents, and dependent versus non-dependent children. There are, however, some inaccuracies and misinterpretations of the data. For example, the student states that "couple and one-family households stayed at zero over the period," which misreads the table as "one-family households" is a category heading rather than a distinct row with a zero value, and couples with dependent children actually make up the largest percentage in 1971 (52%). Furthermore, the overview lacks a clear summary of the overall trends. Because some parts are under-developed or misinterpreted, a Band 5.5 is appropriate.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into paragraphs with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a brief conclusion. However, the progression is sometimes disjointed due to awkward phrasing and mechanical transitions such as "Perhaps, in dependent childern it declined regularly." Cohesive devices are used, but referencing is occasionally faulty, leading to confusion about which data points are being compared. Paragraphing is present, but the overall logical flow is hindered by the data misinterpretations noted in Task Achievement. This aligns with the Band 5.5 descriptors.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The student attempts a range of vocabulary relevant to describing data, such as "percentage," "ratio," "gradually increase," and "fluctuated." However, there are frequent lexical errors and inappropriate word choices, such as "childern" (spelling error repeated multiple times), "shoot up upto three fold," and "signifecantly." The range is adequate for the task, but the noticeable errors in spelling and collocation place it firmly at Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as "The ratio of one person became double in 2001 as compared to 1971 and remained constant upto 2007 on 12%." However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent errors including tense inconsistencies, missing prepositions, incorrect comparative forms ("became double"), and punctuation issues. Errors occur in almost every sentence and occasionally cause difficulty for the reader, matching the Band 5.0 criteria.

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

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