Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-29

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below gives information about how families in one country spent their weekly income in 1968 and in 2018.

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

1968 and 2018: average weekly spending by families

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The chart illustrates about the weekly average expenditure made by families in a country. Comparing the changes in spending in 1968 and in 2018.

Overall, depicting the changes in spending held in a time gap of 50 years. On the various things.

First and foremost, the mostly spending mady by families in the past was on the Food which was 35% of their weekly income but they reduced it to 17% in 2018. Housing was not that much expensive at earlier times but it now consumes 9% more income than before. The Fuel and power and Clothing and Footware has now become less important for families and they deminished the spendings from it.

Household goods expenses are exactly same since 50 years remaining at 8%. Personal goods were also 8% in the past but now it is only 4% of total spending. while other expenses were deminishing the transport expense has increased by 6% reaching 14% in 2018. Leisure contributes most percentage of total expense in 2018 which was 22%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have successfully identified the main trends and provided relevant comparisons between 1968 and 2018. You covered all categories mentioned in the chart. However, the response lacks a clear overview; the second paragraph is fragmented and does not effectively summarise the most significant changes. To improve, ensure your overview highlights the most striking shifts, such as the decline in food expenditure and the rise in leisure and transport costs, rather than just stating that changes occurred. The data is generally accurate, but the structure of the overview needs to be more cohesive to reach a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organised into paragraphs, but the logical progression is weak. The second paragraph is not a complete sentence and fails to function as an effective introduction or overview. While you use some cohesive devices like 'First and foremost' and 'while', the transitions between sentences are often abrupt. The referencing is sometimes unclear, such as in the phrase 'On the various things', which lacks a clear connection to the preceding text. Improving the flow between sentences and ensuring each paragraph has a clear, unified purpose would significantly enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the main points, such as 'expenditure', 'consumes', and 'contributes'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and incorrect collocations, such as 'mostly spending mady' (should be 'majority of spending'), 'deminished the spendings' (should be 'reduced their spending'), and 'not that much expensive'. Additionally, there are spelling errors like 'deminishing' and 'Footware'. To improve, focus on using more precise terminology for describing trends and ensure you are using the correct word forms in context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

Your writing uses a mix of simple and some complex structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include 'The chart illustrates about' (should be 'illustrates'), 'spending held in a time gap' (should be 'spending over a 50-year period'), and 'Household goods expenses are exactly same' (missing 'the'). Subject-verb agreement and preposition usage are inconsistent throughout the text. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of errors in basic sentence construction prevents the response from reaching a higher band. Focus on proofreading for articles, prepositions, and verb forms.

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