Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-01

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 bar graph illustrates the information about how families in individual country spent their weekly cost on their expenses in 1968 and in 2018.

Overall, food recorded the highest share of income who mostly spend on it, but it dramatically declined. Next was housing which people spend weekly cost. Families did not spend much money on Leisure, after some years they liked to spend on leisure expenses.

To begin with, food accounted for the highest expenses of families at 35% in 1968, while this trend significant downed in 2018. Furthermore, families was spending their weekly income on housing at 10% in 1968. after some years it increased to approximately 20% in 2018. Moreover, Leisure one the most expense which people do not like to invest their weekly income from 9% in 1968, while this trend rose to around 23% in 2018.

Turning to the next details, fuel and power had the lowest proportion of weekly income at over 5% in 1968, whereas it slightly decreased to 4% in 2018.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main trends and provided a clear overview of the data. You covered the key categories (food, housing, leisure, and fuel/power) and made relevant comparisons between 1968 and 2018. However, the response lacks precision in some areas. For example, you mention 'food recorded the highest share' but do not provide the specific percentage for the 2018 figure, which is necessary for a complete summary. Additionally, some descriptions are slightly vague, such as 'after some years', which does not accurately reflect the 50-year timeframe provided in the prompt. To improve, ensure all key data points are explicitly stated and comparisons are more precise.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the information. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'To begin with', 'Furthermore', and 'Turning to the next details'. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the phrase 'who mostly spend on it' in the second paragraph, which does not clearly refer back to the subject. The transition between the overview and the body paragraphs is functional, but the internal cohesion within paragraphs could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words to connect ideas more naturally.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have an adequate range of vocabulary to convey the main points, such as 'dramatically declined', 'proportion', and 'invest'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation that hinder the precision of your writing. For instance, 'weekly cost on their expenses' is redundant, and 'significant downed' is grammatically incorrect. You also use 'expense' as a noun to describe a category, whereas 'expenditure' or 'category' would be more appropriate. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and ensuring that words are used in their correct form and context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include 'families was spending' (subject-verb agreement), 'Leisure one the most expense' (missing verb and incorrect word form), and 'this trend significant downed' (incorrect adjective/verb usage). While the meaning is generally understandable, these errors are persistent throughout the text. To improve, pay closer attention to subject-verb agreement, verb tenses, and the correct use of adjectives versus adverbs. Increasing the number of error-free sentences will significantly improve your score in this criterion.

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

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