Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-16

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 5.0)

The chart illustrate the information about how families spent their weekly income in a country in 1968 and 2018.

In all categories food is the source on which families spent spent their weekly income most. Rest of the categories are at lower in weekly spent.

On the one hand in 1968 families spent most of their weekly spent is food which is about 35%. Housing, clothing and footware are at 10%. usually household goods, personal goods, including leisure and transport remaining same at approximately 8% on which families spent weekly. Fuel and power is the only source on which families spent lower which is about 6%.

On the other hand in 2018 leisure is the category which is at highest about 22% families spent most of their weekly income. As food and housing usually at 18 to 19%. furthermore including fuel and power, clothing and footware, and personal goods are in same direction about 4 to 5%. On household goods the income which is spent by 8%. Transport is the third category on which families spent their most of the weekly income which is partially 14% in 2018.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The student makes a clear attempt to summarise the main features of the chart, correctly identifying food as the dominant category in 1968 (35%) and leisure in 2018 (22%). However, there are several inaccuracies in data reporting and misreadings of the chart. For instance, the student states that housing, clothing, and footwear in 1968 are 'at 10%', whereas clothing and footwear is actually 10% and housing is also 10%, but they miss comparing others accurately. Furthermore, some statements are vague or contain contradictory figures (e.g., 'As food and housing usually at 18 to 19%'). The response lacks a well-developed overview comparing the overall shifts between the two years, resulting in an incomplete treatment of the prompt. These limitations place the response at Band 5.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The response is organised into paragraphs, with an introduction and separate body paragraphs for 1968 and 2018. However, the logical progression is frequently disrupted by awkward transitions and confusing sentence structures. Cohesive devices are used mechanically and sometimes inaccurately, such as 'On the one hand' and 'On the other hand', which are not suitably applied here since the chart compares two different years rather than two contrasting arguments. Referencing is also unclear in places (e.g., 'remaining same at approximately 8% on which families spent weekly'). Paragraphing is present, but the internal flow of ideas needs significant improvement to reach a higher band, justifying a score of 5.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and repetitive, heavily relying on basic terms such as 'spent', 'weekly income', 'category', and 'source'. There are noticeable word-choice and collocation errors throughout the text, such as 'spent spent their weekly income most', 'at lower in weekly spent', and 'partially 14%'. The student attempts some less common vocabulary related to the topic, but inaccuracies in form and usage impede clarity at times (e.g., 'in same direction about 4 to 5%'). The lexical range is minimally adequate for the task, fitting the descriptor for Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar is weak. There are frequent errors in verb tense, subject-verb agreement, and prepositions, such as 'The chart illustrate' instead of 'illustrates', and 'families spent most of their weekly spent is food'. Clauses are often awkwardly joined without proper grammatical scaffolding, leading to sentences that are difficult to parse, such as 'As food and housing usually at 18 to 19%.' Punctuation is also sparse and sometimes incorrect. These persistent errors cause difficulty for the reader and reflect a Band 5.0 level.

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

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