Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 given chart illustrates the information that in what ways families of a particular country spend their weekly pay in 1968 and in 2018.

In 1968, food was the only one on which people are spending immensely however on fuel and power people are spending the least. While for other features there is a fluctuation in the graph. However in 2018, leasure is at the peak and personal goods and fuel is at the lower level while other factors fluctuates.

In 1968, the expenditure on food was 35 percent per week however on housing it is 10 percent of the week's income. On fuel and power the expenditure rate was about 6 percent. For clothing and footwear per week expense is 10 percent of total income. Expense on household, personal goods and on transport was similar and is at the least approximately 7 percent. For leasure the expense in near to 10 percent. For 2018, leisure was the activity on which people are spending most around 23 percent of their income. However, fuel and personal goods were at the same level clse to 5 percent. For other factors like food, housing, garments, household and transport it was about 17,20,10,7 and 14 percent per week.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The student attempts to address the prompt by reporting information from the chart regarding spending in 1968 and 2018. However, there are significant inaccuracies in data interpretation. For example, the student claims that expenditure on household, personal goods, and transport in 1968 was 'similar and is at the least approximately 7 percent' (transport was actually 8%, household goods 8%, personal goods 8%), and misinterprets the 2018 values in several instances. Furthermore, the overview lacks a clear synthesis of the most striking trends, such as the massive drop in food spending versus the rise in leisure. The response partially addresses the task but suffers from imprecise data reporting and under-developed comparison.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay is divided into three paragraphs, including an introduction and two body paragraphs, but the paragraphing lacks logical structuring for an Academic Task 1 response (e.g., mixing overviews and specific data points awkwardly). Cohesive devices are used mechanically ('In 1968...', 'While for other features...', 'However in 2018...'), and referencing is sometimes imprecise, making the progression of ideas disjointed. There is no clear overall progression; the writing jumps between years and categories without a smooth, analytical narrative flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The lexical range is limited and repetitive. The student repeatedly relies on basic phrasing such as 'spend their weekly pay', 'expenditure on', and 'people are spending'. There are also awkward word choices and inaccuracies, such as using 'garments' to refer to 'clothing and footwear' from the chart, and spelling errors like 'leasure' and 'clse'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with limited success, causing occasional strain for the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response displays a limited range of grammatical structures, with frequent shifting of tenses (mixing past and present: 'people are spending immensely', 'expense on household... was similar'). Complex sentences are attempted but often contain errors or awkward phrasing (e.g., 'The given chart illustrates the information that in what ways families...'). Grammatical errors and punctuation issues are noticeable throughout, occasionally making the relationships between clauses difficult to follow.

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

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