Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-22
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 depicts the data about families spending their weekly earnings in one nation in two different years, 1968 and 2018.
Overall, the weekly spending of families had changed significantly by 2018 compared with 1968. Most noticeable change is in, leisure and housing have overtaken food as the largest areas of expenditure.
To begin with, In year 1968, families spent most on food accounting for 35% of their weekly income, while in 2018 this figure decreased by almost half to around 17%. In 1968, the proportion of weekly spent in any of other categories never exceeded by 10%.
However, lesiure and housing number showed a drametically increase in 2018, overlook food as the largest expenses with approximately 22% and 19% respectively.
On the other hand, figures such as transport also rose, to around 15% of their weekly income, money spent on household goods remained at only 7%. In contrast, categories like clothing and footwear, fuel and power, and personal goods all witnessed a decline trend to no more than 5% of weekly earnings.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the 1968 and 2018 data, making relevant comparisons such as noting that food dropped significantly while leisure and housing increased. An overview is attempted in the second paragraph, capturing the main shifts, though phrasing like 'Most noticeable change is in, leisure and housing have overtaken food' contains a grammatical error. Key data points are generally accurate according to the chart, such as food starting at 35% and dropping to 17%. However, some details are slightly imprecise, such as mentioning household goods remained at 7% when the chart shows 8%. Overall, the response fulfills the requirements of Task Achievement adequately, achieving a Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is arranged coherently with a logical overall progression from the introduction to the overview, body paragraphs detailing specific categories, and concluding trends. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different categories of spending. However, cohesion at the sentence level is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For instance, the transition 'To begin with, In year 1968' is awkward, and the overview sentence fragment 'Most noticeable change is in, leisure and housing have overtaken food' disrupts smooth reading. Referencing and cohesive devices are minimally adequate rather than flexible. These issues place the response firmly in Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully using terms like 'expenditure', 'proportion', and 'categories'. Attempts at less common vocabulary are made, such as 'drametically' (a spelling error for dramatically) and 'overlook' (used incorrectly in place of overtake). There are several word choice and spelling inaccuracies, including 'footware' instead of footwear and 'decline trend' instead of downward trend. However, these errors do not impede overall communication. The lexical range is sufficient for the task, meriting a Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'while in 2018 this figure decreased by almost half to around 17%'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward phrasings throughout the text, including 'data about families spending their weekly earnings' instead of 'data on how families spent', 'proportion of weekly spent', and 'drametically increase'. Punctuation errors also appear, such as unnecessary commas in 'Most noticeable change is in, leisure and housing'. While these errors do not completely obscure meaning, they occur frequently enough to prevent the response from reaching Band 6.5, making Band 6.0 appropriate.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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