Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-29

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 bar chart illustrates changes in the proportion of weekly expenditure by families in a particular country across eight categories, namely food, housing, fuel and power, clothing and footwear, household goods, personal goods, transport, and leisure, between 1968 and 2018.

Overall, it is evident that the figures varied considerably across the categories, with some recording substantially higher figures, while another registered the lowest figure. Food recorded the highest proportion in the first year, whereas personal goods recorded the lowest figure in the second year. Meanwhile, household goods remained comparatively stable over the given period.

Looking at the details, leisure expenditure stood at approximately 8% in 1968, after which transport, personal and household goods remained relatively unchanged at roughly 7% in 1968. Subsequently, clothing and footwear and housing expenditures before rising to precisely 10% in the first year. However, food expenditure rose sharply to slightly above 35% in the same year.

Looking most closely at the data, leisure expenditure started at approximately 23% in 2018 before falling to just under 14% by the end of the period. Afterwards, personal goods, and fuel and power expenditure remained comparatively stable at nearly 4% in the first year and then housing expenditure went up to close to 18% in 2018.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The student attempts to cover multiple categories from the chart, providing an introductory paraphrase and an overall summary. However, the data reporting in the body paragraphs contains significant inaccuracies and confusion regarding the years and figures. For instance, the student states that 'leisure expenditure stood at approximately 8% in 1968', whereas the chart shows leisure was 9% and transport/personal goods/household goods were 8%. Furthermore, the body paragraphs become very confused when discussing 2018, stating that leisure 'started at approximately 23% in 2018' (when leisure was actually 22% in 2018) and mixing up timeframes and values. While the overview captures some correct trends (such as food being highest initially and leisure rising), the misinterpretation of data and disjointed reporting prevent the response from achieving a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response is organized into four paragraphs, following a standard introduction, overview, and body structure. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'Meanwhile', 'Looking at the details', and 'Afterwards' are employed to guide the reader. However, the logical progression within the body paragraphs breaks down due to confusing sentence structures and garbled data references, particularly in the third and fourth paragraphs where clauses become dangling or contradictory. Paragraphing is present, but internal cohesion suffers from abrupt shifts between categories and unclear referencing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing statistical charts, using terms such as 'proportion of weekly expenditure', 'categories', 'comparatively stable', and 'rose sharply'. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary ('substantially higher', 'precisely'). However, word choice and collocations are occasionally awkward or imprecise, and the frequent data errors undermine the precise vocabulary required for Task 1. Spelling is generally accurate, but the lexical control is limited by repetitive framing and imprecise descriptive phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and introductory participial phrases ('Looking at the details', 'Looking most closely at the data'). However, control over complex grammar is inconsistent, leading to ungrammatical or incomprehensible sentences, such as 'Subsequently, clothing and footwear and housing expenditures before rising to precisely 10% in the first year', which lacks a main verb. While there are some error-free clauses, grammatical inaccuracies frequently impede clarity, placing this response in the band 5 range.

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