Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-30
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)
This chart provides comparison between about how families in one country spent their weekly income in 1968 and in 2018.
The main areas of this study include food, housing, fuel and power, clothing, household and personal goods, transport and leisure.
When we draw a side by side comparison, we see a drastic influx in the percentage of housing in 2018 then it was in 1968. Whereas some areas of expenditure remained the same such as household goods. The decrease in the cost of food in 2018 came as a result of expansion of food industry and availability of different options that cater to various needs across the globe. In 1968, 35% of weekly income used to go to food, but it reduced to only 22-23% in 2018. Although, the fuel and power costs reduced to some extent in 2018, the transport cost still increased by 5%. the percentage of income that was used for leisure in 1968 was only 9%, whereas, it went up to 22% in 2018.
This information provides us a very solid evidence of inflation across the globe that effected the price of living.
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 addresses the task by selecting and reporting several main features of the chart, comparing spending in 1968 and 2018. An overview is attempted, and key data points such as food and leisure are mentioned. However, there are some inaccuracies in data reporting; for example, the student states that food reduced to '22-23%' in 2018, whereas the actual chart figure is closer to 17%. Furthermore, the student includes speculative commentary outside the data, such as explaining the decrease in food costs due to 'expansion of food industry', which is not provided in the chart. There is also a slight misreading of the housing increase. Consequently, the response achieves a Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The text exhibits a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt at an introduction, body details, and a concluding thought. Cohesive devices such as 'Whereas', 'Although', and 'whereas, it went up' are used to connect ideas, though paragraphing is poorly structured, clumping most of the body content into one long block. Referencing is mostly clear, but the logical progression between sentences is sometimes disjointed, particularly with the sudden jump into external explanations of inflation. Overall, the organizational flow meets the criteria for Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully using terms like 'expenditure', 'percentage', and 'inflation'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward phrasing, such as 'drastic influx' (instead of 'dramatic increase') and 'effected' instead of 'affected'. While less common items are attempted, inaccuracies in word choice and collocation prevent the response from reaching a higher band. The lexical resource is best placed at Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as conditional or concessive clauses ('Although, the fuel and power costs reduced...'). There are several grammatical errors and awkward prepositional uses, including 'provides comparison between about how', 'than it was in 1968', and punctuation errors like a lowercase letter at the start of a sentence ('the percentage of income'). These errors do not seriously impede communication, but they occur frequently enough to firmly place the grammar at a Band 6.0.
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