Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-03

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 chart below provide data about how families spent their weekly income in a country in 1968 and in 2018.

Overall, money spent in high proportion on food. The housing and clothing contribution have been increased. Whereas the least money spent on fuel and power.

Initially, the most expenses spent on food that accounted for 35% in 1986, but it slightly plummeted to 16% in 2018. The people spent their budget on housing that accounted for 10% in 1968 that increased marginally to 21% in 2018. In addition, families prioritizing spending money on transport was 8% which surged to 13% in 2018. The households spent a little amount of money fuel and power that accounted for 6% in 1968, however it slightly reduced to 4% in 2018.

The average budget of families spent on clothing and foot ware was 10% that dropped to 5%. The families spent money on leisure was 7% that increased significantly to 22%. Whereas, the proportion of household goods remained stable in both years.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the task partially and attempts to present an overview along with some specific details from the chart. However, the selection of data is somewhat erratic and features several inaccuracies compared to the visual source. For example, the student states that food 'plummeted to 16%' in 2018 (which is close to the 17% figure), but reports housing as 21% rather than the actual 19%, and leisure as 22% while stating earlier figures inaccurately. The overview paragraph is also quite weak and awkwardly phrased, stating that 'money spent in high proportion on food' rather than clearly highlighting the main overall trends, such as the significant shift in spending between food and leisure over the fifty-year period. To reach a higher band, the response needs to present a clearer, more accurate overview and ensure that data points are reported with greater precision and better-developed comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

There is some overall organisation with an attempt at paragraphing, separating the introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs detailing the categories. However, the logical progression is hindered by awkward transitions and mechanical cohesive devices. For instance, sentences within the body paragraphs often begin abruptly or lack smooth linking phrases ('Initially, the most expenses spent on food...', 'In addition, families prioritizing...'). Referencing is occasionally unclear, and the mechanical repetition of sentence structures makes the flow disjointed rather than naturally progressive. To improve cohesion, the writer should use a wider variety of cohesive devices more naturally and ensure that sentences build logically upon one another to guide the reader effortlessly through the comparative data.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, demonstrating an attempt to incorporate less common lexical items related to trends and data reporting, such as 'plummeted', 'marginally', and 'surged'. However, there are noticeable inaccuracies in word choice, collocation, and phrasing, such as 'the most expenses spent on food', 'clothing and foot ware', and 'families spent money on leisure was 7%'. These lexical errors and awkward word formations do not seriously impede communication, but they restrict the response to a moderate band. To achieve a higher score, the student needs to use precise collocations and ensure that word forms fit seamlessly into grammatical structures without relying on awkward phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response features a limited range of grammatical structures, relying heavily on simple sentences and attempts at complex forms that are frequently faulty. There are frequent grammatical errors, particularly regarding verb forms, active and passive voice confusion, and missing prepositions, such as in 'money spent in high proportion on food', 'the most expenses spent on food', and 'the families spent money on leisure was 7%'. These persistent errors cause some difficulty for the reader and demonstrate a lack of control over complex sentence patterns. To move up to a higher band, the writer must expand their repertoire of error-free complex sentences and ensure better control over subject-verb agreement and tense consistency.

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

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