Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-14

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 tells how families spent their money they earned in a week on different kinds goods and services in 1968 and 2018.

Overall, in 1968 highest proportion of income used on food, while fuel and power were the things on which the least amount of money spent. However, in 2018 leisure had the highest numbers of figures left food behind.

In 1968, 35 percent of weekly income spent on food only which is more than 1 third of the total.

After that, housing ,clothing and footware had the 2nd largest share of 10 percent combind followed by leisure, personal goods and trasport with approximately 25 percent combined. Fuel and power accounted for smalles share in 1968 with just above 5%.

As compared to 1968, the graph has changed alot as in 2018 families spent most of their weekly income on leisure and housing about 45% collectively. Almost similar figures for fuel and power in both years but one big change is in leisure as it increased up to 15 percent almost than 1968.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main shift from food being the largest category in 1968 to leisure leading in 2018, and you include several relevant figures. The overview also correctly notes that fuel and power was the smallest category in 1968. However, some comparisons are unclear or inaccurate: “leisure, personal goods and transport” total about 25% in 1968, but the sentence does not clearly distinguish this combined figure from the separate 10% categories. The statement that leisure increased “up to 15 percent almost” is also imprecise; it rose from about 9% to 22%, an increase of roughly 13 percentage points. More complete coverage of the major changes, including food’s fall and transport’s rise, would make the report more fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and paragraphs describing the two years. This helps the reader follow the main comparison, and linking phrases such as “Overall,” “After that,” and “As compared to 1968” signal progression. However, some connections are awkward or unclear. For example, “housing, clothing and footware had the 2nd largest share of 10 percent combind” does not make clear whether each category was 10% or whether they shared that amount. The final paragraph also moves from the combined leisure-and-housing figure to fuel and then leisure without a clear comparison pattern. Grouping the largest rises and falls, and using clearer references between categories, would improve cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “proportion,” “weekly income,” “accounted for,” and “combined,” and the meaning is generally understandable. There is some variety in how you describe spending, but several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or informal, such as “highest numbers of figures,” “spent their money they earned,” and “left food behind.” Spelling errors in “footware,” “combind,” “smalles,” and “trasport” also reduce accuracy. Aim for precise chart language and check spelling carefully; for example, describe a category as having the “largest share” and say that leisure “overtook food” rather than that it “left food behind.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast with “while” and a comparison introduced by “As compared to 1968.” However, errors in sentence structure and verb forms occur across the response. For example, “35 percent of weekly income spent on food” needs a passive verb (“was spent”), and “the least amount of money spent” also lacks an auxiliary. The opening sentence has an awkward construction, while “in 1968 highest proportion” is missing an article. Punctuation and spacing are inconsistent, as in “housing ,clothing.” These errors do not usually prevent understanding, but more reliable control of articles, auxiliaries, and complete sentence patterns is needed.

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