Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-28

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 compares that how in one country families spent thier weekly wages in year between 1968 and 2018.

Overall, in 1968 and 2018 both year families spend most of their money on food and house and spend least on fuel and power.Houehold goods in both year families spend likewisely money

In 1968 families spend most of thier income on food but in 2018 families spend less on food ( from 35% in 1968 to 17 %in 2018).The income on houses was expended less in in 1968 but increases in 2018( from 10% to 19 %in 2019). similarly transport and lesiures ratio also increases in 2018.

On the other hand on personal goods family spent more in 1968 and less in 2018.corespondingly households spend more money on fuels in 1968 and less in 2018 .clothing and footware families send less in 2018 in additio household boh year spend similar weekly income around 8%

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main contrast in the chart: food takes a much smaller share in 2018, while housing, transport and leisure take larger shares. Several figures are reported accurately, including food (35% to 17%), housing (10% to 19%) and household goods (about 8% in both years). The overview is relevant, but it is not fully accurate: food is the largest category in 1968, whereas leisure—not food or housing—is the largest in 2018; fuel and power is the smallest in both years. Some comparisons are also unclear or incorrect: personal goods fell from 8% to 4%, and fuel and power fell from 6% to 4%, rather than families spending more on these in 1968 being described as a general comparison. Make the overview more precise and report each category’s direction clearly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview and two detail paragraphs. The contrastive phrases “On the other hand” and “similarly” help signal comparisons, and the reader can generally follow the movement from food and housing to other categories. However, progression is weakened by unclear references and abrupt grouping: “both year families spend most of their money on food and house” does not distinguish the two years, and “household goods” is repeated in a way that makes the final comparison difficult to track. Some linking words are used mechanically or do not clearly connect the ideas. Organise the details into clearer groups—for example, categories that rose and those that fell—and use explicit year/category references in each comparison.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “weekly income,” “ratio,” “increases” and “similar,” and the reader can identify most categories and trends. However, the range and control are limited, with repeated use of “spend” and imprecise expressions such as “income on houses,” “lesiures ratio” and “families send less.” There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “thier,” “Houehold,” “corespondingly” and “footware,” which reduce the accuracy and polish of the report. Choose precise chart language such as “share of weekly expenditure,” “accounted for” and “rose/fell,” and check spelling carefully. Avoid describing percentages as a “ratio” when you mean a proportion of income.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including comparisons with “from 35% in 1968 to 17% in 2018” and a contrast introduced by “On the other hand.” The main meaning is usually recoverable, but some grammatical errors affect clarity. For example, “The bar chart compares that how” has an incorrect clause structure, while “both year families spend” has problems with number agreement and verb form. Tense is also inconsistent: the chart describes past years, but the response repeatedly uses “spend” and “increases.” There are errors with articles, repeated prepositions and punctuation, as in “less in in 1968.” Build accurate comparison sentences using past-tense verbs and check agreement and sentence boundaries.

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