Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-11-08

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The charts below show the changes in ownership of electrical appliances and amount of time spent doing housework in households in one country between 1920 and 2019.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Percentage of households with electrical appliances (1920-2019)

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In this charts we notice that in 1920 people used so spend 50 hours per week doing housework, Because of the lack of electrical appliances at that time with only 30% of households owning a vacuum cleaner and 40% with washing machines.

In 1940 the refrigerator was in more than 50% of the houses just like the vacuum cleaner and the washing machines, Therefore the hours of housework were significantly reduced to less than 40 hours per week.

The sales of the electrical machines kept growing, And in 1960 there was 70% of the houses with appliances which helped reducing the time of housework to 20 hours per week.

Then until 2019 the sales of refrigerator and vacuum machines went to its highest point, Although the washing machine didn't rise but that didn't prevent people from spending less time doing housework to an amount of 10 hours per week only.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the broad relationship between rising appliance ownership and falling housework hours, and include several relevant figures, such as 50 hours in 1920 and 20 hours in 1960. However, the summary is only partly complete: it gives no clear overview of the main trends across the whole period, and the appliance figures for 1960 and the final years are vague or inaccurate. In 1960, refrigerator ownership was about 90%, while washing machines and vacuum cleaners were each around 70%; “70% of the houses with appliances” does not report these separate series accurately. By 2019, refrigerators and vacuum cleaners had reached 100%, while washing machines were about 75%. Include these key comparisons and describe the overall decline in housework hours more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response follows a generally chronological order, moving from 1920 through 1940 and 1960 to 2019, so the reader can follow the broad timeline. Paragraph breaks also separate some stages. However, the progression is not fully controlled: the final paragraph combines the appliance trends and housework hours without clearly distinguishing the series, and there is no concise overview to guide the reader. Linking words such as “Then,” “Although,” and “but” help connect ideas, but some are awkwardly punctuated or used to join claims that would be clearer as separate sentences. Organise the report into an introduction, an overview of the main trends, and paragraphs comparing the data at selected points.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary, including “reduced,” “highest point,” and “spending less time,” which communicates the general direction of change. However, the range is limited and several expressions are imprecise or unnatural for describing chart data. “Sales” is not what the graph measures; it shows household ownership. “Electrical machines” and “vacuum machines” are also less accurate than the chart’s appliance names. Phrases such as “the refrigerator was in more than 50% of the houses” and “the washing machine didn’t rise” make the description less clear. Use precise terms such as “the proportion of households owning…” and “ownership increased/remained stable,” while varying vocabulary without changing the meaning of the data.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including the contrast in “Although the washing machine didn’t rise but that didn’t prevent…”. However, some sentence structures and punctuation are faulty, which makes parts of the report harder to read. For example, “In this charts” has a number-agreement error, and “people used so spend” is an incorrect verb construction. Several sentences are joined with commas before a capitalised “Because,” “Therefore,” or “And,” rather than being punctuated as complete sentences. The final sentence also uses “Although” and “but” together, creating an incorrect contrast structure. Practise accurate clause joining and use a consistent past-tense reporting style, for example: “Although washing-machine ownership rose only slightly, housework hours continued to fall.”

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.