Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-06

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)

The line charts depicts the changes in ownership of electrical appliances and the number of hours spent in housework by households in one country from 1920 to 2019. At a glance, all the ownership of all appliances has increased throughout given years.

In 1920, the ownership of Washing machine and Vacuum cleaner was noted at 40% and 30% relatively. Both have shown similar growth till 1940. In 1960, the number of the ownership of both type of appliances were same at 70%. Then, the number of Vacuum cleaner has shown constant growth till 2000. While, the count of owners of washing machine showed minimal fluctuations and ended at 75% in 2019. However, the number of fridge owners was almost 1% in 1920. During four decades, the number has increased dramatically at 90%. In 1980, the count of fridge owners were on its peak and it remained same till 2019. Similarly, the number of vacuum cleaner also reached at its top in 2000 and remained same.

On the other hand, the number of housework per week, per household initiated from the number of 50 hours in 1920. which has fallen steadily till 1980 at around 15 hours. And remained stable till 2000 and then again dropped in 2019 and noted around 11 hours.

Overall, as the number of appliance owners increase, the number of hours of housework per week per household decrease.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers all key features of the charts, including the trends for appliances and the inverse relationship with housework hours. You successfully identified the main trends and made relevant comparisons. However, the report is slightly let down by inaccuracies in data interpretation. For example, you state the fridge ownership was 'almost 1%' in 1920, whereas the chart shows it starting at 0%. Additionally, describing the 1980 fridge ownership as being 'on its peak' is slightly imprecise given the plateau. To reach a higher band, ensure that data points are read with absolute precision and that the overview clearly synthesises the relationship between the two charts without relying on repetitive phrasing.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is logically organised into clear paragraphs, with an introduction, body paragraphs for the appliances and housework, and a concluding summary. Cohesive devices such as 'On the other hand', 'Similarly', and 'Overall' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical or awkward, such as starting a sentence with 'Which has fallen...' as a fragment. The referencing is generally clear, but the flow between sentences could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words to avoid a repetitive structure where each sentence begins with a subject-verb construction.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'fluctuations', 'dramatically', and 'initiated'. However, there are some issues with word choice and collocation. For instance, 'the number of the ownership' is unnatural; 'the rate of ownership' or simply 'ownership levels' would be better. Similarly, 'reached at its top' is non-standard; 'reached a peak' is the correct collocation. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the message, it lacks the precision and sophistication required for higher bands, and there is some repetition of basic verbs like 'showed' and 'remained'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Subject-verb agreement is inconsistent, such as 'the line charts depicts' (should be 'depict') and 'the number of fridge owners were' (should be 'was'). There are also punctuation errors, such as the sentence fragment 'which has fallen steadily...', which should be joined to the previous sentence. While these errors do not impede overall communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focus on proofreading for basic agreement and ensuring that complex sentences are punctuated correctly.

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

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