Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-04
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 first line graph compares the ownership of three household electrical appliances named washing machine, refrigerator, and vacuum cleaner in one country over a period of 1920 and 2019 in one country.The second line graph shows number of hours in which housework is done over a period of 1920 and 2019.
It is clear that the percentage of refrigerator rises significantly between 1920 and 1960, and reached to peak at 1980 aligned with vacuum cleaner.there was a gradual increase of percentage of washing machine from 1980 to 2019.
In 1920, the refrigerator owns only 0% comparitive to 30% of vacuum cleaner and 40% of washing machine.Then there is considerably high ownership of refrigerator from 0% in 1920 to 90% in 1960 then slightly more increase to 100% between 1980 and 2019.As seen,there is 90% of elavation of vacuum cleaner in 1980 and then reached to peak at 2000, while washing machine shows slight up and downs and reached to above 70% at 2019.
The second graph shows 50 hours housework per week in 1920 then it fells considerably to 20 hours per week at 1960,then a gradual decrease to 10 hours a per week in 2019.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the charts, identifying the trends for appliance ownership and the decline in housework hours. However, there are significant inaccuracies in data reporting. For instance, you state the refrigerator ownership was 0% in 1920, whereas the chart shows a positive starting point. Additionally, the description of the trends is sometimes confusing, such as claiming the refrigerator reached 100% between 1980 and 2019 when the data shows a plateau. While you have attempted to compare the two graphs, the lack of precision in data interpretation prevents a higher score. To improve, ensure you carefully verify the starting and ending points of each line against the axes.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is mechanical and sometimes inaccurate, such as the repetitive use of 'then' to transition between points. There are also issues with referencing; for example, 'the refrigerator owns' is grammatically incorrect and confusing, as the appliance does not own anything. Paragraphing is present, but the internal flow within paragraphs is often disjointed. To improve, use a wider variety of linking words like 'consequently', 'subsequently', or 'in contrast' to connect ideas more naturally and improve the logical progression of your report.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. You rely on basic verbs like 'shows', 'rises', and 'reached'. There are also instances of awkward word choice, such as 'elavation' (likely meant 'elevation' or 'increase') and 'fells' (the past tense of 'fall' is 'fell'). The phrase 'slight up and downs' is informal and imprecise. To reach a higher band, focus on using more sophisticated collocations and precise terminology for describing trends, such as 'fluctuated', 'plummeted', or 'a significant surge'. Ensure you check your spelling, as 'elavation' is incorrect.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Common issues include missing articles (e.g., 'number of hours'), incorrect verb forms (e.g., 'the refrigerator owns'), and punctuation errors, such as missing spaces after periods. Subject-verb agreement is also inconsistent. While the meaning is generally understandable, the frequency of these errors limits the score. To improve, focus on basic sentence construction, ensuring that subjects and verbs agree and that articles are used correctly before nouns.
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.