Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-05

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 chart compares the changes that occurred in ownership of electronic devices.While, the second line chart tracks the housework in households in terms of time spending in one country in the period of 99 years.

The percentage of households with electrical appliances rose considerably throughout the years. There was a dramatic increase in the demand of refrigerator.

In 1920, the refrigerator was intially not in use as it started from zero percentage. The vacuum cleaner was owned by 30% people in 1920, while washing machine stood at the highest end at that time with 40% ownership.

It is clear that the refrigerator's demand increases dramatically and it's ownership peaking at 100% in 2000, with almost 100% increase throughout the period which was insane. Vacuum cleaner on the other hand was saw an continuous increase and in 2019, it was also a necessary part of every house, while washing machines firstly becomes most popular among electrical appliances but later it started losing it's popularity after 1960 but then it again increased steadily and stood at almost 65% in 2019.

In 1920, 50 hours per week work in each house has done but the number fell down considerably and stood at only 10 hours per week at the end of 2019.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main trends for both charts, including the rise in appliance ownership and the decline in housework hours. However, the response lacks a clear overview paragraph that synthesises the main trends before moving into details. While you mention the refrigerator and vacuum cleaner, the description of the washing machine's trend is slightly confusing, and the comparison between the two charts could be more explicit. To improve, ensure you provide a distinct summary paragraph that highlights the inverse relationship between appliance ownership and housework time, and avoid informal language like 'which was insane' as it is inappropriate for an Academic Task 1 report.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the information. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and occasionally inaccurate. For example, the opening sentence uses 'While,' incorrectly as a sentence starter, and the transition between the appliance data and the housework data is abrupt. The referencing is sometimes unclear, such as in the sentence 'Vacuum cleaner on the other hand was saw an continuous increase.' Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring they are used to connect ideas logically rather than just listing facts will help improve the flow and coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the main points, such as 'dramatic increase,' 'steadily,' and 'ownership.' However, there are several instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'time spending' instead of 'time spent,' and 'the refrigerator's demand increases' instead of 'the demand for refrigerators increased.' Additionally, the use of 'insane' is too informal for an academic context. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure that you use the correct word forms (e.g., noun vs. verb) to describe trends accurately.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally distract the reader. Common issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'washing machines... becomes'), incorrect verb tenses (e.g., 'was saw'), and punctuation errors, such as the unnecessary comma after 'While' in the first sentence. There are also issues with articles and possessives, such as 'it's ownership' (should be 'its'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Focus on proofreading for basic subject-verb agreement and possessive pronoun usage.

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