Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 charts compare changes in the proportion of households owning three electrical appliances and in the average weekly amount of time spent on housework in one country between 1920 and 2019.

Overall, ownership of all three appliances increased substantially over the period, although the growth of washing machines was less consistent. At the same time, the number of hours devoted to domestic tasks declined steadily, suggesting that the wider availability of household technology reduced the need for manual work.

In 1920, washing machine was the most widely used appliance which was used by 40% of people. Vacuum cleaner were used about 30%, Refrigerator were completely absent. Refrigerator were subsequently increased to 90% by 2000. The usage of washing machines was become lower to 75% by 2019, while both refrigerator and vacuum cleaner were used at constant rate of 100% by 2019.

The number of hours per house hold per week increases. Families spent around 50 hours per week on homework in 1920, but this figure reduces to 35 hours by 1940 and then more reduces to just 20 hours in 1960. The downward pattern continued over the remaining years, with the average reaching only 10 hours a week by the end of the period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main trends and provided a clear overview of the data. You covered both the appliance ownership and the housework time, making relevant comparisons. However, there are some inaccuracies in your reporting of the data. For instance, you state that the number of hours spent on housework 'increases' in the first sentence of the fourth paragraph, which contradicts the chart showing a clear decline. Additionally, you mention that washing machine usage became 'lower to 75%' by 2019, whereas the chart indicates a peak and then a slight decline, but the phrasing is slightly confusing. Ensure that your data points are precisely aligned with the visual information provided.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is logically organized into clear paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. You use some cohesive devices effectively, such as 'Overall,' 'At the same time,' and 'In 1920.' However, the progression within the third paragraph is slightly mechanical, and some referencing is unclear, such as 'Refrigerator were subsequently increased.' The use of cohesive devices is generally sufficient, but the flow could be improved by using more varied linking phrases to connect the trends in appliance ownership with the reduction in housework time more fluidly.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'proportion,' 'domestic tasks,' and 'downward pattern.' However, there are several errors in word choice and form, such as 'Refrigerator were completely absent' (should be 'Refrigerators were') and 'The usage of washing machines was become lower.' These errors occasionally distract the reader. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and ensuring subject-verb agreement when discussing plural nouns like 'refrigerators' and 'vacuum cleaners.'

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is appropriate for this task. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('washing machine was the most widely used'), pluralization ('Vacuum cleaner were'), and verb tense/form ('The number of hours... increases' instead of 'decreased'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are persistent throughout the text. To improve, pay closer attention to basic subject-verb agreement and the consistent use of past tense when describing historical data.

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