Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-12
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 given line chart illustrates the changes in ownership of various electrical devices, while the line chart details the amount of time utilized in houseworks in specific country, from 1920 to 2019.
Overall, it is readily apparent that the proportion of all the appliances had increased from its starting point, representing that ratio of purchases of refrigerator and vacuum cleaner dominated the most. While, washing machine increased gradually. On the other side, the highest hours of work was done in 1920 which decreased noticeably.
To commence with, there was a massive increase in purchasing of refrigerator and vacuum cleaner both accounted from 30% and 1% to 100% respectively between 1920 and 2019. Consequently, the proportion increased constantly for washing machines from 40% to 75% in final year 2019.
The number of hours per week for the residents to work in households had declined dramatically; the figures was 50 hours that went down to only 11 hours 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 successfully addresses the main features of both charts, providing an overview and selecting relevant data points for comparison. The writer identifies key trends, such as the rise in ownership for refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, and washing machines, alongside the sharp decline in weekly hours spent on housework. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in reporting specific details, such as the statement that refrigerators and vacuum cleaners went from 30% and 1% to 100% respectively (the chart shows vacuum cleaners started at around 30% in 1920). Despite these minor misinterpretations of the visual data, all parts of the prompt are covered, and the key comparisons are made effectively, aligning well with the Band 6 descriptors.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The text demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement with a clear division into an introduction, an overview paragraph, and body paragraphs detailing specific trends. Cohesive devices are employed to link ideas, such as "Overall, it is readily apparent" and "To commence with". However, some cohesive links and transitional phrases feel slightly mechanical or awkward, such as "While, washing machine increased gradually" and "On the other side". Paragraphing is utilized appropriately to separate appliance ownership from housework hours, ensuring the logical progression of information throughout the response. Referencing is generally clear, placing the response solidly in the Band 6 category.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common items such as "proportion", "dominated", and "gradually". However, there are several word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the text, such as "houseworks" (an uncountable noun used as plural), "amount of time utilized in houseworks in specific country", and "purchasing of refrigerator". Furthermore, phrasing like "the figures was 50 hours" contains grammatical friction tied to lexical expression. While these errors do not impede overall communication, the presence of frequent word-choice and collocation flaws prevents the response from reaching a higher band score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and introductory dependent clauses. However, control over grammar and punctuation is inconsistent. There are several noticeable grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ("the figures was 50 hours"), missing articles ("in specific country", "in final year 2019"), and awkward phrasing in comparative structures ("both accounted from 30% and 1% to 100% respectively"). These errors occur regularly throughout the text, though they rarely impede the reader's understanding of the overall trends, making a Band 5.5 score appropriate.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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