Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-29

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 shows the percentage of households with three electrical appliances (washing machine, refrigerator and vacuum cleaner).While the Second graph illustrates the usage of electrical appliances in the form of number of hours per week from 1920 to 2019.

Overall, both refrigerator and vacuum cleaner remained most preferable electrical appliances, but refrigerator consumption increased dramatically within the given period.On the other hand, usage of electrical appliances during a week saw a continuous decline.

Both vaccum cleaner and refrigerator started in 1920.Vaccum cleaner started with 30% and passed washing machine in 1920 at almost 70%. It gradually increased till 2000 after which it remained still and accounted for 100% by 2019.However. refrigerator initially had 0% of household buyers and considerably increased till 1980. Afterwards, it remained consistent and accounted for 100% by 2019.

Washing machine also started in 1920 and initially had 40% of the total ratio.Ot fluctuated throughout the given period and slightly decreased after 1960.It had above 60% usage in 1980 and in 1920 it was used by approximately 63% of households.

In 1920,50 hour per week was usage of electrical appliances which dramatically decreased to 12 hours per week in 1980.Finally, it reached its lowest point in 2019 with just usage of 10 hours per week.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The student attempts to cover all parts of the visual data, providing an overview and mentioning data points for the three appliances and the housework hours. However, there are several inaccuracies and misinterpretations of the charts. For example, the student states that the refrigerator 'initially had 0% of household buyers' (it started at 2% in 1920) and confuses the data for the vacuum cleaner and washing machine in places (e.g., stating the vacuum cleaner 'passed washing machine in 1920 at almost 70%'). Furthermore, the description of the hours spent on housework contains confused figures, such as stating it was '50 hour per week' in 1920 but then misrepresenting subsequent points. While the main features are partially highlighted, the inaccuracies in data extraction prevent the response from achieving a higher band. Overall, the task is addressed, but with noticeable factual flaws.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response is divided into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview, and then body paragraphs dedicated to specific data trends. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Overall', 'On the other hand', and 'However', which help structure the essay. However, referencing and cohesion can be faulty or mechanical at times, and paragraphing is slightly hindered by poor sentence construction (e.g., starting sentences abruptly or separating clauses incorrectly). There is a clear overall arrangement and progression of ideas from appliance ownership to housework hours, but the flow is occasionally disrupted by confusing phrasing and awkward transitions between data points.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'dramatically', 'fluctuated', and 'consistent'. However, there are notable word-choice errors, imprecise expressions (e.g., 'refrigerator consumption', 'remained still'), and typographical errors like 'vaccum' instead of 'vacuum'. Some phrasing is unnatural, such as 'total ratio' or 'had above 60% usage'. The lexical range is minimally sufficient to convey the general meaning, but vocabulary errors and lack of precision in describing statistical trends restrict the score to a Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar and punctuation is inconsistent. There are numerous grammatical errors throughout the text, including missing articles (e.g., 'in 1920, 50 hour per week was usage'), subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., 'Ot fluctuated'), and incorrect prepositions or word forms (e.g., 'remained still'). Punctuation is also problematic, with missing spaces after periods (e.g., 'period.On the other hand', '1920.Vaccum') and improper capitalization ('Ot'). While some sentences are error-free, the frequency of errors causes some difficulty for the reader and prevents the attainment of a Band 6.

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

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