Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-30

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 6.5)

The line chart depicts the changes in ownership of electrical appliances and the amount of time spent doing housework in one country from 1920 to 2019.

Overall, it is clear that the usage of electrical appliances increased dramatically over time; in contrast, the number of hours per week spent on housework declined significantly.

In 1920, the sharpest rise was recorded in refrigerators, which grew from 0% to 100% over the period. However, the usage of washing machines was 40% initially, as compared to vacuum cleaners which were 30%. Additionally, the usage of vacuum cleaners soared to 100% in 2019. In contrast, the utilization of washing machines stood at just over 70% from 1920 to 2019.

The significant decline was recorded in number of hours per week. Initially, the 50 hours per week in housework were documented in 1920, which plummeted to 20 hours per week in 1960. Meanwhile, the graph fluctuated and it comes to end in 2019 with almost 10 hours per week due to increased electrical appliances usage.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by presenting an overview of both the electrical appliance ownership trends and the reduction in housework hours. Main features are selected and reported well, such as noting that refrigerators and vacuum cleaners reached 100% by 2019, while washing machines finished around 75%. The data is mostly accurate and supported by the charts, although there is a slight misstatement in saying refrigerators 'grew from 0%' when they started at 2% in 1920, and the initial washing machine percentage fluctuated rather than standing at just over 70% the entire time. However, these minor inaccuracies do not detract from a generally clear and effective summary of the visual data.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response is logically organised with a clear overarching progression. The introduction sets the context, followed by an overview paragraph, a body paragraph detailing appliance ownership, and a final body paragraph explaining the trends in housework hours. Cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'However', and 'Meanwhile' are used appropriately to link ideas and contrast data series. Paragraphing is used sufficiently, with each paragraph serving a distinct function in the structure of an Academic Task 1 response.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate to good range of vocabulary suitable for reporting statistical data. Phrases like 'increased dramatically', 'declined significantly', and 'soared' show a solid attempt to avoid simple repetition. However, there are some minor lexical or collocation infelicities, such as 'utilization of washing machines' instead of 'ownership', and 'comes to end' instead of 'concludes' or 'ends at'. Spelling is accurate, and the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning without impeding communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and comparative constructions ('as compared to vacuum cleaners which were 30%'). While there are frequent error-free sentences, a few grammatical inaccuracies occur, such as 'the usage of vacuum cleaners soared to 100% in 2019' followed by 'In contrast, the utilization of washing machines stood...', and 'the 50 hours per week in housework were documented'. Punctuation and sentence boundaries are generally controlled, but occasional awkward phrasing prevents the grammar score from reaching a higher band.

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