Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-01

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 line graph provides a comparison between the amount of time spend by individuals in housework and the number of appliances used in these houses in a country between 1920 and 2019.

Overall, refrigerators and vacuum cleaners accounted the largest category in all households, while the washing machines are the least used appliance. In contrast, the number of hours individuals spend in every week doing housework declined.

In 1920, washing machines are the highest used appliance in homes, approximately 40%, it increased slightly, before declining to 65% in 1980 and then rose slightly to maximum. Meanwhile, vacuum cleaner was the second mostly used appliance making up 30%, which then surged to 100% at end of 2019. In contrast, refrigerator was the least used appliance almost 1% in 1920, then groe significantly till 1960, by the end of period it reached to 100% , becoming the highest used appliance in 2019.

Due the increased use of household appliances, the number of hours people spend in doing housework reduces. Firstly individuals spend 50 hours per week but it declined to 10% in the end of 2019.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the task only partially. While you manage to provide an overview and mention the main trends, some of your information contains factual inaccuracies regarding the data. For instance, you state that washing machines are the 'least used appliance', which contradicts the graph showing them starting at forty percent in 1920, well above refrigerators at two percent. Furthermore, your data points are sometimes imprecise or confused, such as stating that hours declined to 'ten percent' instead of ten hours. To move higher, you need to ensure that all selected data points are accurately reported from the visual source and that comparisons are made with greater precision.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

There is some organisation in your response, with a clear attempt at paragraphing, but overall progression is hindered by mechanical and repetitive cohesive devices. You rely heavily on transitional phrases like 'In contrast' multiple times in close proximity, such as in the second and third paragraphs, where they do not always logically contrast the preceding ideas. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, as seen in the phrase 'used appliance making up thirty percent, which then surged'. To improve coherence, you should ensure that paragraphs have a clear internal logic and that cohesive links are used more naturally and variedly to guide the reader smoothly through the data.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is limited but minimally adequate for the task. You attempt some less common vocabulary, such as 'accounted', 'surged', and 'significantly', but there are noticeable errors in word choice, collocation, and word form. For example, you write 'time spend' instead of 'time spent', 'groe' instead of 'grew', and 'accounted the largest category', which misuses the verb 'account'. Additionally, stating that appliances 'accounted the largest category' is imprecise for line graphs tracking percentages. To achieve a higher band, you need to expand your lexical range and use vocabulary with greater precision, ensuring correct word forms and spellings throughout.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response demonstrates a limited range of structures, with frequent errors that can occasionally cause difficulty for the reader. Your attempts at complex sentences are often faulty, and there are persistent issues with tense consistency, subject-verb agreement, and prepositions. For example, you write 'washing machines are the highest used appliance' using the present tense for a historical trend starting in 1920, and 'Due the increased use' omitting the preposition 'to'. You also struggle with article usage and prepositions in phrases like 'spend in every week'. To improve your grammar score, you should practice forming complex sentences accurately, maintain consistent past tenses for historical data, and pay closer attention to grammatical patterns.

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

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