Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-06

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 6.0)

The line graph illustrates the changes in ownership of electrical gadgets and the amount of hours spent doing housework in households in one country between 1920 and 2019.

Overall, the percentage of households with electrical appliances increased throughout the period, while the number of hours spent doing housework decreased over the period. Moreover, refrigerator appliances were least common at the beginning; however, vacuum cleaners reached the same level at the end of the period. In addition, Washing machines were the most common appliances at the beginning.

In 1920, the washing machine recorded the highest percentage of households with electric appliances, at 40%, compared to the refrigerator, at only 0%, and the vacuum cleaner, at 30%. In 1980, the refrigerator overtook the washing machine, representing the highest percentage of households with electric appliances, at 100%, while the vacuum cleaner was at 90% and the washing machine was at approximately 65%. By the end of the period, the refrigerator and vacuum cleaner both reached the same level, 100% and 100%, respectively.

The number of hours per week recorded for housework was highest at 50 in 1920, decreased by 30 hours to reach 20 in 1960, and by 10 hours in 2019.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You provide a relevant overview, identifying the broad rise in appliance ownership and fall in housework, and you select useful comparisons, such as the refrigerator reaching 100% by 1980 and the two appliances both being at 100% in 2019. However, some details are inaccurate or incomplete: the refrigerator was about 2%, not 0%, in 1920, and the overview says vacuum cleaners reached the same level at the end without clarifying that this means the refrigerator. The housework account also omits the 1980 and 2000 figures and misstates the change from 1920 to 1960: it fell by 30 hours to 20, rather than decreasing by 30 to reach 20 only after an unspecified interval. More precise coverage of the later stages would make the report more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for appliance ownership and housework. This makes the main trends easy to follow. Linking expressions such as “Overall,” “In addition,” and “By the end of the period” help signal relationships, although some transitions feel mechanical, and the capitalisation of “Washing” after “In addition” is inconsistent. The final paragraph is notably brief and does not develop the housework trend across the full period, so the balance between the two charts is uneven. Also, “the same level at the end” is not fully clear until the reader infers which appliances are being compared. More consistent grouping and clearer references would strengthen progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “ownership,” “overtook,” “percentage,” and “decreased,” and the meaning is generally clear. There are, however, some imprecise or unnatural choices. “Electrical gadgets” is less suitable than the chart’s “electrical appliances,” while “the amount of hours” is an awkward collocation. “Refrigerator appliances” is also redundant, and “recorded the highest percentage” is less direct than describing the proportion of households that owned an appliance. These choices do not prevent understanding, but more precise collocations and consistent use of the chart’s terminology would make the report sound more natural and accurate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including a contrast clause with “while” and a sentence using “although”-style contrast through “compared to.” Most sentences are understandable, and the past-tense reporting is generally controlled. Some grammatical choices remain awkward: “the amount of hours” should be “the number of hours,” and “decreased by 30 hours to reach 20 in 1960, and by 10 hours in 2019” leaves the second comparison without a clear verb or reference point. The capital letter in “Washing machines” mid-sentence is also a punctuation inconsistency. These issues are limited and rarely obscure meaning; clearer parallel phrasing and more complete comparisons would improve accuracy further.

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

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