Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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)

cambridge writing task 1

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The line chart depicts changes in the ownership of three different electronic gadgets ( refrigerator,vacum cleaner and washing machine ) and amount of time spent during doing housework in households in a nation between 1920 to 2019.

Overall, ownership of all three appliances increased significantly over the period , particularly refrigerators and vacum cleaners . Meanwhile, the percentage of hours spent on household chores decreasded considerably .

To Begin with , in 1920 washing machine was the most commomnly owned appliance found in approximately around 40% households , compared with 30% of vacum cleraners . meanwhile , almost zero houdeholds owned refrigerators . By 1960 , refrigerator ownership had risen dramatically to sround 90% while, percentage of washing machine had slightly declined

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.0
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the chart’s broad message: appliance ownership generally rose, while time spent on housework fell. You also report several relevant starting figures and note the refrigerator’s sharp rise to about 90% by 1960. However, the response covers only part of the period and omits key later comparisons, including refrigerators reaching 100%, vacuum cleaners rising to 100%, and housework falling from 50 to 11 hours. The statement that washing-machine ownership “slightly declined” is not anchored to a clear figure or subsequent trend. The response is also below the required 150 words, which limits how fully you can select and report the main features. Include a complete overview and describe the end-of-period figures and the housework trend.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and a paragraph beginning with appliance details. The overview also provides a useful contrast between rising ownership and declining housework. However, the body paragraph stops after the 1960 comparison, so the information does not progress through the full time span or reach a conclusion. Some linking is mechanical or unclear, as in “To Begin with” and the repeated “Meanwhile”; punctuation around these transitions also interrupts the flow. Organise the details into a clear sequence, such as early-to-late changes, and use linking expressions to show comparisons rather than simply introduce another fact. A final paragraph covering the later years would make the progression complete.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some appropriate task vocabulary, including “ownership,” “increased significantly,” “declined considerably,” and “risen dramatically,” which helps communicate the main trends. There is some range in the language used to describe change, but spelling errors and imprecise phrasing reduce clarity: “vacum,” “commomnly,” and “decreasded” are noticeable, while “percentage of hours spent” does not accurately describe the chart’s measure of hours per week. The phrase “electronic gadgets” is also less precise than “household appliances.” Aim for accurate spelling and choose terms that match the data exactly. Using “households owned” for appliance figures and “hours of housework per week” for the second measure would improve precision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of sentence forms, including a complex overview beginning “Overall” and a comparison using “compared with.” The main ideas remain understandable, but some grammatical errors and punctuation problems are evident. For example, “between 1920 to 2019” uses an incorrect preposition pattern; write “between 1920 and 2019.” The opening sentence also lacks a clear grammatical link before “and amount of time,” and “in 1920 washing machine was” needs an article. Several clauses are joined or punctuated awkwardly, as in “to around 90% while, percentage…” Practise accurate articles, parallel phrasing, and punctuation around subordinate clauses, while keeping the useful range of sentence structures you have attempted.

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