Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-14

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 shows the percentage of households that owned three electrical appliances namely a washing machine, Refrigerator, and Vaccum cleaner between 1920 to 2019. And the second graph shows the number of hours housework per week per household between 1920 -2019.

Overall, ownership of all three appliances goes on increasing. While the number of hours spent on housework decreases. Refrigerators experienced growth, eventually becoming available in almost every household.

On the other hand the percentage of vacuum cleaner goes from 30% to 100% but the number of work hours of housework per week goes on decreasing.

From 1960 onwards, washing machine ownership fall to around 65% in 1980 before gradually rising to 75% in 2019. In contrast, refrigerator ownership reached 100% by 1980 and remained at that level thereafter. Vacuum cleaner ownership continued to increase, reaching 90% in 1980 and 100% in 2000, where it remained until 2019.

So, there is a visible change in ownership of electrical appliances and amount of time spent doing housework in households in one country between 1920 and 2019. The washing machine ownership fell, while refrigerator ownership reached 100%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify both charts and give the main overall contrast: appliance ownership generally rose while housework time fell. Several key later figures are also accurate, including refrigerators reaching 100% in 1980 and vacuum cleaners reaching 100% by 2000. However, coverage is uneven: the response gives little account of the early changes, such as refrigerators rising from about 2% in 1920 to 90% in 1960, or housework dropping from 50 to 20 hours over the same period. The overview also says all appliance ownership increased, although washing-machine ownership dipped between 1960 and 1980. Develop the comparison across the full period and report the housework figures more explicitly to make the summary more complete and precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, moving from an introduction and overview to selected details, and phrases such as “In contrast” help signal comparisons. However, progression is weakened by repetition: the overview, the third paragraph and the conclusion repeat the general rise in appliance ownership and fall in housework. The final paragraph adds little new information, while the detailed paragraph focuses mainly on appliance ownership and leaves the housework trend underdeveloped. Some linking is also awkward, particularly the sentence beginning “On the other hand,” which joins two trends that are not actually opposing each other. Organise the body around clear comparisons and use the conclusion space for relevant data rather than restating the overview.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “ownership,” “reached,” “remained” and “gradually rising,” and the meaning is generally clear. However, some expressions are imprecise or repetitive, such as “the percentage of vacuum cleaner” and “the number of work hours of housework.” “Goes on increasing” is also less natural for describing a chart trend, and “available in almost every household” does not precisely describe ownership. There are spelling and capitalisation slips in “Vaccum” and “Refrigerator.” Aim for accurate collocations and vary the language for trends, while keeping the wording concise and factual.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex sentences, including the contrast in “While the number of hours spent on housework decreases” and the comparison beginning “In contrast.” Most of the information remains understandable, but some grammatical errors reduce accuracy. For example, “From 1960 onwards, washing machine ownership fall” needs a past-tense verb (“fell”), and “the percentage of vacuum cleaner goes” has an agreement and sentence-construction problem. The opening uses a sentence fragment beginning “And the second graph,” while “between 1920 to 2019” uses an incorrect preposition pattern. Work on complete sentence structure, consistent past-tense reporting and subject–verb agreement to make the range more controlled.

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