Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 first line graph illustrates the percentage of people owning some particular electrical appliances from 1920 to 2019. The second line graph shows the percentage how meny hours were spend on household work per week in the same time period.

Overall, all appliances have positive trajectory over the time period. However, the working time of household had been decreased over the time.

In 1920, the percentage of owning refrigerator go up sharply from zero to 100% at its peak by the year of 1980 and remain unchanged for last 39 years. Vaccum cleaner stared with 40% and increased gradually over the time, in 2000 it also reached its peak and remain unchanged to 2019. However, washing machine increased steadly to 1960 after that had a dip in 1980. After that it began start to go up gradually over the years and ended up in 75%.

The work hours of houshold had been decreased gradually over the time period. In 1920 , people spend 50 hours per week. It go down rapidly and by the year of 1980 it down to

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the broad contrast between rising appliance ownership and falling housework hours, and you report several key trends, including refrigerators reaching 100% by 1980 and washing-machine ownership ending at 75%. However, some figures are inaccurate: refrigerators began at about 2%, not zero, and vacuum cleaners started at 30%, not 40%. The overview also overgeneralises that all appliances rose continuously, although washing-machine ownership dipped between 1960 and 1980. Most importantly, the final account of housework is cut off after “it down to”, so the later figures and the overall extent of the decline are not reported. These omissions and inaccuracies leave the main features only partly covered.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for appliance ownership and housework. This helps the reader follow the broad topic, and transitions such as “However” and “After that” show some attempt to connect comparisons over time. Nevertheless, progression is uneven. The appliance paragraph moves between three items without a consistent order, and the final paragraph ends abruptly after “it down to”, leaving the account incomplete. Some linking phrases are repetitive or do not clearly express the relationship between ideas. To improve, organise the appliance trends in a consistent sequence and complete the housework comparison, using clear time markers to guide the reader through each stage.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant task vocabulary, including “percentage”, “increased”, “dip”, “peak” and “remained unchanged”, so the general trends are usually understandable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or forms are inaccurate, such as “positive trajectory” for appliance ownership, “working time of household”, and “the percentage of owning refrigerator”. Spelling errors including “meny”, “Vaccum”, “stared”, “steadly” and “houshold” are noticeable and reduce precision. Aim for standard chart language and accurate collocations, for example “the proportion of households owning refrigerators” and “housework hours declined”. Vary verbs such as “rose”, “climbed”, “fell” and “levelled off” to describe changes more precisely.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

There are attempts at longer sentences and time clauses, for example “However, washing machine increased steadily to 1960 after that had a dip in 1980”, but control is inconsistent. Errors in verb forms and sentence construction occur frequently: “the percentage … go up”, “it began start to go up”, and “people spend 50 hours” should use appropriate past-tense forms. Articles and agreement are also problematic in phrases such as “owning refrigerator” and “all appliances have positive trajectory”. The final sentence, “by the year of 1980 it down to”, is grammatically incomplete and prevents the reader from understanding the intended figure. Practise accurate past-tense reporting and build complete sentences before adding more complex clauses.

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