Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-28

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 graphs illustrate the proportion of households owning three types of electrical appliances and how much time they spent doing housework in a particular country from 1920 to 2019.

Overall, the ownership of all three electrical appliances increased over the period. Refrigerator despite being the lowest, saw a substantial growth. Vacuum cleaner and Washing Machine started almost next to each other but over time Vacuum cleaner saw a steady rise while Washing machine was not able to compete with it. On the other hand, manual housework saw a steady decline over the period.

In 1920, Washing machine started at 40% and kept growing till 1960 and it experienced a steady decline and saw a gradual increase over time. Refrigerator despite being the lowest of all in 1920, saw a dramatic increase and made it up to 90%, in 1960. Moreover, it kept growing and became a universal appliance over the period. In contrast, Vacuum cleaner started at 30% and noticed a steady increase and reached at 90%, in 1980. It also became a common appliance till 2019, next to Washing machines.

The number of housework on the other hand, saw a gradual decline and keep decreasing over the period. It started at 50% in 1920 but kept declining over time and reached at 20% in 1960. Over time it keep going down and reached all time low at 10% in 2019.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover both charts and give a relevant overview: appliance ownership generally rose, while time spent on housework fell. Several key figures are accurately selected, including washing machines at 40% in 1920, refrigerators at 90% in 1960, and vacuum cleaners at 90% in 1980. However, some comparisons are unclear or inaccurate. Washing-machine ownership did not simply decline after 1960: it fell slightly to 65% in 1980, then rose to 75% by 2019. The claim that vacuum cleaners were “next to Washing machines” by 2019 is misleading, since both vacuum cleaners and refrigerators reached 100%, while washing machines remained at 75%. Housework is measured in hours, not percentages, and the 2019 figure is about 11 hours rather than 10. More precise reporting would make the overview and details 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 topics easy to follow. You also use linking expressions such as “Overall,” “On the other hand,” and “In contrast” to signal relationships. However, some connections are mechanical or do not accurately express the data: “Moreover” introduces the refrigerator’s continued rise, while “next to Washing machines” leaves the comparison unclear. Repeated phrases such as “over the period” and “kept declining” make the progression less smooth. Grouping the appliance trends by their distinct patterns, then using clear comparisons between the series, would strengthen cohesion and avoid ambiguous references.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for describing trends, including “substantial growth,” “dramatic increase,” “steady rise,” and “gradual decline.” These choices help communicate the broad patterns, and the meaning is generally clear. Some word choices and collocations are imprecise, however: “was not able to compete with it” is informal and suggests competition rather than a comparison of ownership rates, while “noticed a steady increase” is not a natural way to describe a data series. “Universal appliance” is understandable but could be expressed more precisely as “present in all households.” Capitalisation is also inconsistent in “Vacuum cleaner” and “Washing Machine.” Aim for concise, neutral reporting verbs and accurate terms for percentages and hours.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including clauses beginning with “despite” and “while,” and most of the message remains understandable. Some grammatical errors recur, particularly in verb forms and sentence construction. For example, “the number of housework … saw” uses an unsuitable singular construction, and “it keep going down” should use a past-tense form to match the period being described. In “reached at 90%” and “reached at 20%,” the verb pattern is incorrect; use “reached 90%” or “fell to 20%.” Several sentences also join a topic phrase and its main clause awkwardly, as in “Refrigerator despite being the lowest … saw.” More consistently controlled clauses and past-tense reporting would improve accuracy.

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