Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-08

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The first table below shows changes in the total population of New York City from 1800 to 2000. The second and third tables show changes in the population of the five districts of the city (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) over the same period.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 4.5)

The three tables illustrate a plethora changes of population in six cities (New York City, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) during the periode of 1800 to 2000.The unites are mesured in percent.

Overall, is clear from teh three tables that New York City has the high number of population. In addition Manhattan and Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island cities have lowest population compared with New York City , but between them they have a simillar population with some changes in the years.

according to the table one of New York City, in 1800 population have reached to 79,216%, sudenly in 1900 and 2000 have increased to 3,437,202 and 8,009,185 recpectivly.

Than for the reset of the two tables of Manhattan and Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island, for 1800 the population of Manhattan higher than other district with 52% diffrence and in 1900 the o

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

You identify the broad period and include several figures, but the response only partially reports the tables’ main features. The overview says New York City has the highest population, which is not a useful comparison because it is the total of the districts; it also incorrectly describes the other districts as having similar populations, although their combined population is shown and individual figures are not provided. The 1800 total is incorrectly given as a percentage, and the claim that Manhattan exceeded the other districts by 52% does not match the table’s 76% versus 24% shares. The final sentence is cut off, leaving the later comparison incomplete. The response is also five words below the required minimum. To improve, give a clear overview of the overall growth and the shift in population share from Manhattan to the other districts, using accurate comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is an attempt to organise the response into an introduction, an overview and detail paragraphs, and phrases such as “Overall” and “according to the table” signal the intended progression. However, the development is difficult to follow because the overview repeats the idea of population comparisons without clearly identifying the main trend, and the detail paragraph ends abruptly at “in 1900 the o”. The transition “Than for the reset” does not clearly connect the information, while the long list of district names makes the sentence hard to process. Use one paragraph for the overall trends and separate, complete sentences for the figures. Clear links such as “By contrast” and “By 2000” would help show how the data changes over time.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt some task-related vocabulary, including “population,” “district,” “increased” and “percentage,” so the reader can recognise the subject. However, word choice and spelling errors are frequent enough to make parts of the report unclear or unnatural: “a plethora changes,” “unites,” “mesured,” “sudenly” and “recpectivly” are examples. Some expressions are also imprecise, such as calling the districts “cities” and describing the total as a “number of population.” Aim for accurate, conventional language for reporting tables, and check spelling carefully. More precise terms such as “population share,” “accounted for” and “combined population” would help you describe the comparisons without relying on vague wording.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts a few longer sentence forms, including “Overall, is clear from…” and the sentence beginning “according to the table one…”, but control is inconsistent and several structures are incomplete or difficult to understand. For example, “Overall, is clear” is missing a subject, while “in 1800 population have reached to” has an incorrect verb construction and tense. The opening sentence also runs directly into the next sentence without appropriate spacing after the full stop, and the final sentence is unfinished. These problems make relationships between ideas harder to follow. Practise complete subject–verb sentences and accurate past-tense reporting, for example, “The population reached 79,216 in 1800” and “Manhattan accounted for 76% of the total.”

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.