Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-07-24

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 7.0)

The first table illustrates population of New York from 1800 to 2000. The second and third table depicts the changes in population of the five regions of the city (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) throughout the same period.

Overall the population of New York increased dramatically over the last 200 year. Initially Manhattan was the most populated district out of five, however later, other four borough experienced much faster growth and quickly caught up.

In 1800 New York city had a population of around eighty thousand, at that time Manhattan consisted 76 per cent of the total citizens around sixty thousand compared to other four districts just under twenty thousand people. Over the next hundred years the total number of inhabitants experienced substantial growth, reached just over 3.4 million. Manhattan still had the largest figure 1.8 million individuals. The other four regions was just behind Manhattan with close to 1,6 million.

By 2000, the trend had changed completely. Other four districts increased to approximately 6.5 million in contrast to Manhattan's 1.5 million which in fact decreased in number.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The response effectively identifies the main trends and provides a clear overview of the population shifts in New York City. You successfully highlight the transition from Manhattan's dominance in 1800 to the rapid growth of the other four boroughs by 2000. The key data points are selected well to support these trends. However, the report could be improved by including more specific comparative data for the intermediate years (e.g., 1900) to better illustrate the progression of the trend. Overall, you have covered all parts of the task well and provided a clear, logical summary of the provided tables.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The response is logically organized, with a clear introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs that group information effectively. The progression of ideas is easy to follow, moving chronologically from 1800 to 2000. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'Initially', 'however', and 'In contrast to', to link ideas. To reach a higher band, ensure that referencing is always precise; for example, in the phrase 'other four borough', the plural 'boroughs' is needed for better flow. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the overview from the detailed analysis.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the information clearly, using terms like 'dramatically', 'substantial growth', and 'inhabitants'. There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'Manhattan consisted 76 per cent' (should be 'accounted for' or 'comprised') and 'other four regions was' (subject-verb agreement error). While you attempt to use some less common vocabulary, these occasional inaccuracies prevent a higher score. Focusing on more precise collocations for data reporting will help improve your lexical precision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('The second and third table depicts' should be 'tables depict'; 'other four regions was' should be 'were') and articles ('the other four districts' vs 'other four districts'). Additionally, there are minor punctuation and phrasing issues, such as 'total population of New York from 1800 to 2000' missing 'the'. Despite these errors, they do not impede communication, and you show a reasonable attempt at varied sentence structures.

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