Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-07-30
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 6.5)
The give three tables provide us information about dramatic increase of total population of New York City during the period of three centuries. However, other two tables reflects the definite contrast of change of population in Manhattan against that of other four districts namely; Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island.
if we look at the overall growth of New York City, it is clear that it increased by almost 300% every 100 years. The population was only 79,216 in year 1800 and reached to 8,009,185 in year 2000. But while looking at the individual population of Manhattan, trend went completely opposite where the population rate dropped from 76% to 19% during the same period. However, the population of other four districts got almost doubled from 1800 to 1900 and repeatedly doubled in 2000. It starts from 18,701 but reached steadily to 6,47,089. The last two tables clarifies that there could be migration of population from one district to other three districts hence reduces the population one district while adding to other three districts.
to sum up, It can be said that overall trend of population of City New York is increasing with similar trend of Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Station Island while population of Manhttan is dramatically dropped during 300 years.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5
The response covers the main trends in the data, identifying the overall population growth and the contrasting shifts between Manhattan and the other districts. However, the analysis is hampered by inaccuracies in data interpretation. For example, the claim that the population increased by 300% every 100 years is mathematically incorrect based on the provided figures. Additionally, the statement that the population of the other four districts 'repeatedly doubled' is not fully supported by the data. While the main features are highlighted, the lack of precision in reporting the figures and the slight over-generalisation of trends prevent a higher score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, body, and conclusion. The progression of ideas is generally clear, moving from the overall city trend to specific district comparisons. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward, such as the repetitive use of 'However' and 'But' to start sentences. Referencing is occasionally unclear, particularly in the final paragraph where 'Station Island' is misspelled and the connection between the districts is stated as a hypothesis rather than a clear summary of the provided data.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe trends (e.g., 'dramatic increase', 'dropped', 'steadily'). However, there are several errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'give three tables' instead of 'given three tables' and 'reflects the definite contrast of change'. Some phrasing is unnatural, such as 'trend went completely opposite'. There are also minor spelling errors like 'Manhttan'. To improve, the student should focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensuring accurate word forms.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally conveyed, there are frequent grammatical errors, including missing articles ('in year 1800'), incorrect verb forms ('tables reflects'), and punctuation issues (e.g., the misuse of the semicolon after 'namely'). The sentence 'The last two tables clarifies' contains a subject-verb agreement error. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to limit the score. More attention to subject-verb agreement and article usage is required.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.