Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-19

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 4.0)

new york city (all five districtss)

year population

1800 79,216

1900 3,437,[redacted phone] 8,009,185

manhattan

year population as percentage% of total population

1800 60,515 76%

1900 1,850,093 54%

2000 1,538,096 19%

other districts (brooklyn, bronx, queens, stalen island)

year population as percentage% of total population

1800 18,701 24%

1900 1,587,109 46%

2000 6,471,089 81%

hello hi g population year districts books copy pen chair general jeournalists news newspaper

the table shows changes in the population of new york city between 1800 to 2000 including the populatrion and percemntage of the total living things in manhattan and the other four districts\

overall, the population of new york city increased during the period. although manhattan initially accounted for the vast majority of the cities population .

in 1800 new york city city had va total population of 79216 of whom 60515

by 2000 the total population had reached [redacted phone] in contrast to rearlier growth the manhattan population fell slightly ton [redacted phone] and its porpotion decreased mainly outside the mannhattsan

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response fails to adequately address the task. It includes irrelevant data (the copied table text and random words like 'books', 'pen', 'chair') which distracts from the summary. While it identifies the overall population increase and the shift in proportions between Manhattan and other districts, the analysis is incomplete and fragmented. The data is not fully synthesized, and the response ends abruptly without completing the comparison of the 2000 figures. The inclusion of non-task-related text significantly undermines the professional tone required for an Academic Task 1 report.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

The essay lacks a logical structure. The inclusion of raw data tables at the beginning is inappropriate for a summary task. Paragraphing is inconsistent, and the transition between the introduction and the body is disjointed. There is a lack of cohesive devices to link ideas, and the text suffers from a lack of flow due to the inclusion of unrelated vocabulary and incomplete sentences. The progression of ideas is not clear, making the response difficult to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 4.0

The vocabulary is very limited and repetitive. There are frequent spelling errors such as 'populatrion', 'percemntage', 'rearlier', 'porpotion', and 'mannhattsan'. The use of random, unrelated words ('journalists', 'newspaper', 'chair') indicates a lack of control over the required academic register. The range of vocabulary is insufficient to describe trends or data comparisons effectively, relying on basic terms that do not demonstrate the ability to use precise language for reporting data.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0

The response contains frequent grammatical errors and punctuation mistakes that impede readability. There are incomplete sentences, such as 'of whom 60515', and errors in subject-verb agreement and word order. The attempt at complex structures is unsuccessful, leading to confusion. Punctuation is often missing or misused, and the lack of capitalization at the start of sentences further detracts from the accuracy. The grammatical control is weak, with errors occurring in almost every sentence.

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

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