Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-20

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 6.0)

The first table presents the total population of New York City between 1800 and 2000, at an interval of a century. While the second and third table illustrate the density of people in five districts of the city namely- Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island.

Overall, the population of the city soared exponentially in each century. Initially Manhattan being the most inhabited, was overtook by the other district by the year 2000.

In 1800, the density of people situated in the city was just under 80000. Which rose dramatically and became incomparable to the previous population within a century, accounting for around 3.5 million residents. Following the same trend, it ended up with just over 8 million population by 2000.

While Manhattan accounted for three quarter of the population initially, it reached its peak in 1900 with 1.8 million and ending up finally at 1.5 million. On the other hand, population of the four districts grew with extraordinary margin by going from 18,701 to 6,471,089 during the period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers the main trends and provides a clear overview. You successfully identified the exponential growth of the total population and the shift in distribution from Manhattan to the other districts. However, the data reporting is slightly inconsistent. For instance, stating Manhattan accounted for 'three quarter' of the population initially is inaccurate based on the provided figures (1800: 60,515 out of 79,216 is roughly 76%, but the phrasing is imprecise). Additionally, the summary of the four districts is a bit vague. To reach a higher band, ensure that all data points cited are precise and that comparisons between the districts are more explicitly supported by the provided figures.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized into an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. The progression of ideas is generally clear, moving from the total population to the specific district trends. However, the use of cohesive devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward, such as starting a sentence with 'Which rose dramatically' or 'While the second and third table illustrate'. These sentence fragments or dependent clauses used as independent sentences disrupt the flow. Improving the variety and accuracy of linking words would help the essay read more naturally and improve the overall coherence.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'soared exponentially', 'inhabited', and 'extraordinary margin'. However, there are some issues with word choice and collocation. For example, 'was overtook by' is grammatically incorrect (should be 'was overtaken'), and 'incomparable to' is used in a way that is slightly confusing in this context. The phrase 'at an interval of a century' is good, but overall, the vocabulary is somewhat limited in its ability to convey precise statistical relationships. Expanding your repertoire of reporting verbs and comparative adjectives would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you attempt complex sentences, there are several grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. For example, the first paragraph contains a sentence fragment ('While the second and third table illustrate...'). There are also errors in verb forms, such as 'was overtook' instead of 'was overtaken', and minor punctuation issues. While these errors do not completely prevent understanding, they occur frequently enough to limit the score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and ensuring that all sentences are complete, independent clauses will help improve your accuracy.

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

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