Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-24
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 5.5)
The first table illustrates the total population of New York City from 1800 to 2000. The second and third tables illustrate the population of the five districts (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten and Island) over the same period.
Overall, the population of New York city increased significantly over the period. The percentages of total population for Manhattan declined, while the percentages of total population for other four(Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten and Island) cities increased by the end of 2000.
In 18000, New York had total of 79,216 population, from that the Manhattan had the highest amount of population stood at 76% with 60,515 numbers of people, while the other four cities (Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten and Island) had only 18,701 of total population, which stood at 24%. In 1900, New York had 3,437,202 of total population, out of that almost the same amount of population was covered by the Manhattan and other four cities, accounted for 1,850,093 and 1,587,109 and stood at 54% and 46% respectively.
In the end of 2000, the New York grew with significant number of population at 8,009,185. The Manhattan had 1,538,096 which accounted for the percentages of total population at 19%, while the other four cities had 6,41,089 which accounted for most of the percentages of total population at 81%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the data, including the overall population growth and the shift in proportions between Manhattan and the other four districts. However, the analysis is somewhat mechanical, relying heavily on listing figures rather than synthesizing trends. There are also factual inaccuracies in the data reporting; for instance, the year '18000' is a typo, and the population figure for the four districts in 2000 is misread as '6,41,089' instead of 6,471,096. While the main trends are identified, the lack of precision in data extraction and the failure to fully compare the districts' individual growth trajectories limits the score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. Cohesive devices such as 'while', 'in addition', and 'respectively' are used to link ideas. However, the progression of ideas is occasionally hindered by awkward phrasing, such as 'from that the Manhattan had the highest amount'. The use of referencing is sometimes unclear, and the transition between the overview and the body paragraphs could be smoother. Overall, the structure is coherent, but the mechanical nature of the linking words prevents a higher band.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. The student frequently repeats phrases like 'total of... population' and 'amount of population'. There are also errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'grew with significant number of population' and 'accounted for the percentages of total population'. The term 'cities' is used incorrectly to refer to the districts of New York. While the meaning is generally clear, the limited range of vocabulary and the recurring errors in word formation and collocation prevent a higher score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, including missing articles ('the Manhattan'), incorrect pluralization ('other four cities'), and awkward sentence construction ('stood at 76% with 60,515 numbers of people'). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are issues with number formatting (e.g., '6,41,089'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to demonstrate a lack of control over complex structures, keeping the score in the 6.0 range.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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