Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-12
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 table displays information about how the total population of New york changes from 1800 to 2000, while the second and third table show the contribution of different cities of New york in enhancing population.
Overall, in 2000 the population was highly dense because of contribution of Brooklyn, Bronx, Queen, Staten Island whereas the reverse trend is noticed in year 1900 and 1800 where the more than half percent of contribution is due to Manhattan.
In year 1800, the population was 79,216 less than other years but mostly because of manhattan city which contribute 76%, while other four cities contributing just 24% the lowest in all years. In contrary in 1900 the population increases to 3,437,202 which was a greatest shift from thousand to millions, whereas the contribution of manhattan is 54% (1,850,093) while other districts contribute 46% on average.
In 2000, there was a great shift in population occurs which was 10 times higher than other showing 8,009,185 Inhabitants. A reverse trand is observed in which manhattan was contributing only 19% which was the least in all year as compared to that other cities contributing 81% highest in all.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student successfully highlights the main features of the population tables, noting the overall increase in New York City's population from 1800 to 2000 and pointing out the shifting proportions contributed by Manhattan versus the other four districts. The response identifies key data points, such as the high initial dominance of Manhattan in 1800 (76%) and its decline to 19% by 2000, alongside the corresponding rise of the outer boroughs. However, there are minor inaccuracies in data interpretation—for instance, describing 79,216 in 1800 as being 'less than other years' rather than simply stating the absolute figure, and referring to districts as 'cities'. Nevertheless, all parts of the task are addressed, and key comparisons are made effectively. This meets the criteria for Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is structured into an introduction and three body paragraphs, giving it a clear overall arrangement. Information flows logically from an overview into specific chronological data points starting from 1800, moving to 1900, and finishing in 2000. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'In year 1800', 'In contrary', and 'In 2000' are used to guide the reader through the data. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical, as seen with phrases like 'In contrary' (instead of 'In contrast') and awkward transitional phrasing between sentences. Paragraphing is present, but internal cohesion lacks seamless flexibility. This aligns closely with the Band 6.0 descriptors.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common items and specific statistical terms such as 'inhabitants', 'contribution', 'proportion', and 'reverse trend'. However, there are notable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'New york changes' (instead of 'changed'), 'Manhattan city' (instead of 'the borough of Manhattan'), 'Queen' (instead of 'Queens'), and 'In contrary' (instead of 'In contrast'). Spelling errors are also present, such as 'trand' instead of 'trend'. While these errors do not impede overall communication, they restrict the lexical score to Band 5.5 because precision and stylistic control are lacking.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative and subordinate clauses such as 'while the second and third table show...' and 'where the more than half percent of contribution is due to Manhattan'. However, grammatical accuracy is inconsistent. There are frequent errors in article usage, subject-verb agreement, and tense consistency, such as 'how the total population... changes' (past context requires past tense), 'there was a great shift in population occurs', and missing articles before singular countable nouns. Punctuation is generally acceptable, but frequent non-systematic structural errors place this response firmly at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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