Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-14

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 given tables illustrate the changes in total population of New York City and its districts from year 1800 to 2000.

To begin with,in 1800, total population of New York City was recorded 79,216. In 1900, it increased to 3,437,202. And then it skyrocketed by almost 5,000,000 in year 2000. In 1800, majority of the population lived in Manhattan district, about 76%. In 1900, almost 54% of total population was living in this district. In 2000, number of people living in the Manhattan district decreased by little more than 300,000.

While, population of other disricts like Brooklyn,Bronx,Queens and Staten Island was only 24% of the total population in 1800. In 1900, number of people living in these districts significantly increased to 1,587,109. In 2000, almost 4/5th of the total population was living in these districts.

Overall, it can be clearly seen that highest number of population in New York City was in year 2000 amoung three years. Manhattan was the district where majority of the population was living in the first year but in the third year, most of the people shifted to the other districts.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response covers the main features of the tables well by presenting overall population trends and district-level shifts across the three years (1800, 1900, and 2000). You successfully selected key data points, such as the initial population of 79,216 in 1800 and the massive surge to 8 million by 2000, alongside percentage shares for Manhattan and the other four districts. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in your data reporting; for instance, you stated that the Manhattan population decreased by 'a little more than 300,000' between 1900 and 2000, whereas the table shows it grew from 1,850,093 to 1,537,195, which is a decrease of nearly 313,000, but you failed to trace its intermediate growth up to 1900 properly in that sentence. Additionally, grouping all four other districts together as '24% in 1800' and '4/5th' in 2000 broadly captures the shift, but a more granular breakdown of individual districts would elevate the response. Overall, the task is adequately addressed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The text is arranged into four paragraphs, following a logical structure with an introduction, body paragraphs dealing with specific timeframes and districts, and an overview. Cohesive devices are used to signal progression, such as 'To begin with', 'While', and 'Overall'. However, some of the referencing and transitions feel slightly mechanical or abrupt. For example, starting the third paragraph with 'While, population of other disricts...' creates a fragmented and grammatically awkward transition from the previous paragraph. Paragraphing is generally appropriate, separating the city-wide and district comparisons, but internal cohesion within paragraphs could be smoother to establish a clearer overall progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for a Task 1 response, employing terms like 'skyrocketed', 'majority', and 'significantly increased'. However, there are noticeable spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'disricts' instead of 'districts' and 'amoung' instead of 'among'. The lexical control lacks the precision and flexibility expected at higher bands, relying on relatively common descriptive terms. While the vocabulary is sufficient to communicate your main points about the population changes, these recurring slips prevent the response from achieving a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'While, population of other disricts like Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island was only 24% of the total population in 1800.' There are several grammatical errors and punctuation issues throughout the text, including missing articles ('total population' instead of 'the total population'), missing commas after introductory phrases ('To begin with, in 1800'), and awkward phrasing like 'highest number of population in New York City was in year 2000 amoung three years'. These errors occasionally cause minor friction for the reader, though they do not impede overall communication.

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