Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-17
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 show the variations in the overall population of New York City and in its five districts: Manhattan, Brookly, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island from 1800 to 2000.
Overall, there is a substantial increase in total population of New York City. However, various trends can be seen at district level. In 1800 and 1900 Manhattan district occupies a large percentage of population, that decreased dramatically in 2000. Whereas, the population in other districts increased with time.
In 1800 the population of New York city was 79,216, out which a large portion (76%) was living in Manhattan, while only 16 percent was in other four districts. The population of this city increased by a huge surge in 1900 reaching 3,437,202. The percentage of Manhattan decreased to 54%, while percentage of other districts increased to 46%.
In 2000, the overall population was almost tripled to 8,009,185. On the other hand, the percentage of people living in Manhattan dramatically fell to 19%. In contrast, other districts contributes to 81% of total population.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5
The response covers all parts of the task well, successfully reporting the main features from both tables. You provided a clear overview of the general population growth in New York City alongside the contrasting shift in district proportions, noting how Manhattan's dominance declined while other districts expanded. You accurately cited figures from 1800, 1900, and 2000 to support your points, such as the total population reaching 8,009,185 in 2000. There is a minor mathematical/transcription miscalculation in paragraph 3 where you state 'while only 16 percent was in other four districts' (the table shows 24%), but overall, the key trends and comparisons are well selected, presented, and adequately supported with data.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The response exhibits a clear logical organization and progression throughout. You effectively divided the text into an introduction, an overview paragraph, and two body paragraphs comparing the different time periods and districts. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'However', 'In 1800', and 'In contrast' are used well to guide the reader through the data. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, ensuring that related ideas are grouped together logically. While referencing is generally clear, slightly smoother transitions between the total population figures and the district percentages could elevate the coherence further.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The vocabulary used is adequate and generally appropriate for an Academic Task 1 response. You successfully incorporate lexical items such as 'varieties', 'substantial increase', 'dramatically', and 'proportion'. However, there are a few minor spelling and word-choice errors, such as spelling 'Brooklyn' as 'Brookly' and using 'contributes' instead of 'contributed' in the past tense. Additionally, phrases like 'a huge surge' and 'almost tripled' demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary with some flexibility, allowing you to describe trends with reasonable precision despite minor inaccuracies.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writing displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases effectively. You demonstrate good control over basic structures, and many sentences are error-free. However, a few grammatical inaccuracies are present, notably 'out which' instead of 'of which', agreement issues in 'percentage of other districts increased', and tense inconsistency when shifting to present tense ('other districts contributes') while describing historical data from 2000. These errors do not impede communication, but they prevent the response from achieving a higher band for grammatical accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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