Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)
The first table illustrates, changes in total population of New York city from 1800 to 2000, while the second table compares population of Manhattan and other four districts within New York City.
Overall, we see a significant increase in number of population in the city where numbers crossed more than 800 thousand people. In 1800 Manhattan was the most populated district of New York city but in 2000 these number changed completely with more percentage of people in other four districts.
In 1800, there were 79,210 people in New York while their number increased to 3,437,202 in 1900, and 2000 marked the highest of numbers with 8,009,185 people.
Manhattan was in the most populated area in 1800 with overall 76 percent of the population, while Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten island had only 24% of population combinely.
As time passes population in these four districts increased more than 3 folds with 81% of total popultion living in these districts, while manhattan marked only 19% of population in 2000.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The student successfully covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the tables, including the total population growth of New York City and the shifting proportions between Manhattan and the other four districts between 1800 and 2000. An overview is present, noting the overall population increase and the demographic shift away from Manhattan. Data points are accurately cited, such as the 1800 population of 79,210 (close to the exact 79,216) and the 2000 percentages. However, there is a minor numerical misinterpretation in the overview where the student states numbers crossed "more than 800 thousand people" instead of 8 million. Additionally, some comparisons could be further extended to fully satisfy higher band descriptors.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is arranged logically with a clear introduction, an overview paragraph, and body paragraphs dedicated to specific time periods and demographic shifts. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader, such as 'Overall', 'In 1800', and 'As time passes'. However, paragraphing is somewhat rudimentary, and some cohesive relationships are slightly mechanical or repetitive (e.g., beginning multiple sentences with temporal markers). Referencing is generally clear, though paragraph transitions could be smoother to achieve a higher band.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully using terms such as 'illustrates', 'compares', 'district', 'population', and 'percentage'. There are some successful less common items attempted, such as 'demographic shift' implied through context. However, there are a few word choice and spelling inaccuracies, such as 'number of population' instead of 'total population', 'combinely' instead of 'combined', and 'popultion' (spelling error). These do not impede communication but prevent the score from reaching Band 7.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the use of 'while' and 'as' clauses to connect ideas. There are several grammatical errors and punctuation lapses, including a comma splice in the first sentence ('The first table illustrates, changes...'), missing articles (e.g., 'in number of population'), and preposition/agreement issues (e.g., 'Manhattan was in the most populated area'). Despite these errors, the meaning is generally clear, and the errors do not severely impede communication.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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