Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-19
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 table compares the total population of five districts of New York City during 1800, 1900 and 2000.
Overall, the population of the New York City dramatically increased. Four out of five districts (Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island) had increased the percentage of residents, while proportion of Manhattan district decreased.
In year 1800, the total population of people was 79,216 in the City. Manhattan accounted for 76% or 60,515 whereas, other four districts had 24% inhabitants.
In 1900, population had grown substantially to 3/437,202. Manhattan remained the most popular district with 54% or 1,850,093 residents. In contrast, remaining four districts recorded 46% with 1,587,109 figures respectively.
In last century, population reached the highest number of 8,009,185 from which 81% or 6,471,089 proportion of four districts. However, Manhattan population dropped to just 19% of total share.
In summary, City population exceptionally rosed and four districts share increased gradually. On the other hand, Manhattan recorded highest number of individuals in first two centuries before dipped to 19% in 2000.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5
The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features, selecting appropriate data points, and making relevant comparisons between Manhattan and the other districts over the given centuries. The overview in the second and final paragraphs correctly highlights the overall population growth and the shifting proportions. Key figures from the prompt, such as the 1800 population of 79,216 and the 2000 total of 8,009,185, are accurately cited. Although some minor phrasing is slightly awkward, the key trends are clearly presented, meeting the requirements for a Band 7.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The response is logically organised, moving chronologically from 1800 through 1900 to 2000, which provides a clear progression. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate introduction, body points, and summary. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'In year 1800', 'In contrast', and 'However' are employed to guide the reader through the data, although some referencing and transitions are a bit mechanical or repetitive, such as starting consecutive sentences with 'In year 1800', 'In 1900', and 'In last century'. This places the text comfortably in the Band 6.5 to 7.0 range.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'proportion', 'residents', 'substantially', and 'inhabitants'. However, there are some lexical inaccuracies and awkward word choices, such as a typographical error in '3/437,202', using 'popular' instead of 'populous' when describing Manhattan, and unnatural phrasing like 'figures respectively' and 'population exceptionally rosed'. Despite these slips, communication is never impeded, earning a solid Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and comparative constructions. There are several noticeable grammatical errors, such as 'had increased the percentage' instead of 'increased their percentage', 'population of people', and the incorrect verb forms 'rosed' (instead of rose) and 'dipped' (instead of dipping or dropping). While punctuation and sentence boundaries are generally fine, the frequency of grammatical and morphological errors keeps this criterion at a Band 6.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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