Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-21
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 5.0)
The three tables gives the information of population of six different cities from the year 1800 to 2000.
Overall, the tables data is for every 100 years, in the first table, the New York City population growing more than dobule. The second table Manhattan city, were residents boosts from higher percentage to lower percentage. In the last table, the four cities namely, Brookly, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island, here the citizens ballon gradually.
In New York City inhabitants were 79,216 & in Manhattan were 60,515 in the year 1800, later after century, in 1900 the public numbers reached to 3,437,202 of New York City and Manhattan increase by 76% which 1,850,093. Following, the New York city is more developed and population is also double than previous century, reaching to 8,009,185 in 2000. The Manhattan population drop with 19% and touch the 1,538,096 residents in 2000.
In the third table, the community of Brookly, Bronx, Queens Staten Island population were 18,701 in 1800 respectively which 24% of the population. By the year 1900, the society increased by 46% and almost 1,587,109 people in the area. At last, the highest number of these districts is 81% in total 6,471,089 population.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the task by summarizing the provided tables concerning the population of New York City and its districts from 1800 to 2000. However, there are significant factual and interpretive misunderstandings. The student refers to 'six different cities' in the introduction, whereas the prompt deals with New York City and its five districts. While key figures are mentioned, such as the overall population in 1800 and 2000, some data points are misreported or awkwardly phrased, such as the statement that Manhattan's population dropped with 19% (which actually refers to its percentage share of the total population). The overview is weak, identifying only basic trends without clearly synthesizing the broader regional shifts. Consequently, the response falls into Band 5 for Task Achievement due to partial and sometimes inaccurate coverage.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The essay is divided into paragraphs, which helps give it a basic structure. However, the logical progression is frequently disrupted by awkward phrasing, disjointed sentences, and unclear referencing. For example, transitional phrases like 'Following, the New York city is more developed' are unnatural and fail to establish clear chronological or logical links between ideas. Cohesive devices are either missing, inadequate, or inappropriately applied. Paragraphing is attempted, but internal coherence within paragraphs is weak because sentences often lack clear connections to one another. Overall, the organizational structure meets the criteria for Band 5, as there is an attempt at organization, but the overall progression lacks clarity.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is quite limited and repetitive, demonstrating basic control. The student relies on simple terms and makes frequent word-choice and collocation errors, such as 'population growing more than dobule', 'residents boosts from higher percentage', and 'citizens ballon gradually'. There are also spelling errors like 'dobule' and 'Brookly'. While the reader can generally extract the intended meaning, the restricted range of vocabulary and frequent inaccuracies constrain the effectiveness of the communication, placing the response firmly at Band 5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay displays a very limited range of grammatical structures. Most sentences are simple or attempt complex forms that result in major structural errors, missing verbs, or awkward syntax. Examples include 'The three tables gives the information' (subject-verb agreement error), 'the tables data is for every 100 years, in the first table, the New York City population growing...' (run-on sentence and fragment issues), and 'Manhattan city, were residents boosts'. Frequent grammatical errors cause difficulty for the reader and impede fluent reading. Therefore, a score of 5.0 is appropriate.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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