Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-28
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 shows changes in the total population of New York City between 1800 and 2000..The second and third tables shows changes in the population of the five districts of the city (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) over the same period.let discuss each table briefly.
The First table shows how the total population of New York city changes from 1800 and 2000.In the year of 1800 the population is 79.216 in all five districts of New York city.In the 1900 century the populatons in all five districts of newyork city increases up to 3,437,202..Lastly in the 2000 century it reaches highest of all time till 2000 which os 8,[redacted phone].
The second and third table illustrate about the percentages of total population in all five districts in every all 3 century.Around 76% of total population which is 60,515 lives at Manhattan in 1800.while 24% of total population which is 18,701 in numbers lives in other four districts which is Brooklyn,Bronx,Queens,State Island.As we move forward in 1900s there is decrease in percentage of total population at Manhattan.The ration goes down to 54% which is 1.859,093 of total numbers of population.On the others hand other 4 districts observes the increase in population percentage up to 46% which is 1,587,109 of total.Last but not the least in 2000 century there were steady increase in population in rest of the four districts up to 81% which is 6,471,089 of total number of peoples lives there.On the other hand Manhattan city faces decrease in population and only 19% peoples live their which is 1,538,096 of total population.
The conclusion of all three tables clearly shows that In 1800s the population at Manhattan was on its peak as compare to other four districts.But in 1900s and 2000s it is observed that population continously increasing in other four districts of newywork city and experience a big decline in Manhattan state.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response covers all parts of the task well, providing an overview of the total population data alongside specific figures and percentages for Manhattan and the other four districts across the three given years (1800, 1900, and 2000). Key trends, such as Manhattan's decline in population percentage from 76% to 19% and the corresponding growth in the other districts, are successfully reported and contrasted. However, the student includes conversational filler in the introduction ('let discuss each table briefly') which slightly detracts from an academic tone. While the data selection is generally accurate, there are minor transcription errors with specific figures, such as writing '79.216' and '8,009.185' using periods instead of commas, and slight misreadings of numbers. Despite these minor issues, all parts of the prompt are adequately addressed, earning a Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The text is structured into clear paragraphs, starting with an introduction, moving to body paragraphs detailing the tables, and finishing with a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used to connect ideas, such as 'In the First table', 'while', 'As we move forward', and 'On the other hand'. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, expressions like 'Last but not the least' are overly informal and conversational. Furthermore, paragraphing and sentence transitions can feel abrupt, and punctuation errors (such as double periods) disrupt the logical flow of the text. Overall progression is visible, but the management of cohesive devices and referencing places this response firmly at Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting to use topic-specific terms like 'population', 'percentage', 'districts', and 'decline'. However, there are numerous lexical and spelling inaccuracies throughout the text, such as 'populatons', 'newyork', 'ratio' spelled as 'ration', 'observes' instead of 'observe', and 'peoples'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with limited success and some awkward word choices, such as 'Manhattan city' and 'Manhattan state'. These errors do not completely impede communication, but they restrict the lexical score to Band 5.5, as the vocabulary control shows noticeable weaknesses.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but control over grammar and punctuation is inconsistent. There are frequent errors in verb tense consistency (e.g., mixing past data discussion with present tense verbs like 'shows', 'is', 'lives'), subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., 'tables shows', 'percentage... lives'), and missing articles. Punctuation is also problematic, marked by erratic spacing, missing spaces after periods, and double periods ('..'). While complex structures are attempted, they are often accompanied by frequent errors that require some effort from the reader to parse. This performance aligns with the Band 5.0 descriptors.
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