Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-29
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 given tables illustrates the major changing in total papulation of New York, Meanwhile the other five districts also grown with the same time period.
Since in 1800, Manhattan city's population was about 60,515 with the total percentage of 76. As well as the other five districts was in lower in population with the percentage of 24, but the city of New York was major than mentioned ones with the population of 79,216. As in 1900, New York city was remained in higher population than Manhattan and other four districts in which Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island is mentioned. In 2000, the other four districts was huge grown in population with the percentage of 81 of total population,while the New York city remained top in the popultaion with the higher numbers of 8,009,185 peoples, but in 2000, the Manhattan city decreased in population that was about 19% of total 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 | 4.5 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The response attempts to cover the main features of the tables, noting the overall population growth of New York City alongside the shifting proportions of Manhattan versus the other districts between 1800 and 2000. However, there are significant issues with data interpretation and expression. For example, the student writes that 'New York city was remained in higher population than Manhattan', which confuses the whole city with a single district since the total population necessarily exceeds any of its parts. Furthermore, the writing contains awkward phrasing and minor inaccuracies in reporting the precise figures and trends. While a basic overview and some comparisons are provided, the ideas are under-developed and lack the analytical precision expected for Academic Task 1. This performance aligns best with Band 5.0 descriptors.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response suffers from a lack of clear paragraphing, being written as a single dense block of text which hampers the overall organization. Cohesive devices are used awkwardly or repetitively, such as 'Since in 1800', 'As well as', and 'As in 1900', which creates a mechanical and disjointed flow rather than a smooth progression of ideas. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, making it difficult for the reader to follow the exact comparisons between Manhattan and the other districts across the three time periods. Although there is a rudimentary sequence moving from 1800 to 2000, the structural progression lacks clarity. This level of coherence corresponds closely to Band 4.5, rounded to 5.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is very limited and repetitive, featuring frequent errors in word choice and spelling. Examples include 'illustrates' used with a singular/plural mismatch ('illustrates the major changing'), 'papulation' and 'popultaion' for population, and 'grown' used incorrectly as a verb form ('also grown' and 'huge grown'). The student struggles with basic collocations and attempts at less common vocabulary result in unnatural expressions like 'the other districts was in lower in population' and 'peoples'. While the vocabulary is minimally adequate to convey the general topic, frequent lexical inaccuracies restrict communication. These characteristics place the response firmly at Band 4.5, rounded to 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5
The grammatical range is extremely limited, relying heavily on simple structures and faulty attempts at complex sentences. There are persistent errors in subject-verb agreement and tense usage, such as 'the given tables illustrates', 'the other districts was', and 'the Manhattan city decreased in population that was about'. Prepositional and article errors are also common throughout the text, including 'with the total percentage of' and 'in higher population'. These frequent errors frequently cause strain for the reader and demonstrate weak control over basic grammatical structures. This performance matches the criteria for a Band 4.5, leading to a score of 4.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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