Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

The provided introduction tables illuistrates the changes in the population of New york city and the distribution of people between Manhattan and other four districts from 1800 to 2000. Overall, the population of New York city increased dramatically during the period. While manhattan had the largest share of the population in 1800, its population decreased considerably by 2000. In contrast, the other four district experienced significant growth.

It is evident that, in 1800, New York city had a total population of 79,216. This figure rose sharply to 3,437,202 in 1900 and after a decade it further surged to 8,009,185 in 2000.

Moving ahead, Manhattan had 60,515 residents in 1800 accounting for 76% of city's population. By 1900, its population had increased substantially to 1,850,093, although its shares fell to 54%. By the end of the given period, the count of population of manhattan had dwindled and reached to 1,538,096 with 19% of the total population.

Furthermore, the other four districts showed the opposite trend, their overall population increased from 18,701 with 24% of total in 1800 and reached to 1,587,109 with almost half of the total population(46%). At last, in 2000, the combined population was 6,471,089 with 81% of total population.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The student covers all parts of the task well, providing a clear overview and reporting the main features of the population changes in New York City from 1800 to 2000. Data is selected appropriately from both visual tables, comparing Manhattan with the other four districts effectively. For example, the writer notes that Manhattan held 76% of the population in 1800 but dropped to 19% by 2000, while the other districts rose from 24% to 81%. However, there is a minor factual slip in the second paragraph where the student states 'after a decade it further surged to 8,009,185 in 2000', incorrectly describing the 100-year gap between 1900 and 2000 as a decade. Despite this oversight, the overall response fulfills the requirements of Task Achievement well.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response is organized logically with a clear overall progression from an introduction to general trends, followed by total population figures and a detailed breakdown of the districts. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different aspects of the data. Cohesive devices are employed reasonably well to link ideas, such as 'Overall', 'While', 'In contrast', and 'Furthermore'. However, transitional phrasing at the start of paragraphs could be smoother, as seen in 'Moving ahead' and 'At last, in 2000', which feel slightly unnatural or mechanical for an academic report. Referencing is generally clear, ensuring the reader can follow the comparisons made between districts.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms related to data trends such as 'dramatically', 'surged', 'substantially', and 'dwindled'. There are some successful attempts at less common phrasing, such as 'accounting for 76% of city's population'. However, there are a few lexical and spelling inaccuracies that prevent a higher score, including the typo 'illuistrates' in the opening sentence, lowercase letters for proper nouns like 'New york city' and 'manhattan', and slightly awkward word collocation in 'the count of population'. Overall, communication is not impeded by these vocabulary errors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, utilizing subordinate clauses effectively with conjunctions like 'while' and 'although'. There are numerous error-free sentences, showing decent control over past tense narrative structures for historical data. Nevertheless, several grammatical and punctuation lapses occur throughout the text. These include missing capitalization ('New york city', 'manhattan'), an incorrect preposition in 'reached to 1,538,096' (should simply be 'reached 1,538,096'), and a slight punctuation slip in 'population(46%)' where a space is missing. These errors do not impede communication, but they occur with enough frequency to cap the score at Band 6.0.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.