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 Tables illustrates the difference in residents between 1800 and 2000 in New York City and multiple other districts.

Overall, the population of New York City saw a massive hike from 1800, it went from approx 80000 residents to around 3.5 million and it got more than double in 2000 to over 8 million people.

Meanwhile, Manhattan district experienced the gradual decline in its concensus in the 1900s, the population dropped to 54% from 76%. Furthermore, in the year 2000 the downfall in the population was more drastic as it fell 35% and was recorded 19%.

The other districts of New York City saw massive resurgence over the centuries. In the year 1900 the percentage was recorded almost the double 46% which was an increase from 24%. And in the 2000s the residents number rose from around 1.5 million to over 6 million.

In conclusion, the New York City and its other four district saw massive increase in population while Manhattan experienced a dramatic decline in its population.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The student covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the overall population and the district breakdown over the years 1800, 1900, and 2000. Key comparisons are made, such as noting the massive growth in New York City's total population and the contrasting shift between Manhattan and the other districts. However, there are some inaccurate interpretations of the data; for instance, the writer states that in the year 2000 the downfall in Manhattan was 'more drastic as it fell 35% and was recorded 19%', whereas the table shows the percentage dropped from 54% to 19% (a 35 percentage point drop, but the wording is slightly confusing). Additionally, the initial population in 1800 is misread as 80,000 instead of 79,216. Despite these minor misreadings, the overall trends are adequately captured, earning a band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response is structured with an introduction, body paragraphs dealing with overall population, Manhattan, and other districts respectively, and a brief conclusion. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader through the data, such as 'Overall', 'Meanwhile', 'Furthermore', and 'In conclusion'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different categories of information. However, referencing and logical progression occasionally falter, such as the slightly disjointed transition into the 2000s data for the other districts ('And in the 2000s the residents number rose...'). Cohesion can occasionally feel mechanical rather than naturally flowing. Overall, the organizational structure meets the criteria for Band 6.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with attempts to incorporate less common items and descriptive phrases such as 'massive hike', 'gradual decline', 'drastic', and 'massive resurgence'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors that detract from precision, such as using 'concensus' instead of 'percentage' or 'population proportion', and 'residents number' instead of 'number of residents'. Spelling is generally correct, but lexical precision is lacking in places, which places this response securely at Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and introductory prepositional phrases. There are several grammatical errors and awkward structures throughout the text. For example, the opening sentence has a subject-verb agreement error ('The Tables illustrates'), and 'it got more than double' is unnatural phrasing. Furthermore, articles and prepositions are occasionally misused, as seen in 'experienced the gradual decline' and 'in the 2000s the residents number rose'. Although these errors are frequent, they rarely impede overall communication, supporting a Band 6.0 score.

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

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