Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-03

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 6.5)

The three tables provide data on the overall population growth of New York City and compare the demographic shifts between Manhattan and other four districts (Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) from 1800 to 2000.

Overall, New York City's total population experienced exponential growth over the 200 year period. While Manhattan's population peaked in 1900 before declining, the other four districts saw continous, rapid growth, eventually surpassing the the total population of Manhattan by 2000.

In 1800, New York CIty population was 79,216, with Manhattan housing a vast variety of around 60,515 residents (76%). By 1900, the city,s overall population surged to 3,437,202. Although Manhattan,s population grew significantly to 1,850,093 during this century, its share of the city,s total fell to 54%. By 2000, the city,s total population reached 8,009,185, but Manhattan,s population actually dropped to 1,538,096, shrinking his share just to 19%.

In contrast, other four districts experienced continous and significant growth over the entire period. In 1800, their combined population was only 18,701, representing 24% of the total. This figure climbed rapidly to 1,587,109 (46%) in 1900. By 2000, these districts saw a massive population explosion, reaching 6,47,1089 residents and accounting for an overwhelming share of 81% of New York City,s total population.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your response covers all parts of the task and successfully highlights the main features and trends, such as the overall population explosion and the contrasting trajectories between Manhattan and the other four districts. You present a clear overview in the second paragraph that effectively summarises the broad patterns shown in the data. However, the response sits at this level because some of the details could be more fully integrated or extended. For instance, while you mention specific figures for 1800, 1900, and 2000, you could push further into the upper bands by providing a more nuanced analysis of the speed of change between the individual districts rather than lumping the other four together so broadly. Overall, your selection of data is relevant and accurately reflects the provided tables.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

Your text demonstrates a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. You begin with a proper introductory paragraph that paraphrases the prompt, followed by a well-crafted overview paragraph. The body paragraphs are logically divided, dealing first with Manhattan and then contrasting this with the other four districts. You use cohesive devices flexibly and appropriately, such as 'While Manhattan's population peaked...', 'In 1800...', and 'In contrast...'. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and effectively to structure your ideas. To reach even higher bands, you could ensure that referencing between sentences is slightly tighter, avoiding minor mechanical feel in transitional phrases, but your overall arrangement is coherent and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common lexical items such as 'exponential growth', 'demographic shifts', and 'population explosion'. Your word choices generally convey the information clearly and communicate your meaning without impediment. However, there are a few lexical errors and typographical slips that prevent a higher score, such as spelling 'continous' instead of 'continuous', using 'housing a vast variety of' rather than a more precise collocation for population figures, and the pronoun error 'shrinking his share' instead of 'its share'. You also have comma punctuation issues within words (e.g., 'city,s'). To improve, focus on mastering exact word forms and collocations while eliminating basic spelling mistakes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

Your writing displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses, participial phrases, and contrastive structures successfully (e.g., 'Although Manhattan's population grew significantly...'). You demonstrate reasonable control over sentence architecture, and your grammatical errors are relatively infrequent and rarely impede communication. Noticeable slips include minor agreement or article issues, such as 'compare the demographic shifts between Manhattan and other four districts' (missing 'the') and a typo with a comma instead of an apostrophe in 'New York CIty population'. To push into higher bands, you need to produce a higher frequency of error-free complex sentences and exercise tighter control over punctuation and article usage.

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.