Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-05

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 provided table demonstrates the changes in the total population of the new yourk city between 1800 and 2000, while the second and third tables illustrates the changes in the population of the different five districts of the city over the same period.

Overall, the population of New york city's had increased drametically over the period given. Manhattan's share of total population fell sharply, whereas other districts has rose considerably.

In 1800, 79,216 residents live in New york city. This figure has increased significantly in 1900 at 3,437,202. After this population peaked up at 8,009,185 in 2000.

Manhattan's population in 1800 around 60,515, this represented 76% share, this figure slightly rose at 1,850,093, although this share fall at 54%. In 2000, the population had decreased accounted of 1,538,096, at just only 19%.

By contrast, 18,701 residents has lives in other districts in 1800, which 24% share of total population, followed by, this figure surged at 6,471,089 in 2000 and also this percentage incresed steadily at 81%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response successfully covers all parts of the prompt by presenting an overview of the total population changes in New York City alongside specific data for Manhattan and the other districts. Key features, such as the overall population growth and the contrasting trajectories of Manhattan versus the other districts, are adequately reported and compared. However, some parts of the response are more fully developed than others; for instance, the description of population milestones lacks complete precision, and the relationship between the percentages and raw figures could be sharper. To reach a higher level, the response should provide a more fully developed comparison of the shifts across all periods without relying on repetitive structural patterns.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The text maintains a coherent overall arrangement with a clear division into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview, a paragraph on total population, and concluding paragraphs on the districts. Cohesive devices are employed to structure the comparison, such as "Overall", "In 1800", and "By contrast". Nevertheless, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical, and referencing between clauses can occasionally become unclear. For example, expressions like "followed by, this figure surged" disrupt the natural flow and logical progression of the sentences. To achieve a higher band, the transitions between sentences and data points need to be smoother and more sophisticated, avoiding mechanical listing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items and descriptive verbs such as "dramatically", "surged", and "peaked". However, there are noticeable lexical errors, awkward word choices, and spelling mistakes that occasionally detract from the precision of the report, such as "new yourk city", "drametically", "has rose", "population peaked up", and "accounted of". Furthermore, word forms are sometimes handled incorrectly, as seen with "fall at 54%" instead of falling to or dropping to. To improve, the student must refine word choice, ensure accurate spellings of proper nouns and common modifiers, and master prepositional collocations associated with statistical trends.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writing displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating an attempt to handle comparative and temporal structures. There are, however, some errors in grammar and punctuation throughout the response, such as tense inconsistencies ("residents live", "This figure has increased... in 1900"), subject-verb agreement issues ("other districts has rose", "residents has lives"), and missing prepositions or articles. While these errors rarely impede overall communication, they persist across multiple sentences. To progress to a higher band, the student needs to demonstrate better control over complex grammatical structures, ensuring accurate verb tense selection for past data and eliminating basic agreement and structural errors.

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

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