Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)
The three tables illustrates changes in the total population of New York CIty,Manhattan and other four districts(Brooklyn,Bronx,Queens,Staten Island over the period of 200 year.
Overall,a population in New York City showed a significant amount of increase in percentage,while Manhattan originally housed the vast marority of the city's residents.its complete dominance shifted to other districts across the years.
In 1800,New York population had a total population of 79,216 while manhattan
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0
The response fails to meet the minimum length requirement of 150 words, stopping abruptly at only 61 words (with some words copied from the prompt left uncounted). It responds to the task only minimally, providing a brief introduction and an unfinished overview, but cutting off mid-sentence before adequately reporting the main features or making the required comparisons. To reach a higher band, the student must write a complete response that fully addresses all parts of the prompt with well-developed ideas and supporting data.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5
The text shows an attempt at basic paragraphing with an introduction and an overview. However, because the response cuts off abruptly after only a few sentences, overall progression and logical organization cannot be fully established. Basic cohesive devices like 'while' and 'overall' are attempted, but referencing and paragraph structure remain incomplete due to the extreme brevity of the text. To improve, the student needs to develop fully articulated paragraphs with clear logical transitions linking the introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is minimally adequate for the task, featuring attempts at less common phrasing such as 'significant amount of increase' and 'vast majority'. There are some minor lexical and typographical slips, such as spacing errors ('CIty,Manhattan', 'districts(Brooklyn'), but these do not heavily impede understanding. To achieve a higher band, the writer should employ a wider and more flexible range of vocabulary, demonstrating precise word choice and natural collocations without repetition.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response contains a very limited range of sentence structures, and the text breaks off before complex structures can be reliably demonstrated. There are noticeable punctuation and spacing errors throughout the text, such as missing spaces after commas and parentheses. While the basic subject-verb patterns attempted are mostly understandable, the severe truncation prevents a full assessment of grammatical control. To improve, the student must produce a fuller range of error-free simple and complex sentences.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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