Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-13

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 first table provides data on the changes in the amount of New York city population during the specific time period of year 1800 to 2000. The other two tables calculate the district wise change in population of all five districts, during the same time period.

Overall, The population of New York experienced the greatest increase in year 2000. The pupulation of every district rose steadily during every year with Manhattan being the only exception as it's population decreased in the year 2000.

New York's population increased from 79,216 to 3,437,202 in 1900 and in the year 2000 it went straight to 8,009,185. Manhattan witnessed an increase from 60,515 to 1,850,093 in year 1900 but then it decreased in 2000 to only 1,538,096.

The population of other four districts kept increasing throughout the whole time period by rising from 24% in 1800 to 46% in 1900 but then number increased to 6,4

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the broad rise in New York City’s population and the contrasting fall in Manhattan’s population after 1900, and the figures you give for these are accurate. However, the overview is not fully reliable: saying that every district rose steadily conflicts with Manhattan’s decline, and the tables do not provide figures for each district separately. The final comparison is also incomplete: the response stops after “6,4” and does not report the other districts’ 2000 population or their 81% share. As a result, important information is only partly covered and some points are unclear. To strengthen the report, give a complete overview of the shift in population share from Manhattan to the other districts, and finish the key comparisons using the supplied data.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic, sensible sequence: an introduction, an overview, and then details about the city and Manhattan before turning to the other districts. Linking expressions such as “Overall,” “but then,” and “throughout the whole time period” help show relationships between ideas. However, the progression is weakened by the contradiction between “every district rose steadily” and Manhattan’s later decline. The final sentence is unfinished, so the report does not reach a clear conclusion or complete its last comparison. Some phrasing also makes references imprecise, such as “the other four districts” when the figures are grouped together rather than shown individually. Organise the overview around the main contrast, then present complete, clearly grouped comparisons.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing data, including “increased,” “decreased,” “witnessed,” and “population,” so the main trends are generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several choices are awkward or inaccurate for a formal report. “Amount of New York city population” is not a natural collocation; “population of New York City” is clearer. “District wise change” is also unnatural, while “calculate” does not accurately describe what the tables do. There are noticeable spelling errors, including “pupulation,” and the unfinished “6,4” makes the final figure unusable. Aim for precise data-reporting language and check spelling and number transcription carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, and the main comparisons can usually be understood. For example, the sentence contrasting Manhattan’s rise to 1900 with its decline by 2000 uses a clear “but then” structure. However, grammatical control is uneven. The opening uses the awkward pattern “changes in the amount of … population,” and “during the specific time period of year 1800 to 2000” has an incorrect preposition and article pattern. Capitalisation is inconsistent in “Overall, The population,” and the long final sentence is incomplete, ending without a finished clause or comparison. Use straightforward, complete sentences, check articles and prepositions, and proofread punctuation and sentence endings.

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