Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-14
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 table illustrate the changes in the population of New York city and five districts of the city (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) from 1800 to 2000.
On our first hand, Population of the New York city is gradually increase over the time, its was 79,216 was in 1800, Dramatically its increase to 3,437,202 in 1900, In 2000 the population went up to 8,009,185.
On our other hand, Population of Manhattan was 76% in 1800 and its gradually went down to 19% in 2000. Compare to other districts (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) population is slightly increasing its was 24% in 1800, its increased to 81% in 2000.
Overall, the population of the cities and districts are increasing gradually. New York city population suddenly increased from 79,216 to 8,009,185 in 2000, also Manhattan population is gradually decreased to 19% from 76% in 1800. Other districts population is increased from 24% to 81% gradually.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.5 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
You identify the broad trends: New York City’s total population rose substantially, Manhattan’s share fell, and the other districts’ share increased. You also include several accurate figures, such as the city totals and the 76% and 19% shares for Manhattan. However, the account is only partial: it omits the important 1900 comparison showing Manhattan at 54% and the other districts at 46%, and it describes the other districts’ population as increasing only “slightly,” despite the large change. The overview also says all populations increased gradually, which does not capture Manhattan’s fall in absolute population after 1900. The response is 144 words, below the 150-word minimum; the 11 words copied from the prompt are not counted.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response has separate paragraphs for the introduction, the city total, district shares, and a concluding overview, so the reader can identify the main sections. However, progression is limited because the conclusion repeats points already made rather than synthesising the key contrast. The linking phrases “On our first hand” and “On our other hand” are awkward and do not clearly signal the relationships between the data. Some references are also unclear: “its” is used for both the city and population, while “other districts” is followed by a list that incorrectly includes Manhattan. Organise the body around total population and then the changing distribution between Manhattan and the other districts, using clear comparisons across all three years.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use relevant topic vocabulary, including “population,” “districts,” “increased,” and “went down,” and the main trends remain understandable. However, the range is limited and several choices are inaccurate or repetitive. “Gradually” is repeated even though the figures show large changes across the century, and “slightly increasing” understates the rise in the other districts’ share from 24% to 81%. Phrases such as “On our first hand” and “On our other hand” are not natural for describing a table. Aim for precise trend language and vary verbs and comparison phrases; for example, distinguish a rise in total population from a change in percentage share.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5
Most sentences communicate a basic trend, but the response relies heavily on simple clauses and has frequent errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries. For example, “The table illustrate” should be “The table illustrates,” and “its was 79,216 was in 1800” contains an incorrect pronoun and duplicated verb. In “Population … is gradually increase,” the verb form is faulty; use “increased” or “has increased.” Capitalisation and punctuation are also inconsistent, including the comma splice in the sentence beginning “Dramatically its increase.” These errors sometimes make the relationships between figures difficult to follow. Practise accurate past-tense reporting and build comparisons with controlled clauses such as “while” and “whereas.”
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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