Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-15

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 first table demonstrates changes in the total population of the New York city between 1800 and 2000. The subsequent tables show changes in the population of the five major distrcits of the city Manahattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island Over the same period of time.

Overall, the population of all five districts increased significantly in the New York City throughout the period of time.

The yearly population of all districts of New York started at a low of 79,216 in 1800, before increasing considerably to 3,437,202 in 1900. This figure did not stop here and shot up to 8,009,185 in 2000.

The yearly variation in the percentage of Manhattan was recorded 60,515 aound 76 percent in 1800, and this figure rose substantialy to 1,850.93 around 54 percent in1900 and then reached its highest 1538,09 around 19 percent in 2000.

The othe four cities population increased 24 percent in 1800 and 46 percent in 1900 and the 81 percent in

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the overall rise in New York City’s population and report the total figures for all three years accurately. You also select the key contrast between Manhattan and the other districts, including their changing shares. However, the overview is too broad: saying that all five districts increased does not capture that Manhattan’s population fell between 1900 and 2000, while the other districts grew sharply. Some figures are unclear or inaccurate in presentation: “1,850.93” appears to mean 1,850,093, and the final sentence stops before giving the 2000 population of the other districts. The response therefore covers the task only partially, with important comparisons left incomplete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure, moving from an introduction and overview to details about the total population, Manhattan, and the other districts. Time markers such as “in 1800,” “in 1900,” and “in 2000” help readers follow the chronology. However, progression is weakened by the abrupt ending: the final sentence ends at “in” and leaves the comparison unfinished. The overview also does not prepare the reader for the later detail that Manhattan’s population declined. Some linking is mechanical, particularly the repeated use of “and then,” while the relationship between population totals and percentages is not always clearly signposted. Group the district comparisons more systematically and complete each point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some suitable language for describing change, including “increased considerably,” “shot up,” and “reached its highest.” However, the vocabulary range is limited and several choices or spelling errors make the data harder to interpret. “Yearly population” is not a natural description of figures recorded at three points in time, and “the other four cities” incorrectly refers to districts as cities. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “distrcits,” “Manahattan,” “substantialy,” and “othe.” Use precise terms such as “districts,” “population share,” and “accounted for,” and check spelling and number formatting carefully. More accurate collocations would make the report clearer.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more developed sentence forms, for example, “The yearly population … started at a low … before increasing considerably,” and use past-tense verbs to describe historical data. However, control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes make relationships between figures unclear. In “the percentage of Manhattan was recorded 60,515,” the sentence structure does not correctly connect the population figure with its percentage; a clearer form would be “Manhattan had 60,515 residents, representing 76% of the total.” The final sentence is incomplete, and punctuation and capitalization are inconsistent, as in “Over” after a comma and “in1900.” Review sentence completeness, articles, and punctuation, and use parallel structures when comparing years.

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