Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-16

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 given tables illustrate the changes in the total population of New York City as a whole and also in each of its districts from 1800 to 2000.

Overall, it is clear from all the perspectives that the population of New York City grew exponentially over the two centuries.

The population of New York was around 80,000 in the year 1800 and had risen to 3,400,000 in 1900. It saw a dramatic increase over the next century to exceed 8,000,000. The Manhattan district saw a surge in its residents from about 60,000 in 1800 to more than 1,500,000 in 2000.

Other districts of Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island experienced similar growth. These four districts housed more than 6 million residents which is about 8 1percent of population.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the overall rise in New York City’s population and include relevant figures for 1800, 1900 and 2000. You also note Manhattan’s growth and the increasing importance of the other districts. However, the overview is incomplete: it misses the key contrast that Manhattan’s population fell from about 1.85 million in 1900 to 1.54 million in 2000, while the other districts grew to 81% of the total. The phrase “8 1percent” also makes the final comparison unclear. The response is 119 words, below the 150-word minimum, and this limits how fully you can select and report the main features. Add the missing comparison and explain the changing population shares.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a clear basic structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs reporting figures. The sequence from the city total to Manhattan and then the other districts is logical, and phrases such as “Overall” and “over the next century” help guide the reader. However, the final paragraph is very brief, so the comparison between Manhattan and the other districts is not fully developed. The link “These four districts” is understandable, but the relationship between their combined growth and Manhattan’s decline in share could be made more explicit. Develop the body paragraphs with a clearer comparison across the three years, using linking expressions to show contrast as well as change.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “total population,” “dramatic increase,” “surge,” and “residents.” These choices help describe change and avoid relying entirely on basic terms. Some wording is imprecise or less suitable for formal data reporting: “grew exponentially” overstates what the figures establish, while “from all the perspectives” is vague. The final expression “8 1percent” is also unclear and weakens the report’s precision. Prefer exact, conventional language for proportions and trends, such as “accounted for 81% of the total” and “increased substantially.” More precise vocabulary would help you describe the contrast between Manhattan and the other districts without overstating the pattern.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, and most of the meaning is clear. For example, “It saw a dramatic increase over the next century to exceed 8,000,000” communicates the citywide trend, while the opening sentence combines the two aspects of the tables. Some grammatical and punctuation issues remain. In “Other districts of Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island,” the phrasing does not clearly show that these are the districts being grouped; a construction such as “The other districts—Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island—…” would be clearer. The final sentence also needs clearer punctuation and formatting around “81 percent of the population.” Aim to vary sentence patterns while checking articles, list punctuation and the construction of comparisons.

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