Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-19

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 4.5)

"The first table illustrates different new york city.According to 1800 year population were decreased.And According to 1900 population were also decreased.Morever according to 2000 Population of new york city were increased.The scond table illustrates different percentages According to 1800 year the percentage of total population is 76% which was increase than 54%which was decreased in 1900.And in 2000 the percentage of total population is the went down.The third table illustrates different districts brooklyn,Bronx,Queens,Staten Island.According to year of 1800 population 18701 the percentage of total population were 24%.However According to year of 1900 Population [redacted phone],and the percentage of total population was higher than total population of year 2000 which was 81%.Over all the table illustrates the highest percentage was 81%which was in according to 2000.And In 2000 the percentage of 19%which was lowest.Over all these table are differentiates of different districts which are Mnahattan,Brooklyn,Bronx,Queens and Staten Island,And these are the different populations."

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You identify the tables’ general subject and include several relevant figures, such as Manhattan’s 76% share in 1800 and the other districts’ 81% share in 2000. However, the account responds only minimally to the task because key trends are misreported: the city’s population did not decrease in 1800 or 1900, but rose substantially at both points, and Manhattan’s population rose to 1,850,093 in 1900 before falling by 2000. The statement that the other districts’ 1900 population was higher than their 2000 population also reverses the data. The overview focuses on percentages without clearly summarising the main population changes. Select the major trends accurately and compare the figures across the three years.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

The response follows a basic sequence through the first, second and third tables, and words such as “However” and “Overall” show an attempt to connect ideas. Nevertheless, the information is not arranged coherently enough for the reader to follow the comparisons: the discussion moves between population and percentages, and the sentence about the other districts’ 1900 and 2000 figures is difficult to interpret. Repeated openings such as “According to” and repeated conclusions beginning “Over all” make the progression mechanical rather than clear. Organise the response into a short overview followed by paragraphs comparing the city total and the district figures, and use references such as “this share” only when their meaning is clear.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

You use some task-related vocabulary, including “population,” “percentage,” “districts” and “highest,” so the topic is recognisable. However, the range is basic and repetitive, with “illustrates” and “According to” used repeatedly, and several word choices make the intended meaning unclear. For example, “different new york city” does not describe what the table shows, while “the percentage of total population is the went down” is not a clear way to report a decline. There are also spelling and form errors, including “scond,” “Morever” and “Mnahattan.” Build a small set of accurate trend and comparison phrases, such as “rose,” “accounted for” and “compared with,” and check spelling and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts simple statements and some linking clauses, but sentence structures are very limited and grammatical errors occur frequently, sometimes obscuring the message. Examples include “population were decreased,” where the verb form and agreement are incorrect, and “the percentage of total population is the went down,” which lacks a workable sentence structure. Capitalisation and punctuation are also inconsistent, as in “And According to” and the long run-on sequence listing districts. Practise forming clear past-tense sentences with a subject and verb—for example, “The city’s population increased in 1900”—and use full stops to separate comparisons. More accurate basic sentences should come before attempts at longer structures.

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