Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-28

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 provided table identified the overall population of the capitale of united state from 1800to1900.And second and last one show differences in the population of 5 districts of the city over the period.The all five districts of the new york city population in the 18th century almost 80 thousent but in the next century population increas more then 4 times from 18th century although the given third century the population of new york five districts 18th century to 10 time increas.2nd and third table show population and percentage of all given districts minhattan mostly population are servived in this distric almost 80% and other 20% are present in othet 4 districs and in 19th century population increas but percentage decrease of minhattan district 76to46% beacuse in the other 4 districts population and percentage also increase in next century percentage of population faal down 54to19% population ar also decease and in other 4 disricts come huge differencein the presence of population 46to81%

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion4.0
Lexical Resource4.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy4.5
Overall4.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the broad trends: New York’s total population grew substantially, Manhattan’s share fell, and the other four districts’ share rose. You also include relevant figures such as Manhattan’s 76% share in 1800 and the other districts’ 81% share in 2000. However, several comparisons are inaccurate or unclear. The total population rose from about 79,000 to 3.44 million in 1900 and 8.01 million in 2000, not simply “more then 4 times” and “10 time.” You also say the other districts’ population and percentage increased in the next century, but do not clearly distinguish the 1800–1900 and 1900–2000 changes. A clearer overview and more accurate reporting of the key stages would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

The response attempts to move from the overall population to the district figures, and it makes some comparisons across the three dates. However, ideas are crowded into one continuous block, with no clear paragraphing or distinct overview. The long final sentence shifts between Manhattan and the other districts, making it difficult to follow which figures belong to which group. Linking words such as “but,” “although,” and “because” are used, yet the relationships they signal are sometimes unclear or illogical. Organise the response into a brief introduction, an overview, and separate detail paragraphs. Then use clear time markers—“by 1900” and “by 2000”—and repeat the district names when needed to make references unambiguous.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “overall population,” “percentage,” “districts,” “increase,” and “decrease,” so the reader can recognise the topic and intended comparisons. However, the range is limited and several word choices or spellings make the meaning difficult to recover, for example “capitale,” “servived,” “faal down,” and “come huge difference.” Some phrases are also unnatural, such as “in the presence of population.” Use precise language for numerical trends and shares, and check spelling carefully; errors in key terms reduce clarity. Avoid repeating “population” where a more specific phrase such as “population share” or “resident total” would express the comparison more accurately.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts to connect ideas in longer sentences, but control of sentence structure is weak, and errors frequently make relationships between figures hard to understand. For example, “The all five districts of the new york city population… but in the next century population increas” lacks a clear grammatical subject and has an incomplete comparison. In “percentage decrease of minhattan district 76to46%,” the sentence needs a verb and clearer punctuation. Tense, articles, agreement, and sentence boundaries are also inconsistent. Practise writing short, complete comparison sentences first, such as “Manhattan’s population rose by 1900, then fell by 2000.” Add complex clauses only when their grammatical links are clear, and use full stops to separate distinct trends.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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