Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-02
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 first table provides daya of 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.
over all the population rose steadily of all 5 districts of the new york .
The population of all five district is 79216 in 1800 which grew to [redacted phone] in 1900 and rose to [redacted phone] in 2000 however lets compare population changes in each district the Manhattan had population of 60515 in 1800 which 76 percentage of total population in 1800 while rose to [redacted phone] in 1900 which is 54 percentage of total population then it decline to [redacted phone] in 2000 on the other hand all other Brooklyn , bronx , Queens, staten island have combined population of 18701 which is 24 percent of total population in 1800 and have population of [redacted phone] in 1900 and jumped to [redacted phone] in 2000 which is 81 percentage of total population
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
You report the main overall rise in New York City’s population and make relevant comparisons between Manhattan and the combined other districts. The figures and percentages you give match the tables, including Manhattan’s decline from 1,850,093 in 1900 to 1,538,096 in 2000 and the other districts’ increase to 81% of the total. However, the overview is brief and does not clearly highlight the key shift in population share from Manhattan to the other districts. The response also contains only 136 words, below the 150-word minimum; the 40 words copied from the task prompt are not counted. Develop the overview and explain the main changes more fully, rather than repeating the prompt.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5
The response follows a broadly sensible order: it introduces the tables, gives the citywide figures, and then compares Manhattan with the other districts. However, it is presented as one continuous block, so the stages and comparisons are difficult to scan. The opening repeats “first table” and much of the task wording, while the transition “however lets compare” does not clearly connect the citywide trend to the district data. The long final sentence joins several figures and comparisons with “while,” “then,” and “on the other hand,” making relationships less clear. Use separate paragraphs for the overview and details, and organise the figures into shorter, clearly linked sentences.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use some relevant vocabulary for describing data, including “grew,” “decline,” “combined population,” and “percentage,” and the reader can generally understand the comparisons. However, the range is limited and several choices or forms are inaccurate or repetitive: “rose steadily of” is not a natural collocation, “population changes” is repeated, and “jumped” is less suitable for a formal report than a neutral trend verb. There are also spelling and capitalisation errors, such as “daya,” “new york,” and “bronx.” Choose precise reporting language and check spelling and proper nouns. For example, use “accounted for” when describing a share and “increased substantially” for a large rise.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response attempts to combine comparisons in longer sentences, but control is inconsistent, and several sentence structures are faulty. For example, “which 76 percentage of total population” is missing a verb and article, while “which grew to 3437202” does not clearly attach to the intended subject. The final sentence runs together multiple clauses without reliable punctuation, and the opening contains a repeated phrase. There is little variety beyond basic clauses joined with “which,” “while,” and “and.” Practise writing complete sentences with clear subjects and verbs, and use punctuation to separate each year’s figures. A structure such as “Manhattan accounted for 76% of the total in 1800” would make the comparison grammatically clear.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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