Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-04

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 6.0)

The given tables illustrate total number of residents of new york city and its five districts between 1800 and 2000.

Overall, population of new york city increased very rapidly during the first 10 decades and around three times of growth in the next 10 decades. In the start Manhattan had largest number of residents but in the last ten decades other states have almost 4 times more population than manhattan.

New york, in 1800, had 79,216 people with majority of them living in manhattan which accounts 76% of total population. During 1800 and 1900, population of new york increased to 3,437,202 which is around 50 times of popuation in 1800 but the majority of the population increased in other districts rather than manhattan.

During 1900 and 2000, total population of new york increased around 3 times.In 2000, out of 8,009,185 only 19% were living in manhattan and rest of 81% were residents of other districts. In 1800, 76% of population were in manhattan but by the end of 2000 81% of total population were living in brooklyn, bronx, queens, staten, island.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main overall changes: New York City’s population rose substantially, Manhattan’s share fell, and the other districts became dominant by 2000. The figures of 79,216, 3,437,202 and 8,009,185, as well as the 76% and 81% shares, support the summary. However, some comparisons are imprecise: “around three times of growth” is unclear, and “other states” is inaccurate because these are districts. The response also gives little detail about Manhattan’s actual population, which rose to 1,850,093 in 1900 before declining to 1,538,096 in 2000. Develop this contrast and state more precisely that the city’s total more than doubled from 1900 to 2000.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs covering the periods up to 1900 and from 1900 to 2000. This gives the reader a generally coherent progression. Some links and references, however, are repetitive or unclear. The final sentence repeats the population-share comparison already made in the preceding sentence, while “During 1800 and 1900” does not clearly express a period of change. The overview’s “first 10 decades” and “next 10 decades” also make the time divisions less direct than naming the years. Organise the details around the three dates and use concise transitions, avoiding repetition while making each comparison explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing population data, including “increased,” “majority,” “accounts” and “percentage,” so the main information remains understandable. However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward: “other states” should be “other districts,” “three times of growth” is unclear, and “accounts 76%” needs a more natural expression such as “accounted for 76%.” “Popuation” is misspelled, and capitalisation of “New York” and “Manhattan” is inconsistent. There is also repetition of “population” and “increased.” Build a more precise range of data-reporting language, such as “rose to,” “represented,” “share,” and “declined,” and check spelling and proper nouns carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex forms, including the contrast introduced by “but” and the time clauses beginning “During.” Most sentences communicate the intended trend, but some grammatical errors remain. For example, “population of New York City increased” needs an article or possessive determiner, and “which accounts 76%” has an incorrect verb pattern and tense. “During 1800 and 1900” is not a suitable grammatical construction for a period, and “only 19% were living” has an unclear subject because the percentage refers to the population. Improve control of articles, verb forms and clause references, and use punctuation consistently, especially after introductory time phrases. These corrections would make the comparisons more precise without sacrificing sentence variety.

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