Overview (CIE IGCSE English Language)

Question

What you are asked to do

Section A: Directed Writing

This question will be based on one or two texts

You will be asked to write 250-350 words in response to the task

You will be required to evaluate and develop the information in the text(s) - using some of the same skills as in Paper 1 Question 3

You will be asked to create a discursive/argumentative/persuasive response, using your own words, in one of the following formats: speech, letter or article

Section B: Composition

Section B offers a choice of four questions: two descriptive writing questions (Questions 2 and 3) and two narrative writing questions (Questions 4 and 5)

You should choose one title (either Question 2, 3, 4 or 5) and use the title to develop and write a composition of 350-450 words

AO2: write accurately and effectively, using Standard English appropriately

Sub-objective

What this means

W1: articulate experience and express what is thought, felt and imagined

• Write convincingly to convey real and imagined experiences, thoughts and feelings

W2: organise and structure ideas and opinions for deliberate effect

• Sequence and connect the ideas and opinions effectively within your written response to interest and influence your reader

W3: use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures appropriate to context

• Use a range of appropriate vocabulary and sentence structures deliberately within each written response to achieve certain effects

W4: use register appropriate to context

• Vary your writing to suit the purpose, audience and form of the task

W5: make accurate use of spelling, punctuation and grammar

• Write accurately, avoiding spelling, punctuation and grammar errors

AO1: read and respond in different ways to different types of text

Sub-objective

What this means

R1: demonstrate understanding of explicit meanings

• Show that you understand the obvious meanings communicated in a text

R2: demonstrate understanding of implicit meanings and attitudes

• Show that you can recognise hints and suggestions in a text to understand the more hidden meanings and attitudes of the writer

R3: analyse, evaluate and develop facts, ideas and opinions, using appropriate support from the text

• Evaluate and analyse the facts, ideas and opinions you read by using, explaining and developing them
• Refer to supporting evidence from the text where appropriate, such as using quotations or references to the text

R4: demonstrate understanding of how writers achieve effects and influence readers

• Show that you understand how a writer has influenced their reader through their use of language
• Consider the deliberate choices a writer has made and why they have made those choices

R5: select and use information for specific purposes

• Select and use relevant and appropriate information from a text to answer the different questions