Model Answer: Letter (CIE IGCSE English Language)

For this task, you will be asked to produce a piece of writing in a particular format, based on the opinions, ideas and information you are presented with in one or two reading passages. 

The following guide will demonstrate how to approach this task in the format of a letter. While the task itself is taken from a past exam paper, it is important to note that in your coursework portfolio you are not permitted to use texts or tasks from exam papers. However, we have included this example in order to demonstrate the skills required in order to achieve a top-mark piece of work. 

The guide includes:

• Addressing the reading assessment objectives
• Assignment 1 task
• Letter model answer
• Unannotated model answer

Up to 15 marks are available in this task for your ability to evaluate both the explicit and implied ideas, opinions and attitudes expressed in one or two texts, and assimilate them to write a developed and sophisticated response.

Let’s take a look at how you do this, using the following two texts:

To begin with, you should read the texts and highlight the ideas and opinions that could inform your writing. Your response might use the following ideas from these texts:

Text A:

• “Pre-teens” pick up a new language quickly
• New languages can change young people’s personalities
• Picking up on nuance and being able to express humour in a new language is hard
• Arguably, true bilingualism is not possible
• Accents are always obvious
• Attitudes to bilingualism have changed with research
• Bilingualism can help with empathy and help people to see different perspectives
• There is some evidence that bilingualism could protect against dementia and makes our minds more flexible
• But it can make people less articulate/developed in both languages
• Bilingualism can be very enriching and help you to become more eloquent

Text B:

• Gaining a second language is not always a choice
• It can make you a more interesting person
• Bilingual people are rarely equally proficient in both languages and it is easy to make mistakes
• Languages can be lost without effort
• Being able to speak an extra language can make you more employable
• It is not always possible to be fluent in more than one context
• Retaining your first language helps you keep your link to your culture
• Switching from one language to another can lead to personality changes

In response to the above texts, a possible Assignment 1 task wording would be:

“A relative is considering moving to another country where they and their teenage children will have to learn another language.

Write a letter to your relative giving your views about whether or not this is a good idea, based on what you have read.”

The following model answer demonstrates a top-mark response to the above task:

Dear Auntie Ruth, It was good to hear from you, and thank you for asking for my advice about your possible move to France! Although I’ll miss Luke and Harry, it will be an exciting adventure for them if you decide to go. I’m sure that it will definitely have challenges for them though, as well as for you and Uncle Ali. I’ve done a bit of research on this, especially about the impact of having to learn a new language and integrate into a new culture. I think becoming fluent in a new language is harder the older you are, and given that Luke and Harry are now both teenagers, they might struggle with integrating into their new school, especially if they stand out because of their accents. I would hate for them to feel isolated, and they might feel as though they cannot properly express themselves while they are learning French. This also applies to you, especially if you both also have new jobs to become used to. Things like tone and humour can be really difficult to master, and this might lead to confusion and misunderstandings. It also might be that they learn faster than you, so this could lead to distance between you all. I think there is no doubt that being able to communicate in more than one language definitely has its benefits. I would imagine that it can help us see the world from different perspectives, and being able to speak a second language well would be a really great employability skill, especially for Luke and Harry, if they are able to switch the contexts in which they are able to communicate fluently. Flexing your brains to learn a second language would also be good for you in the future; in fact, I think I read that being bilingual can help prevent dementia later in life.  However, for most people, becoming bilingual is not necessarily a choice, and that can make it harder. I think bilingual people are not often completely proficient in both languages, and therefore it is easy to make mistakes. Again, this might make you all feel more isolated or that you don’t completely fit in. More importantly for you, though, is that you might lose your links with your culture and way of life here. Even our first language can be lost if we are not speaking it regularly, so while you may think that being able to speak more than one language might make you more interesting, this might be at the expense of what makes you, you! If you do decide to go, I hope the move will be successful for you all, but I am concerned that there will be more implications than just the actual process of learning a second language. It is amazing to go on a new adventure and experience life in another country, but this may lead to arguments and frustrations between you all. I know you will all give it 100 percent, but trying to learn to communicate fluently in French may result in you all being actually less articulate in both languages. If Luke and Harry had been younger, then they might have been able to adapt more quickly, but given their ages and the fact that learning new languages can change people’s personalities, I do not think this will be a good move for you all. Whatever you decide, however, I wish you all the best! Hope to speak to you soon, Nadia

Commentary:

• The greeting and tone are appropriate for a letter to a relative
• The introduction demonstrates an understanding of the purpose of the task
• The second paragraph develops ideas and opinions mainly from Text A, and establishes a point of view
• Although the letter is informal, the vocabulary is sophisticated
• The third paragraph acknowledges a counter-argument, using ideas from both texts
• The fourth paragraph returns to the main argument, using ideas mainly from Text B
• Punctuation is used deliberately to emphasise the more friendly tone
• The final paragraph explicitly addresses the second bullet point in the task
• Persuasive devices are used to add weight to the argument
• Style and tone are maintained throughout, with an appropriate sign off
• Spelling, grammar and punctuation are accurate throughout