How to Achieve Full Marks for Directed Writing (CIE IGCSE English Language 0500/0990)

[@_Fox]

Nah I would say that extract described the life of an average student in a reliable and non-exaggerated way

[@lolly8219]

literally.

[@hannah1287]

Thank you so much for this! I have my mock exam for directed writing and composition this upcoming week. This really helped!

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

I'm so pleased that you found this video helpful. How did your mock go? Did you get some helpful feedback on how to improve further?

[@CrazyTeacherNick]

Another brilliant video - thank you.

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

I'm delighted that you found it helpful!

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Results day in the UK today. Hope you achieved the grade you deserved, and that your hard work paid off. I would be interested to hear any of your subsequent feedback!

[@OscarThomsen-qd6ui]

thank you for this, got my exam at 130 today, God bless you truly in Christ Jesus.

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Thank you for posting. How did the exam go?

[@teamhorizon4654]

Exam is in 4 hours, thanks for the vid.

[@KARTOON1001]

Same boat as you

[@claudiahargreaves2963]

Me too

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

@@claudiahargreaves2963 Good luck everyone!

[@vegetaval2638]

so informative and complete!

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

I'm delighted that you found it useful. Do share with your classmates if you think they would also find it helpful.

[@Cookiesssssstarz]

I have finally understood it! Thank you..

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

That is wonderful news. Good luck for your exam!!

[@fakbinky1347]

Thanks, another great video. I was wondering how the structure would change for either the magazine article or the speech. I would also like to know how strictly you would recommend us to adhere to 5 arguments in all cases. Thank you.

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Thank you for posting. I don't think the structure would particularly change for a magazine article / speech: just the tone of your writing. You need to evaluate in detail for either text type, but you will also need to make sure that your writing sounds like an article / speech, and uses typical characteristics of each one. Good luck!

[@mohannadsalah3135]

Thank you on this helpful video I understood a lot I did an exam and I got the best marks in my class because of this video. Thank you again.

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Congratulations! Keep enjoying English.

[@coltsB2seat]

Needed this fr

[@dpatel1964]

Great videos. Can you do one for the coursework option but appreciate the skills are similar to paper 2

[@katerose-j1u]

Very informative thanks a lot

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

My pleasure. I'm so pleased that you found it helpful.

[@whoknows2298]

Mr, does developing and evaluation means using your own words according to the passage? Because I find it difficult to evaluate and develop my points from the Q3 passages. Most times I just paraphrase the points from the passage and I loss marks for that.

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Can I first check that you have actually watched the video in full, which aims to explain exactly what it means to develop and evaluate?

[@whoknows2298]

@@SchofieldonShakespeare Yes I did. Thank you sir, I understand now! I guess it was because i was anxious about my upcoming First Language English exams. But understand now sir!

[@IbraheemCarrim]

Hi, I wanted to ask, for igcse English in directed writing, is it fine to evaluate a single idea or opinion in a paragraph or should we evaluate more than one idea and opinion in a paragraph?

[@nabilalizadeh]

Hi, I wanted to ask whether sticking to the same protocol of one paragraph per point (with evaluation) would be advisable when given two texts instead of one? Thanks

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Yes, I think that still works. I'm not sure that paragraph length matters that much, although: 1) I like the principle of clarity, and having one key idea per paragraph, 2) it is easier to read and mark short paragraphs. Good luck for Monday!

[@oumietouray9476]

How do you do it

[@EsseLec]

My evaluation for the second task: What brings us together? Family gatherings? Festive season? Wrong. It's the giant, the infamous spider: Social media. Millions - no sorry -billions use it to the point that It has become part of our everyday vernacular. It's tentacles (the apps) lure either willingly or reluctantly with force, catapulting us down an interminable stream of complete weirdness. I mean... Everyone loves weird right? In spite of that, Social media isn't flawless after all. Firstly, it has made bullying online much more accessible, affecting tons of people's mental health. Is it good?

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Some lovely writing in places here. I like: - Rhetorical questions engaging the audience, including short ones for effect - Hyperbole, and the switch from millions to billions - The use of the metaphor tentacles. - The range of punctuation Just be careful about: - Accuracy. Can you spot your it's / its error? There should be no capital letter after a colon, or indeed after the phrase 'In spite of that'. - Tone / grammar. I would avoid the phrase 'everyone loves weird right', as it is technically grammatically inaccurate, even though it is used colloquially. Good luck!

[@Div_tx]

My exam is tomorrow, so how do you think i should study or revise today? also, the video was really helpful!

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Good luck for your exam tomorrow. To revise, I would review your past responses for Directed Writing, and look carefully at the mark scheme. Do you reference enough points from the indicative content? Could your evaluation be developed further? Then rewrite some of your past responses, aiming to ensure that: a) you nail the tone, b) your evaluation is interesting and sufficiently developed.

[@Sal24446]

How am I supposed to identify if I should write an argumentative, persuasive, or discursive writing?

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Many thanks for your message. My answer to this needs a little care. You are correct that the syllabus says that you should ‘use, develop and evaluate the information in the text(s) to create a discursive/argumentative/ persuasive speech, letter or article’. However, I see ‘discursive / argumentative / persuasive’ as synonyms, rather than different options. Put differently, you need to evaluate the question by using the information from the texts, and to do this most effectively, you will present an argument (which may be discursive and/or persuasive). With my own class, I tend to encourage the pupils to show a very detailed understanding of the text, and to evaluate each point in as much detail as possible. They also need to take care that their response sounds appropriate, and fits the text type. For instance, a speech will typically be more persuasive, and need more persuasive devices, than a letter or an article. Does that answer your question?

[@Sal24446]

This is extremely helpful. Thank you so much!

[@oumietouray9476]

I have a question so what do you mean by evaluate after each paragraph and can I send an example work on just one paragraph and see the problem

[@muiisalvatore2955]

2 hrs left and for some reason im freaking out😭😭.

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

I hope the exam went well...

[@Div_tx]

Alright, and is it completely OK to use your own ideas which are outside the two given texts? and is it alright to write your name at the end of the letter for the board exam? and is it better to use headings and sub headings for articles if they appear in paper 2? sorry for flooding you with doubts, it would be of great help if you'd help me out.

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Your ideas should primarily stem from the original texts, although I guess in your development you can bring in a few of your own thoughts. Yes, it's fine to write your name at the end of the letter. By all means, use a heading and a few sub-headings for an article - but this doesn't matter a great deal. The most important thing is showing that you have understood the text really well, and that your article / letter etc sounds like an article / letter etc. Best of luck for your exam!!

[@Div_tx]

Thank you

[@ApirationalVideos]

If it’s an article or speech, can I structure my essay in a way that I’ll paraphrase the explicit meaning of 2 texts on first 2 paragraphs and start my response or my own view in para 3? And by implicit meaning do u mean my own view?

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Whether it is an article or a speech, or any other type of text, you need to follow the instructions within the bullet points. My preference would be to start evaluating from the very first paragraph i.e. weighing up the points from the article immediately. 'Implicit meaning' refers to meanings from the passages which are implied, rather than stated explicitly. One final point. It may sound petty, but even on social media, try to get into the habit of avoiding abbreviations like 'u' for 'you'. It can make it harder not to do this when writing in an examination. Good luck, and thank you very much for taking the trouble to post this message.

[@ApirationalVideos]

Hi, so if given 2 texts, can I separate my points into 2 points for text 1 and 2 points for text 2? Thanks for the reply and yes, thanks for the advise😁

[@oumietouray9476]

When given two extract

[@ilikeanime6329]

Is evaluation the same as development? And does evaluation cover the bullet of “give your own views...”

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

Evaluation is not the same as development. To evaluate is to weigh up, probe, consider. To develop is to take an idea from the text, and extend it. In relation to your second question, to evaluate is indeed to give your own views...

[@ilikeanime6329]

@@SchofieldonShakespeare thank you :)

[@Sal24446]

Can I directly refer to the article, stating that I read an article entitled, “……” and then start talking about its points and evaluating it?

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

I would recommend trying to avoid doing this - to me, it sounds a little amateur / artificial, and can potentially make it harder for you to ensure your style is 'highly effective ... capable of conveying subtle meaning'.

[@msgabriel1984]

@@SchofieldonShakespeare Hello, sir. What is the best way to start the body paragraphs? If I am not going to say that I've read an article.... What is the best way to start? Can I say: some experts claim.... And then I add the evaluation? Thank you!

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

@@msgabriel1984 Yes, that can work. The main thing is not to quote, or to say things like 'Text A believes that'. Phrases like 'There are those who believe', 'One side of the argument is', 'A contrasting view is' can work.

[@msgabriel1984]

Thank you. 🌹

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

How did the exam go this afternoon everyone?

[@TheBigShaq]

Thank you for the video, helped on the exam 👍

[@zeyroxfn9195]

wait I thought we weren't allowed to go over word limit of 350?

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

My personal opinion is that it is virtually impossible to meet the criteria within the mark scheme by writing only 350 words. How can you establish the right tone, and evaluate the text(s) in interesting detail, within just 350 words? I tend to recommend writing in the region of 500 words.

[@oumietouray9476]

Watching this video realising I have been doing it wrong I evalúate separately Inma different paragraph

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

I wouldn't say that this is necessarily 'wrong'. The main principle is that in the piece as a whole, you 'successfully evaluate ideas and opinions, both explicit and implicit' (top band of reading mark scheme). My preference is to evaluate after each point, but this is not the only way of doing things. The slight issue for me with evaluating within a separate paragraph is that it can make it fiddlier to reference previous points. It's easier to just evaluate as you go along.

[@oumietouray9476]

@@SchofieldonShakespeare thank you. How many points should u give

[@SchofieldonShakespeare]

@@oumietouray9476 The November 2021 mark scheme lists 6 points from Text 1, and 6 from Text 2. However, the mark scheme is not just about the number of points, but how well you evaluate. I would perhaps aim to incorporate 3 or 4 from each text (if indeed there are two texts).

[@yanning1016]

Ur cute