Writing Part 1: Cutting a Five-Paragraph Plan to Fit 38 Minutes
Leila has 38 minutes left of the 80-minute Writing paper. She has planned but not written the compulsory essay: 'Should schools provide free musical instruments to all students?' The notes are: cost for families; time in the curriculum; effects on motivation. Her plan has five paragraphs - introduction, cost, time, motivation, conclusion - and she wants to include all three notes because 'more is better'. She has also noted an unsourced statistic: '80% of students say music improves their grades.' She writes about 12 words per minute when drafting. Part 2 offers a review of a new café for an English-language magazine or an email to a friend about a school trip. She has not chosen yet. She knows the essay must be 140–190 words and that Part 2 is also 140–190 words. She tends to run out of time and leave the second task half-finished.
1. Which two notes should she use in the essay, and why is the third a poor choice for this task?
Read the worked answer
She should use cost for families and time in the curriculum. These create a genuine tension: free instruments widen access, but curriculum time has an opportunity cost. That tension lets her answer the required 'which is more important' question with a judgement rather than a list. The motivation note is weaker here because it invites an unsupported causal claim; her '80%' statistic has no source, and invented data weakens an essay. She can add her own idea - for example, schools could lend instruments to low-income families instead of giving every student a new one - which develops the cost point without needing a third note. Reasoning: in a 140–190-word essay, two developed points with a clear comparison score better than three undeveloped ones. The third note is not forbidden, but using it as a main paragraph would cost words and push her towards evidence she cannot supply.
2. Give a minute-by-minute plan for the remaining 38 minutes that covers both tasks, and justify the cuts.
Read the worked answer
Plan: 0–2 minutes: choose Part 2 task and trim the essay plan to four paragraphs (introduction, cost, curriculum time, conclusion with judgement). 2–18 minutes: draft the essay to about 170 words; at 12 words per minute, 170 words takes about 14 minutes, leaving 2 minutes for corrections. 18–20 minutes: check essay for the question, paragraph links and word count. 20–22 minutes: plan the Part 2 task in three bullet points. 22–35 minutes: draft about 155 words. 35–38 minutes: check register, paragraphing and word count. Cuts: the five-paragraph plan wastes time on a separate motivation paragraph and a conclusion that repeats. The essay does not need all three notes. The unsourced statistic should be removed because it adds no credible content. Writing speed is the limiting factor: 190 words plus 190 words would take over 31 minutes of pure drafting, leaving too little for planning and checking.
3. Which Part 2 task should she choose, and what should decide it?
Read the worked answer
She should choose the review of the café, provided she can invent three concrete details and give a clear recommendation. The decision should not rest on which topic is more interesting, but on which communicative purpose she can complete in about 155 words with the language she controls. A review needs description, evaluation and a recommendation; these can be generated from a small set of adjectives and a clear structure. The email needs an informal opening, two or three pieces of news, and a closing action for the reader; if she has not planned those points, she may run out of content. Reasoning: Part 2 rewards fulfilling the task, organising the text and using appropriate register. A familiar genre with controllable content is safer than a genre that feels easier but needs more invented detail.