Writing
The KPG English Writing domain tests your ability to produce a complete, organized text for a defined reader and purpose. Tasks may include an email, a letter, a short essay, a report, or a notice. Assessors look for task achievement (all points covered), organization, range of vocabulary and structures, accuracy, and register. A simple, clear text that answers the prompt fully scores better than an ambitious text that drifts off task.
Core rules and concepts
- Decode the prompt before writing: who is the reader, what is the purpose, which points must be included, and what format is required.
- Use a clear structure. An email needs a subject line, salutation, purpose statement, supporting details, action or closing, and sign-off. An essay needs an introduction, body paragraphs with one idea each, and a conclusion.
- Match register to the reader. Formal: 'I am writing to request...' Informal: 'Just writing to ask...' Do not mix slang into a formal complaint.
- Build cohesion with referencing and linking: 'this', 'such', 'however', 'as a result', 'in addition'. Do not begin every sentence with 'Also'.
- Show range without risk: one accurate relative clause, conditional, or passive is worth more than three half-correct complex sentences.
- Leave time to check agreement, tense, articles, spelling, and punctuation.
Worked example
Prompt: Write an email to your manager requesting one day off next Friday for a medical appointment. Include when you will return and how your work will be covered. Reasoning: The reader is a manager, so use a formal-neutral register. The email must state the request, the date, the reason briefly, the return, and cover arrangements. A weak answer says only 'I need Friday off.' A strong answer opens 'I am writing to request leave on Friday, 14 March, for a medical appointment', explains cover ('I will finish the client report on Thursday and ask Ana to handle urgent calls'), and closes with a clear sign-off. Sentence-level check: 'I would be grateful if you could approve this request' is appropriately polite; 'Can I have Friday off?' is too abrupt for this reader.
Traps that cost marks
- Missing one bullet from the prompt, which limits task achievement.
- Writing a memorized essay that does not fit the question.
- Wrong register: contractions and slang in a formal letter, or overly stiff phrases in a message to a friend.
- No paragraph breaks, so the reader cannot follow the structure.
- Long sentences with comma splices: 'I was late, I missed the bus.'
- Ignoring the word limit and spending too long on planning or rewriting.
Key exam moves
Plan for two minutes, write to the bullet points, and reserve three minutes to check verbs and articles.