Directed and Transactional Writing
Directed writing tests your ability to produce letters, articles, speeches, reports and reviews for a specified audience and purpose. Marks depend on format, content, register and accuracy, so you must adapt your style to the named reader and task.
Core rules
- Formal letter: addresses, date, salutation, clear purpose, formal sign-off.
- Article: headline, opening hook, subheadings where useful, lively but controlled style.
- Speech: direct address, rhetorical questions, repetition, a clear call to action.
- Report: headings, factual and impersonal tone, recommendations where asked.
- Review: description, judgement, evidence and a recommendation.
- State your purpose in the opening and keep every paragraph relevant to the task.
- Match register: no slang in formal writing; no stiff jargon in a school magazine article.
Worked example
Task: Write the opening of a letter to your principal proposing water fountains. Opening: 'Dear Mr Amutenya, I am writing to propose that the school install two water fountains near the sports field.' Reasoning: the salutation is formal; the purpose appears in the first sentence; the modal 'propose' is polite; the request is specific. The next paragraph would give reasons and a practical suggestion.
Traps that cost marks
- Using 'Hey' or contractions in a formal letter.
- Writing an article with no headline or an article that reads like an essay.
- Forgetting the audience and using words they would not understand.
- Including content that does not serve the stated purpose.
- Omitting the required format feature, such as a report heading or review recommendation.