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How to improve at exam writing
The writing task is marked on ideas, structure, language and conventions — not on how much you write. A planned, well-organised piece beats a long, rambling one.
Plan before you write
Spend the first couple of minutes planning. For a persuasive piece, decide your position and three reasons; for a narrative, sketch a simple beginning, complication and resolution. A quick plan prevents the mid-paragraph stall that wastes time.
Structure clearly
Use a clear opening that sets up the response, body paragraphs that each develop one idea, and a short ending that resolves or concludes. Markers reward organisation they can follow — paragraphing alone lifts the structure score.
Write for the four rubric areas
Most rubrics assess ideas (relevant, developed), structure (organised, coherent), language (varied vocabulary and sentences, suited to the form) and conventions (spelling, punctuation, grammar). Knowing this, a student can deliberately show each: a strong idea, a clear plan, some ambitious vocabulary, and careful proofreading.
Match the text type
A persuasive piece argues and addresses the reader; a narrative shows character and event; an article, speech or diary entry each has its own voice and layout. Write in the form the task asks for — getting the form wrong costs marks even if the writing is good.
Leave time to check
Reserve a minute or two at the end to fix obvious spelling and punctuation slips and to make sure every sentence makes sense. Small corrections lift the conventions score with little effort.
Start practising
Begin with free practice on Quantyle and use the analytics to target weak areas.
Related: How to prepare, step by step.