Main Body of Your Essay

The main part of your essay should contain approximately four to six good paragraphs, keeping in mind the maxim of one point per paragraph and developing the start made in your opening paragraph and leading logically, in the case of speech/talk/debate, to the conclusion or unexpectedly perhaps but satisfyingly in the case of a narrative.

Style

• Aim to communicate rather than impress.
• Write simply. Simple words, simply expressed are much better than big words clumsily expressed used in the wrong context.
• Use sentences of different length.
• Avoid clichés such as 'at the end of the day', 'in any event', 'few and far between'…
• Use quotations or ideas from the literature on the course, if it ties in with what you are writing.
• Avoid unsupported generalisations, e.g. 'Women make really bad drivers'.
• Avoid Txt language. It's tomorrow not 2moro. It's later not l8r!

Countdown to Exam

Over the next five weeks:

• Practise answering one Question A and one Question B type question each week in 35 minutes. (Roughly the time you should spend on them in the exam.)
• Compose paragraphs that describe a setting, a character or an emotion (fear, joy, sorrow, nervousness etc). Try to do this every second day. (About 10-15 minutes)
• Read some letters in the Letters to the Editor Page of a quality newspaper about once a week.
• Read feature articles from quality newspapers once or twice a week. (The Sunday papers can be a useful source of articles) Keep articles that you find especially interesting and reread them in the week before your exam.