• Assignment 1 is a piece of directed writing responding to a text or texts (chosen by your teacher, or by you with approval).
• It's marked out of 30 total: 15 marks for Reading, 15 marks for Writing.
• Reading marks come from how well you select, evaluate, and comment on the ideas/opinions/arguments in the text(s) — including spotting bias and inconsistencies.
• Writing marks come from your style, structure, and technical accuracy (spelling/grammar/punctuation).
• The three main forms you can write in: letter, speech, or article.
• You must always adapt your language and tone to suit your specific audience and purpose (explain / argue / persuade).
• Your source texts should be non-literature, sensible in length, and rich in opinions to engage with.
• A copy of every text used must go in your portfolio — and you cannot use exam-paper texts/tasks for your actual coursework.

The task itself

Think of Assignment 1 like this: your teacher (or you, with approval) picks a text — usually a newspaper or magazine article, sometimes a speech transcript or travel writing — that's packed with opinions. Your job is to read it closely, figure out what the writer thinks and why, decide what you think about it, and then write a response. That response is usually a letter back to the author, but it can just as easily be a speech you'd give to an audience, or an article for a magazine or newspaper.

The key phrase examiners use is that you must "select and evaluate facts, opinions and arguments" from the text(s). That means you can't just summarise what the text says — you have to actively judge it: is this opinion convincing? Is there bias here? Does this fact actually support the argument, or is it just there to sound impressive?

How the 30 marks break down

What "evaluate" actually means in practice

Whatever form you choose, examiners want to see four specific moves happening in your writing:

1. Give an overview of the argument as a whole — show you understand the "big picture" of what the writer is saying.
2. Comment on specific ideas the author raises — don't just gesture vaguely at "the text," engage with actual points.
3. Explain ideas of interest and argue for or against them — this is where your own opinion comes in.
4. Examine inconsistencies and recognise bias — the highest-level skill. Does the writer contradict themselves? Are they only telling one side of the story?

The rules for text selection

• Texts should be of a sensible length — not a two-page snippet, not a 20-page essay.
• Texts must not be literature (no novels, poems, short stories). Non-fiction only.
• Texts need plenty of ideas and opinions you can actually engage with — a purely factual report (like a weather report) gives you nothing to argue with.
• Most commonly these are newspaper/magazine articles, but speeches and travel writing also work well.
• Critical for coursework: you are not allowed to use texts or tasks taken from past exam papers in your actual portfolio submission — those are for practice/study only.
• A copy of every text used must be included in your final portfolio.

Why audience changes everything

Your "audience" is simply whoever is meant to read or hear your piece — the person your letter is addressed to, the crowd listening to your speech, the readers of your article. A huge chunk of your Writing marks depends on whether your language and tone genuinely shift to suit that specific audience.

Here's the logic behind it:

• A parent cares about different things than a student does.
• A local MP needs to be convinced with facts and evidence — they won't be swayed by emotion alone.
• Readers of a local newspaper respond better to emotive language.
• Writing to a headteacher or authority figure demands formal, respectful language — never aggressive.
• Teenagers relate best to personal anecdotes and something they recognise from their own lives.

How language actually shifts — with real examples

"Give your views" can actually mean three different things depending on the exact wording of your task, and each one needs a different toolkit. Mixing them up is one of the most common ways students lose marks — so learn to spot the trigger phrase first.

Write to EXPLAIN

Trigger phrases: "Explain your point of view about...", "Explain your attitude to...", "Explain your thoughts on..."

• Provide clear reasons for your ideas.
• Offer examples and anecdotes — using imagery to describe experiences.
• Provide facts and statistics (you can lift these from the reading texts in the exam).
• Use present-tense verbs, since you're usually explaining something currently true.
• Stay consistent — pick either first person or third person and stick with it.
• Use connectives like "Moreover," "Furthermore," "However," "On the other hand" to keep the writing cohesive.

Write to ARGUE

Trigger phrases: "Argue your point of view about...", "Give your views on..."

• Write in the first person — you are putting forward your own thoughts.
• Use personal, inclusive pronouns ("we"/"us") to build rapport.
• Present your opinions as if they were facts — stated with confidence, as truths.
• Be persuasive and passionate, but never aggressive — readers switch off from hostile tone.
• Use emotive language and rhetorical questions to strengthen your case.
• You can acknowledge the other side, but you must maintain your position throughout — e.g. start a counter-argument with "While I acknowledge that some people might think…" and then circle back to your own view.

Write to PERSUADE

Trigger phrases: "Persuade the audience of your point of view about..."

• Everything from "Argue" applies here too (first person, inclusive pronouns, passionate-not-aggressive tone, emotive language, rhetorical questions).
• Plus: use imperatives to call your audience to action (e.g. "Join us," "Don't let this happen").
• Plus: use rhetorical devices like the rule of three (grouping ideas/words in threes for impact).
• Decide your position and stick to it throughout — no wavering.
• Avoid sounding like an advertisement — genuine persuasion, not a sales pitch.

The Letter

A letter is the most "typical" Assignment 1 response, usually addressed back to the author of the text or to a relevant figure (e.g. a relative, an editor). It should open with an appropriate greeting matched to your relationship with the reader (formal for a stranger/authority figure, warmer for a relative), and close with a matching sign-off.

What examiners praised in the model letter:

• Appropriate greeting and tone for writing to a relative
• Introduction shows understanding of the task's purpose
• Middle paragraphs develop ideas from both source texts, not just one
• A counter-argument is acknowledged before returning to the main point
• Deliberate punctuation choices (e.g. exclamation marks) to emphasise a friendly tone
• Persuasive devices used to add weight to the argument
• Consistent style and tone maintained right through to the sign-off

The Speech

A speech is written to be spoken aloud to an audience — often a school assembly, a public meeting, or similar. Because it's meant to be heard, not read silently, it leans even more heavily on techniques that create a spoken, persuasive rhythm: direct address, inclusive pronouns, and a clear, memorable close.

What examiners praised in the model speech:

• Starts exactly as instructed, showing understanding of task, purpose, and audience
• Clear voice and point of view established immediately
• Ideas from both texts are woven in — sometimes explicitly, sometimes implied
• Uses speech conventions: inclusive pronouns ("we," "us") and direct address to connect with the audience
• Argument is sustained from start to finish — no drifting off-topic
• Ends with a clear closing line ("Thank you for listening.")

The Article

An article is written for a specific publication (a magazine, newspaper, or website) and a specific readership. Unlike a letter, it's not addressed to one person — it needs a strong headline to hook a general readership, and it often uses a personal anecdote to build connection since the "audience" is more anonymous.

What examiners praised in the model article:

• Headline uses alliteration to catch the reader's attention
• Introduction uses persuasive devices and shows understanding of the task
• Awareness of the intended audience sustained throughout
• Style, tone and voice stay consistent, weaving in ideas from both texts
• Any references to the source texts are put in the candidate's own words (not copied)
• Personal anecdote used — appropriate for the article form specifically
• A personal point of view sustained from start to finish

The "Text A vs Text B" method

Many Assignment 1 tasks give you two texts that disagree with each other, or offer different angles on the same issue (e.g. a head teacher who opposes school councils vs. a guide praising them; a parent sceptical of bilingualism vs. an article celebrating it; an article defending online friendship vs. one about the limits of friendship). Your job is not to just summarise each one separately — it's to weave ideas from both into a single, coherent argument of your own.

A reliable process for tackling two texts:

1. Read both texts closely and highlight every idea, opinion, or fact that could inform your writing.
2. List the key points from Text A and Text B separately (bullet points, not full sentences, at this stage).
3. Decide your own position — which ideas do you find convincing? Which are biased or weak?
4. Structure your response so that ideas from both texts appear — often in a "develop from Text A, acknowledge counter-argument using both, then return to main argument using Text B" pattern (this is exactly what the model letter about bilingualism does).
5. Always put ideas in your own words — copying chunks from the text loses marks; paraphrasing and evaluating gains them.

What examiners are actively looking for

Common mistakes that cost marks

Exam-style question patterns to expect

• "Write a letter to [author] in response to their article '[title]'." — expects a direct reply engaging with the author's specific claims.
• "Write a speech to be given in a school assembly, giving your views on..." — expects spoken conventions and direct audience address.
• "Write a magazine article for [audience] about [topic]. Base your article on what you have read in both texts." — explicitly requires weaving in both sources.
• "Write a response to the editor in which you argue for or against the proposed ideas." — requires you to pick a clear side and sustain it.