1. Functional Skills English A short guide for those approaching L2 Writing Robert Evans For Lewisham College

2. How to Pass L2 Writing Although this presentation has lots of general advice it is based on the Edexcel L2 Writing paper from May 2012. We use the OCR exam. Please ensure you have a printed copy of that with you when you go through this presentation. The paper is copyright Edexcel. Screenshots are used here for educational purposes and on a not-for-profit basis.

3. What is the pass mark? The maximum points you can gain on this Edexcel paper is 25. The PASS MARK for this paper was 16. (With OCR the maximum is 34 and the pass mark is generally 22) Ready? Then let’s go!

4. The Task You will always be asked to do TWO tasks in the OCR exam. The first task is worth 21 marks and the second is worth 13. Use your time accordingly

5. The Tasks Task ONE should take you 35 minutes (including checking time) Task TWO should take you around 20 minutes (including checking time) You must leave enough time for Task TWO

6. Task ONE Make sure you read the stimulus material! Make sure you read the question properly! DOH! You might well say DOH!! It’s an exam! Of course you are going to read the stimulus material and the questions properly... Well, believe it or not this is one of the main reasons why people fail this exam!

7. Task ONE First, put yourself in the place of the person marking this paper? How will they award points to you? Form, communication and purposeSpelling and grammar

8. Task ONE To get top points for spelling and grammar, you will need to: Use spelling and grammar which is mostly accurate, supporting meaning most of the time. Use a range of punctuation e.g. commas, apostrophes and inverted commas correctly and appropriately most of the time. Make a list of things that you need to improve upon.....!

9. Task ONE OK, I’m cool with spelling and grammar – at least I know what they are. What on earth is ‘form, communication and purpose’?

10. Task ONE To get top points for this, you will need to: 1.Present appropriate information and develop ideas logically for most of the response. 2.Be able to present complex ideas and information clearly and concisely, with occasional lapses. 3.Use language for a specific purpose throughout the response. 4.Use a range of sentence structures accurately. 5.Make consistent use of appropriate paragraphing and other organisational features with accuracy. 6.Layout a letter properly - any omissions should not detract from the overall quality of the response. What do you think these mean? If you are in a group situation, divide yourself up in to six teams. You have FIVE MINUTES to come up with a clear idea of what each point means – and then one of you will present these findings to the class.

11. Task ONE Here’s the stimulus material! Read this carefully before you go on to the question. This is there for a reason – it is supposed to HELP YOU get your ideas together for the letter.

12. Task ONE Here’s the task itself! The instructions tell you to do three things. These are NOT optional! If you leave any out you will lose marks. Suggestion: As you cover each point, put a tick next to it on the exam paper.

13. How should my letter start? ALWAYS START WITH YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS. TO REMEMBER WHO COMES FIRST IN A LETTER, TAKE YOURSELF BACK TO YOUR CHILDHOOD. ME FIRST, ME FIRST, ME FIRST! Jaroslaw Wieckowski 9 High Street Estrick ES1 HI2 Your name – tell the recipient who you are...! (Although OCR prefers your name at the end only!!) Then your address... Of course!

14. What next? Next, the name and address of the RECIPIENT.... THIS WILL ALWAYS BE IN THE STIMULUS MATERIAL... TAKE A LOOK! The name and address of the recipient!! Jaroslaw Wieckowski 9 High Street Estrick ES1 HI2 Sharon Wong Environmental Health Office Estrick Council High Street ES5 5TH

15. What’s Missing? Here’s a clue! YOU WERE BORN ON ONE OF THEM! Sharon Wong Environmental Health Office Estrick Council High Street ES5 5TH September 25 20XX The date should be written out in full and can go... HERE Or HERE September 25 20XX 9 High Street Estrick ES1 HI2

16. Why is this soooo important? Part of the instructions to examiners tells them to make sure... The response is set out with attention to letter layout September 25 20XX Without these details you will LOSE points... And points make passes! 9 High Street Estrick ES1 HI2 Sharon Wong Environmental Health Office Estrick Council High Street ES5 5TH

17. Jaroslaw Wieckowski 9 High Street Estrick ES1 HI2 Starting the letter September 25 20XX We need a salutation! Dear who? Dear Ms Wong You were not given a title. When you do not have a title for a woman (such as Miss or Mrs, Doctor or Councillor for example), always use Ms. So you can address her as such – Dear Ms Wong. Remember, no first names EVER in a salutation when you write a formal letter. NEVER EVER! Sharon Wong Environmental Health Office Estrick Council High Street ES5 5TH NEVER EVER EVER!

18. What next? Dear Ms Wong Take a look at the task…

19. OK, what am I writing? Split up in to groups again. Write an introduction to the letter between you. Help each other out! How would YOU start? Dear Ms Wong The stimulus will remind you.

20. Did you write a good intro? Dear Ms Wong Here is one way it could read. Re: Noisy Neighbours I have recently moved in to the flat at the above address and was looking forward to settling in. Unfortunately, my neighbours at number 10 play very loud music until the early hours of the morning. This is a clear opening, giving a concise introduction to the issue.

21. Did you write a good intro? Dear Ms Wong Re: Noisy Neighbours I have recently moved in to the flat at the above address and was looking forward to settling in. Unfortunately, my neighbours at number 10 play very loud music until the early hours of the morning. A subject! This gives the letter more functionality! Notice how the first paragraph does NOT start with ‘My name is’ or ‘I am writing this letter...’ You have already given your name and the subject tells Ms Wong what you are writing about! The letter goes straight for the facts.

22. What next? Take another quick look at the task… I’ve done that. TICK! Split up in to groups again. Write this part of the letter. Remember to structure your sentences carefully. Avoid overlong sentences.

23. How did it go? Here is one way it could read. This continual loud music is having a very negative impact on my life and that of my family. I have to get up to go to work at an early hour and because of the music I have not been able to get to sleep. This has meant that I have not been able to do my job very well over recent weeks. I am beginning to worry that my boss will become unhappy with my performance at work. Here you are explaining the situation and the way it has impacted on you. Notice the tone is formal and very polite. You summarise the problems with the new neighbours and describe the harmful effects of the loud music on you and your family You also explain things without using slang or colloquialisms.

24. What next? Take another quick look at the task… I’ve done that. TICK! Split up in to groups again. Write this part of the letter. Remember to structure your sentences carefully. Avoid overlong sentences. I’ve done that. TICK!

25. How did it go? Here is one way it could read. I have talked to my neighbours at number 10 several times. Unfortunately their response has always been extremely negative. The last time I spoke to them I had the door slammed in my face. This paragraph also maintains a formal tone. You clearly outline what has happened when you approached your neighbour. The letter can often go badly wrong at this point...

26. How NOT to write it! Here is one way it could read. I have talked to my neighbours at number 10 several times. They are completely doing my head in. They were bloody horrible to me when I asked them to shut their music up and they are driving me round the bend. Just thinking about your horrible neighbours is making you lose it! The paragraph starts OK. However, the formal tone is lost through the use of slang and colloquialisms. This sort of response will lose you marks.

27. What next? Take another quick look at the task… I’ve done that. TICK! Split up in to groups again. Write this part of the letter. Remember to structure your sentences carefully. Avoid overlong sentences. I’ve done that. TICK!

28. How did it go? Here is one way it could read. I would very much appreciate it if your office could write a letter to my neighbours indicating that the noise they are making is too loud. Additionally, I would also appreciate it if one of your officers could pay my neighbours a visit. They could ask them to keep their noise to an acceptable level in an official capacity. This paragraph also maintains a formal tone. This response also comes up with reasonable requests as to what should be done about the problem. However it can go wrong. Oh, so badly wrong.

29. How NOT to write it! Here is one way it could read. If you lot aren’t going to do anything about these idiots then I will. If you don’t come round and sort them out then the next time they play their music too loud I am going to pour petrol through their letterbox and set fire to it. Noooooooooooooooooooooooo! Oh no, no, no no. The formal tone is gone and now you are making threats! Writing a paragraph like this would hinder your chances of passing this exam. You must demonstrate that you have a full grasp of the audience for the task. You must do this throughout the letter!

30. What next? Take another quick look at the task… I’ve done that. TICK! Finished? NO WAY! You need to end the letter properly. Do not just sign off – it needs a proper ending! Split up in to groups again. Write the ending to your letter I’ve done that. TICK!

31. How did it go? Here is one way it could read. Thank you for listening to my concerns. I look forward to hearing from you in the near future. Yours sincerely Jaroslaw Wieckowski A space for a signature if you are word processing this. Yours sincerely if you have the name of the person you are writing to. If you are writing to ‘Dear Sir or Madam’ then use Yours faithfully sincerely never has a capital s. This is a great ending. It thanks the recipient for taking the time to read your letter. It also politely informs them that you do expect an answer from them!

32. Did you pass? The ability of learners to make accurate use of sentence structure and paragraphing was a key differentiating factor. Stronger responses used a range of sentence structures accurately to present ideas clearly. They were also successfully organised into paragraphs. Less successful responses often showed limited sentence control and also did not make accurate use of paragraphs, with some written as a continuous block of text and others written in one sentence paragraphs. Your address Recipient’s name and address The date A CORRECT salutation A CORRECT subject or reference A clear and concise opening paragraph You say what the impact on your life has been

33. Did you pass? Your develop the impact on your life a little further Yours sincerely (close) A clear and concise final paragraph Your name What action you would like taken Your neighbour’s response

34. What the examiner had to say The majority of learners made successful use of letter format, by including two addresses. The ability of learners to make accurate use of sentence structure and paragraphing was a key differentiating factor. Stronger responses used a range of sentence structures accurately to present ideas clearly. They were also successfully organised into paragraphs. Less successful responses often showed limited sentence control and also did not make accurate use of paragraphs, with some written as a continuous block of text and others written in one sentence paragraphs. Many learners left out the date and did not use the appropriate close (‘yours sincerely,’ in this case).