This guide gives you a timing plan and a checking routine.
What the paper is
OxfordAQA’s International GCSE ESL (9280) page lists four components: reading, writing, listening and speaking. The writing paper lasts an hour and a quarter and carries 30% of the qualification.
The paper has several tasks, from short pieces to longer writing. Task types and word limits can change, so use the latest specimen or past paper from OxfordAQA as your guide.
What the examiners reward
OxfordAQA describes three writing aims. You should communicate meaning in short texts, write clear and organised longer pieces, and use vocabulary, grammar, spelling and punctuation accurately. These three aims show you how to prepare.
- Short texts: answer the task fully, in the right format.
- Longer writing: use paragraphs and linking words so the reader can follow.
- Accuracy: check the small things in every task.
A timing plan
Divide the hour and a quarter before you start. Give the short tasks a fixed, limited time, so the longer tasks keep most of your minutes. Leave about five minutes at the end to check.
- Read each task and underline the requirements.
- Write a short plan for any longer task: an opening, two or three points, and a closing.
- Write the task, keeping to the word guidance.
- Check as you go: tense, subject-verb agreement and spelling.
- Use your last five minutes to proofread all tasks.
Our guide to proofreading for accuracy lists the slips to look for.
This is easier to improve with a teacher beside you. A paid one-hour trial starts from your child's own recent work.
An example of structure
Take a longer task, such as an article about why music matters. Use a simple shape. Open with a clear statement.
Give two reasons in separate paragraphs, each with a specific example. End with a short conclusion that returns to your main idea.
This shape is our own teaching model, not a board rule. It keeps your writing organised.
Common errors
- Spending too long on a short task.
- Ignoring the word guidance.
- Writing one big paragraph.
- Using difficult words incorrectly.
- Skipping the final check.
Practise it
Choose one task and time it. Write it, check it, then look at your slips and note the pattern. Our guides to the ESL email and form and note tasks cover the shorter task types.
How our teachers help in 1-to-1 lessons
Students usually get stuck on time and accuracy. They spend too long on a short task, then rush the long one and make easy errors.
In 1-to-1 lessons, our teachers time a task with your child, mark it, and agree a timing plan that fits their pace. See our English as a Second Language tuition, or book a paid one-hour trial lesson and bring a timed answer for a teacher to mark with you.