Paper 2 Overview

The trend

Guided writing in Part A of the exam usually provides candidates with structural guidelines, which can include the opening and closing of a letter (as seen in the 2015 and 2016 papers), a title (as seen in the 2012 and 2014 papers), or a photo (as seen in the 2013 paper).

The writing prompts in this section typically assess candidates’ skills in describing or narrating, but can also test their persuasive abilities (as seen in the 2017 paper).

Given the word limit in this section, candidates must strive for conciseness and avoid using unnecessary words and phrases, while ensuring that their answers meet the requirements of the prompt within the given word count.

 

Part B of the exam assesses a wide range of genres, but the most common ones are articles, letters, and emails, so candidates need to be very familiar with the formats of these genres.

In addition to being familiar with the format of each genre, candidates must also understand the tone and vocabulary required for each genre. For example, a letter to the editor is a formal genre, so it must be written in formal language.

In terms of writing purposes, many Part B prompts assess candidates’ skills in describing. Other common writing purposes that are often tested include discussing / analyzing and arguing / persuading. 

Most writing prompts require candidates to achieve multiple purposes in their responses, such as in the 6th question of the 2013 exam, which required candidates to describe, discuss, and provide suggestions. Candidates must ensure that their answers meet all the requirements of the prompt and avoid using excessive language in any one area. 

In recent years, there has also been a trend towards assessing candidates’ abilities to argue or persuade others, such as in the 6th question of the 2017 exam and the 9th question of the 2016 exam.

Exam Structure

Paper 2 Writing accounts for 25% of the overall grade and has a time limit of 120 minutes, divided into two parts. 

requires candidates to write a short composition of around 200 words, which accounts for 10% of the overall grade. 

 

requires candidates to write a longer composition of around 400 words, which accounts for 15% of the overall grade.

Analysis

Part A

There is only one prompt in Part A, which is a guided writing task. This means that there may be additional information provided or guidelines given for the structure of the composition. 

 

Candidates must use the provided information, background, and instructions to complete a short composition of around 200 words.

 

2017 – Letter

In the Part A guided writing task, candidates are to assume the role of the president of the Social Service Society and make a proposal to the principal of the school to collaborate with a local elderly care home. Candidates must suggest an activity that can be conducted at the elderly care home and explain the benefits of this collaboration to persuade the principal to accept the proposal.

 

2016 – Speech

In the exam, candidates are to assume the role of the student union president and deliver a welcome speech to new students on the first day of school. Candidates must include the importance of following school rules and building interpersonal relationships in their speech.

 

2015 – Letter from a reader

Explaining why students may feel tired during an 8 am class and whether delaying the start time to 9 am can solve the problem.

 

2014 – Article

Write about a traditional village in Hong Kong, including the life of the villagers 40 years ago, an event that had a profound impact on the village, and the famous people and events associated with the village.

Part B

The exam requires candidates to choose one question from the eight prompts, each of which is related to one of the eight elective modules.

 

Language arts 

Drama 
Poems and Songs 
Popular Culture 
Short Stories 

Non-language arts

Debating
Social Issues
Sports Communication
Workplace Communication

Each prompt includes a specific context, which involves the candidate’s situation and the role they are playing. Candidates must use this basic information, along with the specified text type, intended audience/reader, and writing purpose to complete a composition of approximately 400 words.



Suggested Strategies

Part A & B

-Reading the topics: 3 mins; 3 mins

-Structuring: 5 mins; 5 mins  

-Writing: 30-35 mins; 60-65 mins

-Proof reading: 5 mins; 5 mins



Part A has only one prompt, but Part B has eight options to choose from. When selecting a prompt, candidates should first read and compare the prompts related to their elective subjects and choose the one they feel most confident answering. Factors to consider include:

 

-Whether they fully understand the requirements of the prompt;

-Whether they have enough concepts or arguments to write rich and interesting content;

-Whether they have sufficient vocabulary to express the content of a particular theme;

-Whether they are familiar with the format requirements of the specified genre of the prompt;

-Whether they are skilled in writing the type of essay, such as argumentative essays, commentaries, and so on.



Assessment Criteria - CLO

In previous public examinations, the writing component is evaluated based on three categories, including content, language, and organization, with a score range of 0-7 for each category. Candidates must meet the requirements of each score level to obtain relevant scores. Therefore, Paper 2 is scored out of 21 marks in total.

 

The following are the criteria for obtaining a score of 7 in each category. Candidates need to meet these requirements to have a chance of achieving a top score of 5**:

 

Content: Demonstrating excellent understanding and critical analysis of the topic, with strong and insightful arguments and supporting evidence.

 

Language: Displaying a wide range of vocabulary and complex sentence structures, with accurate grammar and appropriate register and tone.

 

Organisation: Presenting a well-structured and coherent composition with clear introduction, body, and conclusion, with smooth transitions between paragraphs and ideas.

-Candidates demonstrate an extensive range of content that often exceeds the requirements of the question. 

For example, using counter-arguments in argumentative essays or providing detailed descriptions of the protagonist’s thoughts and surroundings in short stories.

 

-Candidates fully meet the requirements of the prompt with their writing.

 

-All ideas are well developed, reasonable, and clear in the composition.

 

-Candidates consistently demonstrate creativity and imagination, especially considering that most prompts involve a specific context, requiring candidates to put themselves in the role and consider their relationship with the reader to come up with a plot.


-The composition skillfully engages the readers’ interest and shows a fine-tuned awareness of the intended audience, with the content tailored to the target readers.

-The composition demonstrates an unlimited range of accurate sentence structures, including a strong command of more complex structures such as simple sentences, compound sentences, and complex sentences.

 

-The grammar in the composition is extremely accurate with no errors.

 

-The vocabulary in the composition is well-chosen and appropriately used to express subtleties of meaning.

 

-The spelling and punctuation in the composition are entirely correct.

 

-The register, tone, and style in the composition are used effectively to enhance the overall effect and are entirely appropriate to the genre and text type. 

For example, when writing a formal letter, in addition to using formal language, consideration is given to the writing purpose and an appropriate tone is used.

-The composition’s paragraphs are organised extremely effectively, with a logical development of ideas from topic sentences, and all points are supported by relevant details. Each paragraph has a clear topic sentence and supporting details.

 

-The cohesion between and within paragraphs in the composition is sophisticated. The content within each paragraph and the connections between paragraphs are skillfully connected, for example, through the use of connectives and pronouns.

 

-The overall structure of the composition is coherent, extremely sophisticated, and entirely appropriate to the genre and text type. It effectively conveys the characteristics of the specific genre and text type being written.

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