Writing to present a viewpoint
Write a letter, article or speech arguing a point of view, matched to audience, purpose and form (Paper 2, Section B).
Learn
Writing to present a viewpoint, explained point by point
Everything the GCSE specification expects you to be able to do, and how to actually do it - the same lesson a signed-in student studies from.
Write in the conventions of the set form - letter, article, speech or leaflet (AO5)
Each form has signals the examiner looks for: a letter needs an address and sign-off matched to the recipient; an article wants a headline and a hooking opening; a speech addresses its audience directly and builds to a rallying close. Establish the form in the first few lines, then let the argument take over.
Adapt tone and register to the audience and purpose (AO5)
A letter to a head teacher and a speech to your classmates argue differently even when the message is the same. Match formality to reader - measured and respectful for authority, energetic and direct for peers - and keep the purpose in view: persuading, arguing, advising. A consistent, well-judged voice is one of the clearest markers of a top answer.
Organise your argument so it builds persuasively (AO5)
Plan three or four strong points and order them deliberately, saving the most powerful for last. Give each its own paragraph, opened with a clear topic sentence, and link them so the argument accumulates. Acknowledging the other side - then answering it - makes your case look considered rather than one-eyed.
Use rhetorical techniques with control (AO5)
Deploy the persuader's toolkit - rhetorical questions, rule-of-three, direct address, anecdote, well-chosen statistics - but in service of the argument, not as decoration. "Is this really the best we can do for our students?" lands because of where it sits, not because it is a question. A few techniques used precisely beat a dozen crammed in.
Vary sentences and vocabulary for rhetorical effect (AO5/AO6)
Long sentences carry the weight of an argument; short ones deliver the verdict. Choose vocabulary with persuasive charge - "neglected" does more work than "not looked after". Precision of word choice is itself persuasive: it tells the reader you know exactly what you mean.
Maintain technical accuracy - spelling, punctuation, grammar - throughout (AO6)
A large share of the marks here reward accuracy, and in persuasive writing accuracy IS credibility - stray apostrophes undermine an argument about standards. Keep control of sentence boundaries, use a range of punctuation deliberately, and reserve the final two minutes for proofreading. Small fixes at the end protect marks you have already earned.
Practice
Try a Writing to present a viewpoint question
A GCSE-style original task from this topic. Sketch a quick plan of your own before you open what a strong answer covers.
"Social media has given young people a louder voice than any generation before them - but it is also making them anxious, distracted and easier to manipulate." Write an article for a broadsheet newspaper in which you explain your point of view on this statement. (24 marks for content and organisation, 16 marks for technical accuracy) [40 marks]
Show what a strong answer covers
The marking points an examiner looks for. Not a model answer - a checklist to plan against.
- AO5: communicates convincingly and compellingly for the form and audience - a consistent broadsheet register, a clear and nuanced line of argument on the statement, and content (examples, counter-argument, concession) that persuades an adult readership
- AO5: crafts language for deliberate rhetorical effect - e.g. an arresting headline and opening, rhetorical questions, tripling, anecdote and statistics deployed with judgement rather than crammed in
- AO5: structures the article consciously - fluently linked paragraphs that build the argument (engage, concede, counter, resolve), with cohesive devices and a conclusion that lands the writer's position
- AO6: uses a full range of sentence forms for rhetorical effect, with a wide range of punctuation used with a high level of accuracy
- AO6: uses Standard English consistently with secure control of complex grammatical structures, and spells an ambitious vocabulary accurately