OxfordAQA IGCSE English Language: Source-Based Reading and Directed Writing — Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, in the style and at the standard of the examination. The source text used in Question 3 is an original passage written for this resource, not a reproduced past-paper source. These are not reproduced past-paper questions — examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers available free from your board.

Related: Source-based Reading and Directed Writing study guide, Source-based Reading and Directed Writing revision notes

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Section A — Reading

1. Explain what R2 (collating and synthesising detail) requires a reader to do that goes beyond simply finding a single piece of information stated in a source. [3]

2. Explain one skill needed to read a solely visual source, such as an infographic or chart, that is not needed when reading continuous prose. [3]

Section B

3. A campaign leaflet on reducing plastic waste includes this passage: “Every plastic bottle you refuse today outlives you by four hundred years. That’s not a fact to feel guilty about — it’s a reason to act now, while it still makes a difference.”

(a) Analyse the effect of “outlives you by four hundred years”. [3] (b) Analyse the effect of the short sentence “That’s not a fact to feel guilty about”. [3] (c) Comment on the structural effect of ending the passage with “while it still makes a difference”. [2]

4. Explain four features you could look for when analysing a visual or graphic source, such as an infographic, in Section A. [8]

5. Explain how to synthesise detail effectively across two source texts covering the same modern-world issue, giving three things to look for and one common mistake. [6]

6. You are writing a letter to a local newspaper, aimed at persuading readers in your town to support a new recycling scheme.

(a) Identify the audience and the purpose of this task in one sentence each. [2] (b) Explain three techniques you would use to adapt your writing to this specific audience and purpose. [6]

7. Explain why technical accuracy (W4) is credited equally alongside content and organisation in Section B, and name three features it covers. [4]

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Answers

1. R2 requires the reader to draw connections between details found in more than one place (often across separate sources), rather than reporting each piece of information in isolation [1] [1]; a strong answer synthesises these details into a combined point — for example, noting that two sources agree on a problem but propose different solutions — rather than simply listing what each source says one after another [1].

2. Any one, worth 3 marks: reading a visual source requires identifying what has been emphasised through size, position or colour, and equally what has been omitted, since a chart or infographic conveys meaning through implicit framing as well as explicit data [1] [1] [1]. (Accept also: interpreting numerical or graphical data directly, without the scaffolding of connected prose sentences.)

3. (a) “Outlives you by four hundred years” creates a jarring contrast between the brief moment of using a bottle and its near-permanent environmental consequence [1], personifying the bottle as something that will continue to exist long after the reader is gone [1], which makes an abstract statistic feel personally and unsettlingly relevant [1]. (b) The short sentence creates an abrupt, conversational pivot immediately after the alarming statistic [1], its brevity giving it the weight of a direct address to the reader [1]; it also pre-empts and dismisses a defensive reaction (guilt) before the reader can settle into it, redirecting them toward action instead [1]. (c) Ending on “makes a difference” leaves the reader with a note of agency and hope rather than despair [1], which is a deliberate structural choice for a persuasive campaign text — closing on impact rather than the earlier, more troubling statistic increases the likelihood the reader acts rather than feels merely alarmed [1].

4. Any four, 2 marks each: what is emphasised through size or position — the largest or most central element is usually the source’s key message [1] [1]. What has been omitted — data or context left out can reveal a source’s bias or intended framing [1] [1]. Colour and visual contrast — used to draw the eye to specific figures or to create positive/negative associations [1] [1]. The relationship between images and any accompanying text or caption, which can reinforce, or sometimes subtly shift, the meaning of the data shown [1] [1]. The scale or axis choices in a chart, which can make a change look more or less dramatic than the raw numbers alone suggest [1] [1].

5. Look for: where the two sources agree, which strengthens a synthesised point [1]; where they disagree or offer different perspectives on the same issue, which is often the most valuable material to compare [1]; and how each source’s purpose or intended audience shapes what it chooses to include or emphasise [1]. Common mistake: summarising source A in full, then summarising source B in full, rather than drawing the two together into synthesised points that reference both sources within the same idea [2] [1].

6. (a) Audience: readers of the local newspaper — a general local adult readership, likely including both supporters and sceptics of a new scheme [1]. Purpose: to persuade them to support the recycling scheme [1]. (b) Any three, 2 marks each: local, specific examples (a nearby street, a familiar local landmark or existing problem) make the issue feel immediate and relevant to this particular readership, rather than abstract [1] [1]. Rhetorical questions invite readers to reach the pro-scheme conclusion themselves, which tends to be more persuasive than simply telling them [1] [1]. Acknowledging a likely objection (such as inconvenience or cost) before addressing it directly shows the writer is reasonable and reduces resistance from sceptical readers [1] [1]. A confident, direct call to action in the closing lines, appropriate to a newspaper letter’s persuasive purpose [1] [1].

7. Technical accuracy is credited equally because AO2 assesses communication as a whole, and errors in grammar, punctuation or spelling can undermine clarity and credibility regardless of how well-organised or persuasive the content is [1] [1]. Three features it covers: sentence demarcation (including avoiding comma splices) [1]; consistent tense throughout the response [1]; accurate use of apostrophes and correct spelling of frequently-used vocabulary [1].

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Where marks are usually lost

• Answering R2 questions by listing what each source says separately, rather than synthesising a combined point across them.
• Treating a visual source as containing less to analyse than a prose source, and so under-answering questions based on it.
• Analysing a persuasive technique without explaining its effect on the specific reader it targets.
• Drafting Section B without first fixing the audience and purpose, producing writing that drifts into a generic register partway through.
• Neglecting technical accuracy under time pressure, despite it carrying equal weight to content and organisation within AO2.

Approaching Section A and Section B together

Because Paper 2 tests reading and writing skills that reinforce each other, the strongest preparation treats them as one connected paper rather than two separate halves. Every technique identified and analysed in Section A — a rhetorical question, a short sentence for impact, a structural choice to end on hope rather than alarm — is a technique that can be deliberately deployed in Section B’s directed writing, and examiners reward candidates who can do both: recognise a writer’s craft when reading, and apply the same craft with control when writing for their own specified audience and purpose.