Paper 2 Question 5: Format, Audience and Purpose (AQA GCSE English Language): Revision Notes

Paper 2 Question 5: Format, Audience and Purpose

What is it asking?

• This question is asking you to effectively structure your writing, adapting both your language and your tone to reach your audience.

  
  • You can be expected to write in a different style of writing:
  • Letter
  • Article for a broadsheet newspaper (E.g. Times, Guardian, Telegraph, Independent)
  • Article for a magazine (E.g. The Spectator, The Economist, Private Eye, London Review of Books)
  • Text for a leaflet
  • Text of a speech
  • Essay

Timings

Marks	Timings
[40]	35-40 minutes

Structure

Introduction

• Briefly Introduce: State the overall topic or issue.
• Purpose: Explain the purpose of your writing (e.g., to argue, persuade, inform).

Main Body

1. First Point

• Topic Sentence: Introduce your first main point.
• Evidence/Examples: Provide supporting details, evidence, or examples.
• Explanation: Explain how this supports your argument or perspective.

2. Second Point

• Topic Sentence: Introduce your second main point.
• Evidence/Examples: Provide supporting details, evidence, or examples.
• Explanation: Explain how this supports your argument or perspective.

3. Third Point

• Topic Sentence: Introduce your third main point.
• Evidence/Examples: Provide supporting details, evidence, or examples.
• Explanation: Explain how this supports your argument or perspective.

Conclusion

• Summarise Main Points: Briefly recap the key points made in your main body.
• Reiterate Purpose: Reinforce the purpose of your writing.
• Final Thought: End with a strong closing statement or call to action.

Key Elements to Include

Element	Description
Clear Structure	Use paragraphs effectively to organise your writing.
Engaging Opening	Start with an interesting hook to grab the reader's attention.
Strong Arguments	Present clear and logical arguments supported by evidence.
Persuasive Language	Use rhetorical devices such as rhetorical questions, repetition, and emotive language.
Varied Sentences	Use a mix of sentence structures to maintain reader interest.
Correct SPaG	Ensure correct spelling, punctuation, and grammar throughout your writing.

Top tips:

• To write less and to craft your writing more would be useful advice for all.
• You should think carefully about the form in which you have been asked to write and the purpose you are writing for.
• You should be careful when using mnemonics such as AFOREST as it may hinder your creativity.
• You should be encouraged to plan and incorporate more structural features.
• You should consider whether the use of statistics and experts is useful to your argument.
• Planning is recommended to produce a coherent structure or argument
• You should consider how to create an inventive structure for your argument.
• You should spend less time writing longer responses and more time checking, proofreading and improving your work for technical accuracy.