Exam skills: Video playlist

In your English language exam, you’ll have to answer a question that makes a statement about a source text and then asks, “To what extent do you agree?”. Your answer will need to explain how far you agree with the written statement. You’ll need to use evidence from the source text to support each point you make.
Before you start writing, it’ll help to make a brief plan for your response that identifies three or four key points you are going to focus on in your answer. These points could focus on imagery, structure, vocabulary, or punctuation that the writer has used.

Analysing the source text in this way will help you find the evidence in the text that you need to support your opinion. In your introduction, you must express an opinion about how much you agree or disagree with the idea and the statement. For example, you could begin, “I partially agree with the statement…”, or “I wholeheartedly agree with the statement…”.

The next paragraphs in your answer must support your opinion. In these paragraphs, you must use evidence from the source text that shows why you agree or disagree with the statement. You should also draw attention to the language and writing techniques that the writer uses that help support your opinion.
Techniques to look out for could be metaphors, similes, emotive language, or punctuation. It’s really important that you explain the effect that the techniques and language choices have on the reader. Across these paragraphs you should cover imagery, structure, vocabulary, and punctuation used by the writer and how it affects the reader.

To sum up, when answering a “To what extent do you agree?”, you should plan your answer before you start writing, outline your opinion at the start and then use evidence from the text in a few paragraphs to support your view.