Cambridge · Cambridge IGCSE First Language English (0500), 2027-2029 syllabus
Cambridge IGCSE First Language English Paper 2
Directed Writing and Composition
Time
2 hours
Marks
80
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50% of the IGCSE (taken instead of Component 3, the Coursework Portfolio)
Questions
3
Two sections worth 40 marks each: directed writing based on one or two short texts printed in a separate insert, then a composition (a description or a story) chosen from four titles. This guide is for exams in 2027, 2028 and 2029; if you sit Paper 2 in November 2026, your paper follows the older 2024-2026 syllabus, where Section A is one directed writing task worth 40 marks with no 5-mark question first, but the Section B composition and its marks are the same as here.
The board calls these its assessment objectives. Each question tests one or more of them.
R1
Understand what a text says directly: the facts and details actually on the page.
R2
Work out what a text suggests without saying it outright, including what the writer or the people in it think and feel.
R3
Examine the facts, ideas and opinions in a text, judge how far they hold up and build on them, backing each point with details from the text.
R4
Show how a writer creates effects and influences the reader, for example through the choice of particular words and phrases.
R5
Pick out the information a task needs and use it for that task, leaving the rest aside.
W1
Put experiences, and what you think, feel and imagine, clearly into words.
W2
Organise facts, ideas and opinions on purpose, so the order and shape of the writing help it do its job.
W3
Use varied words chosen with care, and different kinds of sentences, to suit the task.
W4
Write in a way that suits your purpose and keeps your reader interested.
W5
Spell, punctuate and use grammar accurately.
Section A: Directed Writing40 marks
One question in two parts, based on one or two texts of about 550 to 650 words in all: a short answer on the text, then a longer piece of writing that uses it.
Question 1(a)
Short answer on the text
5 marksR3, R4About 8 min
What it asks
Answer a structured question that asks you to analyse and evaluate (weigh up) something in the text or an extract from it, such as a person's attitude, in your own words, with details from the text as evidence.
What earns marks
A clear judgement that answers exactly what the question asks.
Details from the text for each point, with what each one shows.
What the words suggest as well as what they say: how the writer's choices reveal the attitude or idea.
What each level looks like
Top level first.
Level
Marks
What an answer at this level does
Level 3
4-5
Gets to the heart of what the question asks about and supports each point with well-chosen details from the text.
Level 2
2-3
Partly understands what the question asks about and backs it up with a detail or two.
Level 1
1
Shows only a slight grasp of what the question asks about.
What to avoid
Copying the extract instead of explaining it in your own words.
Writing at length: it is worth 5 marks, and Question 1(b) needs your time.
Using material from outside the extract when the question gives you one.
Tip: Make two or three short judgements, each followed straight away by the detail that proves it.
Write a speech, letter, article or report of about 250 to 350 words that discusses (explores different sides of an issue), argues (makes a case) or persuades (wins the reader over), using, developing and evaluating the ideas in the text or texts. The question sets the form, the audience and the points to cover (two bullet points in the specimen paper).
What earns marks
Reading (10 marks): many relevant ideas from the text or texts, used for the task, built on with your own reasoning and judged rather than just repeated.
Where there are two texts, ideas from both, brought together into one line of argument.
Writing (25 marks): a structure that guides the reader, a style and tone that suit the form and the audience, and well-chosen vocabulary.
Accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar, which count towards the writing mark here.
What each level looks like
Top level first.
Reading
Level
Marks
What an answer at this level does
Level 5
9-10
Draws on most of the useful material, builds on it and weighs it up, and blends it smoothly into the argument.
Level 4
7-8
Draws on plenty of the useful material, develops some of it and supports some points with details.
Level 3
5-6
Uses a fair amount of simple material but rarely builds on it, often just following the texts point by point.
Level 2
3-4
Refers briefly to the more obvious points and may copy parts of the texts.
Level 1
1-2
Barely uses the texts, or copies chunks of them without choosing what matters.
Writing
Level
Marks
What an answer at this level does
Level 6
22-25
Confident and exact: the structure carries the reader, the vocabulary is precise, the tone is just right for the audience and errors are very rare.
Level 5
18-21
Works well throughout: soundly organised, words chosen with some care, a tone that fits the audience and only occasional small errors.
Level 4
14-17
Works in places: ideas mostly follow a sensible order, the vocabulary suits the task, the tone partly fits the audience and the accuracy is generally good.
Level 3
10-13
The meaning is clear but the writing is uneven: it follows the order of the texts, the words are simple and the audience is only partly in mind, with frequent errors.
Level 2
6-9
Loosely ordered, with a narrow or borrowed vocabulary, little sense of who is reading and repeated errors that sometimes get in the way.
Level 1
1-5
Hard to follow: ideas are barely ordered, words are few or copied, the reader is ignored and errors block the meaning.
What to avoid
Copying sentences from the texts: use their ideas in your own words.
Working through the texts in order instead of building an argument for your audience.
Ignoring the form: a speech, a letter, an article and a report each have their own conventions.
Skipping one of the points the question asks you to cover.
Tip: Plan by grouping ideas from the text or texts under each bullet point, decide your view, then order the points so each paragraph moves the reader towards it.
One composition of about 350 to 450 words from a choice of four titles: two descriptive and two narrative.
Question 2, 3, 4 or 5 (answer one)
Descriptive or narrative writing
40 marksW1, W2 · 16W3, W4, W5 · 24About 60 min
What it asks
Choose one of the four titles and write a description or a story of about 350 to 450 words. A descriptive title asks you to bring a place, scene, object or moment to life; a narrative title asks for a story.
What earns marks
Content and structure (16 marks): ideas that fit the title and are developed in detail, in a structure you shape on purpose, from the opening to the ending.
In a description: a picture the reader can see, built from small, precise details, imagery and shifts in what the reader's attention is drawn to.
In a story: a plot that develops, characters the reader believes in, a sense of place, and a climax or turning point that pays off.
Style and accuracy (24 marks): precise vocabulary, sentences varied for effect, language that holds the reader, and accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar.
What each level looks like
Top level first.
Content and structure
Level
Marks
What an answer at this level does
Level 6
14-16
Tightly focused on the title, rich and gripping throughout, with a balanced structure controlled for effect; a picture the reader can fully see, or a plot crafted with care from start to finish.
Level 5
11-13
Developed and largely holds the reader, with some deliberate choices about order and pace; a picture the reader can mostly see, or a plot that builds through character, detail and a climax.
Level 4
8-10
Clearly on the title, with some development and sensible organisation; some details that work, or a connected plot where character and setting start to come through.
Level 3
5-7
Keeps to the title in a simple way, with a shape that mostly holds together; a string of relevant details, or a plain story told in order.
Level 2
3-4
Thin, simple ideas with a loose shape; a few relevant details, or events that do not link up well.
Level 1
1-2
Mostly off the title or unclear, with little shape; hard to picture or to follow.
Style and accuracy
Level
Marks
What an answer at this level does
Level 6
21-24
Exact, well-judged words and sentences shaped for effect throughout; the reader is gripped and mistakes are very rare.
Level 5
17-20
Words chosen with care and sentences varied on purpose; the reader is kept interested, with only the odd small slip.
Level 4
13-16
Some well-chosen words and a mix of sentence types, now and then used for effect; the reader is interested at times, and mistakes are not frequent.
Level 3
9-12
Plain words and simple sentence patterns, some thought for the reader, and many mistakes, though the meaning mostly comes through.
Level 2
5-8
A narrow choice of words and sentences, little thought for the reader, and repeated mistakes that sometimes confuse.
Level 1
1-4
Words and sentences are often wrong for what is meant, and mistakes make it hard to read.
What to avoid
Turning a descriptive title into a story: a description builds a picture, not a plot.
Cramming a story with so many events that none is developed in 350 to 450 words.
Showy words used wrongly: a precise word beats a long one.
Leaving no time to check spelling and punctuation, which are marked here.
Tip: Decide how the piece will end before you start, so every paragraph can build towards it.
These times are a suggestion based on the marks: the two sections are worth 40 marks each, so give each about an hour.
Section A: about 10 minutes reading the text or texts, about 8 minutes on Question 1(a) and about 42 minutes planning and writing Question 1(b).
Section B: about 5 minutes choosing a title and planning, about 50 minutes writing and the last 5 minutes checking.
Before you hand in
Question 1(a) answers the question in your own words, with details from the text as evidence.
Question 1(b) covers every point the question asks for, in the form and for the audience it sets.
Question 1(b) uses ideas from the text or texts in your own words, with no copied sentences.
Your composition is the type you chose: a description builds a picture, a story tells a story.
Spelling, punctuation and grammar checked in Question 1(b) and the composition: both are marked on them.
About this guide
This guide explains the mark scheme in plain English, in our own words. It is not the board's mark scheme, and it is not a prediction of any mark. The questions, marks and levels were checked against Cambridge IGCSE First Language English 0500 syllabus for exams in 2027, 2028 and 2029, Version 1 (pages 16 and 17), with the 0500/02 specimen mark scheme for examination from 2027 for the level ranges and the composition split on 24 October 2026.