In the minds of ESL exam candidates, e ssay writing is one of the most daunting tasks they are required to complete, regardless of the level of the exam, the administering body or the ease with which they themselves use the language. The same applies to students who are asked to write an essay by their teachers at school. In the previous sample essays posted on the blog, the main point I stress is the need to become acquainted with this form of writing (as opposed to writing a letter, review or report, for instance), to get a feel of what authorial voice is and how to organize and progressively express the arguments you wish to make in a coherent manner. Unfortunately, the best way to prepare for exam writing or learn how to write good essays for school is to read as many essays from as many sources as possible, then write as
Please read the first two paragraphs from Grammar: The Subjunctive by way of introduction to this series of blog posts regarding grammar. I nversion is yet another grammatical construction that shows a more advanced knowledge of the English language. It usually appears in grammar textbooks the year before and during which a candidate is set to sit a B2-level examination (IELTS 5.5-6.5, FCE, ECCE, MSU-CELC, ESB, LRN) but mo re often than not is not very well grasped by students, making it a rarely tested item at th is level. If candidates are likely to encounter a single question whi ch tests inversion on a B2 test , meaning that they are not expected to have mastered it, they are most certainly expected to have learnt it well enough at C2 level to not only recognize it in a sentence, but use it as well in both the oral component of the test and as part of any writing task they are required to produce.