6 Paper 1 Task Four

a The text is a home page of a website. It is designed to introduce and promote the organisation
Bookcrossing. Identify five features of the text that are characteristic of its genre. Give one
example of each feature you identify. Identify no more than one feature of layout.

b Look at the following extracts from the text.

Comment on the form and meaning/use of the words in bold as they are used in this text. Do not
write about the lexical meaning of read (i.e. to decode written text).

• our unique method of recycling reads (line 9)

• a new reader (line 13)
• Reading becomes an adventure (line 20)
• to be picked up and read by others (lines 40-41)

c Comment on the use of relative clauses and relative pronouns in the following extracts.

• Bookcrossing, where 791,837 people in over 130 countries come to share their
passion for books. (lines 1-2)
• A book registered on BookCrossing is ready for adventure. (line 10)
• ... by others, who then do likewise. (lines 41-42)

d Look at the following extracts from the text.

• Used Books (title bar)

• Found a BookCrossing book? (lines 24-25)
• with like-minded people (line 35)
• as it is passed on (lines 14-15)

i Comment on the form and meaning/use of the words in bold.

ii What problems of pronunciation might learners have with the following?

• Used Books
• as it is passed on

6.1 Guideline answer

a features of the home page of a website

Layout (Only one feature from this section will be credited)

• Columns i.e. description on left and registering, member comments and definition on right
• Use of visuals, logos, icons, headings, bold, capitals
• Banner advert across top of page
• Header and footer i.e. with explanatory subheading of website and website address

Organisation
• Information is in sections, each related to a specific topic e.g. welcome, member comments,
definition, signing up (Candidates must mention a minimum of 2 sections)
• Information in short easily accessible chunks / paragraphs, e.g. any of the paragraphs

Grammatical / lexical
• Simple / non-complex sentences (almost no subordinate clauses) / simple conjunctions, e.g.
Join BookCrossing. Help make the whole world a library and share the joy of literacy.
• Website related lexis e.g. sign in, click on, the link, track, forums, enter

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 • Use of imperatives to give instructions / address the reader directly e.g. simply click, share it,
join hundreds
• Creative use of lexis to engage reader, e.g. BookCrossing, BookCross, catch and release
books
• Repetition of book/join and derivatives / related lexis/lexical field to reinforce the message

Style
• Enthusiastic tone e.g. earth-friendly, share your books, clear your shelves, conserve precious
resources, share the joy of literacy
• Informal / colloquial written style / lexis, e.g. use of ellipsis Found a BookCrossing book?
How?, reads, tuck it onto a bookshelf; exclamation marks / contractions that’s it! Anywhere it
might find a new reader! Reading becomes and adventure when you BookCross!; use of 2nd
person you gives you a way

Content
• Links to access other parts of this website / other websites e.g. sign up, FAQs, StumbleUpon
• Positive quotes from members / testimonials, e.g. it is so exciting to be able to share one’s
books
• Gives legitimacy by quoting external body, i.e. definition from Concise Oxford English
Dictionary
• Explains how the club works for new users, e.g. Leave it on a park bench ... anywhere it might
find a new reader
• Persuasive e.g. numbers to show popularity, focus on ease of signing up, sense of excitement
and benefits of the club
• Salutation – most websites greet the reader e.g. Welcome to BookCrossing

b form, meaning/use of each of the words in bold

Reads (line 9)
Form
• Plural / countable noun
• Nominalisation from verb / a noun made from a verb

Meaning/use
• Informal
• Books / reading matter
• Makes process of reading into a substantial ‘thing’

reader (line 13)

Form
• Singular / countable noun
• It is formed from infinitive / base verb read + suffix –er
• –er is a grammatical morpheme / formed through grammatical morphology
• Direct object

Meaning/use
• Refers to a person / synonomy / part of a lexical chain / to avoid repetition / substitution
• Its use as an object forefronts / ‘humanises’ the book (rather than the reader)

Reading (line 20)

Form
• Gerund / verb + -ing / -ing form
• Subject

Meaning/use
• Acts as a noun/nominalisation / the act of reading
• The use of the gerund / verb + -ing makes the clause more succinct (compared to An
adventure happens when you read)

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read (lines 40-41)
Form
• (Irregular) past participle
• Passive
• Omission / elipted be auxiliary / ellipsis of be auxiliary / reduced passive infinitive

Meaning/use
• Book remains the focus / is subject of sentence
• Parallels picked up / continues infinitive of purpose structure (to be picked up and read)
• Maintains rhetorical structure i.e. topic / theme (book) followed by ‘new’ information / focuses
attention on the action (read / action)
• Avoids repetition

c Use of relative clauses and relative pronouns

BookCrossing, where 753,148 people in over 130 countries come... (lines 1-2)

• Relative pronoun where

• where is used locatively / spatially (though not physically/virtual space in this case)
• where reinforces sense of website as a ‘place’ for people to visit
• Non-defining / non-identifying relative / adjective clause
• Gives additional information about the website/club / the sentence can stand alone without it
• Preceded by a comma
• Refers anaphorically to place/BookCrossing website/club / post-modifies BookCrossing

A book registered on BookCrossing is ready for adventure. (line 10)

• Defining / identifying relative/adjective clause / participle clause

• Specifies which type of book
• Sentence cannot stand without it
• Not preceded by comma
• Reduced relative clause / elipted relative pronoun (which/that) + auxiliary be
• Passive: elipted auxiliary be + past participle – is/has been registered

… by others, who then do likewise (lines 41-42)

• Non-identifying / non–defining relative/adjective clause

• Preceded by comma
• Gives additional information about others / the sentence can stand alone without it
• Relative pronoun who
• Who stands for subject of relative clause
• Who refers anaphorically to others (i.e. people) / post-modifies others

di form and meaning/use of the words in bold

Used (title bar)

Form
• Adjective
• Formed from past participle
• Base verb use + d not –ed as verb ends with e

Meaning/use
• Used means books which have been read
• Pre-modifies/ describes/qualifies noun books / attributive position
• Equivalent to relative clause which have been used / reduced relative clause

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Found (lines 24-25)
Form
• (Irregular) past participle of find
• Ellipted present perfect / ellipted auxiliary have + (subject pronoun) you
• Question

Meaning/use
• It means discovered / come across
• Used transitively
• Informal style
• Meaning is clear from context / punctuation so there is no need to specify the auxiliary and
subject pronoun

Like-minded (line 35)

Form
• (Compound) adjective
• Adverb + adjective
• Adjective formed from regular past participle (base verb mind + ed)

Meaning/use
• It means people who think in the same way / have similar opinions (as you)
• Pre-modifies noun (people)

passed on (lines 14-15)

Form
• (Regular) past participle
• Formed from base verb / infinitive + ed
• on is an adverbial participle / adverb
• Phrasal verb
• Passive

Meaning/use
• It means ‘given to someone else’ (implying a chain of giving and receiving)
• Allows the focus to remain on the book (the topic / theme / given information)
• Informal style

dii learner problems with pronunciation

Used books (title bar)

• Learners may pronounce /s/ instead of /z/, because of confusion with used to or because they
are focusing on the spelling
• Learners may add extra vowel sound / extra syllable because of spelling used /ɪd/ instead of
/d/
• Students may not recognise assimilation of /d/ to /b/ / elision of /d/
• Learners might use a long vowel sound in books /uː/instead of /ʊ/ because of the spelling /
double oo
• Learners may say /juːst/ instead of /juːzd/because of confusion with used to + infinitive /
gerund

as it is passed on (lines 14-15)

• Learners might add an extra vowel sound and produce /ed/,/id/ instead of /t/ and so make
passed into two syllables
• they might say /d/ instead of /t/
• Consonant + vowel linking / catenation in as it is /æzɪtɪz/ and passed on /tɒn/ or /pɑːsdɒn/
• Assimilation of s in is /z/ to /s/
• Confusion over stress / stress can be on passed or on or equal stress

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6.2 Candidate performance

The quality of answers to this task varied widely. There were some very high scores and some
extremely low ones but over 75% of the cohort obtained more than 50% of the total marks and,
overall, performance on this task was the highest since the Module One examination was introduced.
Those candidates who gained fewer than half the marks did so because of inaccurate or incomplete
answers. Answers were inaccurate particularly in the area of relative clauses and when describing
grammatical form, when a lack of terminology was noticeable, e.g. the inability to identify a past
participle or a singular/countable noun. When an answer was incomplete, this was because
insufficient information was provided, particularly in terms of the use of the items in the extracts, or
incomplete because the candidate omitted sections or abandoned the task.

Candidates should be advised to make as many points as possible in Task Four (within the time
available) as some weak answers were very skimpy in terms of content and the number of points
made. They should note that this task carries a maximum of 40% of the marks for Paper 1 and should
therefore be allocated the appropriate amount of time.

In relation to specific points on content:

a features of the home page of a website

• There were quite a few good answers here, with most candidates being able to identify the
easier features, connected with the layout, the short paragraphs and various features of
language such as the use of imperatives, colloquial lexis/style and positive quotes from
members.
• Weaker candidates relied overmuch on the visual/layout issues, for example counting the
columns, visuals, logos etc. as separate categories. There was also evidence of pre-learnt
features, taken from previous guideline answers, such as the use of the present simple to talk
about facts.
• Features generic to information texts were not credited, e.g. the use of cohesive devices such
as anaphoric referencing or coordinating conjunctions. Candidates need to make their
answers specific to the text type given.
• Many candidates spent too long on this part of the task, gave more than one example for each
feature and gave reasons for the features, which is not a requirement. They should note that a
maximum of 5 marks is available for this section and that they are only required to list the
feature and give an appropriate example from the text provided.

b reads / reader / Reading / read

• Most candidates were able to identify the following points: reads is a plural noun made from a
verb which means books; reader is a singular noun which refers to a person; reading is a
gerund which refers to the act of reading; and read is a past participle used in the passive to
focus attention on the action.
• Very few candidates considered the style of reads; mentioned whether the item was the
subject or object of the sentence; considered the use of the item, e.g. to avoid repetition, to
focus attention onto the action or the book or detailed the process of affixation in reader.
• Most answers were presented in note form, using bullet points, which showed improvement on
previous sessions.

c relative clauses / relative pronouns

• Many candidates struggled to analyse relative clauses accurately, even to the point of being
unable to distinguish between a defining and non-defining relative clause or identify the
relative pronoun in the extracts. This task therefore acted as a good discriminator between
those candidates who knew about relative clauses and those who did not, although even
those who had a good knowledge lost marks because they did not consider the discoursal use
of the relative pronouns where and who in terms of anaphoric reference or the fact that the
second extract is an example of a reduced relative clause. A similar comment was made in
the June 2009 examination report.
• Other candidates discussed the use of relative clauses in general terms rather than with
specific reference to how they are used in these particular extracts.

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 • Some candidates discussed all three extracts as one, which meant that they missed out on
points because their answers lacked specificity.

d Used / Found / like-minded / passed on

• The majority of candidates were able to identify the following points: used is an adjective
formed from the past participle which means second-hand; like-minded is a compound
adjective which means people who think in the same way; and passed on is a past participle,
as a phrasal verb in the passive which means give to someone else. However, again, fewer
candidates considered how used, like-minded and passed are formed in terms of affixation or
how they are used, e.g. in terms of their style or whether they premodify a word.
• Candidates had the most difficulty analysing Found. Many did not look at the extract carefully
enough and therefore labelled Found as the reduced form of the simple past Did you find ...
rather than the ellipted present perfect (Have you) found and they also did not recognise that
Found was being used as a question. Based on performance in this session, candidates are
advised to find the extract in the text in order to analyse it in its original context. Candidates
also frequently failed to state its meaning or use.
• In terms of learner problems with pronunciation, phonological analysis continues to challenge
candidates. The majority were able to identify problems with the regular past participle
endings, the consonant – vowel linking in passed on, and the elision in used books,
presumably because candidates can be trained to look out for these features. However, fewer
candidates were able to identify problems more specific to these lexical items, i.e. the
pronunciation of s in used, the long vowel in books, and the assimilation of s in is. This would
suggest that more detailed phonological analysis needs to be integrated into examination
preparation.
• As in previous sessions, answers often failed to contain phonemic transcription and where it
was included, it was often inaccurate; for example mentioning the ‘elision of /d/ but failing to
show this in the transcription or describing /uː/as ‘oo’. As stated in the last examination
report, candidates must use phonological terms to describe features and be able to use the
phonemic script accurately to illustrate them.

Candidates are recommended to:

• make their answers as detailed as is required, making as many points as possible, as
indicated in the guideline answer
• lay out answers in list form, and make it clear which part of the answer they are writing
• analyse each extract separately rather than combining them, in order to maximise the marks
that they can gain
• read the rubric carefully and refer back to the text to see the extracts in their original context
• remember to discuss use as well as meaning if both are asked for
• pay attention to words given in bold and only comment on them in the way required, not on
accompanying or surrounding words
• make use of precise linguistic / technical terms rather than the more simplified terms they
might use with students
• make use of phonemic script as appropriate; they will not be awarded marks if this is not used
or not used accurately, when relevant

6.3 Sample answers

i The following sample answer gained a high number of marks

4
a
Layout
• Main text on one side (left) wh surrounded by other smaller pieces of text on right,
e.g. personal quotation advert (line 29-37)
adverts (above main text)

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• Organisation

Short paragraphs, sometimes just one sentence, e.g. line 16-18.

• Grammar

Imperatives – reflects the fact that the page shows you how to sign up and participate
e.g. click on the link below (line 5)
leave it on a park bench (line 11)

• Style

Informal use of fragments

- ‘that’s it!’ (line 6)
- ‘anywhere it might find a new reader!’ (line 12-13)

• Style

Short sentences help give memorable information

e.g. Join Bookcrossing
Help make the world a library and share the joy of literacy
Reading becomes an adventure when you Bookcross (lines 19-21)

b
• reads (line 9)
- plural noun (read + s)
- synonym for ‘books’

• reader (line 13)

- singular noun
- agent (‘person who reads’)
- formed from read (v) + ‘er’ (agent)

• reading (line 20)

- gerund (read (v) + -ing)
- used in nominal subject position
- singular subject of verb ‘becomes’
- means (abstract) ‘act of reading’

• read (line 41)

- past participle of ‘read’
- pronounced /red/
elided
- passive with ellipses of auxiliary
‘to be picked up and (to be) read’

c
• Bookcrossing, where (line 1-2)

- non-defining relative clause

- uses comma after main clause
- give extra (not ‘defining’) information about main clause/referent of relative
pronoun
- ‘where’ as relative pronoun shows place – in this case a website

• ‘a book registered on Bookcrossing’ (line 10)

- defining relative clause (no comma)

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 - object relative pronoun (which/that) and passive auxiliary verb elided ‘a book (which is)
registered on Bookcrossing’
- ellipses could be ‘which’ or ‘that’ because defining relative clause
- ellipsis possible because defining relative clause
- gives essential (defining) information

• by others, who... (line 41-2)

- non-defining relative clause
- subject personal relative pronoun ‘who’
- not possible to elide because
• non-defining
• subject of relative clause
- adds extra/non-essential information

d
i
Used books

- means ‘read’ or ‘second-hand’

- past participle (verb + ed)
- used as adjective to give passive meaning

Found
- past irregular past participle (find → found)
- ellipses of subject + auxiliary in present perfect tense
‘(have you) found....?’
- means ‘discover’ (find) not ‘instigate’
(found)

Like-minded people

- compound adjective composed of

- adjective ‘like’ + past participle ‘minded’ (with hyphen)
- means ‘people who think the same way as you do’

As it is passed on
- phrasal verb
- means ‘moved along a chain’
- present simple passive → past participle + adverbial particle

4
ii
• Used books
- /’ju:zd ‘bàks/

- semivowel /j/ may be left out

- /u:/ and /à/ easily confused
- /d/ probably elided

- /z/ in ‘used’ may be pronounce /s/ because of interference from ‘use’ /ju:s/ (n.) or from spelling

• ‘as it is passed on’

- /æz ˆt ˆs ‘pa:st Ån/

- unstressed syllable /æz/ → /əz/

- catenation /æ zˆ tˆz pa:s tÅn/

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 - possible elision of unstressed syllables
either: /æz tˆz/
or: /æz zˆts/
- possible confusion /z/ - /s/ and /æ/ - /a:/

Examiner’s comments on sample answer

Part a
This part of the answer is clear and accurate, backed up by relevant examples although it is not
necessary to provide more than one example per feature. It covers a range of types of features:
layout, organisation, language and style. The layout of the answer is very clear. Whilst it is positive
that the candidate only mentions one feature of layout, he cannot gain full marks for this section,
because he does not describe the short sentences as being simple as well as short.

Part b
The candidate is succinct and accurate in his answer and provides a good amount of detail in terms of
form (including morphology) and meaning, but less so in terms of use. The answer is also helpfully laid
out.

Part c
Again, the candidate’s answer is clearly laid out and labelled and he does not waste time using a
discursive style to make his points. His answer contains a high number of accurate points and it is
clear that he is confident in his knowledge of relative clauses and pronouns.

Part d
In d(i), the candidate’s analysis is accurate but he focuses on form and meaning and omits comments
on language use. Some accurate detail is given though several more points could have been made.

Part d(ii) is the weakest part of the answer and the candidate only gains two marks for his
phonological analysis of used books: the elision of /d/ and the pronunciation of s. With regards to as it
is passed on, it is not sufficient to write catenation, followed by the phonemic script as it is not clear
where the catenation occurs or what the candidate understands by the term. This lack of clarity also
applies to his points about the possible elision of unstressed syllables (which ones?) and the
confusion between individual sounds.

ii The following sample answer gained just under half the marks available for this task
4
a)
Æ Highlighted/bolded first sentence to catch reader’s attention, including the website’s name (i.e.
“welcome to Bookcrossing,”).
Æ Use of rhetorical gl question to emphasize how ‘easy’ it is for books to take a life of their own (i.e.
“How? It’s easy”)
Æ Use of imperative to convince the reader of joining this community. (i.e. “leave it”, “share it”, “join
hundreds..”, “help she spread...”)
Æ repeition Use of repetition of key words/concepts in the text, i.e. “Join...” “Join” “Help...” “books”.
Æ Coining a word for the website: “to bookcross” (i.e. “Reading becomes an adventure when you
bookcross”.
Æ Using chains of nouns and verbs, i.e. “share your books, clear your shelves” and conserve...” “on a
park bench, a coffee shop, at a hotel...” (tripling).

b)
• ‘recycling reads’
Meaning/use: the verb ‘read’ is used here as a noun; short version of “things “books that people
have read”.
Form: ‘read’ (noun) + s (→ plural)
Pron: /rІ:ds/

• ‘a new reader’

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 Meaning/use: the person who reads
Form: read + er
free morpheme band morpheme

• ‘Reading becomes on...”

Meaning/use: verb ‘read’ used as a noun in its –ing form The activity of reading becomes....”
Form: verb ‘read’ used as a noun: gerund (-ing form of ‘read’).

• ‘to be picked up and read by...’

Meaning/use: other people will take /fin this book and read it.
Form: passive voice; “be “...and be read by others” → highlights result.
rather than

c)
• “bookcrossing, where...” anaphoric
Where here is used as a relative pronoun meaning this website is a ‘place’ people can me share
their passion. Anaphoric reference. To
eth no rel pron necessary
• “a book È registered....”
“which is” has been omitted here as it is not necessary f essential to meaning.

• “by others, who...”

“who” relative pronoun replacing p the people (“others” in this case). Anaphoric reference. Here it
is necessary to use “who” and it would be incorrect to use “which” in English. (French or Spanish
speakers wh could make this mistak error.)

d)
• used books
Meaning/use: books that have been read (used) by others (=not new). Tight collocation.
Form: participle of ‘use’ used as adjective + no plural noun (book + s).

• “Found a book....?”
Meaning/use: Question: “have you found?” n Question directed to the reader.
Form: elided auxiliary and subject:
“have you found”
question in present perfect form aux. + subject + participle
Have you found

• like-minded people
Meaning: People who think like you.
Form: l compound noun with hyphen like-minded + people
Ç noun modifier

• is passed on

- used books: assimilation

/jusbu:ks/ (“d” sound disappears)

- as it is passed on liaison (‘t’ sound)

/pæston/

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Examiner’s comments on sample answer

a
The candidate’s answer refers to layout and language features, but in order to gain full marks for this
section, she also needs to consider features related to organisation, style and content. Her last point is
generic and not specific to this particular genre.

b
The information provided is accurate but more detail needs to be included, particularly in terms of the
form and use of the items.

c
The answer to this part lacks detail. The candidate needs to be more specific in terms of her analysis,
e.g. what is the anaphoric reference to or what type are the relative clauses. The comment referring to
who might make such errors is outside the remit of this part of the task because candidates are not
asked to write about potential linguistic problems.

d
Part (i) includes a generally accurate answer but it focuses mainly on meaning, as in part b. The
candidate needs to provide more detail on form and use in order to gain more marks. The focus on
phonology in part (ii) is very limited in that she only identifies two features and there is an error in her
transcriptions of used books which means that only one of the points can be credited.

iii The following sample answer obtained fewer than half the marks available
4a
• use of “you” and “we” and “our” to indicate that the organisation is a family to which we all belong
(l. 7 you, l. 14 our, l. 16 our, ( l. 17 your, etc).
• use of lots of imperatives to indicate just do steps 1, 2, 3 and you are with us and our family (click,
sign up, leave, share, tuck, track, join, help, help).
• greeting formula at the beginning to personalise the text, to attract the reader’s attention, to speak
to him, in fact.
• give the organisation importance, objectify it by using figures (791,837 people in 130 countries)
• using mainly main clauses or parataxis, i.e. sentences are linked by “and” and not subordinated
(and sign, and give, and conserve)
• using visuals to attract attention (join now, it’s free, sign up >>)
• appeal to reader and tell him how necessary he/she is (help spread, help make the world, share
the joy)
• on the whole the text consists of mainly imperative sentences or main clauses and linking device
= “and”.
• the text is easy to follow and straight-forward to appeal to anyone and be understandable for
anyone.
• There are heaps of advantages mentioned, if you just join: earth-friendly, gives you a way to
share (ll 7-10)
• ll. 7-10: repetition of “book-crossing” to hammer the organisation into people’s heads.
→ With agent formation: book-crossers + verb: .21 to bookcross
• l. 11 anaphoric reference ‘it’ 2x
• l. 12 “ “ ‘it’ again
• l. 17 enumeration: authors, characters and books for easy understanding.

4b
reads = conversion of verb to read becoming a noun taking on plural form
meaning books, all sorts of printed texts.

reader = affixation of er (=suffix) changes word class to agent

the reader: person who reads

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reading = verb + affixation (= suffix) of ing becomes a gerund/noun

read = past participle of read pronounced [red]

4c
Where 791,837.... = non-defining relative clause, additional information which could be left out.
a book registered is a contact clause, i.e. no introducing rel. pronoun; it is defining; there could be that
or which for a thing (a book)
Who then do likewise = non-defining rel. clause with who for people, namely others, cannot be
ommtted, gives additional information.

Examiner’s comments on sample answer

a
Out of the thirteen points that the candidate makes, seven of these appear in the guideline answer and
another four are repeated. Candidates should note that this is not a productive use of time as they can
only gain 5 marks for this part of Task Four. By spending too long on this part of his answer, the
candidate does not have enough time to provide sufficient detail for the remaining three parts. The
layout of the answer could be clearer with the use of subheadings of the features which would help the
reader and would also show the candidate that his answer is over-long and contains repetition.

b
The candidate’s answer is accurate but too brief.

c
The candidate’s answer to this part is also accurate but too brief.

d
The candidate did not attempt this part of the task, perhaps because he had spent too long on Part a.

7 Paper 1 Task Five

The text for this task is reproduced on the opposite page. It was written by a learner in a pre-
intermediate class (CEFR B1) in response to the following task:

You travelled by plane last week and your suitcase was lost. You have still heard
nothing from the airline company.

Write to the airline and explain what happened. Describe your suitcase and tell them
what was in it. Find out what they are going to do about it.

You should write at least 150 words.

You do NOT need to write your address.

Begin your letter as follows;

Dear ...

a Identify three key strengths and three key weaknesses of the text. Provide an example of each
strength and each weakness.

Your answer should focus on some or all of the areas listed below:

• Task achievement / effect on the reader

• Organisation and cohesion
• Accuracy of grammar
• Complexity of grammar
• Accuracy of spelling

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