How much do candidates have to write? Will a candidate be penalised for writing an answer that is over or under the word limit stated in the question?
A. Candidates are asked to write 300–350 words for each answer, and writing approximately the right number of words is an integral part of task achievement. If significantly fewer words are written, this is likely to mean that the task has not been successfully completed, whereas overlong pieces of writing may involve irrelevance, repetition of ideas, poor organisation or have a negative effect on the target reader. In both cases, the candidate would be penalised accordingly.
