Education and work: Writing
The GCSE writing task for Theme 3, 'Education and work', covers school subjects, the school day, rules, part-time jobs and future career plans. Examiners test whether a student can describe school life in the present tense, a past school event or exam in the perfect tense, and future study or career plans in the near future, simple future or conditional, while giving a justified opinion on a subject or school rule, using a subordinate clause and an impersonal structure, and keeping verb endings, agreement and accents accurate.
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Method
- Underline exactly what each bullet asks for (a subject and opinion, a past school event, school rules, future plans) so no bullet is left unanswered.
- Assign a tense to each bullet: present tense for current subjects and routine (j'etudie, les cours commencent), perfect tense for a past event (j'ai passé un examen, j'ai réussi), and near future, simple future or conditional for study/career plans (je vais continuer, je ferai, j'aimerais).
- Give an opinion on a subject or school rule with je trouve que or à mon avis, plus parce que and a specific reason, e.g. 'à mon avis, les maths sont difficiles parce qu'il faut beaucoup de logique.'
- Add a subordinate clause with qui, que or parce que to link two ideas, e.g. 'j'ai un prof qui explique très bien.'
- Vary connectives (mais, donc, par contre, cependant, en plus) and avoid repeating the same opinion verb (aimer, détester, préférer, trouver ... intéressant/ennuyeux).
- Use one impersonal structure such as il faut plus an infinitive or il est important de plus an infinitive to comment on school rules or study habits in general.
- Check subject-verb agreement on -er/-ir/-re verbs, past participle agreement after avoir when the direct object comes first, and accents on words like réussi, matière and lycée before the final draft.
Worked example
Write about school and future plans in French. Mention: your favourite subject and why; a rule at your school; something you achieved at school recently; what you would like to study or do after your GCSEs. Write approximately 40 words.
- Plan: bullet 1 = present tense with opinion and justification; bullet 2 = present tense with an impersonal structure; bullet 3 = perfect tense; bullet 4 = conditional or near future.
- Build bullet 1: 'Ma matière préférée est l'histoire parce que le professeur rend les cours intéressants.' - present tense, opinion, justification with parce que.
- Build bullet 2: 'Dans mon lycée, il est interdit d'utiliser son portable en cours.' - impersonal structure, il est interdit de plus an infinitive.
- Build bullet 3: 'Le mois dernier, j'ai réussi un examen important de sciences, ce qui m'a fait très plaisir.' - perfect tense, subordinate clause with ce qui.
- Build bullet 4: 'Après le lycée, j'aimerais étudier la médecine à l'université parce que je veux aider les gens.' - conditional, justification.
- Check accuracy: réussi keeps its accent, the past participle in ce qui m'a fait plaisir stays invariable because faire plaisir does not take a preceding direct object, and every present-tense verb ending matches its subject before writing the final version.
Practice questions
Type your answer and press Check to be marked straight away, or reveal the answer and mark yourself.
Q1Conjugate 'réussir' in the perfect tense for 'j'.'Show answer
Answer: j'ai réussi.
Q2Translate into French: 'I would like to study languages at university.'Show answer
Answer: J'aimerais étudier les langues à l'université.
Q3Give one impersonal structure meaning 'it is forbidden to'.Show answer
Answer: il est interdit de (+ infinitive).
Q4Fill the gap with the correct form: 'Les cours ___ (commencer) à huit heures et demie.'Show answer
Answer: commencent - regular -er verb, ils/elles form.
Q5Give a French connective meaning 'on the other hand'.Show answer
Answer: par contre (or cependant).
Q6Correct the agreement: 'Mon professeur de français est très patiente.'Show answer
Answer: Mon professeur de français est très patient - patient agrees with a male teacher; also note the cedilla on français and the accent on très.
Q7Write one sentence giving your opinion on homework, with a justification.Show answer
Answer: À mon avis, les devoirs sont utiles parce qu'ils aident à mieux comprendre les cours.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE French exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Write about school in French. Mention: your favourite subject and why; a school rule you think is fair or unfair; an exam or test you did recently; your plans for after your GCSEs. Write approximately 40 words in French.
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Write an article for your school website about education and future plans. Mention: what a typical school day is like for you; your opinion on the subjects you study, with reasons; a past achievement or difficulty at school and how you dealt with it; the advantages and disadvantages of doing a part-time job while studying; your plans for further study or work after school. Write approximately 90 words in French.
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See real GCSE French past-paper questions, with official mark schemes →
Free printable worksheet
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