Question analysis decides the answer requirement of the whole essay.

Diagnostic evidence

If the thesis cannot answer the command word, body paragraphs scatter easily.

What to confirm first

Mark command word, discussed object, scope limitation, and number of required answers.

• Whether command word is identified
• Whether object is specific
• Whether limitations are kept

Four steps: command words, scope, qualifiers, position space

Step one, find the command words: agree or disagree, discuss both views, advantages outweigh disadvantages, causes and solutions — they set the skeleton. Step two, circle the scope: does the prompt say children or young people? Governments or societies? Writing about the wrong actor voids the paragraph. Step three, spot qualifiers: often, in many countries, increasingly — qualifiers are natural concession material. Step four, confirm the position space: does this prompt allow partial agreement, or force a binary? All four before outlining; usually under 90 seconds.

Worked breakdown: should university subjects be freely chosen

Prompt: "Some people think university students should study whatever they like. Others believe they should only be allowed to study subjects useful for the future, such as science and technology. Discuss both views and give your opinion." Command: discuss both views + opinion — both sides must appear, plus your own stance. Scope: university students; drifting to school pupils is off-task. Key qualifier: "only be allowed" — a strong restriction, far easier to attack than "science is useful". Position space is wide: support freedom, support limits, or split by discipline. The easiest way off-topic: spending the essay proving science matters — that answers a different question.

Three common off-task patterns and their evidence

Topic drift: from "how advertising affects children" to "how the advertising industry grew" — topic words remain, but the question has changed. Actor drift: the prompt asks what governments should do; every body paragraph discusses individuals. Command neglect: the prompt says discuss both views; the essay argues one. All three share one diagnostic form: copy out each paragraph's topic sentence and place it beside the prompt's question — the paragraph that fails to match is where the drift happened.

The 90-second pre-writing checklist

A misread prompt is the one error language cannot rescue: with perfect vocabulary and grammar, answering the wrong question still caps Task Response in the Band 5 range. This checklist deserves to be mandatory in every timed practice.

• Copy the command words; fix the skeleton
• Circle actor and scope; every topic sentence must contain them
• Mark qualifiers; save them for the concession
• Write your position in one line at the top; no drifting