Summary questions are among the most consistently mishandled questions on the IGCSE English Language paper. Students know what a summary is — but under exam conditions, they often produce something too long, too detailed, or too close to the original wording. Here’s a clear method that earns full marks.
Understand What the Question Is Actually Asking
Summary questions in IGCSE English Language typically ask you to summarise specific information from the text — not everything in the passage, but a defined subset. Read the question carefully and underline exactly what you’re being asked to include. Students who summarise the wrong content lose marks regardless of how well they write.
Common phrasings: “summarise what the writer says about [X]”, “summarise the advantages and disadvantages”, “summarise the information about [specific topic]”. The bracket tells you what to look for.
Identify the Points First
Before writing a single sentence of your summary, go through the passage and mark every point that is relevant to the question. Number them or put a tick next to them. Don’t start writing until you know how many points you have and roughly what order they’ll appear in.
Summary mark schemes are typically point-based — each distinct relevant point earns a mark. Knowing how many points are available (usually stated in the question or mark scheme) tells you roughly how many points you need to find.
Reword, Don’t Copy
This is the most important technical rule: your summary must be in your own words. Copying phrases directly from the passage earns no marks for those phrases. You must demonstrate understanding by rewording — not just rearranging the same words.
This doesn’t mean every single word must be different — proper nouns, technical terms, and words with no natural synonym can be kept. But the sentence structure and vocabulary should be yours, not the passage’s.
Keep It Concise
A summary is shorter than the original. Students who write too much are often including irrelevant detail, giving examples where the question only asks for points, or explaining when they should be stating. Ask yourself for each sentence: “Is this a distinct point, or is it elaboration?” Elaboration goes.
Write It as Continuous Prose
Unless the question specifically asks for bullet points (rare), write your summary as paragraphs. Use connectives to link points smoothly: “Furthermore…”, “In addition…”, “The writer also notes that…”, “Another point is that…”. This keeps the summary readable and demonstrates control of written expression.
Summary technique — along with inference, directed writing, and composition — is practised in every Thorogood English IGCSE English Language session. Join the waiting list for January 2027.
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