How the Schrijven exam works and how it is scored

Two different exams

The writing exam looks quite different at A2 and B1. Know which one you are taking before you practise, because the way you work on the day is not the same.

At A2 you have about 10 minutes per task. At B1 you have about 8 minutes per task on average, but the tasks are not equal: finishing a sentence takes one minute, a longer e-mail can take fifteen. Do the short ones quickly and save time for the long ones.

On the computer at B1 there is no spellcheck and no red underline. Whatever you type is what the assessor sees. Train yourself to reread every sentence once.

The five criteria

Your texts are rated by trained assessors, not by a computer. They look at five things:

The first criterion is the gatekeeper. If you forget a point the task asks for, or the reader cannot tell what you mean, the rest cannot save you. A short, plain text that covers every point usually scores better than a long, beautiful text that misses one.

Read the task like a checklist

Most tasks give you a situation and then two to four things to do. Underline the verbs in the instruction, because each verb is a point you must cover.

Je collega Tom heeft een nieuwe baan. Schrijf hem een kaartje. Feliciteer hem, vertel wat je gaat missen en wens hem succes.

That is three content points. Write three, and make sure each one is clearly there. Number them in the margin at A2 and tick them off when you have written them.

Errors: which ones really matter?

Assessors expect mistakes at A2 and B1. What matters is whether a mistake gets in the way of understanding.

• Ik heb gisteren naar de dokter geweest. (should be ben): the reader still understands. Small loss.
• Ik kom morgen niet. when you meant Ik kon gisteren niet komen: the message changes. Big loss.

So when you reread, first check the meaning (who, what, when), then the verbs, then spelling.

A simple time plan

A2, per task (about 10 minutes):

1. 1 minute: read and number the content points.
2. 6 minutes: write.
3. 2 minutes: check the points, verbs and capitals.
4. Keep a minute spare for the last task.

B1 (100 minutes):

1. Go through the short tasks first in one pass.
2. Give the longer texts most of your time.
3. Keep the last 10 minutes to reread everything without spellcheck.

Register: je or u?

Getting the register right is part of woordgebruik. Use je/jij for friends, neighbours, colleagues you know well and classmates. Use u for the gemeente, a company, a landlord, a doctor, a school director or anyone you do not know. Do not switch in the middle of one text: Beste meneer Jansen, kun je… is a classic error.

What this course covers

The next lessons go one level deeper than the general writing guide: forms, informal messages, formal letters, the grammar that costs most points, and (for B1) opinion and advice texts.