Coursework: Discursive and Argumentative Writing: Question 3

Worked solution

Assessment focus

This question tests whether a candidate can judge an opening for genuine reader engagement (specific, concrete detail that raises the stakes of the argument) rather than mistaking either a plain signpost of structure or a casual, cliché address to the reader for an effective hook.

Why B is correct

Option B, the sentence about the bakery closing and the arrival of a third coffee chain, opens with a specific, concrete, sensory-adjacent image rooted in this exact town, and lets the loss it implies (“stopped being anyone’s town centre in particular”) land before any explicit argument is stated. It draws the reader into the human stakes of the issue before the essay’s case is made explicit, which is exactly what an effective hook does.

Why the distractors are wrong

• A is vague and non-committal (“many things to say… some of them”), giving the reader no concrete image, no stance, and no reason to read on.
• C uses a cliché rhetorical-question opener (“Have you ever wondered…”) in a casual, spoken register that is too informal for a persuasive coursework assignment, and it also delays any real content.
• D clearly signals the essay’s structure and position, which is useful information but reads as a flat, formulaic “This essay will argue…” announcement rather than something designed to engage a reader emotionally or imaginatively first.

Mark scheme

• 1 mark for selecting B.
• 0 marks for any other option. No partial credit, since this is a discrete single-answer selection question.