How to succeed in the writing section of the DELF, TCF and TEF:
The best advices from an examiner
Marion Lim
10/13/20265 min read
If you are preparing for the writing section of a French exam such as the DELF, TCF or TEF, you may think that improving your grammar, learning more vocabulary, and memorizing useful expressions are the most important things to focus on.
Of course, these things matter.
But as a French exam examiner, there is one piece of advice I would give you before anything else:
Read the subject carefully and make sure you understand exactly what you are being asked to do.
It may sound obvious, but misunderstanding the task is one of the easiest ways to lose points, even if your French is otherwise very good. You are not only graded on grammar, the content of your text is even more important.
1. Understanding the task comes before writing
Before you start thinking about vocabulary, grammar, or ideas, you need to understand the task.
What exactly are you being asked to do?
Who are you writing to?
Why are you writing?
What information do you need to include?
What tone or type of text is expected?
What tense or time frame does the situation require?
These details are not there by accident. They are part of the exam task, and your response needs to follow them.
Examples:
The task is to write to a friend (informal) but you write to someone you don’t know (formal).
The task is to continue a newspaper article but you write a letter.
These 2 examples show confusions in the type of register (formal/informal), the recipient and in the type of text.
Both of them end up unfortunately in loosing points.
2. One word can completely change the assignment
Sometimes candidates misunderstand the task because they don't know a particular word or grammar structure.
But sometimes, the problem is much simpler: they don't pay enough attention to a word or sentence that changes the entire assignment.
For example, a subject might ask you to:
write about a past event, while you write about the future
ask your friend about something, while you simply describe it
give advice, while you only give your opinion
explain advantages and disadvantages, while you argue only one side
describe a positive experience, while your response becomes unnecessarily negative
Your French can be grammatically correct and your vocabulary can be impressive, but if you don't answer the actual question, you will still lose points.
3. “I don't know what to write”, but the ideas are often already there
One of the things I often hear from DELF candidates is: “I don't know what to write. I don't have any ideas.”
But in many cases, the problem isn't a lack of ideas.
The subject itself already gives you a lot of the information you need.
For example, the instructions may tell you to:
talk about your personal experience;
give advice;
explain advantages and disadvantages;
give your opinion;
make suggestions;
describe a problem and propose solutions;
convince someone of something.
These instructions can actually help you organize your response.
Instead of asking yourself, “What can I possibly write about?”, start by asking:
“What exactly does the subject ask me to do?”
You can ask yourself:
Who?
Who am I writing to?
Why?
What is the purpose of my text?
Wha about?
What exactly do I need to say or do?
When?
Am I talking about the past, present, or future?
How?
What type of response is expected: an email, a letter, an opinion, a message, an argument, etc.?
How many?
Are there several points or instructions that I need to address?
Once you break the task down into its different requirements, it often becomes much easier to find ideas.
Let’s have a look at an official DELF B1 writing task (from www.france-education-international.fr) :
First, let’s take a look at the task.
1. Who is writing to whom?
Louisa is writing to a friend (you), so the tone should be informal.
2. What type of text is it?
This is an email, and you need to reply to it.
3. What is it about?
Louisa is unsure whether she should go to New York for work or stay in Brest.
4. What are the main themes?
Louisa discusses the differences between city life and the countryside, the language barrier (French versus English, which she apparently doesn’t speak very well), accommodation, and making friends.
5. What do you need to do?
Louisa is asking for your opinion on these issues. The task is clearly stated below the email: you need to reply to Louisa, give her your opinion, and share examples from your own experiences.
Simply by taking the time to read the instructions carefully, we already know what to write about and how to approach the task.
We will follow the structure of an informal email (e.g., “Salut, merci pour ton courriel ! Je suis contente d’avoir de tes nouvelles !”).
We will give Louisa our opinion and advice while sharing our experiences related to four themes:
The differences between big cities and smaller towns.
The language barrier.
How to find a place to stay.
How to make friends in a new city.
We now have four clearly defined topics for four paragraphs. For each one, you need to develop your ideas, express your opinion, and provide examples.
Doing this already puts you in a strong position to earn a significant portion of the available points for the writing task.
4. Don’t rely on memorized texts
Learning useful expressions and vocabulary can absolutely help you prepare for a French exam.
However, memorizing an entire text and trying to adapt it to whatever topic appears on exam day is not a good strategy.
The problem is that exam tasks are designed to assess your ability to respond to a specific situation and communicate your ideas appropriately.
A memorized text may contain excellent French but still fail to answer the question.
The same applies to texts generated by AI. Having a perfectly written “universal” answer that you try to adapt to every possible topic is no substitute for understanding the task and producing an appropriate response.
This is something I see more and more often, especially in the TEF and TCF exams.
Examiners recognize texts that seem generic or do not adequately address the task, and your score suffer as a result. So, this is definitely not a good strategy.
5. Get your writing corrected
Practicing writing is important, but practicing without feedback has its limits.
You may not realize that you are consistently misunderstanding certain types of instructions, leaving out important information, using the wrong register, or making the same language mistakes repeatedly.
Having a teacher or qualified professional correct your writing can help you identify these patterns and understand how to improve.
Try to get feedback not only on your grammar and vocabulary but also on whether you have actually answered the question.
6. What I recommend to my students
In my group and individual preparation courses, I include writing exercises with detailed, personalized corrections.
The goal isn’t simply to produce more and more texts.
It is to learn how to:
Understand the task.
Identify the key instructions.
Organize your ideas.
Use appropriate vocabulary and grammar.
Follow the required format and use the appropriate register.
I also offer individual corrections of writing tasks for students who are preparing on their own and simply need professional feedback.
I’m convinced that regularly practicing writing and taking the time to understand corrections and a teacher’s feedback can make a real difference. I see this improvement in my students every day, whether they are preparing for the TEF, TCF, DELF, or DALF exams.
Conclusion: Before asking “What should I write?”, ask “What am I being asked to write?”
When preparing for the writing section of a French exam, grammar and vocabulary are important.
But don’t forget the first step.
Read the instructions carefully.
Make sure you understand every instruction before you start writing.
Because sometimes, the difference between answering the question and going completely off-topic isn’t a complicated grammar rule.
It can be just one word you didn’t notice. And that one word can make a big difference to your score.
If you would like to have your writing corrected or practise with me for an exam, feel free to contact me at frenchwithmarionlim@gmail.com!
A bientôt,
Marion
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