Letter

Band 5+: The course director of your previous college has invited you to attend a party for new students, and he has also asked you to give a talk about studying overseas. You have an important examination on the same day so you cannot attend the party. Write a letter to the director to apologize and to explain why you cannot attend the event. Suggest another date when you could give your talk.

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Dear Course Director

First of all, thank you very much for inviting me to attend a party for new students. I was thrilled to receive your invitation to speak at the event, it would be my honor. Unfortunately, I critical apologize to you that I can’t attend.

I am going to have an important examination of Ergonomic on the same day. This exam take 50% of score whole semester so I couldn’t miss it. I had studied hard for 2 week to prepare for this exam. I hope you will understand for me. I quite pitty that I flew away my opportunity standing in front of new students to debate about our situations. When we studied far away form home, it had a lot of things to discuss.

Would it be possible to postpone the event and celebrate on the day after that. If you could arrange the schedule of the party, I willing to attend according to your invitations. Please tell me if there is any changing. I look forward to your response .

Yours faithfully

Pham Do Toan

Word Count: 180

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Overall Band Score

(+/- 0.5)

Vocabulary Complexity:
B1 - Intermediate
Using more sophisticated words could be beneficial.

Grammar Mistakes: N/A

Vocabulary Repetition:
No noticeable repetition! Great job!

Task Response

The letter addresses the main requirements of the task: it apologizes, explains the reason for not attending (an important exam), and suggests an alternative date. However, there are some inaccuracies and unclear points. For example, the phrase 'I critical apologize' is awkward, and 'I quite pitty that I flew away my opportunity' is unclear and inappropriate. The suggestion to postpone the entire party is not exactly what was asked; the task asks to suggest another date for the talk, not necessarily the party. To improve, clarify the alternative date for the talk specifically, and ensure the language is more precise and natural. Also, check spelling and grammar (e.g., 'Ergonomic' should be 'Ergonomics', 'take' should be 'takes', '2 week' should be '2 weeks').

Coherence & Cohesion

The letter has a logical structure with clear paragraphs for the apology, explanation, and suggestion. However, the flow is sometimes disrupted by awkward phrasing and abrupt transitions (e.g., 'I quite pitty that I flew away my opportunity...'). The use of cohesive devices is limited, and some sentences feel disconnected. To improve, use more linking words and ensure each paragraph has a clear central idea with smooth transitions.

Lexical Resource

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks range and precision. There are several word choice errors (e.g., 'critical apologize' instead of 'sincerely apologize', 'flew away my opportunity' instead of 'missed the opportunity', 'debate about our situations' instead of 'discuss our experiences'). To improve, use more varied and accurate vocabulary, and avoid informal or incorrect expressions. Practice using collocations and formal phrases suitable for a letter to a course director.

Grammatical Range & Accuracy

There are numerous grammatical errors that affect clarity, including subject-verb agreement ('This exam take' should be 'This exam takes'), incorrect verb forms ('I willing to attend' should be 'I am willing to attend'), and punctuation issues (e.g., missing commas, run-on sentences). The range of sentence structures is limited, with many simple sentences. To improve, focus on basic grammar rules, use a mix of complex and compound sentences, and proofread carefully for errors.

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