Many IGCSE English Language students in Nigeria understand the content of a reading passage but struggle when asked to produce directed writing in a specific format, register, and tone. They often write:

• A speech that sounds like a story.
• A report that is too informal and personal.
• A letter that does not fully use ideas from the passage.

This article shares a Nigeria-focused routine called “The Editor’s Desk”, where students act as editors for a mock Nigerian newspaper, rewriting and reshaping text into the exact formats required in Papers 1 and 2.

Why Directed Writing Is Difficult for Nigerian Learners

In many Nigerian schools:

• Students are used to narrative and descriptive writing, especially from earlier curricula.
• They may have limited exposure to authentic models of formal reports, newspaper articles, or speeches written to Cambridge standards.
• Code-switching between Nigerian English and exam-standard English can be challenging.

Directed writing demands that students:

• Understand the content and attitude of the reading text.
• Adopt the voice and purpose specified in the question.
• Organise ideas clearly and use appropriate register and tone.

Setting Up “The Editor’s Desk” in a Nigerian Classroom

Turn your classroom into the office of a mock Nigerian newspaper or media house:

• Name it something relatable, like “Lagos Student Times” or “Abuja Youth Press.”
• Assign roles: editor-in-chief, section editors (News, Education, Community), and writers.

Give students an adapted reading passage (similar to those in Paper 1) with a Nigerian context—for example:

• A report about traffic congestion on the Third Mainland Bridge.
• A feature on exam stress among secondary school students in Abuja.
• An article about environmental clean-up projects near a local market.

Activity 1: Format Transformations

Ask students to transform the same source text into different directed writing formats:

• A formal report to the Ministry of Education.
• A persuasive speech to parents at a PTA meeting.
• An article for a school magazine.

For each format, provide:

• A simple checklist (greeting, introduction, paragraphing, closing, etc.).
• Examples of sentence starters suitable for Nigerian learners:
  • “Good morning, distinguished guests…”
  • “This report aims to highlight…”
  • “In our school community here in Lagos…”

Students work in small groups, then swap scripts and use coloured pens to:

• Highlight where the purpose and audience are clear.
• Underline any parts that sound too informal or off-topic.

Activity 2: Register and Tone “Repair Shop”

Collect short samples of student writing that:

• Use slang or overly casual Nigerian English.
• Sound too flat or formal for a speech.
• Mix up narrative and report styles.

Anonymise them and project or print them. Then, as a class:

• Identify tone problems (too casual, too emotional, not respectful enough).
• Rewrite sentences together to match exam expectations while still sounding natural for a Nigerian speaker.

Encourage students to build a Register Bank in their notes:

• Phrases for formal reports (e.g., “It is recommended that…”, “The data suggests that…”).
• Phrases for persuasive speeches (e.g., “Imagine a classroom where…”, “We cannot ignore…”).
• Phrases for semi-formal articles (e.g., “Many students in Nigeria feel…”, “In our community…”).

Building Confidence with Nigerian Contexts

Whenever possible, base directed writing tasks on issues Nigerian students recognise:

• Overcrowded classrooms in urban schools.
• Power cuts affecting evening study.
• Traffic delays on the way to school.
• Pressure to succeed in both IGCSE and WAEC/NECO exams.

Use these contexts for practice tasks that mirror exam questions:

• “Write a speech to your school’s management explaining why reliable electricity supply is essential for exam preparation.”
• “Write a report to the local education authority about the impact of large class sizes in your Nigerian school.”

Students are more likely to produce detailed and convincing writing when the situation feels real.

Question Format Guide

• Cambridge IGCSE English Language Paper 1 (Reading):

  • Use reading passages based on Nigerian topics as the starting point for Editor’s Desk activities, so students learn to select and develop ideas from the text accurately.
  • Practise short tasks where learners identify purpose, audience, and tone from the passage before converting it into a new text type.

• Cambridge IGCSE English Language Paper 2 (Directed Writing and Composition):

  • Focus Editor’s Desk sessions on the directed writing task, giving Nigerian students regular practice in transforming a source text into reports, speeches, letters, and articles.
  • Use peer marking with simple checklists to reinforce organisation, register, and tone, alongside accurate use of ideas from the passage.

• School-Based English Assessments in Nigerian Cambridge Schools:

  • Mirror the exam format by including at least one directed writing task in each term’s test, always tied to Nigeria-specific issues.
  • After marking, ask students to “repair” weak scripts as editors, strengthening their understanding of what earns higher bands in the Cambridge marking criteria.

How AI Buddy Supports These Strategies

AI Buddy helps Nigerian IGCSE English Language teachers bring the Editor’s Desk routine into everyday planning. You can ask it to transform reading passages into multiple directed writing task types (reports, speeches, letters, articles), generate banded sample answers in different registers, and create quick diagnostic exercises that target common Nigerian errors in tone, structure, and use of source material.

By sharing the exam task, your students’ typical weaknesses, and the Nigerian issues you want to emphasise, you can have AI Buddy draft lesson starters, peer-marking checklists, and practice prompts mapped to Papers 1 and 2. That means your learners see many more high-quality, exam-style models over the year, while you spend your time guiding live editing and discussion instead of endlessly retyping task sheets.