A number needs a question
Original practice source: a commentary about numbers in public information.
A number can make a claim look settled. “Thirty took part” sounds precise, but a reader may still need to know what participation involved, who could join and what the count is being used to establish. Precision in one part of a statement does not complete the explanation around it.
This is not a reason to replace figures with vague impressions. Counting can expose an assumption which a confident description has concealed. The useful habit is to ask what was counted and why the result answers the question now being discussed, rather than either trust or dismiss a statement simply because it contains a number.
A magazine for young readers is inviting articles on the statement: “Numbers make arguments clearer.”
Write an article for the magazine arguing your view. You may use ideas from the source and your own ideas.
60 exam-style questions on Oxford AQA IGCSE English Language 2.2 Section B: Directed writing, covering 2.2.1 Writing for audience and purpose, 2.2.2 Responding to multiple and diverse demands, and 2.2.3 Writing linked to the Section A sources. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.