The following text is taken from an online brochure which features luxury holidays. The luxurious Niyama Maldives resort is a forty-minute seaplane ride away from Male, and set on the lush private island of Olhuveli. Spread out across two islands, Niyama is a relaxed, upmarket and innovative resort that maintains a fantastic balance between tranquil beauty and a real sense of fun. The islands are named 'Chill' and 'Play', and as they suggest you can either choose to lose yourself completely in this tropical paradise, with its quiet, private beach, butler services and twenty-four hour spa, or you can engage with the latest technology in the form of Nintendo Wiis and X-Box 360s and dance the night away in 'Subsix' – the World's first underwater music club lying six metres below the surface of the ocean. Surrounded by pristine, clear-blue waters and with splashes of green and crimson, a stay at Niyama all but guarantees a true luxury Maldives holiday experience. Accommodation takes the form of a range of stylish pavilions and studios situated both on the beach and over water, and all have a wide variety of features on offer including iPads, flat-screen televisions and more. There are a number of different dining options to choose from at Niyama, from outdoor campfire grills fusing tastes from South America, Asia and Africa, to the 'Edge' restaurant, a stunning floating restaurant that can only be accessed by boat. Here you can enjoy local flavours, daily catches and signature cocktails on a private jetty that offers stunning panoramic views of the Indian Ocean in all its beauty. There are a wide variety of facilities at the Niyama Maldives resort, such as the Lime Spa, where you can enjoy treatments overlooking the lagoon or in two separate on-island spa sanctuaries with their own outdoor shower, whirlpool and day bed, a gadget and games room, pool, diving centre, gym, motorised and non-motorised water sports and much more. Niyama has an extensive range of facilities on offer, and with its careful balance of fun and tranquillity you can decide what type of luxury holiday experience you have in the Maldives. Treatments can be personalised to suit your individual requirements, whilst signature treatments make use of local ingredients such as coconut oil and Maldivian coral sand. Those suffering from the effects of jet-lag are advised to partake in after-dark treatments, with therapies designed to heal, nurture and restore. For those with children, the Explorers club offers children under twelve the opportunity to enjoy tailor-made activities based around their interests and abilities. Run by fully qualified childcare professionals, the classes separate children into four age groups, with a sleeping room for daytime siestas and theme days such as Circus Fun and Jungle Safari designed to ensure even the younger ones have the perfect Maldives holiday experience. Older children can enjoy expeditions to nearby islands, snorkelling safaris and football, plus there is even an amphitheatre for those looking to enter the world of show business. Niyama offers a truly breathtaking Indian Ocean experience where you can sample innovative dining in a modern and stylish luxury Maldives resort.
- (a)Comment on the ways in which language and style are used to promote the Niyama holiday resort to potential tourists.[15]
- (b)The same brochure includes another promotional feature for a luxury holiday resort (real or imagined) in a different part of the world. Using your own words, and basing your writing on the style and language of the original passage, write a section of the promotional material about this second luxury resort for the brochure's website. Write between 120 and 150 words.[10]
Mark scheme
Marking points from the official mark scheme (Oct/Nov 2018). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.
- [15 marks total for part (a)] commentary on use of language in the passage.
- [Band 1: 13-15 marks, Knowledge & Understanding] Perceptive appreciation of content and ideas. Fluidly relates content to structure, audience, purpose, genre, style; shows keen awareness of intentions of passage.
- [Band 1: 13-15 marks, Analysis of language effects] Analyses text with sensitive and discriminating awareness of how language creates effects. Moves with ease between part and whole in discussing specific examples of language use and the effect of the whole passage.
- [Band 1: 13-15 marks, Organisation] Strong structure; may be concise; quotation is used fluently, 'embedded' in the argument.
- [10 marks total for part (b)] directed writing task based on the passage.
- [Band 8-10 marks] A perceptive recognition of context, audience and purpose supported by a good range of appropriate vocabulary and expression suitable for the task.
- [Band 8-10 marks] Responses at the top of this band will be persuasive and confident, supported by a consistent, and at best personal, engagement with context and purpose, using fluent and accurate expression accompanied by a strong sense of audience.
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