Read the following text, which is an article about the invaluable contribution made by Nepali Sherpas to the mountain paths of Norway. Norway's soaring mountain staircases Many people don't know that Norway is the world capital of outdoor stairways: superbly engineered wooden and concrete steps that lead to the country's most beautiful viewpoints. Content removed due to copyright restrictions. Over the course of a month, his team were creating more than 400 steps, made from up to 500 tonnes of local stone, and manoeuvring each one-tonne slab by hand after they had been airdropped into the wilds by helicopter.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Oct/Nov 2024). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [25] (Form) the typical text conventions used in the article
2. [25] (Form) the ways in which the purpose affects the content and style of the text
3. [25] (Form) the ways in which the article appeals to its intended audience, e.g. through the tone and register used in the text
4. [25] (Form) any other relevant aspects of the form
5. [25] (Structure) the use of a title to introduce the article
6. [25] (Structure) the way in which the opening paragraphs clearly establish the subject of the article - the height and narrow paths
7. [25] (Structure) the way in which the text is structured to introduce the setting, the sherpas, the developing popularity of the paths and the success of the scheme
8. [25] (Structure) the use of a non-chronological structure
9. [25] (Structure) the way in which discourse markers and anaphoric references are used in the text for cohesion
10. [25] (Structure) the way in which the concluding paragraph is structured to suggest the success of the operation and the labours of the sherpas involved in the scheme
11. [25] (Structure) any other relevant structural features in the text
12. [25] (Language) the way in which facts and details are used by the writer, e.g. 600 m below, 331 000 visitors, 400 steps, made from up to 500 tonnes of local stone
13. [25] (Language) the effect of the dramatic use of personification, e.g. brutal wind threatened to blow us both clean off
14. [25] (Language) the use of a lexical field concerned with the landscape of Norway – sky-blue fjord, the mountain lake, the evergreen trees and the escarpment
15. [25] (Language) the effect of language used to indicate height/danger, e.g. Way up high, This view is incredible!, made as if by a Norse God, sublime views from Preikestolen, or Pulpit Rock, mountaintop viewpoints, elite mountaineers and experts at working in difficult mountain conditions
16. [25] (Language) the reverence in which the sherpas are held, e.g. elite, experts, manoeuvring each one-tonne slab by hand, perfect, almost superhuman, crafted
17. [25] (Language) the effect of figurative language: Silently, they exist as monuments of an ambitious and more sustainable national plan, dramatic spike in overseas travellers
18. [25] (Language) the way in which direct speech is used in the text
19. [25] (Language) the connotations of the descriptions of the Sherpa stairs, e.g. expertly engineered and well-maintained stone staircase, made from up to 500 tonnes of local stone, superbly engineered wooden and concrete steps
20. [25] (Language) any other relevant language features in the text.