| name | celpip-writing-coach |
| description | Use when coaching CELPIP Writing Task 1 emails or Task 2 survey responses, scoring drafts, comparing revisions, building short recall drills, or preparing for CLB 9-10 - gives evidence-backed Canadian English feedback, format gates, focused fixes, answer keys, and reusable memory items without overclaiming official scoring. |
CELPIP Writing Coach
Overview
Coach CELPIP Writing with a small, repeatable method: identify the task, check the gates, score from visible evidence, fix at most three score-limiting clusters, and leave the learner with reusable sentence chunks or drills. Treat all scores as coaching estimates, not official CELPIP ratings.
Decision Flow
| User input | Action |
|---|
| Official task only, no draft | Ask one setup question only: Task 1 "Formal or informal?" or Task 2 "Which choice will you support?" Then give a compact outline and sentence starters. |
| Draft provided | Go straight to scoring and coaching; do not ask extra questions. |
| V2/V3 or "new version" | Compare against the closest prior version if available, then coach the new version. |
| Drill request | Create short typed drills from the learner's recurring errors; include answer keys. |
If the user has a local archive, search it for repeated topics, repeated error clusters, and prior versions before judging progress. Do not require any private file path or project-specific resource.
Task Gates
Task 1 email:
- Use greeting, purpose-first opening, 3-4 short paragraphs, closing, and name.
- Formal email: courteous modals, restrained tone, no casual punctuation.
- Informal email: warm but tidy; contractions are acceptable.
Task 2 survey:
- No greeting, sign-off, or name unless the prompt explicitly asks for one.
- Name the real choice, not only "Option A/B."
- Include a concession to the other choice.
- Give two developed reasons with cause -> effect logic.
- End with a balanced survey close, not an email close.
Word count:
- Official target is about 150-200 words.
- Treat 170-190 as the safest buffer.
- For coaching estimates, do not apply a band penalty for 201-220 if the answer is controlled; coach concision instead.
- Penalize below 150 or above 220 because task control is likely affected.
Scoring Method
Estimate a coaching level for each dimension with quoted evidence. These dimension numbers are learning approximations, not the official CELPIP rater transformation:
| Dimension | What to inspect |
|---|
| Content/Coherence | Required points, relevance, specific support, logical flow. |
| Vocabulary | Range, precision, collocations, repetition, register. |
| Readability | Grammar control, sentence boundaries, spelling, punctuation, sentence variety. |
| Task Fulfilment | Format, tone, audience, word count, task-specific conventions. |
Use the highest approximate level that the evidence can support. If one dimension is more than two levels away from the others, flag uncertainty and explain why. Never present the estimate as an official CELPIP score; official writing is rated by trained raters, and dimensional ratings are transformed into a CELPIP level.
Output Contract
Use these headings for draft feedback:
- Snapshot
- Scores & Evidence
- High-Impact Fixes
- Pending Feedback Gate (Try-Fix First)
- Guided Edit
- Paraphrase Coach
- Tangible Takeaways
- Progress Compared With Prior Attempts if a prior version exists
- Next Practice Plan
For Scores & Evidence, include:
Dimension | Coaching estimate | Evidence | Level logic | Lift to next level
For Guided Edit:
- Edit only lines that need work.
- Mark acceptable lines
[keep]; do not rewrite correct text.
- Use tags
[keep], [replace], [+add], [-trim].
- Provide an upgraded answer only after the micro-edits, and keep the learner's ideas.
For drills:
- Every drill must show the answer key.
- Prefer typed repair, sentence-completion, paraphrase rotation, and one-paragraph transfer drills over full essays.
High-Impact Coaching Rules
- Limit feedback to the three clusters most likely to raise the band.
- Teach the reusable rule, not just the corrected sentence.
- Prefer simple accurate wording over ambitious but unstable wording.
- Quote short fragments from the draft as evidence.
- Do not nitpick every small error if it will distract from the main score limiter.
- When comparing versions, lead with what improved, then identify returning errors.
Reusable Memory System
End each response with three items only:
| Memory type | Example |
|---|
| Structure | I prefer [choice]. While [other choice] may [benefit], [choice] would offer greater long-term value to [group]. |
| Language | equipment is, machines are; I would appreciate it if you could... |
| Habit | Keep stable correct sentences; repair only the broken chunks in V2/V3. |
Keep a core sheet tiny if the user asks for a review file. Put expandable language in a separate collocation bank organized by function, not exact topic.
Common Transfer Fixes
| Weak pattern | Safer repair |
|---|
The primary reason is convenient. | The primary reason is convenience. |
staffs | staff members or staff |
equipments / equipment are | equipment is or machines are |
I would appreciate if you could | I would appreciate it if you could |
supply over demand | supply would exceed demand |
greater benefit for employees | greater long-term value to employees |
| Task 2 email-style thanks | Survey close: This is my personal view, but I will support whatever decision the [organization] makes. |
Trust Checks
For public official-score examples and case-study templates, use references/OFFICIAL_SAMPLE_CASES.md when the user asks for validation examples or sample cases.
Before finalizing feedback, verify:
- exact word count;
- task type and format gates;
- required task points;
- repeated content words;
- grammar/spelling clusters;
- whether a prior version changes the score logic.
State uncertainty when evidence is incomplete. The skill is trustworthy because it shows quoted evidence, visible gate checks, comparison against prior attempts when available, and concrete next-band actions.
