Summarize Written Text

• 1-2 items
• The source text is no more than 200 words
• 10 minutes to answer
• Must be one sentence, 25-50 words

• Content: 0-2, whether you cover the main aspects of the article
• Form: 0-2, whether the word count is 25-50 and it is one complete sentence
• Grammar: 0-2
• Vocabulary: 0-2

Scoring dimensions are condensed and paraphrased from Pearson's official PTE Core scoring guide for readability; refer to the official documentation for the exact wording.

1. 1Read the whole text and find the thesis sentence (usually in the first or last paragraph), then pick 1-2 supporting details
2. 2Use one complex sentence with a subordinate clause to tie the thesis and details together — that naturally keeps it to one sentence
3. 3Count your words afterwards and stay strictly within 25-50; going over or under costs Form marks
4. 4Avoid copying large chunks of the original; paraphrasing in your own words scores better on vocabulary
5. 5Check for a full stop mid-sentence — the moment one appears it's no longer 'one sentence' and Form is scored 0

• Writing more than one sentence
• Word count too low or too high
• Just copying the original with no distillation
• Missing the article's core argument