The format
One question, in two parts, taking about nine minutes in total:
| Stage | Time | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Planning | 30 seconds | You see the first question before you can type. |
| Part 1 | 5 minutes | You write your answer. |
| Part 2 | 3 minutes | A second question appears, on the same topic, asking about something you have not written about. You write again. |
It contributes to your Writing subscore, and so to Literacy and Production. It is scored on the four writing criteria: content, discourse coherence, grammar and lexis.
Duolingo compares it to what happens in a classroom: a teacher asks you to write about something, then asks a follow-up question to make you think further.
The rule that changes everything: both answers are scored together
Part 1 and Part 2 are not marked separately and averaged. They are read as one response, and that has a consequence most candidates never work out.
And the second question is designed to prevent it. The guide states that it asks you to write about an idea you didn't write about before. So if you have answered it and found yourself saying the same things, you have almost certainly misread it.
The two parts should read as one developing argument: a position, and then a genuine extension of it.
Part 1: don't spend all your material
Five minutes is generous, and the temptation is to write everything you can think of. That is a mistake, because you cannot know yet which of your ideas the second question will ask you to develop — and once you have used an idea, using it again is repetition.
So Part 1 should be complete but not exhaustive: a clear position, two reasons, and a specific example. That is a full answer to the question asked. It is not everything you have.
Write in full paragraphs. The discourse coherence criterion explicitly includes structure for writing — whether the answer is organised as a whole and uses the right format. Bullet points are named in the criteria as the wrong format.
Part 2: three minutes, and the whole point of the task
Three minutes is not long, and the clock starts when the question appears. This is why Part 2 is where the score is won or lost — not because it is harder, but because there is no time to think your way into it.
Read the second question for what it is asking that the first did not. It will typically be one of these:
| If the second question asks… | Then it wants… |
|---|---|
| What are the drawbacks? (after you argued for something) | The other side — genuinely, not a strawman you knock down in one line. |
| How could this be addressed? | A concrete proposal, not a restatement of the problem. |
| How has this changed? / What might happen in the future? | A different time frame from the one you used. |
| Does this apply to everyone? | An exception, a group, a circumstance where your Part 1 answer does not hold. |
In all four cases the answer requires something you have not said. That is the design of the task.
Connect it to Part 1 explicitly
Because the two are read together, the first sentence of Part 2 is doing real work on the cohesion criterion. Refer back to what you argued, then move:
- Although I argued that remote work suits most office roles, it clearly does not suit people who are new to a job.
- The main drawback of the approach I described is cost, and it falls on the people least able to absorb it.
A Part 2 that starts Another point is that… has thrown that away. It reads as a second, unrelated answer rather than a developed one.
The same Part 2, two ways
Say Part 1 argued that cities should make public transport free.
Every sentence here appeared in Part 1. Read as one response, the answer has said one thing twice — and the grammar and vocabulary being fine does not rescue the content score.
This is the same writer with the same opinion. But it introduces a cost objection, concedes something real, and then refines the original claim — so the combined response now contains a position, a challenge to it, and a more precise conclusion. That is development, which is what the content criterion is asking for.
What to do, in order
- 30 seconds: decide your position and two reasons. Do not draft sentences.
- Part 1: a clear position, two reasons, one specific example, in full paragraphs. Complete, but hold something back.
- Read the second question twice. Identify what it asks for that you have not already said.
- Open Part 2 by referring to Part 1 — Although I argued that… — then say the new thing.
- Leave 20 seconds to fix spelling and punctuation. Both are inside the criteria: spelling in lexis, punctuation in grammar.
Frequently asked questions
How long is DET Interactive Writing?
About nine minutes in total: 30 seconds of planning time, then 5 minutes for Part 1, then 3 minutes for Part 2, which appears after you have answered the first question. It is one question in two parts, and it feeds your Writing subscore, and therefore Literacy and Production.
Are the two parts of Interactive Writing scored separately?
No — both answers are scored together as a single response. That is the most important thing to know about the task, because it means repeating your Part 1 ideas in Part 2 produces a combined answer containing one idea told twice, which is thin on the content criterion however well it is written.
What does the second Interactive Writing question ask?
Something on the same topic that you have not already written about. Typically it asks for the drawbacks of a position you argued, a concrete solution, a different time frame, or an exception where your argument does not hold. If your answer to it repeats Part 1, you have probably misread it.
How should I start Part 2?
By referring back to what you argued in Part 1, then moving beyond it — 'Although I argued that remote work suits most office roles, it clearly does not suit people who are new to a job.' Because the two parts are read as one response, that link is doing real work on the cohesion criterion. Starting with 'Another point is that...' reads as a second, unrelated answer.
Can I use bullet points in DET writing?
No. The discourse coherence criterion includes structure for writing and explicitly refers to using the right format, such as writing a paragraph rather than bullet points. Write in full, connected paragraphs.