To answer this type of essay question, turn the question around to begin your answer. Then you should answer the question as directly and concisely as you can. Don't pad your answers but also don't leave out any relevant details. Long answer essay questions use specific direction words to ask for longer, more involved responses. Because long answer essay responses can be rather lengthy, the next thing you should do is plan your answer before writing it down.
Some students actually make a brief outline.
As before, once you start to write, the first sentence of your answer should rephrase the question and provide a direct response. With long answer essay responses, however, this sentence should briefly summarize the ideas you intend to discuss. As you develop your answer, then, make each main point the topic point in a new paragraph, and be sure to discuss each one fully. You may get partial credit for demonstrating some knowledge of the topic.