1st in Advanced English 2016 - Ask Me Anything!

[ca052267]

thank you soo much!!

I'm really struggling with maintaining consistent marks, but I'm trying to improve.

Could I still message you if I need help?

[bsdfjnlkasn]

Hey there,

I absolutely bombed out on my first assessment task and was wondering if you had shared in any similar experiences (I doubt it)
I'm struggling to find the motivation to keep going especially since I thought it was my best subject. Were you ranked first the entire year? Or were you just really good in comparison to your cohort?

Well done on the great results!!

[elysepopplewell]

Hey there,

I absolutely bombed out on my first assessment task and was wondering if you had shared in any similar experiences (I doubt it)
I'm struggling to find the motivation to keep going especially since I thought it was my best subject. Were you ranked first the entire year? Or were you just really good in comparison to your cohort?

Well done on the great results!!

Hey, I'm not Emily and my anecdote doesn't involve any state rankers, but maybe it'll get you thinking about English again.

My best friend Clair did her first assessment task and received a rank that was something like 24/30 in the cohort for Advanced. She was super cut because she'd put a lot of effort into the task but she also didn't think she was too bad at English. She had a real dip in her mood for a while and wanted to end English all together, not waste any more time on it, it was something she felt that wasn't worth her time after "bombing out." Her brother (HSC whiz from a few years back) explained to her how if you have a subject where you're ranked second, and a subject where you're ranked 24th, it's much more advantageous for you to work on bumping that 24 to a 10, rather than bumping the 2 to a 1. So even though the subjects where you're doing really well motivate you to keep doing well, and so they should, you should put just as much effort into climbing the ranks in the subject you dropped down in.

It's easier to climb from 24 to 15, than it is to climb 2 to 1. Remember, if you bombed out of this one, there will be students who will bomb out of the next one, or the one after. And you'll start to move up the ranks simply because of other's downfalls, but also because of your own perseverance. This is how it worked for Clair, and I think she ended up ranking 4th or 5th in the cohort after originally getting that 24th rank. How? She saw that her excellent rank in maths or science would be maintained if she kept putting in the hard work, but she had to change her mind set to English. Even better for you, English is a subject that you really enjoyed before this mishap. So, get that passion back. Work really hard on it, because recovering from one bomb out is very, very rewarding!

[ariannasl99]

Hi there.

1. I was wondering what texts you did last year and how you prepared for them?
I am currently doing Elizabeth Barrett Browning and 'The Great Gatsby', then I will be doing Hamlet and then the Art of Travel.

2. I am doing well in Advanced English currently but I want to do better. I do so many practise essays and drafts but I still can't get to what I want. How do you write those brilliant essays which get 19 or 20/20?

Thank you 

[bowiemily]

thank you soo much!!

I'm really struggling with maintaining consistent marks, but I'm trying to improve.

Could I still message you if I need help?

Feel free to post on the forums any time you need help!

[bowiemily]

Hey there,

I absolutely bombed out on my first assessment task and was wondering if you had shared in any similar experiences (I doubt it)
I'm struggling to find the motivation to keep going especially since I thought it was my best subject. Were you ranked first the entire year? Or were you just really good in comparison to your cohort?

Well done on the great results!!

I actually did 'bomb' my first assignment! However, this is what motivated me to keep going, and to find study techniques that suited me. As such, I ended up with a 96 assessment mark and first in all of my subjects. A passion for English will always help you to pull through the tedium you are experiencing now

[bowiemily]

Hi there.

1. I was wondering what texts you did last year and how you prepared for them?
I am currently doing Elizabeth Barrett Browning and 'The Great Gatsby', then I will be doing Hamlet and then the Art of Travel.

2. I am doing well in Advanced English currently but I want to do better. I do so many practise essays and drafts but I still can't get to what I want. How do you write those brilliant essays which get 19 or 20/20?

Thank you 

I did Wrack, Richard, Yeats and Art of Travel.
I wasn't getting 19/20 for module practice essays until late term two. Its all about practice, and knowing your texts inside and out. I also connected personally with my texts, and as such, had a strong personal voice in my responses

[jamonwindeyer]

Hello and congrats on you amazing marks! - truly incredible!
i also study advanced english and legal studies so....
1. i think you mentioned about speaking from a personal voice in your essays? could you extend on how you did this?
2. when writing creative pieces, do you have any advice on what the markers actually look for in these pieces?
3. With Legal, did you find any particular methods that worked in remembering legislations and Acts etc?
thanks so much! 
congrats again and ATB with future studies!!

Hey Melanie!! This response is from Emily! welcome to the forums!!
===================================

1. Personal voice is something you develop, it does not happen over night. Through writing essay responses, debating with others, reading other people's work and relating the text to your own understanding of the world. When I talk about personal voice in my work, it means that it sounds like I'm speaking to you through my essay. It is clearly my interpretation and opinion. I argue confidently and with 'flair', as the marking criteria would say
2. They look for a text they can engage with, that has a strong control over language, and that is original. Steer clear of obvious plot lines and cliches
3. I had a knack for remembering the legislation, but never the date that went along with it! To solve this, I put all of my cases, media articles and acts in chronological order. It really clarified the mish mash of dates I was trying to remember!

[jamonwindeyer]

This Q+A has ended! Thanks to everyone who asked a question, and a huge thanks to Emily for being so generous with her time to answer questions for the last day. To everyone who posted for the first time, I encourage you to stick around and see everything else the site has to offer. A few threads possibly relevant to you:

English Advanced Question Thread
How to Study for Advanced English!
ULTIMATE Guide to Creative Writing

But this is just three of hundreds of cool resources/threads on the forums - Have an explore!