Hi Lauren,
Thank you so much for your prompt reply!! I hope you don't mind me asking but i'm also getting mixed marks for my context pieces. I know this is a huge ask but i was wondering if i could perhaps send you one of my context pieces for you to mark. it's totally fine if you can't i know that this time of year you are super busy.
Thank you once again.
No worries
Feel free to chuck your piece up on the
Submissions Board if you want really detailed feedback; otherwise, you can PM me and I'll give you some general advice
Hey guys, if writing a context piece (expository and I&B) and I can only weed out 2 main ideas that I want to explore can I still get a 7-8/10?
So in total that would be an introduction, 2 body paragraphs and a conclusion. Or is it really recommended that the 3 paragraphs minimum rule be followed?
Thank you
"2 ideas" doesn't necessarily have to be two body paragraphs though. Even if you can only extract two main concepts from the prompt, you could still break them up into three or more paragraphs.
Three paragraphs would be the ideal minimum, though the rules are more flexible for Context, so if you only had two paras but your discussion was excellent, you could easily score in the 7-8 region, though it might be hard to bump it to a 9-10.
How would you structure an essay on this Medea practice exam prompt "How does Medea deceive other characters in the play?"
Do we incorporate a discussion on themes into essay or is it strictly about how the text was constructed?
Do you think VCAA will put more than two different written pieces for LA like in your practice exams? I am having trouble analyzing the comments in these pieces (e.g. The 3 comments on the blog in Exam 4) in LA, should I put the contention of every comment in the introduction?
Basically, your body paragraphs should always be structured around themes (if possible... otherwise just go for a character breakdown as a last resort if you need to) and then
within those paragraphs, you can delve into the construction of the text for 'How...' prompts.
I think a comparative exam is likely this year, but I reckon there's also a high chance of them giving you something weird like an interview or a transcript of some description, which is why I tend to make the practice exams comparative out of habit. Maybe they'll be nice and just give you a single, straightforward piece this year, but I think they'll be looking to challenge you
In the even you get given a bunch of different bits and pieces, you wouldn't have to go through them all in the intro. For instance, for Exam 3, I'd just have 2-3 sentences at the start talking about how the newsletter published pieces from a variety of teachers about the different language options (rather than running through all four pieces.) For Exam 4, on the other hand, your intro should contain the contention of the main piece since that's taking up around 3/4 of the material. The comments are more optional though, and it'd be more efficient to just leave them for your body paragraphs where you can delve into them properly. If you want, you can just have a quick sentence at the end of your intro like 'The piece was also accompanied by a variety of comments spanning different views from members of the forum community' and leave it at that