ATAR Notes: Forum
HSC Stuff => HSC English Stuff => HSC Subjects + Help => HSC English Advanced => Topic started by: elysepopplewell on February 02, 2016, 02:29:19 pm
-
Hello all!
I'm frequently asked how to study for particular subjects, Advanced English being the most common. Unfortunately, I can't gift you all with photographic memory - because I don't have it myself, nor am I magic. Each student studies differently, and what one student may find to be very effective, another may not. Some people are more visual learners and others are rote learners. I want to break down some tips for studying, but also some different strategies that you can use to your advantage.
Can I not read the text/Skip parts of the text and still do really well?
Yes. But don't even think about trying it. The chance of you doing very well without reading the text, or only reading parts, is extremely small unless you have a sort of sixth sense and are prodigious. Don't even try. The key is to know your texts really, really, really well. I'd be an idealist if I truly believed that every student could read/view each text twice or more. And I can truthfully say that I didn't read all of my text's in full twice or more, and i got 94 in the exam! I read/viewed each one at least once in thorough detail, making notes where I thought it was appropriate. You'll naturally read poems several times throughout your study because they are such short texts. You'll essentially read all of your texts twice - the second reading just won't be wholesome. Your second reading will essentially be your teacher saying "Let's review this chapter and make notes as a class" or you realising that your understanding of the ending is incomplete and reviewing. Reading/watching the text twice in its entirety isn't an easy task. Your first reading needs to be a thorough (and hopefully enjoyed!) analysis of every word, line, page, etc. A proper first reading will save you finding enormous gaps in knowledge later on. Your "second reading" will be made up of your studying.
Making Notes
I'm almost reluctant to write this section because I truly believe that everyone studies differently and you need to find what works for you in terms of notes. Ironically it is for this reason, I am writing this section because I'm going to propose some ideas about making notes. Each module demands something different so even when you find your most effective study method, you'll probably need to tweak it to suit the needs of each module. Some students are visual learners. "Graphic organisers" are great for these types of people. In the English course, you need to be able to link a thesis with evidence and arguments. You can find an example of this here. Some students will commit their quotes and techniques to memory through rote learning. Saying the words out loud continuously, writing them continuously and reading them continuously does work for most people - it is just really tedious.
I recommend that all students, no matter what type of learner you are, make whatever is hardest for you to remember, ever-present. By this I mean, if you cannot remember a killer thesis statement: print it and stick it all over your house. Put it on the back of the toilet door, put it on the fridge, put it under the clock, put it on the shower wall (laminate or plastic sleeve) and if you're really crazy - stick it to your bedroom ceiling so you wake up to it every single day (soooo romantic!).
A more structured and somewhat limited way to study is to use mnemonics. You can check out the various free mnemonic generators online. If I had a prepared paragraph that I was absolutely committed to using I could remember the techniques of: motif, alliteration, simile and imagery, using mnemonics like this: Many alligators smirk intelligently. The best mnemonics are about people you know and are often a little crude or funny. Then in the exam, I would say the little phrase in my head and use M A S I to direct my paragraph and prompt my memory of what comes next. Remembering a funny phrase is easier than remembering three techniques that don't necessarily have a catchy ring to it. You can use mnemonics across a lot of subjects. Business Studies and Legal Studies are subjects that you may find mnemonics handy for.
Other people would prefer to walk into an exam with the image of their palm cards printed into their memory. For each possible thesis/concept, you could write your quote and attached technique on the page. Your palm card would look like this:
-Concept: Power
-Quote and Technique
-Quote and Technique
-Quote and Technique.
Use colour to your advantage here! Where is the "effect?" It isn't on the palm card because you should know it! English as a subject is limited in what you can memorise. You need to understand the effect of a technique and quote more than you need to memorise it. This works well with the following...
Choosing Quotes
Cut out some leg work here and study smarter not harder. Don't remember 20 quotes for the text, each with a different technique or effect. Instead, remember some really powerful and versatile quotes (depending on your module, this could be about 10 quotes) that involve more than one technique and be prepared to talk about the effect of it in relation to the essay question asked. If you study a visual text, take a mental screenshot of a frame and observe that in this one snap, mise-en-scene, lighting, camera angles and dialogue are all at work. Perhaps even costuming and diegetic/non-diegetic sounds as well! This one textual reference opens up so many possibilities for analysing, which means that you have set yourself up to succeed by being able to support a variety of arguments for any question.
When you choose your quotes, you want to take note of how generic they are. Are you just using the most famous lines in the text? Or have you dug deeper and found a small but significant section of the text that shows that you have a thorough understanding of the text and haven't just read the Sparknotes? In the 2014 Advanced/Standard English Notes from the marking centre, it says that students showed strengths in areas of: "giving detailed responses that used a range of examples and textual references to support their responses" but lacked in the area of "choosing the most appropriate quotes/technical features of the text that best support a response." You can read more of that here . In saying this, the most famous lines are famous for a reason – they are important to the text. You have to find a balance in there. You want to show the marker that you acknowledge the most significant parts of the text for what they offer, but also that you have gone above and beyond and looked for evidence in the text as a whole.
Can you use a pre-prepared response?
Maybe…
The benefit of a pre-prepared response is that you can go into the exam confident that you have an entire structure in mind and a game plan. This response can be groomed over the course until you have a perfect essay. The problem? You don’t know what the question will be. The problem with that? Markers hate seeing responses that aren’t tailored to the question because the writer is too busy spitting out an essay that they’ve spent the year memorising.
It is for this reason that I say, you can kind of go into an exam with a prepared response. The key to doing this is to have the response tailored to be very broad, leaving room (or sometimes even just blank phrases, clauses or sentences) for the essay question. How to do this? Refer to the rubric! You can create your response to a very broad section and still run with that in the exam. If you go into an exam planning on talking about how discoveries can be intensely meaningful and transformative of perspectives– that’s cool. If your essay question asks you to respond to the statement that discoveries are provocative and confronting – you can work with that. Some of the worst essays simply agree with the question and go through the motion of explaining why the question is correct in every single way in both the prescribed text and ORT (if the module has one). The better responses will agree or disagree with the question, and then persist with a supporting agenda, like, “although discoveries can be provocative and confronting, the individual may respond to such an unexpected discovery in a way that is intensely meaningful and transformative of perspectives.” The essay question needs to be responded to consistently, but this can be done with the support of your prepared agenda! It takes some preparation and you need to refer to the rubric often enough in your prep that you are ready to adapt your prepared response to anything thrown your way.
Of course, this is easier with some modules than with others. Area of Study is a fairly convenient module for you to prepare a response for. Module C probably ranks in second place for that. If you are studying a set of poetry for a module, this may be difficult in case you are specifically told to refer to one mandatory poem and another poem of your choice (*Coughs HSC 2015 module B: W B Yeats coughs*). Another less structured way to plan a response is how I prepared for Module A Comparative Study: Richard III and Looking for Richard. I based my prepared arguments around the rubric and concepts/themes that flowed through the texts. The module told me it would be a comparative essay, so I prepared palm cards with evidence comparing the theme of power, the use of medium, the importance of context, etc. You need to work to the module’s demands.
Expanding your understanding
If you’re on top of your game, you might get to a stage where you think “yep, my study has been effective, let’s put it to bed and never touch it again for weeks until the week before the exam.”
NO.
NO.
NO.
Why not? Firstly, you should be forever submitting your essays for marking and feedback, with your teacher, with the other class’ teacher, with ATAR Notes ( You can do that here) and with your peers. Whenever you get feedback you need to refer to your essay and make amendments where you deem it to be necessary. Remember, it is your essay so you don’t have to take on absolutely everything, but think: why did this person point this section out? Does it disrupt the flow? Can I use a better word?
As for updating your thesis, always think of ways to make it flow better, to make it stronger, to make it more adaptable and make it more unique. This will feature in your introduction and it is in this very moment that you should say “hey marker, look at this, I’m about to blow your mind in a very humble, written way!” Think about your modality, the amount of words in the sentence, the flow and the sophistication.
As for updating your arguments and perspectives – read your peer’s essays and notes. This is a great way to research without researching. Your peers are bound to find a resource that you didn’t find, as you are bound to find something unique that only you have layed eyes on. The internet works in funny ways. Not only this, but the two of you could have read the same resource and interpreted it totally differently! Speaking to your peers about their essay and saying “hey, do you think the pursuit of power is more important than the pursuit for individual recognition? Why do you think that?” will help the two of you flesh out ideas and hey – that’s called studying! One of the greatest ways to get something into your own head is to have to regurgitate your knowledge to someone in a way that isn’t robotic and memorized.
Do you have any more questions? I'm happy to answer them! I wrote this guide as a response to one member's question, so don't think that you won't get a quality response! If you have a question, I can guarantee that a looot of other people are curious about the same thing! You will need to make an account to be a part of the discussion and to download notes, and you can do that right here. Comment anything that's on your mind, ask me to clarify something, ask for more help, ask for tips, ask me what my thoughts are on chocolate cake, ask me anything!
-
Hello all!
I'm frequently asked how to study for particular subjects, Advanced English being the most common. Unfortunately, I can't gift you all with photographic memory - because I don't have it myself, nor am I magic. Each student studies differently, and what one student may find to be very effective, another may not. Some people are more visual learners and others are rote learners. I want to break down some tips for studying, but also some different strategies that you can use to your advantage.
Can I not read the text/Skip parts of the text and still do really well?
Yes. But don't even think about trying it. The chance of you doing very well without reading the text, or only reading parts, is extremely small unless you have a sort of sixth sense and are prodigious. Don't even try. The key is to know your texts really, really, really well. I'd be an idealist if I truly believed that every student could read/view each text twice or more. And I can truthfully say that I didn't read all of my text's in full twice or more, and i got 94 in the exam! I read/viewed each one at least once in thorough detail, making notes where I thought it was appropriate. You'll naturally read poems several times throughout your study because they are such short texts. You'll essentially read all of your texts twice - the second reading just won't be wholesome. Your second reading will essentially be your teacher saying "Let's review this chapter and make notes as a class" or you realising that your understanding of the ending is incomplete and reviewing. Reading/watching the text twice in its entirety isn't an easy task. Your first reading needs to be a thorough (and hopefully enjoyed!) analysis of every word, line, page, etc. A proper first reading will save you finding enormous gaps in knowledge later on. Your "second reading" will be made up of your studying.
Making Notes
I'm almost reluctant to write this section because I truly believe that everyone studies differently and you need to find what works for you in terms of notes. Ironically it is for this reason, I am writing this section because I'm going to propose some ideas about making notes. Each module demands something different so even when you find your most effective study method, you'll probably need to tweak it to suit the needs of each module. Some students are visual learners. "Graphic organisers" are great for these types of people. In the English course, you need to be able to link a thesis with evidence and arguments. You can find an example of this here. Some students will commit their quotes and techniques to memory through rote learning. Saying the words out loud continuously, writing them continuously and reading them continuously does work for most people - it is just really tedious.
I recommend that all students, no matter what type of learner you are, make whatever is hardest for you to remember, ever-present. By this I mean, if you cannot remember a kill thesis statement: print it and stick it all over your house. Put it on the back of the toilet door, put it on the fridge, put it under the clock, put it on the shower wall (laminate or plastic sleeve) and if you're really crazy - stick it to your bedroom ceiling so you wake up to it every single day (soooo romantic!)
A more structured and somewhat limited way to study is to use mnemonics. You can check out the various free mnemonic generators online. If I had a prepared paragraph that I was absolutely committed to using I could remember the techniques of: motif, alliteration, simile and imagery, I would use mnemonics like this. Many alligators smirk intelligently. The best mnemonics are about people you know and are often a little crude or funny. Then in the exam, I would use M A S I to direct my paragraph and prompt my memory of what comes next. You can use mnemonics across a lot of subjects. Business Studies and Legal Studies are subjects that you may find mnemonics handy for.
Other people would prefer to walk into an exam with the image of their palm cards printed into their memory. For each possible thesis/concept, you could write your quote and attached technique on the page. Your palm card would look like this:
-Concept: Power
-Quote and Technique
-Quote and Technique
-Quote and Technique.
Use colour to your advantage here! Where is the "effect?" It isn't on the palm card because you should know it! English as a subject is limited in what you can memorise. You need to understand the effect of a technique and quote more than you need to memorise it. This works well with the following...
Choosing Quotes
Cut out some leg work here and study smarter not harder. Don't remember 20 quotes for the text, each with a different technique or effect. Instead, remember some really powerful and versatile quotes (depending on your module, this could be about 10 quotes) that involve more than one technique and be prepared to talk about the effect of it in relation to the essay question asked. If you study a visual text, take a mental screenshot of a frame and observe that in this one snap, mise-en-scene, lighting, camera angles and dialogue are all at work. Perhaps even costuming and diegetic/non-diegetic sounds as well! This one textual reference opens up so many possibilities for analysing, which means that you have set yourself up to succeed by being able to support a variety of arguments for any question.
When you choose your quotes, you want to take note of how generic they are. Are you just using the most famous lines in the text? Or have you dug deeper and found a small but significant section of the text that shows that you have a thorough understanding of the text and haven't just read the Sparknotes? In the 2014 Advanced/Standard English Notes from the marking centre, it says that students showed strengths in areas of: "giving detailed responses that used a range of examples and textual references to support their responses" but lacked in the area of "choosing the most appropriate quotes/technical features of the text that best support a response." You can read more of that here . In saying this, the most famous lines are famous for a reason – they are important to the text. You have to find a balance in there. You want to show the marker that you acknowledge the most significant parts of the text for what they offer, but also that you have gone above and beyond and looked for evidence in the text as a whole.
Can you use a pre-prepared response?
Maybe…
The benefit of a pre-prepared response is that you can go into the exam confident that you have an entire structure in mind and a game plan. This response can be groomed over the course until you have a perfect essay. The problem? You don’t know what the question will be. The problem with that? Markers hate seeing responses that aren’t tailored to the question because the writer is too busy spitting out an essay that they’ve spent the year memorising.
It is for this reason that I say, you can kind of go into an exam with a prepared response. The key to doing this is to have the response tailored to be very broad, leaving room (or sometimes even just blank phrases, clauses or sentences) for the essay question. How to do this? Refer to the rubric! You can create your response to a very broad section and still run with that in the exam. If you go into an exam planning on talking about how discoveries can be intensely meaningful and transformative of perspectives– that’s cool. If your essay question asks you to respond to the statement that discoveries are provocative and confronting – you can work with that. Some of the worst essays simply agree with the question and go through the motion of explaining why the question is correct in every single way in both the prescribed text and ORT (if the module has one). The better responses will agree or disagree with the question, and then persist with a supporting agenda, like, “although discoveries can be provocative and confronting, the individual may respond to such an unexpected discovery in a way that is intensely meaningful and transformative of perspectives.” The essay question needs to be responded to consistently, but this can be done with the support of your prepared agenda! It takes some preparation and you need to refer to the rubric often enough in your prep that you are ready to adapt your prepared response to anything thrown your way.
Of course, this is easier with some modules than with others. Area of Study is a fairly convenient module for you to prepare a response for. Module C probably ranks in second place for that. If you are studying a set of poetry for a module, this may be difficult in case you are specifically told to refer to one mandatory poem and another poem of your choice (*Coughs HSC 2015 module B: W B Yeats coughs*). Another less structured way to plan a response is how I prepared for Module A Comparative Study: Richard III and Looking for Richard. I based my prepared arguments around the rubric and concepts/themes that flowed through the texts. The module told me it would be a comparative essay, so I prepared palm cards with evidence comparing the theme of power, the use of medium, the importance of context, etc. You need to work to the module’s demands.
Expanding your understanding
If you’re on top of your game, you might get to a stage where you think “yep, my study has been effective, let’s put it to bed and never touch it again for weeks until the week before the exam.”
NO.
NO.
NO.
Why not? Firstly, you should be forever submitting your essays for marking and feedback, with your teacher, with the other class’ teacher, with ATAR Notes ( You can do that here) and with your peers. Whenever you get feedback you need to refer to your essay and make amendments where you deem it to be necessary. Remember, it is your essay so you don’t have to take on absolutely everything, but think: why did this person point this section out? Does it disrupt the flow? Can I use a better word?
As for updating your thesis, always think of ways to make it flow better, to make it stronger, to make it more adaptable and make it more unique. This will feature in your introduction and it is in this very moment that you should say “hey marker, look at this, I’m about to blow your mind in a very humble, written way!” Think about your modality, the amount of words in the sentence, the flow and the sophistication.
As for updating your arguments and perspectives – read your peer’s essays and notes. This is a great way to research without researching. Your peers are bound to find a resource that you didn’t find, as you are bound to find something unique that only you have layed eyes on. The internet works in funny ways. Not only this, but the two of you could have read the same resource and interpreted it totally differently! Speaking to your peers about their essay and saying “hey, do you think the pursuit of power is more important than the pursuit for individual recognition? Why do you think that?” will help the two of you flesh out ideas and hey – that’s called studying! One of the greatest ways to get something into your own head is to have to regurgitate your knowledge to someone in a way that isn’t robotic and memorized.
Do you have any more questions? I'm happy to answer them! I wrote this guide as a response to one member's question, so don't think that you won't get a quality response! If you have a question, I can guarantee that a looot of other people are curious about the same thing! You will need to make an account to be a part of the discussion and to download notes, and you can do that right here. Comment anything that's on your mind, ask me to clarify something, ask for more help, ask for tips, ask me what my thoughts are on chocolate cake, ask me anything!
This is amazing! Thank you so much Elyse :)
Just a quick question, I've heard that the 2017 HSC English course will no longer have a specific Area of Study (ie. no more discovery), so how would you go about studying and preparing essays for that module since the question could be completely arbitrary in terms of its focus point?
- Karen :D
-
This is amazing! Thank you so much Elyse :)
Just a quick question, I've heard that the 2017 HSC English course will no longer have a specific Area of Study (ie. no more discovery), so how would you go about studying and preparing essays for that module since the question could be completely arbitrary in terms of its focus point?
- Karen :D
Hi Karen! Glad you enjoyed Elyse's guide, I know she's super excited to see it helping people ;D That's an interesting prospect. However, a quick check of the BOSTES website says that the AoS is not due for review until 2019. Discovery, set in stone, up to and including 2018 HSC Graduates. So, you will certainly not have to worry about changes. My source: page 9 of this document.
That being said, I've also heard the rumours that the AoS is being scrapped in favour of adding more options. So, it's definitely possible that Discovery is not long for this world. At the moment though, we can rest easy for the next few years :D
-
This is amazing! Thank you so much Elyse :)
Just a quick question, I've heard that the 2017 HSC English course will no longer have a specific Area of Study (ie. no more discovery), so how would you go about studying and preparing essays for that module since the question could be completely arbitrary in terms of its focus point?
- Karen :D
I'm stoked you liked it Karen! This is interesting. What Jamon said below is correct, that the BOSTES website isn't showing signs of this changing in a hurry. Butttttt, I think you've heard your information from somewhere like this: http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/hsc-2015-board-of-studies-to-drop-most-unpopular-component-of-the-hsc-20151019-gkcvvp.html. It's sad! For me, Area of Study was the module I struggled least with! Wahhh :'(
However, you'll notice that the modality is low in the article because nothing is set in stone. So just roll with what is ahead of you! Nothing should be cut in a big hurry - you should be good to go!
-
Hi Karen! Glad you enjoyed Elyse's guide, I know she's super excited to see it helping people ;D That's an interesting prospect. However, a quick check of the BOSTES website says that the AoS is not due for review until 2019. Discovery, set in stone, up to and including 2018 HSC Graduates. So, you will certainly not have to worry about changes. My source: page 9 of this document.
That being said, I've also heard the rumours that the AoS is being scrapped in favour of adding more options. So, it's definitely possible that Discovery is not long for this world. At the moment though, we can rest easy for the next few years :D
I'm stoked you liked it Karen! This is interesting. What Jamon said below is correct, that the BOSTES website isn't showing signs of this changing in a hurry. Butttttt, I think you've heard your information from somewhere like this: http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/hsc-2015-board-of-studies-to-drop-most-unpopular-component-of-the-hsc-20151019-gkcvvp.html. It's sad! For me, Area of Study was the module I struggled least with! Wahhh :'(
However, you'll notice that the modality is low in the article because nothing is set in stone. So just roll with what is ahead of you! Nothing should be cut in a big hurry - you should be good to go!
Ah, okay thanks guys! I must have gotten some incorrect information then because my tutor kept saying how the change would be pushed forward to 2017 and how students should begin to prepare for that, which threw me off a bit. If they're keeping it then all is right for now ;D
-
Ah, okay thanks guys! I must have gotten some incorrect information then because my tutor kept saying how the change would be pushed forward to 2017 and how students should begin to prepare for that, which threw me off a bit. If they're keeping it then all is right for now ;D
Who needs a tutor when you've got Elyse ;)
-
Who needs a tutor when you've got Elyse ;)
True! As great as my tutor is, it doesn't beat someone who just came out of the HSC and has much more current knowledge haha ;)
-
True! As great as my tutor is, it doesn't beat someone who just came out of the HSC and has much more current knowledge haha ;)
Is your tutor a BOSTES exam assessor or something?
-
Is your tutor a BOSTES exam assessor or something?
Nah, but she's been tutoring for English since she finished her HSC (so like, 30-40 years ago?) and a lot of her students end up state ranking because she has a lot of experience/resources etc. But she's my first/only experience with a tutor though so I have nothing to compare it against
-
Thank you!
About to start studying for Half Yearlys, really appreciate the info
-
Do you happen to how any advice on how to write a good lead in for the introduction and good topic sentences? I always seem to the weakest for this parts for my essay as well as formulating a good essay structure. Exams are in a week so I'm freaking out :'(
-
Do you happen to how any advice on how to write a good lead in for the introduction and good topic sentences? I always seem to the weakest for this parts for my essay as well as formulating a good essay structure. Exams are in a week so I'm freaking out :'(
Hey there! This is a great question. Without a particular module specified, I'll approach this in a broad sense and hopefully you'll get some ideas.
There are three main sources for a thesis statement:
1. The essay question.
2. The rubric
3. Your arguments (what you perceive the text to convey, etc).
So, your statement needs to directly deal with the essay question first of all. If the question asks you to talk about emotions, discuss them. If it wants you to talk about context, talk about that. The rubric is important because it gives you a sense of the kinds of terms that might be valuable in your thesis statement, but also it gives you an idea of the direction you need to go. For example, the AoS discovery rubric will give you the prompt to discuss the NATURE of discovery. Then, you want to have in mind what you intend to talk about based on your understanding of your texts.
For example, if I'm studying W B Yeats' poems for Module B, and my question asks me something along the lines of, "Yeats poetry is enriched by the expression of identity."
When I read this question, it might spring to my mind that some of Yeats' poems have a real certainty of identity, and others discuss the lack of belonging/uncertainty of self. So my thesis might take into account these things, like this:
W.B. Yeats expresses the certainty and uncertainty of ones identity in a way that enriches his poetry for contemporary audiences.
The idea here is that module B requires a personal response, so that's where the contemporary audience comes in. The question requires me to talk about identity, so I did so. But my own understanding of the texts means that I'm comfortable talking about the identity and lack of identity in the texts - so I incorporated that too.
The part of the thesis that is most important to having an original thesis - is you adding your own opinion/perception. This is what sets you apart from others.
As for paragraph starters - you just want to take a tiny snippet of an argument and use it as an overview. Here are some possible paragraph starters that I might use if I was doing the above essay:
Identity is a most enigmatic feature of self when one is dealing with social turbulence."
Identity may only be realised with certainty after a process of reflection.
This isn't the only way to write a thesis statement or paragraph starters - this is simply the way I like to do it. I didn't try to encompass the main three things I did in the thesis statement, in the paragraph starters. The reason for this is that, I want to start conceptually, and deal with each other thing in a way that means it is weaved in and out of the paragraph.
To sum up, basically:
Answer the question, be original, look to the rubric for support. :)
I hope this helps!
-
Thank you for your help :D
I was also wondering where would I find the rubic?
Is it the same for all of Australia?
I'm kind of confused about the modules. Its probably because I'm in yr 11 and we've
only done essays. For exam study would it be beneficial to look over past tasks to prepare?
I have always been kind of confused on how to study for English :-[
-
Thank you for your help :D
I was also wondering where would I find the rubic?
Is it the same for all of Australia?
I'm kind of confused about the modules. Its probably because I'm in yr 11 and we've
only done essays. For exam study would it be beneficial to look over past tasks to prepare?
I have always been kind of confused on how to study for English :-[
The rubric is not Australia wide, it is for the HSC only. Here is the English syllabus which contains the rubric: https://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/syllabus_hsc/pdf_doc/english-syllabus-from2010.pdf
A module is like a "topic" within English. You will become more familiar with them in Year 12, but you should read about them in the rubric to become more familiar with what is expected of you as a preliminary student but also as a HSC student :)
Reading through past tasks is absolutely a great way to study for English - make sure that you take on any feedback that your teacher gives you so that you are always learning and improving :)
-
I was wondering what kind of questions do you usually get during exams?
Comparative essays? Analyzing advertisements and comparing them?
I was also kind of confused about the rubic is it basically possible essay topics and ect?
I was going to start searching for quotes to use to study but i'm not sure what quotes to look for or what you mean by technique
i'm also not sure what else to do to study .... exams are next week) :-X
I live in WA and I've haven't heard about the rubic prior to now.
Sorry for asking so many questions :-[
-
I was wondering what kind of questions do you usually get during exams?
Comparative essays? Analyzing advertisements and comparing them?
I was also kind of confused about the rubic is it basically possible essay topics and ect?
I was going to start searching for quotes to use to study but i'm not sure what quotes to look for or what you mean by technique
i'm also not sure what else to do to study .... exams are next week) :-X
I live in WA and I've haven't heard about the rubic prior to now.
Sorry for asking so many questions :-[
If you apologise for asking questions again then I might just ban you ;) (totally kidding, but stop apologising, seriously it is what we are here for!)
I totally didn't know you live in WA. The advice we've been giving you is HSC based, so it won't apply to the WACE if that is the certification you are working towards. Unless you are doing the HSC in WA, which I didn't even know was a thing!
For the HSC, exam questions are exclusively essays based on the NSW HSC Syllabus, which is available here. Year 11 exams might do something a little bit more creative, but either way, the question must have some grounding in this document :)
-
How is HSC different from WACE?
may I ask ;D
-
How is HSC different from WACE?
may I ask ;D
WACE is actually really similar to VCE (at least in terms of English) in that you have mainstream English (which most students do,) EAL (for those with English as a second or additional language), and Literature (kind of like an extension of English and oriented towards closely analysing texts; literally called Extension English in the HSC.)
However the way the WACE English exam is structured has much more in common with the HSC English Standard/Advanced papers in that you have to complete some short answer responses based on unseen material (e.g. a short story excerpt, a poem, or a cartoon) as well as a couple of essays. The VCE English exam is purely essay based, much to the delight of everyone in Victoria ::)
I don't know as much about other WACE subjects, but by the looks of things, your Maths and Science subjects have more in common with their VCE counterparts too. The HSC system is kind of unique in the way it stratifies its subjects (i.e. English Standard and English Advanced; Mathematics 2U, 3U, 4U, etc.) since no other state really does that. Queensland tried, but they weren't nearly so successful; their whole curriculum is a bit of a train wreck at the moment :P
We technically do have a WACE board if you want to ask questions there; I think there are a couple of other WA current and past students floating around, or I can try and answer your questions if I can :)
-
hello :)
I am currently on school holidays for three weeks and wish to be productive about studying
I was wondering if I could have advice on how to approach and make use of this time given because
I don't know where to start
-
hello :)
I am currently on school holidays for three weeks and wish to be productive about studying
I was wondering if I could have advice on how to approach and make use of this time given because
I don't know where to start
Hey another world!! For English, I'd be doing two things!
First, make sure you have a nice set of summary notes for your core texts. Quotes, techniques, explanations, contexts, analysis: Spend some time getting your notes really great and really succinct so you have a great resource down the line when you need it.
Second, practice some responses!! Pick some of the question types or essay style questions that you struggle with and pump out some response, either in exam style or just with your notes handy. Then, pop them in our marking forums for feedback if you like!!
The absolute best way to study for English is, in one way or another, practicing the skills you need to write a good response. And the best way to do this is to just write a whole bunch of responses ;)
So maybe 1 week on notes, 2 weeks on practice responses? Even doing 1 essay ever couple of days, or a short answer question every morning after breakfast, or whatever, is heaps. Any practice you can do will work wonders ;D
-
Thanks for the great help Elyse! :)
I attended the advanced english lecture you gave yesterday (which was sososo useful!!!!), and I noticed that for module B you were required to study W.B Yeats. I too have to study him and find great difficulty in doing so. I was wondering, as you did not have a prepared essay for this module, how you instead studied for your exams.
-Rachel :D
-
Hey! I have a question!
is it possible to get a band 6 for English even though you have not been getting consistently good results?
Also, in terms of the rubric, do we constantly in essays have to use words from the rubric or can we just have analysis to that effect?
Thank you
-
Hey! I have a question!
is it possible to get a band 6 for English even though you have not been getting consistently good results?
Also, in terms of the rubric, do we constantly in essays have to use words from the rubric or can we just have analysis to that effect?
Thank you
Hey Justina! Totally, always time to work and improve.
EG - I massively mucked my Extension half yearly. Dropped to rank second/third last or something similar, didn't do well at all by my standards. I worked hard to pick myself up and improve and ended up topping that subject with a strong Band 6, never too late to turn it around!! Smashing your HSC exam will be crucial to make sure that your efforts are reflected, and that all relates to the HSC Scaling process ;D
As to your second questions, words from the rubric are very nice, they show you know your stuff. Feel free to use them in places where you deem useful!! That said, you can still do really well without them and just do analysis that addresses their rationale/purpose definitely a matter of personal preference, but I do always recommend bringing elements of the syllabus into the response where possible ;D
-
Thanks for the great help Elyse! :)
I attended the advanced english lecture you gave yesterday (which was sososo useful!!!!), and I noticed that for module B you were required to study W.B Yeats. I too have to study him and find great difficulty in doing so. I was wondering, as you did not have a prepared essay for this module, how you instead studied for your exams.
-Rachel :D
Hey Rachel! Welcome to the forums ;D Elyse is resting after her powerhouse lecture performance (5 lectures in 3 days, wot even), she'll be along to answer soon! ;)
My quick advice though, not based on Yeats but general experience, is doing a heap of writing practice responses and getting feedback on those responses! For these, make sure you cover all of Yeats different poems to get used to writing about all of them. I did speeches for my HSC and they specified a speech to discuss, so be prepared for that too as a possibility! ;D and make plenty of quote sheets and stuff summarising your key points, make it easy to remember quotes and all that sort of stuff (context information, themes, etc) ;D hope this helps in the meantime!!
-
Thanks for the great help Elyse! :)
I attended the advanced english lecture you gave yesterday (which was sososo useful!!!!), and I noticed that for module B you were required to study W.B Yeats. I too have to study him and find great difficulty in doing so. I was wondering, as you did not have a prepared essay for this module, how you instead studied for your exams.
-Rachel :D
Hi Rachel! Thanks for coming along to the lecture, what a legend! I've just uploaded my W B Yeats notes to ATAR Notes, but they usually take about 24 hours to be cleared and posted (we check them for plagiarism and spam and what not). Once they are uploaded, I will link you to them, and then I will explain how I went about studying for Yeats, with those notes in mind :)
-
Thank you so much for this! I'm rubbish at studying for English but this really helped :)
-
Hi :) I just have a quick question about how to study for module B.
We're doing TS Eliot's poetry at my school, however I am finding it very difficult to memorise quotes and I was wondering if you had any tips for getting them to stick in your head given the amount of poems we have to study, and the length of a lot of them as well. I can remember and phrase in a novel or line in a film, I don't know why I find poetry so tricky! Ughh. Is rephrasing/summarising okay in a poetry essay? Or will the markers not like that?
Thank you!!
-
Hi
With Trial Paper 2 next tuesday, I was wondering whether it is best for the Seven Judith Wright poems we must know for Module C People and Landscapes to focus on two or three, rather than all seven. Many people in my year have opted to just prepare for the two or three of their choice, so that we can have more depth in analysis per poem rather than having shallow and broad knowledge for all seven. Is this recommended? Or is this sacrificial of possible marks?
Thanks :)
Erin
-
Hi :) I just have a quick question about how to study for module B.
We're doing TS Eliot's poetry at my school, however I am finding it very difficult to memorise quotes and I was wondering if you had any tips for getting them to stick in your head given the amount of poems we have to study, and the length of a lot of them as well. I can remember and phrase in a novel or line in a film, I don't know why I find poetry so tricky! Ughh. Is rephrasing/summarising okay in a poetry essay? Or will the markers not like that?
Thank you!!
Hey sudodds! Definitely a tough one! ;D
My suggestion is to make some really concise summary sheets, or even a poster! For my AoS (poetry), I had an A3 sheet with 7 boxes, each containing my quotes for the 7 poems (with techniques and effect), then extra boxes with context, themes, and other useful stuff. Getting it all in one spot really helped! Besides that, you need to just use whatever methods will get the information into your head.
When I was feeling pretty determined, I literally stood in front of the sheet, read a quote, then turned around and repeated it aloud 3 times. Then I turned around and read 2 quotes from the poster. Then I turned around and repeated the first quote, plus the second quote three times from memory. Rinse, repeat (boring, I know) ;D
Besides that, explore palm cards, audio recordings, home made worksheets, anything you think will help you remember ;D
Oh, and retelling/summarising the poems is a no-go for any essay. Textual retell is not going to earn you marks ;D
-
Hi
With Trial Paper 2 next tuesday, I was wondering whether it is best for the Seven Judith Wright poems we must know for Module C People and Landscapes to focus on two or three, rather than all seven. Many people in my year have opted to just prepare for the two or three of their choice, so that we can have more depth in analysis per poem rather than having shallow and broad knowledge for all seven. Is this recommended? Or is this sacrificial of possible marks?
Thanks :)
Erin
Hey Erin!! Welcome to the forums! Be sure to let me know if you need help finding anything :D
A bit of a complex issue there. Of course, you should know all your poems in depth, not just three. That is obviously the better course of action, so the question turns into (I suppose), "Is it worth knowing all seven in depth?" A risk vs reward scenario :)
For starters, you don't want shallow knowledge of the poetry. If doing all seven poems means you'll not go into depth with them, then stick with 2 or 3. Depth is better than breadth in my opinion.
Module C will never specify use of a specific poem like Module B could, therefore, knowing 3 in depth may be enough. That said, if you get a nasty question and you only have 3 poems, that drastically reduces the amount of evidence you have, so it is worth knowing all 7.
My recommendation would be, if you don't have the time to analyse all 7 properly, pick three to analyse really really well. Then, do a more basic analysis of the remaining four. This is the best mix of both worlds and should prepare you more effectively for any doozy questions ;D
-
Hi
With Trial Paper 2 next tuesday, I was wondering whether it is best for the Seven Judith Wright poems we must know for Module C People and Landscapes to focus on two or three, rather than all seven. Many people in my year have opted to just prepare for the two or three of their choice, so that we can have more depth in analysis per poem rather than having shallow and broad knowledge for all seven. Is this recommended? Or is this sacrificial of possible marks?
Thanks :)
Erin
Just going to chime in here, I do Coast Road poetry (for AoS) and my teacher said of the 6-7 we did, to know at least 4 in detail with adequate quotes etc etc. I thought this was relevant as in both AoS and Module C one must have a related text. Essentially how many poems you know will determine how many paragraphs you can write (normally 1 poem per para, with related text integrated)
But i did not do Module C poetry, so just trying to help but not experienced
Hope it does help :D
-
Hi I have left an attachment, further this essay is about Vertigo which is a book by Loherly and it is a distinctive essay.
Thank you
Hey there! As we've said for the other essays you've posted, we require 15 posts on ATAR Notes for every piece you'd like detailed feedback for! THis is just to make sure the markers don't get too swamped - But Elyse did give you some basic pointers on this same essay here!! ;D
-
Hi!! Do you think it's better to construct an essay and memorise quotes from that essay, or memorise quotes and then construct an essay to memorise? :)
-
Hi!! Do you think it's better to construct an essay and memorise quotes from that essay, or memorise quotes and then construct an essay to memorise? :)
Hey Sophie! Ultimately, you should pick your quotes to suit your essay, not write your essay to suit your quotes. If you have a set of quotes and you try and base your essay around them, that can restrict your ability to answer the question. So, it is more effective to have a big bank of quotes to draw on, so that you can select the best ones based on the essay question at hand!
As for memorising quotes vs memorising essays, Elyse prefers memorising essays! But I prefer memorising quotes ;D much your preference :)
-
Hey,
Do you guys have any tips in answering short answer questions for discovery relating to images?
I always have trouble trying to link techniques to discovery concepts.
Thanks!
-
Hello, is it best to focus on short answers relating to discovery.
-
Hey,
Do you guys have any tips in answering short answer questions for discovery relating to images?
I always have trouble trying to link techniques to discovery concepts.
Thanks!
Always consider the symbolism within a visual text. What does it stand for? Does it relate to any of the discovery phrases from the rubric? You would then say that such symbolism 'provides a greater understanding of ***discovery phrase***'. Symbolism and colour were always the go to techniques for me
-
Hey,
Do you guys have any tips in answering short answer questions for discovery relating to images?
I always have trouble trying to link techniques to discovery concepts.
Thanks!
Hey!
i personally found the best way to improve short answers in general is to practice them!
unfortunately there's only 2 on the nesa website for past prac papers but u can find plethora of them
from trial papers and just generally online.
to improve your analysis of visuals in particular i would advice brushing up on your visual techniques.
also maybe just pick out the visuals in all the papers and jot down any ideas of discovery u can come up with.
Then u can use your brainstormed material to answer the question.
-
Hello, is it best to focus on short answers relating to discovery.
Short answers are a great way to revise conceptual concepts quickly! And of course it helps you in practicing for Section 1 of Paper 1 ;D but you should try and do practice essays too, a good mix is ideal! :)
-
Great, informative post, thanks!
Question: With doing a pre-prepared response for creative and shaping it to the stimulus, if you integrate concepts and not every physical element of the stimulus (eg if it was an image), will hsc markers think that the student hasnt demonstrated the ability conform to the rubric?
-
Great, informative post, thanks!
Question: With doing a pre-prepared response for creative and shaping it to the stimulus, if you integrate concepts and not every physical element of the stimulus (eg if it was an image), will hsc markers think that the student hasnt demonstrated the ability conform to the rubric?
Hey Selina! Glad it benefitted you! ;D
Integrating the conceptual is what they are looking for. For example, say the stimulus was a padlock, they don't want a padlock in your story. They want a story about entrapment, isolation, restriction - The connotations of the image rather than the object in itself ;D
So, on the contrary, focusing on conceptual integration will actually (for most questions asked at least) be the better way to show the marker you can conform to what is in front of you! ;D
-
Hi, as i have about 4-8 people in each of my courses does this mean their is less competition and it's a good sign thanks.
-
Hi, as i have about 4-8 people in each of my courses does this mean their is less competition and it's a good sign thanks.
Hey! The number of people in your courses doesn't make a huge difference in any way, it doesn't really change how you are moderated (less competition means easier to get first in the class, but also easier to get last in the class, so not really a huge difference) - Any difference is purely in perception - Doing a course with less people around you can be trickier because there is less support around you!
-
For all my exams I have memorised my essays, and moulded them to the question on the day. This has worked alright for me so far, so I was just wondering if I should be making notes about my texts in general, to deepen my knowledge in case I need to change my essays a lot?
Thanks
-
For all my exams I have memorised my essays, and moulded them to the question on the day. This has worked alright for me so far, so I was just wondering if I should be making notes about my texts in general, to deepen my knowledge in case I need to change my essays a lot?
Thanks
From what I know, NESA is changing up the questions so that they are specific to a certain element to the text.
It may or may not work in your favour at the end of the day, so it's best to prepare well by deepening your knowledge of the text (reading critics, reading the preface, researching their context, etc)
-
For all my exams I have memorised my essays, and moulded them to the question on the day. This has worked alright for me so far, so I was just wondering if I should be making notes about my texts in general, to deepen my knowledge in case I need to change my essays a lot?
Thanks
If you're comfortable with the essays you've got and your ability to mould them, that's great. But don't just sit on comfortable - I'd go beyond and do exactly what you're looking at doing, by making more notes about the text, engaging new parts of the plots that you're otherwise leaving unattended, etc. If you've got great essays and they're adaptable, that's super, but with the time you have to improve between now and the HSC, I think you'd best be investing in engaging new parts of the text so that your work is SUPER adaptable :)
-
For all my exams I have memorised my essays and moulded them to the question on the day. This has worked alright for me so far, so I was just wondering if I should be making notes about my texts in general, to deepen my knowledge in case I need to change my essays a lot?
Thanks
Just to add to what Elyse has said as I memorise essay's as well. One of best things I have been doing is opening to a random page and reading through to see what exactly the author is trying to convey on that page only.The very first time I did this I got 3 new thesis ideas on one page and found some really good quotes that I replaced with others in my prepared essay. Definitely something I find manageable to do in what is usually a really tedious subject to study.
-
Thank you all so much, this is all very helpful! ☺️