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July 02, 2025, 09:13:51 am

Author Topic: Pages in english exam  (Read 7218 times)  Share 

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Stick

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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #15 on: January 02, 2012, 10:04:09 pm »
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I'll need to work on this in Year 12. :S Our teachers always told us to keep it simple and direct so I've never really written more than about 600 words (around 3-3.5 pages).
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #16 on: January 02, 2012, 10:10:16 pm »
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Keep it simple? Really? I've always thought that flamboyant language gets you nicer marks, that's what I've found with SACs anyway!

600 is pretty much too little, you need at least 800 although I aim for around 1000, I usually managed to hit that mark with Text and LA

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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #17 on: January 02, 2012, 10:21:45 pm »
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Like I said, it will be something I have to work on. :P I've only just finished Year 10, by the way. xP We're encouraged not to 'waffle on' because few of us are able to write a lengthier, yet cohesive piece. I'm sure in the next two years the teachers will help us to add length and I'll be practicing heaps at home. :)
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #18 on: January 02, 2012, 10:40:26 pm »
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Keep it simple? Really? I've always thought that flamboyant language gets you nicer marks, that's what I've found with SACs anyway!

600 is pretty much too little, you need at least 800 although I aim for around 1000, I usually managed to hit that mark with Text and LA

Flamboyant but not to the point where sentences are plagued by excessive usage of long, complex words. I would say contrast sentences with a mix of complex and simple words. It seems to work favorably.

I also aim for 1000, and I tend to allow myself a 200 word excess if I need it. But in my LA's, I tend to go over anyway, depending on the length and overall consensus  of what's given.
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luken93

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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #19 on: January 02, 2012, 10:47:39 pm »
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Not that it is a distinct correlation of word count vs exam mark...but my exam scores were:

TR: 1200 words, 8.5
Context: 1600 words, 10
LA: ~900 words, 6.5
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #20 on: January 02, 2012, 11:04:48 pm »
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I seriously thought that 700+ words would suffice, seems like my English teacher was much to lenient this year. So how many words would you guys say is "acceptable" per body paragraph?
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #21 on: January 02, 2012, 11:08:55 pm »
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ideally you want a minimum 900+ words if your pieces are to have good depth
you should be aiming for 1000 - 1200

whilst striving for these aims, remember not to:
- lose clarity and control of the piece
- be too repetitious (argue same points in different body paragraphs)
- use very lengthy quotes just to 'take up words'

quality > quantity
but to achieve quality, a certain quantity is required
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #22 on: January 02, 2012, 11:10:44 pm »
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100 - 150 ish for the opening.

250 - 300 for 2nd, third and fourth.

100 for last para.

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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #23 on: January 02, 2012, 11:19:02 pm »
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Hmm seems both fair and logical, what would be the ideal way to work on this? I'm thinking formulate general idea with how I want to go with a response and just write for 50 minutes.
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #24 on: January 02, 2012, 11:24:50 pm »
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100 - 150 ish for the opening.

250 - 300 for 2nd, third and fourth.

100 for last para.


Thats about right.
I consistently wrote 5 pgs per essay - one para per page: the intro filled up around half a pg, my body paras filled up 3/4 a pg and my conclusion was around a third of a pg...
I'm a visual person - i really needed to see where I should stop writing hence the 'cut-off' points, cos otherwise, I would have just kept writing and rambling on...
Typically, I spent 5-10mins planning, then 10mins per para with exception of conclusion (around 5-7mins) so around 2-3mins spare for checking (probably should have allocated more)... Usually I finished paras quicker than 10mins though, especially if I planned really well...
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #25 on: January 02, 2012, 11:26:41 pm »
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100 - 150 ish for the opening.

250 - 300 for 2nd, third and fourth.

100 for last para.

100 for conclusion is a bit much. Keep it shorter, say ~75-80 words. I tend to make my first body paragraph a bit longer because I reserve the most attention-grabbing and stronger point as an opener. Intro shouldn't be any longer than 200.

It varies for everyone though, and the style they approach it with.
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #26 on: January 02, 2012, 11:30:48 pm »
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Its good to have a strong point in your 1st body, but i'd personally reserve your best for the 3rd body, so it shows that you are continually building a strong, linked, broad argument that supports your original contention.
I've seen some long intros work really well, but yeah, its probably good to keep them short to avoid excess...
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #27 on: January 02, 2012, 11:48:27 pm »
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Its good to have a strong point in your 1st body, but i'd personally reserve your best for the 3rd body, so it shows that you are continually building a strong, linked, broad argument that supports your original contention.
I've seen some long intros work really well, but yeah, its probably good to keep them short to avoid excess...

Yeah, that's good. I think I didn't justify myself clearly though; I may not have the strongest point as the opening, but definitely the most dramatic or radical one. The deeper and more complex ideas would be placed towards the end as the linker as you said that bring together your overall contention into a nice ending. I like to make more reference to the opening paragraph in my conclusion though, as it makes a greater impression that what they've read has truly progressed and they're simultaneously reminded of various earlier parts of the piece.

Long intro's can work, but it's a bit risky if you deviate halfway through. I lean more towards short and sweet.
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #28 on: January 02, 2012, 11:52:17 pm »
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i liked to have a long intro, it really built the bulk of your essay, even if your points were short/your essay was overall short, your intro can give it a real boost, so like i genrelaly had a 150-200 words intro.
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Re: Pages in english exam
« Reply #29 on: January 03, 2012, 12:01:09 am »
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i liked to have a long intro, it really built the bulk of your essay, even if your points were short/your essay was overall short, your intro can give it a real boost, so like i genrelaly had a 150-200 words intro.

Yeah, it works differently for everyone. A long intro is good, as it's the first thing they read and whether the first couple of sentences woo them in to keep reading can make all the difference. A long, but bad intro will most likely give them a slightly negative view on the rest of the piece. My teacher always said, by the time she finished reading the intro she had a good grip, or feel on what it was worth in terms out out of 10. And this was before she even got to the body.
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