HSC Studies of Religion Question Thread

[jamonwindeyer]

Hi,

I was just wondering how much should be written with the 15 mark sections of the SOR paper (the ones with the short answers on religious traditions). For example, should the smaller 3-4 mark questions be written in 3-4 sentences, and how much for larger ones such as 7-8 marks? Also, roughly how much time should be spent in these 15 mark sections in comparison to the other parts of the exam?

Thanks!

Hey Zizzle! Welcome to the forums

So of course it's quality over quantity, and different people with different writing styles will need different amounts of writing to get the marks they want. As a guide though, a 3-4 marker would be a solid paragraph, while 7-8 marks would be more like a page or perhaps even a tad more. It depends on the verb, your writing style - All sorts of stuff

The HSC recommends 30 minutes for the section - Personally I aimed for a little less than that so I could put more time into the essay. I probably aimed for about 25 minutes myself

[jamonwindeyer]

Hello! I have my SOR1 Exam coming up on Monday and I'm not sure about the most efficient method to approach it.
I always neglect it and it is my second worst performing after English, and this time I've neglected it again. I haven't touched it at all since my last assessment which was mid yearly exams.
Also I have physics on Tuesday so I would like some time for that, I can't study religion non-stop.
TIA!

Hey! With the exam this close you don't have the luxury of doing heaps of practice essays, which would be what I'd recommend you do instead, just dot point your essays, take a practice question and write dot points to outline how you'd answer it (what your paragraphs would be, what evidence you'd use in each, etc). This is practice without the whole time consumption of an essay, more efficient for the other sections, practice MC is your best bet, and then a handful of practice short answer questions as well (first in reference to your notes, then eventually without!)

[dancing phalanges]

Hey Jamon,
Just a quick question.
In regards to the changing religious landscape
- should we know stats to the decimal place or are whole numbers fine eg. 30.1% or 30%
And also with the new census data coming out for 2016, I have gone over and used that instead of 2016. Do you think for the five marker they will stipulate to use 2011 data instead if the exam was made before the data came out?
thanks

[jamonwindeyer]

Hey Jamon,
Just a quick question.
In regards to the changing religious landscape
- should we know stats to the decimal place or are whole numbers fine eg. 30.1% or 30%
And also with the new census data coming out for 2016, I have gone over and used that instead of 2016. Do you think for the five marker they will stipulate to use 2011 data instead if the exam was made before the data came out?
thanks

Elyse might correct me but I highly doubt the decimal point would matter! Nor would using 2016 data over 2011, especially if you say which it references. There's been a lot of chat about this and I think everyone is overthinking it a bit. Statistics are used to support your argument - It won't matter overly which Year you pull from (2016 is more impressive due to it being updated), nor are they likely to press on the stats specifically in a year where it swaps over, to avoid confusion. Work from the 2016 stats if you know them - Remember your Trials are marked by your teachers anyway so you can always chat to them if there is any confusion

[dancing phalanges]

Elyse might correct me but I highly doubt the decimal point would matter! Nor would using 2016 data over 2011, especially if you say which it references. There's been a lot of chat about this and I think everyone is overthinking it a bit. Statistics are used to support your argument - It won't matter overly which Year you pull from (2016 is more impressive due to it being updated), nor are they likely to press on the stats specifically in a year where it swaps over, to avoid confusion. Work from the 2016 stats if you know them - Remember your Trials are marked by your teachers anyway so you can always chat to them if there is any confusion

Okay sweet! I was more worried if CCSA or HSC in a 5 marker say in the question until 2011 instead of 2016 because that would throw me a bit since I've prepped for '16

[jamonwindeyer]

Okay sweet! I was more worried if CCSA or HSC in a 5 marker say in the question until 2011 instead of 2016 because that would throw me a bit since I've prepped for '16

Yeah they definitely wouldn't do that! Elyse has checked with them and they've advised it would be "best practice" to know the current stuff - They won't assess it specifically

[dancing phalanges]

Yeah they definitely wouldn't do that! Elyse has checked with them and they've advised it would be "best practice" to know the current stuff - They won't assess it specifically

Thanks heaps guys

[Bubbly_bluey]

Hello! What is the structure for the trial exam? Thanks

[elysepopplewell]

Thanks heaps guys

Just adding - yes the decimal point isn't going to cost you a mark! In saying this, the difference in adherence between Islam and Buddhism is only down to the decimal in both the 2011 and 2016 census. So to an extent - you at least need to know which has a greater following if you're going to say it in your short answer.

It would not surprise me if the short answer is about no religion - it has been predicted by statisticians, students, and teachers, that no religion would overtake Catholicism this time around, and it did. So even if the paper was created and finalised before the newest data, potentially the paper-creators could have predicted this trend too and think it would be topical to discuss it in the short answer this time around. This is all stipulation of course, but knowing the newest data about no religion overtaking Catholicism could earn you some points

[elysepopplewell]

Hello! What is the structure for the trial exam? Thanks

Hey there!

Your teacher may elect to change the trial structure - but usually it just mirrors the HSC exam structure. This link takes you to a HSC paper list - choose SOR 1 or 2, depending which you do, and have a look through

[Bubbly_bluey]

Hey there!

Your teacher may elect to change the trial structure - but usually it just mirrors the HSC exam structure. This link takes you to a HSC paper list - choose SOR 1 or 2, depending which you do, and have a look through

Is the short answer response usually about the religious landscape and aboriginals? I'm doing the CSSA paper

[dancing phalanges]

Just adding - yes the decimal point isn't going to cost you a mark! In saying this, the difference in adherence between Islam and Buddhism is only down to the decimal in both the 2011 and 2016 census. So to an extent - you at least need to know which has a greater following if you're going to say it in your short answer.

It would not surprise me if the short answer is about no religion - it has been predicted by statisticians, students, and teachers, that no religion would overtake Catholicism this time around, and it did. So even if the paper was created and finalised before the newest data, potentially the paper-creators could have predicted this trend too and think it would be topical to discuss it in the short answer this time around. This is all stipulation of course, but knowing the newest data about no religion overtaking Catholicism could earn you some points

I'll quote you on this if it doesn't end up being in the exam haha thanks Elyse

[12070]

Hey, I was wondering if it's better to prepare for an essay on one religious tradition for each component and how the religion is a living tradition and then only focus on eight mark responses for the other tradition/s. Also, I reffered to them as components as our teacher told us that in the exam they are reffered to as components meaning ethics/practice/person and it has led me to believe that we are getting an integrated essay. I know predicting questions is never recommended however in the short answers they would explicitly say which 'component' you have to talk about right? I will still be prepared for an essay on each but should I slghtly change how I study based on this information?

[elysepopplewell]

Is the short answer response usually about the religious landscape and aboriginals? I'm doing the CSSA paper

Yes it comes from the core of SOR 1!

Hey, I was wondering if it's better to prepare for an essay on one religious tradition for each component and how the religion is a living tradition and then only focus on eight mark responses for the other tradition/s. Also, I reffered to them as components as our teacher told us that in the exam they are reffered to as components meaning ethics/practice/person and it has led me to believe that we are getting an integrated essay. I know predicting questions is never recommended however in the short answers they would explicitly say which 'component' you have to talk about right? I will still be prepared for an essay on each but should I slghtly change how I study based on this information?

I think the benefit of preparing an essay for each component is that it becomes a great study tool - but I don't recommend memorising the essays. The good thing about writing an essay on each is that you know that if you can write an essay on it, you can write a short answer on it.

They have asked before for an integrated essay in the HSC, and it was about the way the aspects come together to create a living, dynamic, religious tradition. I can't imagine them not specifying the component they want from you in the short answer, only because they need to give you that direction so you can understand how to achieve the 3 or so marks, seeing as it's such a tight little section. I don't think you should be changing how you study based on the potential question, except for trying to make links between the three components. Have a look at this study tool I made to see how I studied in order to make links between the components. Sometimes it isn't easy, but hopefully my graph will show you the ways I linked and inspire you to look for similar links in your work

[cakelover]

Hihi,
I do SOR 1 Unit and I have the trial paper coming up. I'm struggling to decide whether I should do Section II (short answers) on Christianity and Section III (essay) on Judaism or vise versa. It would be great if anyone could help me make a decision - maybe which one is easier for you, personally? I've done more practice essays for Judaism but my teacher is recommending that we do Christianity for the essay (Section III) so I'm still sitting on the fence...