HSC Stuff > New South Wales Education Discussion
Emily - Ask a State Ranker! (Q+A Closed)
bowiemily:
--- Quote from: Thebarman on July 30, 2017, 05:10:58 pm ---Hey Emily, thank you so much for doing this Q&A.
- For Module B, do we need to include critical views of our text?
- Would 2 theme paragraphs be enough for a module B essay?
- I always struggle with the unseen texts in paper 1, especially the final question. Do you have any tips on how to analyse these texts, as well as how to write a response for the mini essay question?
- I always write extremely long body paragraphs, which force me to split my ORT and related paragraphs into two separate paragraphs. What's the best way to reduce the size of my paragraphs?
- How often should we discuss context in a module A essay? Should we discuss it after every quote?
Thanks again for doing this Q&A!
--- End quote ---
1. No. You can still get a band six without critical perspectives. I suspect, however, a high band six will always have at least one academic within their piece.
2. Two is fine, as long as they're integrated :)
3. For the mini essay (5 marker), I would follow this structure:
- Begin with a statement about the question. Tell us what two texts you're going to use.
- Start your first paragraph which links to the theme. Use a quote from each text.
- Start your second paragraph which links to the theme. Use a quote from each text.
- End your answer with a statement that links to the very first sentence you wrote.
4. Make sure you're only spending 3 sentences max explaining each quote. This can be achieved through strong vocab, and practicing writing out your ideas before an exam.
5. Don't discuss context, but integrate it as part of your analysis. Remember, you're writing about how a text reflects its context. So it should look something like:
" 'quote' uses *technique* to ~ reflect this idea from its context~. This is important because... "
bowiemily:
--- Quote from: DSouzaC02 on July 30, 2017, 05:19:10 pm ---Hi Emily, I was just wondering for the creative writing does it have to be in a story format? Or can it be the character's thoughts like a diary entry?
--- End quote ---
My own creative was in the form of a diary entry! So you could definitely use this format if it suits your style of writing :)
bowiemily:
--- Quote from: wendy weng on July 30, 2017, 05:27:42 pm ---Hi, Emily! Actually I am a international student so I learn ESL. I am wondering that like in the rubric it says 'Discovery can lead us to new world'. Do I write how the discovery lead me to new world or how the discovery leads the protagonist to new world. I know it is a stupid question but coz I don't think my teacher state clearly enough to me. Thanks. :)
--- End quote ---
Hi Wendy! You should first talk about how the protagonist is lead to a new world. Then, you can write that this enables the reader themselves to discover a new world because of how well the text is constructed. It is safe to always say how discovery relates to the protagonist first, and then you as the reader.
bowiemily:
--- Quote from: elisedrum on July 30, 2017, 05:32:22 pm ---Hi Emily
I was hoping you could give me some direction in preparing for English exams. What did you find the most effective strategy was in adapting to different questions for essays? (Particularly with the modules)
Thanks very much :)
--- End quote ---
Hey Elise! This is how I studied for English:
I thought memorising essays would ultimately produce the opposite of what the markers want to see - a limited understanding of the text. The whole point of them asking an unseen question is to make sure you understand a text in its entirety, or at least, are accepting on other perspectives and understandings of a text. I’m sure people have done very, very well with memorised essays. But I reiterate, I did not aim to come first in the state. Rather, as a student who has always loved learning, I wanted my HSC to represent what I had worked towards for the past six years. And that definitely was not a rote learned, stagnant and stubborn, singular essay. In choosing that though, I knew that I had to get better at responding on the spot. That meant lots and lots of practice papers, reading the ideas of others and arguing my opinion with other students (fyi, thats what the forums on ATARNotes are for! You’ll have the required post count for an essay mark in no time if you think of it this way ;) ). I had around 5 themes for each text, each with quotes, that I knew could form paragraphs if I needed them to. I would then pick themes/paragraphs to suit the question asked. However, these weren’t ever paragraphs that I had written up on Word or marked by a teacher. They were fluid, and changed from essay to essay. This meant that whenever I was answering an essay question, my response was geared entirely towards the question.
bowiemily:
--- Quote from: Vinnnnnnyyyyyy on July 30, 2017, 05:40:37 pm ---Hi Emily! What's the main difference between an integrated essay and an essay with the typical four body paragraphs? I don't understand how it's different besides pressing the 'enter' key in between the two texts of an integrated paragraph. Surely there's something I'm missing.
--- End quote ---
Hi there,
The difference is that you don't have to spend as much time repeating yourself. If you do non intergrated essays, you have to write four paragraphs that talk about how two texts explore two different ideas. If you do integrated paragraphs, you can explore three ideas - potentially covering more ground and earning more marks
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