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Essay writing/text response

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kido_1:

--- Quote from: "joshuamorgan" ---Grrr! English is one subject that really annoys me! Whilst I am fairly articulate/spell correctly/use grammar correctly (I think), there are two things that I lack at:

[*] being able to interpret novels - I am very literal and interpret novels the literal way, I very rarely see the 'themes' in novels.
[*] Essay writing - I'm usually not able to structure essays very well.
[/list]

Because of this, I tend to not put much effort into English at all - I read the assigned books but don't go and write notes/chapter summaries/character development or maintain a collection of quotes. I also don't often practice writing essays.

Next year, for Year 12, I have to put a lot more effort into English as English will be the subject that will 'drag my ENTER down', if you will. What are people doing to succeed in English? What kind of notes are you preparing? What resources would you recommend (beyond practice, that's obviously needed) to become better at essay writing? For example, I don't understand the concept of 'L' (link) in TEEL? Is there a website or book that explains that?

I'm aiming for a 30-40 in English, what kind of results do I need to achieve such a study score?

Thanks,

Josh
--- End quote ---


These would be some of my tips t o improving in English:

1)Read A Lot- Especially newspaper editorials. You can get some ideas from the way people structire their writing, tone, mood and the general 'smart comments' can also help give you ideas. You may also like to analyse the language and practice your language analysis for section 3, since it is now worth 20 marks with the change in the study design.

2) Dare to be different. Try to stand out in your writing, be witty and curious in your writing. If you are a bit different usually markers would appreciate your Point Of View.

3) Practice- Write essays, analysis

4) Read Other people's stories/essays from past years-This could be bought in the form of Checkpoints, Insight Study guides which give you an idea to how other people tackle the English test and the concepts/notions which they explore. (You might even like to steal a few of their tricks/ideas)

5)Be a wise/informed citizen-Keep up with the news. Watch shows/ movies that are related to your context study. Try to make it a fun subject rather than a monotonous burden that is likely to weigh down your ENTER score.

Overall. Just do your best and wish for a bit of luck. Good luck is always handy in a subjective subject such as English.

 :lol:

BA22:

--- Quote from: "kido_1" ---

Overall. Just do your best and wish for a bit of luck. Good luck is always handy in a subjective subject such as English.


--- End quote ---


The subjective component of english is over-hyped, luck is not a tangible factor of english

Nick:

--- Quote from: "BA22" ---
--- Quote from: "kido_1" ---

Overall. Just do your best and wish for a bit of luck. Good luck is always handy in a subjective subject such as English.


--- End quote ---


The subjective component of english is over-hyped, luck is not a tangible factor of english
--- End quote ---


I'd definately agree with that. To say that "luck" is a major component in english is a little misinformed. If all the components of a good essay exist in an essay, there is a high probability of reaching A+ standard.

Key components would include:
Strong introduction- swiftly and effectively brushes over the key concepts and ideas to be discussed. The intro should be linguistically powerful, yet it shouldn't be too verbose- this can detract from what you are trying to convey to your reader.

3-4 paragraphs which are packed with an abundant amount of information and key evidence- evidence is the key to good paragraphs. Good evidence is what pushes your grades up. Your ideas must be extensive and relevant, but every point you make should ideally be backed up by a quotation or a direct event or circumstance which comes directly from the novel/film text. I guarantee that evidence is what the examiners are looking for. Using good language often helps, but you should not rely on this alone to boost your score. Even someone who is an average student can gain an A grade by just using lots of evidence.

Conclusion- Sums up all key points briefly and coherently. Never mention something that has not already been mentioned in your previous paragraphs.

Pencil:

--- Quote from: "Nick" ---
 The intro should be linguistically powerful, yet it shouldn't be too verbose- this can detract from what you are trying to convey to your reader.

--- End quote ---


This is a really good tip for everything you do in english, not just intro's. Don't overwrite, stick with words you know and don't just find the biggest word in the thesaurus - teachers/examiners will recognise this straight away and you'll look like a moron. I think when you start year 12 you can be tempted to be all 'oo i'm in year 12, must use big words' but yeah don't. Of course a good vocab is essential, just don't overdo it
/rant.

BA22:
In my view, the introduction should begin with a sentence outlining your contention, a direct response to the prompt (well, i like to anyway). The examiner will have a fair idea of your grade after reading your intro.

Being linguistically powerful does convey confidence and control of language, but as goose mentioned, it must be only employed if you clearly know the meaning of the word. "Didactic" was a very popular word in my class due to its appropriate usage for Dicken's writing style, yet few were actually aware of its specific meaning.

I personally advocate a thoughtful introduction, one which establishes a clear line of arguement, and references the various factors/characters and writing devices that support YOUR contention, and not that of the prompt. A common mistake is to deviate from your line of arguement, affecting your ability to maintain the tight control of discussion needed to earn high marks.

English is a active learning experience, and you must experiment with your style early in the year. I personally wrote no responses in the two weeks leading up to the exam, bar one practice exam that the school ran, as very little improvement can be made at that stage of the year. Your teacher does not possess all the solutions to your problems, and finding other sources of criticism is imperative to broadening your own perception of your skills in this subject.

Furthermore there are very few iron-clad rules of essay writing, structure is of course important, but by no means is TEEL the only option available to you. If someone is trying to tell you that you must quote in your conclusion, or that you must not, then they are wrong. I certainly have my own perceptions of appropriate essay writing that i reccomend to others, but do not be limited by the rules of others, you must experiment to find a style that suits you

If you are not confident with english, then you post here at your own risk, if you post work and receive negative (but almost always constructive) criticism, you may find the standard of your school does not correlate to the rest of the state. Too often i have seen students suprised by mine or others assessment of their work, of which they thought was of outstanding quality, only to find it was mediocre at best. However, FSN is a positive environment for the most part, and i've yet to see the spiteful and mean spirited comments of people's work that i've seen on BOS. Be aware that there is always someone, somewhere who needs to bring you down to feel better about themselvs. This is the nature of the VCE beast, and english is not the only subject i which you will encounter this attitude.

My only rule of english is that you must practice. I assisted students this year who struggled with aspects of the course, only to find they had only written one or two pieces in the format they were struggling with. You are against students who will write in excess of 50-70 essays for the entire year, you simply must practice. If you take anything in from my lengthy diatribe, then it is that you must practice.

PRACTICE.

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