Hello Year 12s! Welcome to the final stretch in preparing yourself for the best subject in the world: English. ('Through employing the adjective "best", Ms Marie reveals her bias towards English as a discipline, prompting her audience to join her in elevating it to a superior status and to motivate her students to engage in English exam revision').
Below, you'll find a revision guide that outlines how to approach each section of the exam, with some study tips for each section.
Below, you'll find a revision guide that outlines how to approach each section of the exam, with some study tips for each section.
This is not an exam you can ‘wing’ or cram. This is an exam that requires detailed and complex thought, high quality writing and memorising specific quotes and details from texts. So what does this mean for you? It means you must start studying now to give it your best shot.
Q: What does this exam involve?
The English exam is 3 hours and fifteen minutes long and is divided into 3 sections:
SECTION A:
This section requires you to write a response to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s The Thing Around Your Neck. You will be presented with two topics related to your text and will be required to write an 800-1000 word response to the question in essay form. You must draw upon evidence from the text (quotes, references to text, structures and features), use metalanguage and refer to its ideas, themes, views and values to present a complex response to the topic.
SECTION B:
This section requires you to write a comparative analysis of the ideas, issues and themes presented in David Malouf’s Ransom and Clint Eastwood’s Invictus. You will be presented with two topics related to your text pair and will be required to write an 800-1000 word response to the question in comparative essay form. You must draw upon evidence from BOTH texts (quotes, references to text, structures and features), use metalanguage and compare/contrast their ideas, themes, views and values to present a complex response to the topic.
SECTION C:
In this section of the exam you will be presented with a persuasive text type and/or types and will be required to write an 800-1000 word language analysis essay which analyses the construction of argument and persuasive language and visuals. You will be required to use metalanguage and display a high level of analysis for this section. In the past, VCAA have moved away from traditional newspaper texts for this section.
Q: What criteria will be used to assess my work?
Exam criteria document:
english_exam_criteria.docx | |
File Size: | 14 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Expected Qualities 0-10 for each section:
english_descriptors_0-10_for_section_a_b_c.docx | |
File Size: | 30 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Q: How do I study for this exam?
1. First, assess yourself against the exam criteria and using the exam 'selct-reflection' google form after having completed the practice English exam. What areas of the exam criteria do you need to work on? You can access the Google Form here
2. Now, look at your revision notes and practices. What do you need to do to improve? How can you improve your revision tools and practices?
3. You will be given a revision ‘menu’ to help you study for this exam, which will address the following three elements of exam revision for you to work through:
*You might also want to check out the videos below which outlines some strategies for English exam revision and ten English exam 'study hacks':
2. Now, look at your revision notes and practices. What do you need to do to improve? How can you improve your revision tools and practices?
3. You will be given a revision ‘menu’ to help you study for this exam, which will address the following three elements of exam revision for you to work through:
- ‘Entrees’: Memorising, understanding and refining key knowledge and skills
- ‘Mains’: Practising responses to exam-style tasks
- ‘Dessert’: Reflection and ‘next steps'
*You might also want to check out the videos below which outlines some strategies for English exam revision and ten English exam 'study hacks':
Q: What can I do to study for Section A of the exam?
1. Summarise all your notes on the text/s and notes from study guides and put them under the following headings:
2. Under each of these theme/character headings, you should have a comment about the ideas explored, a series of short quotes and examples relating to each theme and character, relevant views/values conveyed through the theme or character and relevant structures and features (these are very important). This categorising of information can take the form of a study sheet, poster or cue cards.
3. Next, you will test yourselves every night on the information on this sheet. It is recommended you ask someone to test you off the sheet or better yet, get a ‘study buddy’ who is also studying for the English exam and test each other. Do this every night in the weeks leading up to the exam to help you remember information under these categories.
4. Next, practise deconstructing questions, grouping ideas and planning responses to essay questions in 5-10 minutes. Then, aim to write a response in 45-50 minutes.
5. For each response you write, self-assess against the 'Expected Qualities' handout, get feedback from your teacher or peers, go back and make necessary changes to your practise responses and memorise those changes. Ensure you complete a broad range of timed responses that include character, theme and structures and features questions so you cover all bases.
- CHARACTERS/SHORT STORIES (The role of particular characters in the text, their development and the meaning behind each short story)
- THEMES: Don’t forget to include a brief comment under each theme about the ‘big ideas’ or ‘big picture’ that the author is exploring through that particular theme (eg: what is Adichie suggesting about human nature?, what is Adichie saying about male and female voices? What is Adichie saying about the West’s attitude towards migrants?, etc.)
2. Under each of these theme/character headings, you should have a comment about the ideas explored, a series of short quotes and examples relating to each theme and character, relevant views/values conveyed through the theme or character and relevant structures and features (these are very important). This categorising of information can take the form of a study sheet, poster or cue cards.
3. Next, you will test yourselves every night on the information on this sheet. It is recommended you ask someone to test you off the sheet or better yet, get a ‘study buddy’ who is also studying for the English exam and test each other. Do this every night in the weeks leading up to the exam to help you remember information under these categories.
4. Next, practise deconstructing questions, grouping ideas and planning responses to essay questions in 5-10 minutes. Then, aim to write a response in 45-50 minutes.
5. For each response you write, self-assess against the 'Expected Qualities' handout, get feedback from your teacher or peers, go back and make necessary changes to your practise responses and memorise those changes. Ensure you complete a broad range of timed responses that include character, theme and structures and features questions so you cover all bases.
Q: What can I do to study for Section B of the exam?
1. Summarise all your notes about 'Ransom/Invictus' under the following theme headings:
2. For each theme (broad concept), identify issues (points of dispute. Eg: 'Forgiveness is not always the most realistic solution'), ideas (specific, developed concepts. Eg: 'It is through forgiveness that conflicted societies can reconcile their differences and build a unified future together') and specific evidence from each text (in the form of quotes, symbols, film techniques and literary devices).
3. Make this into a poster, using at least 8 examples of evidence per theme. You can use your reading and viewing journals, class PowerPoints and notes to help you.
4. Highlight similarities between texts in one colour and the differences in another. This will help you memorise key content points for the exam. Fill in any gaps with the study guides under the ‘Comparing Texts’ folder on Compass.
5. Next, you will test yourselves every night on the information on this sheet. It is recommended you ask someone to test you off the sheet or better yet, get a ‘study buddy’ who is also studying for the English exam and test each other. Do this every night in the weeks leading up to the exam to help you remember information under these categories.
6. Next, practise deconstructing questions, grouping ideas and planning responses to essay questions in 5-10 minutes. Then, aim to write a response in 45-50 minutes.
7. For each response you write, self-assess against the 'Expected Qualities' handout, get feedback from your peers or teacher, go back and make necessary changes to your practise responses and memorise those changes. Ensure you complete a broad range of timed responses that include character, theme and structures and features questions so you cover all bases.
- Changing identity
- Leadership
- Revenge and forgiveness
- Humanity
- Conflict and confrontation
- Rebuilding
- Justice and injustice
2. For each theme (broad concept), identify issues (points of dispute. Eg: 'Forgiveness is not always the most realistic solution'), ideas (specific, developed concepts. Eg: 'It is through forgiveness that conflicted societies can reconcile their differences and build a unified future together') and specific evidence from each text (in the form of quotes, symbols, film techniques and literary devices).
3. Make this into a poster, using at least 8 examples of evidence per theme. You can use your reading and viewing journals, class PowerPoints and notes to help you.
4. Highlight similarities between texts in one colour and the differences in another. This will help you memorise key content points for the exam. Fill in any gaps with the study guides under the ‘Comparing Texts’ folder on Compass.
5. Next, you will test yourselves every night on the information on this sheet. It is recommended you ask someone to test you off the sheet or better yet, get a ‘study buddy’ who is also studying for the English exam and test each other. Do this every night in the weeks leading up to the exam to help you remember information under these categories.
6. Next, practise deconstructing questions, grouping ideas and planning responses to essay questions in 5-10 minutes. Then, aim to write a response in 45-50 minutes.
7. For each response you write, self-assess against the 'Expected Qualities' handout, get feedback from your peers or teacher, go back and make necessary changes to your practise responses and memorise those changes. Ensure you complete a broad range of timed responses that include character, theme and structures and features questions so you cover all bases.
Q: What can I do to study for Section C of the exam?
1. Summarise all information about persuasive text types and persuasive language techniques, incorporating metalanguage, visuals, examples and effect. You can also use your existing tables or notes on this and the following quizlets to test your knowledge:
2. Make a list of vocab words for describing the effect of persuasive language. You can use the following table as a starting point:
- https://quizlet.com/126046719/persuasive-language-techniques-logos-and-ethos-flash-cards/
- https://quizlet.com/126023870/persuasive-language-pathos-1-reliance-on-emotion-flash-cards/
- https://quizlet.com/126038238/persuasive-language-techniques-pathos-2-reliance-on-emotion-flash-cards/
2. Make a list of vocab words for describing the effect of persuasive language. You can use the following table as a starting point:
3. Next, memorise how to structure a language analysis essay and have a go at annotating and writing responses to a range of persuasive text types, self-assessing and getting feedback from your teacher every time. Make all necessary changes to your response and memorise them!
Q: What can else can I do before the exam to prepare?
- Go to the VCAA website and read the assessment reports on past English exams (for Sections A and C –these are the closest to this study design) –they give you samples and good insight into what they are looking for in the exam
- In the past few years, the language analysis text types have not been conventional newspaper text types. Instead, they have included text types such as Powerpoint slides, blogs and comments and letters from a school principal, etc. Ensure you are prepared to analyse these text types too.
- Be prepared for a range of different questions for 'Analysing Text' and 'Comparing Texts'–character/theme/structures and features/quote or social/cultural values questions.
- Use specific, original examples on your study sheets so you use them in the exam
- Mnemonics (acronyms of concepts you have to remember) can help you memorise material
- Get lots of feedback from your teacher, go back and fix your mistakes, then memorise this!
- Complete lots of timed responses to questions so you get used to writing under pressure –this is VERY important.
Q: What should I be doing to work effectively and efficiently during the exam?
- Write down things you MUST remember in the first 5 mins that you are likely to forget
- Use your reading time to read all sections, but in the last five minutes of reading time, shift your focus to Section C. Note the issue, contention, tone, visuals and the persuasive language structures and features you will annotate. As soon as writing time starts, start with Section C. This saves you from using writing time to read the persuasive text during writing time.
- Deconstruct, group and plan responses in the first 5 minutes of responding to each section. Often, the question/prompt will give you clues on how to group ideas (eg: if the question is about ways in which Adichie explores identity in her collection, you could structure your essay according to the different ways Adichie defines and represents identity in her text (eg: identity as evolving, identity as being lost, identity as being reclaimed, cultural identity, etc). If the question is about one characters’ role/development in the text, then you could structure your essay according to that character’s development or the range of roles they play in the text, etc.)
- Don’t completely agree or disagree with a question or prompt –examiners are after complex, specific responses. Instead, provide a complex response that investigates particular circumstances under which you would agree/disagree, or discuss various dimensions of the ideas in the prompt/question. Don’t forget a well-placed 'Yes, but' statement or a ‘However’! You could even mostly agree or disagree with the prompt or question while taking a range of possible circumstances into account.