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How do I succeed in English Advanced without tutoring (1 Viewer)

eyeseeyou

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Hey Guys

I don't want an english tutor because I feel it's a waste of time and money (and they don't teach what you're learning at school) but I feel the need for it at the same time because my english is attrocious (even though I'm doing advanced). Just wondering but how do I do well in English without tutoring?

Thanks
 

Nailgun

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Did you read the post I made in that other thread lol?

EDIT: here lol

people say that because its generally the best way. the idea behind doing lots of practice essays is that you learn to be more flexible with your ideas and are able to account for 'nasty surprises'. similarly with creatives doing many allows you to be more comfortable with changing it on the fly. really if you don't feel that what you're doing is adequate, volume is probably the answer (assuming you maintain quality). If you're a rote learner, learn more paragraphs then you need, or maybe write two different essays, else learn more quotes, find new techniques. do more practice essays, creatives, whatever

obviously the key to doing practice essays and creatives is getting them marked/evaluated by someone who knows what they're doing i.e. a teacher, a competent peer, an older student (also competent lol), a tutor, or perhaps one of the essay marking services on this site

that being said, there are other things you can do which cna assist you. reading academic writing on your texts can give you a deeper insight than you might have gotten in class or by yourself, and can familiarise you with the style. reading widely in terms of short stories, novels can help refine your understanding of the creative form + technqiue
reread your texts lol

take a look at the rubrics for each module you are doing, and make sure you can answer a question related to each point in it. hsc is not that broad honestly, they ask you questions for each module based on like a half-page paragraph
also read the english guides in this section, in particular strawberrye's and crobats
 

eyeseeyou

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Did you read the post I made in that other thread lol?

EDIT: here lol



also read the english guides in this section, in particular strawberrye's and crobats
Crobat's is quite outdated and Strawberrye's seems okay

When I mean I suck in english I mean I suck in literally everything (short answer, creative and essay)
 
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Nailgun

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Crobat's is quite outdated and Strawberrye's seems okay
Crobats was written like less than 2 years ago lol
Yeah the texts are different but the subject is essentially the same
its not like we've had a massive overhaul lol

ask another teacher then lol
 

eyeseeyou

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Any good sites that will be a substitute for an English tutor
 

sida1049

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I got a Band 6 in Advanced English without tutoring. I went from ranking in the 40s in Year 10 to 30s in the Preliminaries, finally 11th by the end of the HSC.

Honestly, you simply need to put in the work for English. Here's a list of things I did regularly to thrive in English:

- Organisation: plan ahead. Got an essay coming up in three weeks? Do the homework from your other subjects ahead of time to free up your schedule for English preparation.

- Read your texts. Properly understand them. Especially since they've introduced new core texts into the syllabus. There are people who can get away without reading the texts and using notes they find online (or provided by a tutor), but honestly, I think most people would benefit from actually sitting down and reading the texts.

- Research. This is something too few students do. Look up previous Band 6 English essays to get an idea of the structure and kind of expressions you should use. Research contexts regarding your texts which you can use in your arguments. You really need to spend time outside of the class and do individual research to really develop your arguments and understanding fully.

- Pay attention in class. Seriously, your English teachers often have access to certain resources not available to the general public.

- Practice. It's not enough to simply memorise your essay. You need to learn how to improvise and adapt on the spot. This is something that tutors can't help you with. You'll find often that you'll be thrown questions which don't fit your preparation. You need to learn not to panic in those situations, and how to adapt your prepared arguments and structure on the spot; this is main aspect which discriminates between excellent English students and average students. I recommend writing a practice response each day under timed conditions, to different essay questions.

(On this point, during our English trial, there was a Module B essay which forced us to use a poem that nobody bothered preparing for, including myself, because nobody expected the CSSA to be that much of an asshole as to use the one T.S. Eliot poem that didn't really link well with the others [though it was the most religious one so I guess we should have see that one coming]. I remember joking about "what if" we had that poem in the question while waiting for the exam to start. What irony. So I had to completely throw out everything I prepared beforehand and improvised on the spot regarding a poem I hadn't read for over half a year. Still managed a 17/20 though. Moral of the story: don't panic, and improvise. Always acknowledge the possibility that the question won't suit your preparation.)

- Regarding notes and sites for English students, I didn't use any (probably because most of my texts were new to the HSC). All I did was to read through all of my texts, found content which I could argue effectively with, and developed an approach which worked for me. Every English student has their own style of writing and arguing, hence don't rely too much on external resources. The interpretations of tutors and notes online may significantly differ from yours.

Remember to keep your response between 800 to 1000 words (unless if you write ridiculously fast without being illegible).

Good luck!
 
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strawberrye

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To be fair, if you get a private English tutor, they can teach specifically what you are studying at school, and if you are struggling in English and your teacher doesn't give you much feedback, investing the time and money into a tutor would be much more fruitful because if you want a good ATAR and English is a compulsory subject counted in your ATAR, you might find it much easier to do well in English with someone's help rather than to do it on your own given you don't sound very enthusiastic for English to start with. English is one of those subjects where knowing is not enough, you got to practise and usually the more effort you put in it with guidance the better you will do.

Tips will only help you to the extent you choose to put the effort in and try those tips out. sida1049's answer is a start, but attitude is a great determinant to success in the long run and also to your enjoyability in English. Put in the hard work from now and you will reap the rewards later. Best wishes
 

throwawaythief

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Damn i feel u bro since i was in a similar position to you just a year ago, and i know it can be EXTREMELY frustrating trying to succeed in advanced english without the necessary support and motivation. Succeeding in hsc english requires a very different approach/study method than the usual notes-exercises-past papers you would use for science/maths (took me months to realise lol). It isn't something that can be drilled into you per se. CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK IS IMPERATIVE SO FIND A WAY because 1. you will know what you did wrong, what to improve/include/cut out and 2.you will enventually have a final polished copy which you memorise/adapt and build your confidence (very very important esp. during exam). Even tho i got a band 6 i didn't start out well compared to my peers. I had great difficulty nailing that "perfect band 6 response" experimenting and failing with various methods not limted to using complex words (learnt that it only make you look like a pretentious bitch), rigidly following the PEEL "formula" (plis dont make this mistake, its not maths so this order will not always work out) and overextending my idea into a paragraph which could have merely been stated in a sentence. I remember my teacher saying something along the lines of "english is all about communication" and had that in mind the whole year, so i guess you could say a well structured sentence that clearly communicates what your trying to say will always trump any pretentious, loaded jargon that the marker or even you would understand on the first read (COHERENT FLOWING WRITING ISN'T EASY). (i used to type a lot into word since it was much easier to manipulate sentences and such than on paper, personal pref i guess). For self study, i would DEFS recommended analysing (for me it was just something like i see them use that linking word numerous times, and i would look for how they linked ideas) any pieces of writing that got high marks in HSC - (i looked at the hsc english workbook the bos released). I was lucky enough to get a whole pile of past essays from previous students at my school stapled so i had more than enough material lol. Would also HIGHLY recommend finding any analysis/techniques on internet or from books by Barbara stanners (THOSE R GOLD if ur text is included that is). Forgot to mention exam format is 40/40/40 (mod b) so DEVELOP THE ABILITY TO WRITE FCKING FAST and IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOU ATTACK THE QUESTION RIP IT APART AND THROW IT AROUND WITH UR ANALYSIS AND TAG SOME KEY WORDS FROM THE RUBRIC AS WELL. That's basicaly how my non-selective school carried themselves to 4th in the state last yr rofl. AHHHHHHHHHH SHT WHAT A BRAIN DUMP take what u will,probs be largely ignored.
 

eyeseeyou

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Hey Guys

Any of you know the most effective way to mark your own essays and creatives?

The marking criteria is kinda hard to deconstruct
 

Nailgun

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Hey Guys

Any of you know the most effective way to mark your own essays and creatives?

The marking criteria is kinda hard to deconstruct
It's pretty hard to mark your own essays tbh
If you do a lot and get them marked by someone else, you usually start to develop a feel for whether what you've written is good or not
For example, I know in modern or legal if what I've written is a 25/25 or a 23/25 or a 20/25
But just like straight up systematic marking? kinda impossible, like its not science or maths ahahah
 

eyeseeyou

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It's pretty hard to mark your own essays tbh
If you do a lot and get them marked by someone else, you usually start to develop a feel for whether what you've written is good or not
For example, I know in modern or legal if what I've written is a 25/25 or a 23/25 or a 20/25
But just like straight up systematic marking? kinda impossible, like its not science or maths ahahah
What if you look at some sample marking?

I tried that but it didn't seem to help
 

Nailgun

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Is there a reason why you can't ask a teacher to mark it?

Even then, its hard to get a feel for writing that isn't your own. English teachers have years of experience marking huge volumes of essays, and even they are inconsistent.
 

eyeseeyou

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Is there a reason why you can't ask a teacher to mark it?

Even then, its hard to get a feel for writing that isn't your own. English teachers have years of experience marking huge volumes of essays, and even they are inconsistent.
Yeah I can but she's the type of teacher that's like "max _______ essays per person" and I have a feeling when it comes to the time of the HSC and trials, she might not be able to mark my essays, short answers and creatives
 

Shuuya

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Dude I suck at that. I can't even answer a 1-5 marker question to the point and I always keep on getting off tangents
I feel haha I wrote a page and a half and got something like 2/5 gg
 

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