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full mark english essay (1 Viewer)

qna

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what comprises a 20/20 english essay? asking because i don't have easy access to feedback for my essays, so i'd like to know what factors i need to add in to hit that mark - like a checklist sorta
 

qwer12334

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From what I've heard
- clear address of question, no vague conceptual shit that says nothing
- specific context, again don't be vague
- at least 4 quotes with technique and analysis per body paragraph. 3 body paragraphs

do all that and I think you will not get lower than 16/20. anything else I have no idea.

I think you need a good introduction (~150 words) to WOW the marker because they may be lazy and will skim your actual essay.
 
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qwer12334

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I don't fucking know 😭

for assessment my essay got 15/20 and I used the exact same in trials and got 19/20. i almost decided to rewrite the whole thing for trials becaue 15/20 is pathetic but I procrastinated hard and had to make do with it
 

ilovecutecats

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From what I've heard
- clear address of question, no vague conceptual shit that says nothing
- specific context, again don't be vague
- at least 4 quotes with technique and analysis per body paragraph. 3 body paragraphs

do all that and I think you will not get lower than 16/20. anything else I have no idea.

I think you need a good introduction (~150 words) to WOW the marker because they may be lazy and will skim your actual essay.
I thought 3 quotes/techniques per paragraph and 3 paragraphs per essay
 

Masaken

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what comprises a 20/20 english essay? asking because i don't have easy access to feedback for my essays, so i'd like to know what factors i need to add in to hit that mark - like a checklist sorta
I scored a few 20s back in Year 12 so I think I could help:
  • A band 6 response, first off:
    • considers every aspect of the question in the response to show a holistic understanding of what you're being asked to respond to. break it down, address all the key words in your thesis, and then have your three body paragraphs basically highlight and reinforce those ideas in the keywords. if they're pretty "vague", you tick this off by also specifying what they are - for example, in common module if they ask you about emotions in the hsc, what emotions specifically? if you're discussing a range of emotions, can you categorise them?
    • a conceptual thesis, particularly for common module and mod b that explores a universal idea rather than just say "1984 shows the threat of ingsoc totalitarianism" --> "representations of totalitarianism in texts provide a cautionary tale against their ability to deprive individuals of personal freedoms" ... etc
    • you understand and frame everything back to the composer, to show you understand textual purpose -> every decision, every choice made in the book is not because of the "story" or the "plot", it's because there is a composer pulling the strings and making a conscious choice to include or not include something, to discuss or not discuss something. make sure you acknowledge this, especially in your topic sentences
    • a holistic understanding of context - focusing on three different categories of context per body paragraph, linking it back to how it's displayed in the text and why the composer did it. just saying what context is evident isn't enough
  • Once you have a band 6 response (17-18+/20) it's just a matter of hitting a few key differentiators that can push you higher if you do them, or keep you where you are where you don't:
    • the extent to which you engage with the rubric even if it's not stipulated in the question, especially for mod a and common mod (esp for common module). mention the words "textual conversation" "align/collide" even if the question doesn't ask you, because these form the foundation for the relationship between the two texts anyway so it would kinda be counterintuitive to not include them. the common module texts are great because they basically tick off every single keyword in the rubric, just find a place in your essay to include and discuss them all
    • if it's an extract question the extent to which you meaningfully engage with the extracts is another. there are two types of extract questions you need to familiarise yourself with, and not being able to integrate extracts properly is a common cohort-wide pitfall. being able to integrate them properly so that they don't look out of place and the paragraph still flows well when you're swapping them out and still analysing them correctly is what can get you into that 20/20
    • structuring your chosen quotes - they need to be well-chosen and relate back to your idea. they shouldn't be reiterating the same point - break down your topic sentence into different chunks of ideas that one quote can talk about. make sure they naturally progress from one idea to another and sound flowy and cohesive. cohesiveness as a whole is also another key differentiator.
    • for module b, the use and the extent of personal voice in your essay can be a huge differentiator between a low b6 and a high b6 essay too
 

genenian

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  • for module b, the use and the extent of personal voice in your essay can be a huge differentiator between a low b6 and a high b6 essay too
hi masaken, do you mean personal voice as in addressing the relevancy of the socio=political messages to our contemporary society?
 

Masaken

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hi masaken, do you mean personal voice as in addressing the relevancy of the socio=political messages to our contemporary society?
no
you need a personal response as well as an informed one as per the mod b rubric
for example rather as positioning the audience/responders as a completely different body distinct from you you frame it such that you are the responder, you are the audience, you are actively engaging with your text
this doesn't mean your response should be informal though, switching to a casual or informal register will dock you marks
 

igor9

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looks like any other essay, they probably see some random asian name and give em full marks meanwhile the black fella will end up with a 10
 

coolcat6778

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what comprises a 20/20 english essay? asking because i don't have easy access to feedback for my essays, so i'd like to know what factors i need to add in to hit that mark - like a checklist sorta
Make absolutely no sense at all and waffle all while using big words. That is this retarded subject for you.
 
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qna

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a conceptual thesis,
Would you still be able to write a conceptual thesis if the question is text-specific e.g. "To what extent does the exploration of human experience in The Crucible invite you to reconsider your understanding of love?" (2019 HSC)
Or would writing a conceptual thesis be a waste of time in that case?
 

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