How hard is eng ext 2?? (1 Viewer)

t00l

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Im thinking of doing eext2 for next year. Ive heard that its supposed to be really hard but only one major work and thats it. Anyone with experience tell me about eext2 please? thx
 

Shadowdude

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Really hard? What? Who told you that?

It's as hard as you want it to be. You have to be able to manage your time well, put it at the forefront of your studies, do NOT push it to the back and have continued passion, commitment and dedication to whatever your topic area is and you'll be fine.

If you push it back more and don't regard it with the awe and care it should have, then you're dead.
 

kiniki

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If you push it back more and don't regard it with the awe and care it should have, then you're dead.
+1

it's not that hard, you just have to be ready to dedicate time and more time to writing and tons of research. all you're going to be doing is researching reserarching writing researching researching writing editing editing editing editing editing

and more writing :) it's hard if you don't like writing, let's leave it at that.
 

alex.leon

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Im thinking of doing eext2 for next year. Ive heard that its supposed to be really hard but only one major work and thats it. Anyone with experience tell me about eext2 please? thx
Depends what you mean by 'hard'.

If you're definition of hard is along the lines of effort = difficulty, then I guess you could say it is hard. There's alot of time that goes into formulating the work.

I had 5 majors in the HSC, and I personally found Ext 2 the most fulfilling. Once you're invested in your work, the research becomes second nature, and the desire to better your work will propel it forward. If you like writing (and can presumably admit you are somewhat talented in the field) then go for it.

Anyway if you want to talk 'hard = effort' major works, try doing Drama. Dare you.
 

123 B A N G

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Anyway if you want to talk 'hard = effort' major works, try doing Drama. Dare you.
ugh yes drama = death

but Ext 2 Hard?? Never. It's so easy. Really. You can bullshit your way through a lot of it, and you just do what you want. People say that you need heaps of drafts but really you don't, if the first one's good just keep it!
 

Chevalier

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but Ext 2 Hard?? Never. It's so easy. Really. You can bullshit your way through a lot of it, and you just do what you want. People say that you need heaps of drafts but really you don't, if the first one's good just keep it!
Hahaha that's one way to approach it, but otherwise ext 2 can be hard for some, cakewalk for others but the one thing that'll get you through 4 unit is persistence and determination, or two things, you need to be able to compose a major work over a considerable length of time and keep going, you really need to have some sort of self-discipline to keep writing which is the most important part
 

showy

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You need an idea that you're really passionate about and will enjoy doing huge amounts of research on. If you've got something you're interested in writing about/filming/speaking about then go for it.

You can't walk into the course with, yeah, um, I'll write a story about a teenage girl that falls in love with a vampire with heaps of description and stuff and i'll be fine.

You have a long way before you have to make any decisions yet so don't worry about this now!
 

57o1i

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It's not mind bogglingly hard. IMHO the key is picking a good idea in the beginning and then running with it through to the finish. I have friends who got shredded because they didn't develop a solid plan from the get go, changed their mind four times and ended up frantically trying to bullshit their research when they should have been actually writing like the rest of us. So pick something with some weight to it and for heaven's sake, pick something that you LIKE. Don't get stuck with some "deep" concept that you have absolutely no passion for. I've always had the feeling that if you pick something that is both solid and interesting then you're very well positioned for the course.

After that, you just have to be willing to put the effort in. Don't get too scared when your teachers or whoever tell you that you have to work on it constantly and not push it to the side ever. Because everyone procrastinates to some extent and if you get back on the wagon quickly then you can avoid any issues. I went over a month in March/April last year (among other bouts of procrastination, and believe me, there were many) without writing a single word, for example, and came out with a 49. One friend wrote 6000 words + her reflection statement in the last 10 days and wound up with a band 6. I really don't recommend that course of action because the panic is extreme, but it goes to show that there's always hope even at the 11th hour.

If you're seriously considering taking the course then I'd advise you to find out well ahead of time who your teacher will be. IMHO having a supportive and dedicated teacher makes a world of difference (especially if said teacher has ever marked for the subject and can tell you how the process works, which themes/concepts play well etc etc). The subject is intended for highly independent workers but it's always good to have someone there to motivate you and kick you into shape when you're being lazy.

Oh and it helps to be a good writer, obviously. Not just the talent or inspiration or whatever, but the nuts and bolts of structure, characterisation (even in essays it helps to develop a distinct voice) and *gasp* grammar. Being able to identify problems and edit as you go will save a massive headache come July/August.
 

naisAtoN

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it's really hard, quit now because you will never possibly cope

< /sarcasm>
 

57o1i

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Key to EE2 imo: Do whatever you feel comfortable doing. If you're the type who has to stay organised and do regular periods of writing/research, do that. If you're an epic procrastinator, do a bit of research, bit of writing, bit of journal, and cram everything a week before the due date.

Yeah exactly. You don't have to be perfectly organised and always super motivated to do the course. You just have to know that when it really comes down to it you'll do yourself proud by submission date.
 

t00l

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thanks. another thing i wanna clarify... is all that you do for the whole year involve writing one major work e.g story? nothing else? no exam/ assessment tasks in between?
 

supercalamari

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thanks. another thing i wanna clarify... is all that you do for the whole year involve writing one major work e.g story? nothing else? no exam/ assessment tasks in between?
You do a viva voce, a progress report, and have to hand in a final draft before submitting the major work that your teachers mark (as of 2010).

And a reflection statement is marked too.

I love ext2.
 

steph xx

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i'm certain you don't.

i'm thinking of a critical essay/study, what are the guidelines for that? can we choose whatever we like?
 

brendroid

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English Extension 2?

Unless you're dedicated, have a backup. That's my advice. I'm doing Ext. 2 and Art, so you really need the time management with something like that. Even just doing Ext. 2 you need the time management perfect.
 

123 B A N G

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The viva is a piece of cake, if you can bullshit you can get easy, good marks in your internal assessments!
 

57o1i

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i'm certain you don't.

i'm thinking of a critical essay/study, what are the guidelines for that? can we choose whatever we like?
Yes. As long as there is a link to Advanced/Extension 1 (don't make 'belonging' your link unless you want the markers to self destruct) and it's weighty enough to last you ~5000 words. Oh, and it's English-y. If you want to do something with social implications (like a friend of mine wanted to talk about mental illness) you need to link it to English (so she talked about the representation of mental illness in autobiographies or somesuch, and it turned out great).

Other than that, same process as every other medium: you still do proposal, viva and report.

The viva is a piece of cake, if you can bullshit you can get easy, good marks in your internal assessments!
Ahahahaha so true. Our vivas were supposed to be 8-12 minutes ... after 50 minutes my teachers looked at the clock and went "uh, yeah, so that didn't work". Best assessment ever.
 

kiniki

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ya we didn't do a proposal either, just had our vivas like midday term2. mine went for umm 20-25minutes? the teachers had to stop every single one of us haha
 

lungs70

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Really hard? What? Who told you that?

It's as hard as you want it to be. You have to be able to manage your time well, put it at the forefront of your studies, do NOT push it to the back and have continued passion, commitment and dedication to whatever your topic area is and you'll be fine.

If you push it back more and don't regard it with the awe and care it should have, then you're dead.
dont talk ur major work will be E2 or below
source: these forums
 

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