With the 2009 VCE English exam just around the corner – the major exams are about to begin…I know some of you have already started their music or language exams by now. I hope you aced them!

Here are 6 great resources to help you with the VCE English Exam.

1. VCEhelp Podcasts on English:

• http://www.vcehelp.com.au/vce-english-podcast-with-ross-huggard-82/
• How to write in context podcast By Ross Huggard
• Look both ways podcast with Ross Huggard
• In the lake of the woods – Jan May podcast

2. VCE help english articles/tips and resources:

• Slideshare presentation on VCE English exam tips
• Plus all other VCE English articles, links and resources can be found here:

3. VCE English Text Talk archive: list of The Education Age’s text talk articles since 2001

4. The VCAA website: The VCE English curriculum information including information about the exam advice and front cover and sample exams.

5. Last minute “Essential English” exam program – found at Access Education (yes – running sessions up to the weekend before the exam).

6. Get in to the write frame of mind – VCE English Exam article

The following article appeared in the THE AGE VCE EXAM GUIDE — Monday, September 7, 2009. It relates to the English Exam and I found it highly useful so enjoy.

Sourced directly from: http://education.theage.com.au/pagedetail.asp?intpageid=2432&intsectionid=11

” Know the texts, understand the distinctions and prompts of each section and use the time wisely for exam success, writes Bob Hillman.

NOW we are into our second year of the new VCE English course, teachers and students across the state should be more confident about the 2009 English examination. It is an opportunity for students to put on display all the skills and knowledge they have gained throughout their study of VCE English and, indeed, English skills that have been developed throughout their entire school career.

The examination is three hours and 15 minutes in duration, including 15 minutes’ reading time and three hours’ writing time. Each of the three sections of the examination is equally weighted, so it is wise to spend approximately one hour on each section. Each piece of writing needs to be a completed product, so an awareness of time is essential. Within each period of time, students need to study the task thoroughly, think carefully and plan methodically before actually beginning their pieces. Many students would also be advised to leave enough time at the end of each task to proof-read their work quickly before moving on to the next task.

Given this, students must ensure they have had adequate practice in working through topics and writing in preparation for the examination.

Students may bring along an English and-or bilingual printed dictionary. It must not, however, contain any highlighting or annotation and it may not contain a thesaurus. Electronic dictionaries are not permitted. The dictionary can be used for clarification of terms and checking of spelling and may be used during reading time.

The examination itself is divided into three sections, each requiring students to produce a piece of writing.While many of the generic skills of thinking and writing are required for success, each piece is quite distinct in its requirements and the criteria that are applied to assessing the piece.

Students will have a choice of two topics for each text they have studied thoroughly during year 12. Students are to select ONE text to write on and ONE topic from the two offered. The title of the text must be written on the front of the appropriate examination booklet.

Throughout the year, students have spent a great deal of time exploring the themes, characters and ideas from their texts. Many of the topics will offer students the opportunity to examine and investigate these parts of their text. Therefore it is essential to have an excellent working knowledge of the text and the ideas offered within the texts.

It is important to be aware assessors are not looking for a specific response to a topic; rather, they reward thoughtful, perceptive insights that are well supported by the text itself. It is possible for two students to take different approaches to the same topic and both achieve excellent results.

As well, with the new course greater emphasis has been placed on a critical analysis of the structures, features and conventions used by the author to construct meaning. Some topics will direct students specifically in this manner. For example, one topic from last year on In the Lake of the Woods explicitly challenged students to explore “the narrative structure of this novel” and to consider how “this affect[s] your reading of the novel”.

Naturally, a fluent, well-expressed piece of writing is required for success; one that seamlessly and appropriately incorporates quotations and is stimulating to the reader. While it is important to practise a range of topics in preparing for the examination, the most successful responses are often spontaneous and original.

Section B Writing in Context

After two years of teaching and learning about the Context, there is much greater confidence in this section ofthe examination. The focus remains on the quality of writing but good writing can only be achieved with good ideas. Throughout the year, students have had the opportunity of exploring in detail concepts in relation to one of the four Contexts provided by the VCAA.

Each school (and even each class) has interpreted and developed its ideas on their Context in a particular way. Likewise, each student will find the most appropriate way to express those ideas, thus creating an enormous variety of writing.

The writing must be informed by one of the texts from the VCAA. The text that most informs the student’s writing must be written on the front of the appropriate response booklet, along with the name of the Context itself.

The degree and manner in which the text informs a piece of writing will again vary according to the choices a student makes about the audience, style and purpose of their writing. These elements will be implicit in the writing and there is no provision for a statement of intention or a reflective commentary.

Schools were notified earlier in the year of the wording of the task for 2009 and this appears on the VCAA website under “2009 Exam Specifications and Sample Exam”. For example, the sample for “Encountering Conflict” reads:

Complete an extended written response in expository, imaginative or persuasive style. Your writing must draw directly from at least one selected text for this Context and explore the idea that why conflict happens is less important than how it affects people.

Ultimately, then, the success of a piece of writing for Section B derives from the quality of the ideas that are presented, the quality of the writing and the manner in which the prompt has been dealt with.

Section C Analysis of Language Use

The final section of the English examination offers students the opportunity of analysing one or more pieces of written and visual material. The essential focus of this section is to demonstrate insightful analysis on the ways in which language and visual features are used to present a point of view.

The most successful responses will be able to contextualise the material and provide a strong overview, while exploring explicitly why particular words and images have been employed. This requires adeptness at manoeuvring in and out of the material close analysis and connecting this analysis with the wider purposes of the writer.

Students should also be able to incorporate the analysis of any visual material and explore how the visuals add meaning and implication to the material as a whole.

Students who are well prepared for their examination, understand the distinctions among the three pieces of writing, use their time wisely and respond specifically to the topics, prompts and tasks will enjoy success inEnglish.

Bob Hillman teaches at Trinity Grammar School, Kew.”

SIDENOTE – Bob is also one of the presenters for Access Education’s Essential English program – again see http://www.accesseducation.com.au for more details.

Sourced directly from:
http://education.theage.com.au/pagedetail.asp?intpageid=2432&intsectionid=11

The Age’s “End of Year exam guide” can be found here.

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