This article has been reproduced with the permission of Access Education and David White.

Here is some advice on how to approach part C of the VCE English exam.

“…every year fewer and fewer words, and the range of consciousness always a little smaller.” 1984, G. Orwell

Students should understand how ‘language’ is used to persuade ‘readers’ and should be able to:

construct their own persuasive work and, write an analysis of work which is ‘intended to persuade.

PART C  (Using language to Persuade)

• How is language and visual material used to influence the reader?
• In this section especially, the list is death!

Metalanguage may be a trap.

• Understanding of the whole, understanding of the parts, and considering how well the parts serve the whole…this is the problem.
• Look at examiner’s reports-the underlying message remains the same-students need to be able to discuss, explain, explore how effectively language/visual material has been used to persuade.

Approaches

• Visuals must be examined in the same detail as text
• There is no formula, but each piece for analysis should be given due attention
• If there is more than one piece you do not have to integrate the writing about them. Students often effectively use comparisons or contrasts as linking devices between pieces.
• With one hour there is more time to focus and structure the writing, and this is becoming a more significant ranking/assessment tool.

Assessor advice

• Students who did not understand the thrust of the text, or who could not contextualise the material, found this year’s task to be difficult.
• Many seemed fixedly determined to offer argument evaluation.
• It is critical that students consider, identify, and reflect upon the target audience.
• Too many students offered a discussion of a general effect rather than a specific impact on the audience.
• Comments such as ‘grab the readers’ attention’ or ‘to get the reader interested’ are far too generalised and vague.
• Students need to go beyond comments such as ‘makes the reader feel scared’ and explore the implication of this intention in relation to the writer’s purpose.
• Students should focus on the impact of specific words and phrases intentionally selected by the writer to support the purpose of the piece.
• Most students constructed their response so that they explored the first piece, offered thoughtful and transitional insights, and then analysed the second piece.
• Some students who chose to integrate the two pieces found the task too difficult…and the piece became convoluted and confused.
• Students must be aware of the importance of developing a coherently constructed piece of prose.

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Access Education is Victoria’s largest provider of VCE subject based Unit 3 & 4 exam revision programs. Covering a range of up to 17 subjects and offered in Melbourne at 3 locations as well as a further 6 locations in regional Victoria – Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Gippsland, Shepparton and Wodonga. Every year many thousands of students attend our quality, low-cost revision programs to give themselves an extra “edge” in preparing for their exams. The comprehensive notes which accompany each lecture are written specifically by the presenter for the lecture and become a valuable resource in students personal revision programs.