Essay improvement tips, please? (1 Viewer)

[Murielies]

I've been aiming for an 88+ atar, and only recently realizing how stupid I was in choosing Standard English. It's basically my only subject that's pulling me down. I was just really stressed out by English (I don't know why, but it got really, really bad, enough though I was maintaining a B) in Year 10. Like, I was crying in class for basically no reason and it was making me really, really unhappy. So for the sake of my own sanity, I dropped from Advanced to Standard and am now severely regretting it.

The deal is that I'm decent at creative, and good at monologues and speeches. But I really, really suck at essays. I got full marks on my monologue assignment, but I barely passed the essays. I'm okay at analysing/writing them out of class. I can structure and sort-of link, but when I go into the exam room, everything comes apart (I can't do anything).

Apart from getting a tutor (thought about it and might get one, though only really to improve my essay writing), what are some of the things I should be doing to improve my game? Please and thank you.

 

[Elisa Sweet]

ANSWER

 

[Blackman 50 cent]

I had the same problem in my trials as a results I ended up coming 27/50 overall, that stupid essay component just screwed my entire mark. I really love english but still I get lower marks, English is not my thing but for the sake of getting into medicine, I will work hard for HSC exam.

Op- I recommend finding band 6 essays that is very adoptable or buy essays from last years top HSC students, get out two essays questions from HSC papers, than use your essays to answer them, this is the most effective method, make sure you time your self and give them to your teachers asap to mark them and tell them exactly your was your problem when answer them- then your teachers should tell you how to improve, then look at the feedback and then find another two essay questions for each module and answer them. You don't want to being doing bad in HSC, so use your time properly.

Good luck,

 

[Elisa Sweet]

Internet stuffed up, so it didn't post what I wanted to.
Attack - the question as soon as it is given. What is it really asking?
Narrow - what are you going to talk about?
Sketch - a plan, what techniques and examples you will include
Write - there are many ways people remember to structure an essay. I use guess what? (what you are gonna talk about, like technique) prove it! (give examples and explain it) and so what? (how does it link up with your thesis?)
Edit - does it answer the question? Check spelling and grammar
Review/rewrite/relax - reread, make sure it makes sense, rewrite if you need to

Hope this helps I don't know how to add documents, but here's a checklist you can use when practising essay writing.

Introduction

☐ General opening statement about topic.
☐ Outline of thesis.
☐ Name of text/s and composer/s (if not already included).
☐ Mention the techniques to be discussed.

Body
Section/Paragraph 1
☐ Topic sentence or “Guess What?”
__insert composer/text here____ has used ___insert technique here____
to __________________________________________ .
☐ Evidence or “Prove It!”
___insert quote here___ shows that __explain effect here_____________.
☐ Link to thesis or “So What?”
This demonstrates that ___link to thesis here_____.

Section/Paragraph 2
☐ Topic sentence or “Guess What?”
__insert composer/text here____ has used ___insert technique here____
to __________________________________________ .
☐ Evidence or “Prove It!”
___insert quote here___ shows that __explain effect here_____________.
☐ Link to thesis or “So What?”
This demonstrates that ___link to thesis here_____.

Section/Paragraph 3
☐ Topic sentence or “Guess What?”
__insert composer/text here____ has used ___insert technique here____
to __________________________________________ .
☐ Evidence or “Prove It!”
___insert quote here___ shows that __explain effect here_____________.
☐ Link to thesis or “So What?”
This demonstrates that ___link to thesis here_____.

Conclusion

☐ Summarise the techniques that have been discussed.
☐ Name of text/s and composer/s (if not already included).
☐ Link back to thesis.
☐ General closing statement about topic.

 

[Daniellemc]

What does it mean by "guess what" and "so what" I don't quite understand those bits