How Top Students Cope With Horrible Exam Questions
This is from a grade 9 student, jojomooc, who didn’t panic during the exam. Jojo hated 2 of their literature questions. These were worth nearly 50% of the marks.
How did Jojo manage not to give in to panic, and totally smash the exam?
Let’s find out.
@jojomooc
You deserve the holiday! 2 9s in English and 7 marks off full marks in literature!!! I can’t thank you enough.
I would’ve been lost without your language videos; they provided a methodical approach which doesn’t seem to ever be taught.
Even with MLD and the R and J question catching me off guard, I was still able to apply half of your prediction videos.
A Level literature is the next endeavour! :)))
1) Pre plan
· Practise writing essays that you can use no matter the question. I found this harder for Romeo and Juliet but narrowed it down to two themes.
· I practically wrote the same essay for An Inspector Calls and Jekyll and Hyde that my teacher previously gave me 9s for.
· ALWAYS PRE-PLAN A THESIS STATEMENT FOR EACH TEXT, this serves as the introduction (you are now arguing about the author’s intentions)
· For Language, I pre-planned my story and did it first.
· I used the prompt in my flashback which was quite easy to adapt to.
· Also, always use a cyclical structure.
· I started memorising my story about a week before the exam, in the half term, which was plenty of time.
2) Just write
Even if you’ve filled up the space, you can always ask for extra paper! As long as you write a lot, at least some of your points will be convincing/critical. The L5 will become a L6 when it is sustained. This is the most efficient way to gain marks.
Don’t worry about writing things that are wrong, always include an alternative interpretation if you can!
For Lang, I wrote a lot for Q4 as I again, treated it as a point system. However, a perceptive, in depth interpretation can also gain the same amount of marks as several points.
There needs to be some cohesion in the Q4 so it is like an argument. Therefore, writing a one sentence introduction helps the examiner to see this.
3) Scour for different interpretations/ideas
For literature, I used several YouTubers (although mostly Mr Salles) to find alternative interpretations for quotes and understanding characters.
Also, relating context to the personal lives of the writer and their intentions is useful. I found a lot of context on, for example, Stevenson’s life or the political climate post WW2. (Buy Mr Salles’ guides, they’re great for this).
For language I tried to use cultural capital in Paper 2, Q5, and topical issues (in my case, the ULEZ charge).
I also made sure my story in Paper 1 had a message/extended metaphors. Make sure to make a plan which is aimed at the examiner and don’t cross it out! For example, tell them that you are including an extended metaphor, or cyclical structure. This can also serve as a reminder for you.
Poetry tips because it’s one of the hardest parts of the exam (imo)
1) Always talk about structure/ form first, to get into the examiner’s head.
2) Don’t worry about writing equal amounts for each poem in the comparison, just write more about the one you know.
3) For the 8 marker, I did 3 paragraphs, each with a language technique and a comparison in each. This shows the examiner you structure your answers. Although at this point, just writing is also a solution as it is only 8 marks.
What I’ve learnt after two years of watching Mr Salles videos :))))
My Thoughts
It is just a delight to me to see my own advice so brilliantly summarised. And then to know that this has really helped to get a top grade.
The number one skill is writing speed. Look how often jojo refers to it.
I know this sounds ridiculous. All English teachers (including me) prefer quality over quantity. But the only time that is vaguely true is in Q5 of the language papers. Even here, though, for grades 8 and 9, answers are longer than grades 6 and 7. 300 brilliant words is better than a weaker 400. But a brilliant 400 words is awesome.
For literature, you can get grade 8 and 9 with 750 words. But 1000 words makes it almost inevitable. And it is like that all the way down to grade 5. The more you write, the higher your marks.
If you want to know about cultural capital, my Ultimate Guide to Persuasive Writing shows you in 11 grade 9 answers.
(You probably know by now, you can get all my guides for FREE for 30 days, or £0.99 for 60 days, on Kindle Unlimited. 100+ students contacted me after their results in 2023. Each one who had read my guides got grade 8 and 9!)