Aiming to do English at university?

You made it!

Congratulations to those of you whose results enabled you to make it on to your chosen degree course! Now you have had time to recover from Freshers’ Week, we hope you are enjoying your studies.

If you find yourself plunging into the mysteries of Piers Plowman or the medieval pageant plays, with the benefit of hindsight, you can now appreciate how helpful it was if you were lucky enough to encounter Middle English at A Level.

You want to make it!

However, if you are taking A’s right now, and struggling through Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales for the first time, it might not seem that way! Middle English takes a bit of getting used to. Plurals and possessives are different and the spelling of words can be pretty fluid.

Actually, one of the best things to do when faced with a page of Middle English text is simply to read it aloud – it often makes the meaning clearer and you can start to get a sense of the humour and energy in much of Chaucer’s writing.

Help is on hand so you can succeed

The keen eyed among you will have spotted that www.crossref-it.info has got a new Chaucer text online – The Pardoner’s Prologue and Tale. It is full of notes and background info to help you get to grips with a text which was as scabrous in its time as The Thick of It is today. Chaucer paints a wicked portrait of his narrator, whose corruption puts modern political scandals in the shade. Yet at the same time we are able to appreciate his audacity and persuasive sales ‘patter’.

It may be in Middle English, but this medieval tale has a contemporary punch!

Have you got a university offer?

• If you haven’t yet, don’t give up, but make sure you focus on putting maximum effort into getting the kind of results that will make you stand out come August. That way you are in with a chance at clearing or being accepted for the following year.
• If you have, well done! Now you just have to get the grades… No pressure!
  

So what will raise your game?

Remember that the people awarding you marks are human!

• They wince at txt spk, illegible handwriting or poor expression, plus students failing to answer the question.
• They enjoy answers that clearly focus on the relevant texts, whilst being able to set them within the bigger picture (25% of marks are allocated to contextual awareness). They want to see your involvement with what you have studied, not just the same tired classroom notes as fellow students.

For more info on creating a positive impression, go to www.crossref-it.info/articles/312/How-to-write-a-good-English-exam-answer. This website is strong on the ‘big picture’ elements which will impress.

Go for it, pace yourself and good luck!

30 tips to help you write a good English exam answer

People do not write good English exam answers by coincidence. There are some steps you can take which will help you to improve your prospects of getting good results.

1. Make sure you understand the question fully. Underline the key words of the question.
2. Understand the key words: make sure you have a definition in your head of what exactly the key words mean.
3. Take a moment to consider what exactly is being asked.
4. Answer the question asked, not what you would have liked to have been asked.
5. Avoid being irrelevant. Stay focused.
6. Make sure that you clearly show how all of your ideas relate to the question that was asked.
7. If asked to analyse a text: Look closely at it, think about the writer's use of language.
8. Do not waffle or generalise!
9. Do not just go for the most obvious approach in answering the question - be willing to think creatively.
10. Try to cover a good number of ideas, but without straying from the question! (See point 5).
11. DO NOT keep repeating the question in your essay ('This essay asks about ... and I am going to write about ...')
12. Do not start off with a dictionary definition.
13. Instead, create a strong opening, for instance by opening with a short, controversial statement.
14. Another good way to create a strong opening is by way of a relevant quotation or a relevant piece of evidence.
15. Whatever you do, think about a way of creating a strong opening - this will wake the person marking the exam up and ensure that they approach your work with a more positive attitude.
16. A strong ending is as important as a strong opening - it will create that lasting impression that you want. Equally, a weak ending can have a negative impact.
17. One way to create a strong ending is to save a new, strong, relevant point to the end.
18. Another way to do this is to end with a strong quote.
19. Sorry for the repeat but it needs to be said again: generalising are waffling are bad ideas!
20. Use brief but relevant quotations to prove each point you are making.
21. Think out each sentence (very quickly) before you write it down. Does it say what you want? Does it make the point?
22. If you know you have problems with spelling or punctuation, do something about it before the exam.
23. Examiners often award points for 'quality of language' - something to work on before the exam.
24. Know your text really well - know it so well, that relevant quotations and ideas come to your mind quickly and easily.
25. Blend textual quotations seamlessly into your own sentence structure.
26. Only quote memorised quotations if they are really relevant. Otherwise, resist the temptation of quoting them anyway!
27. Avoid repeating ideas.
28. Say what you want in a clear way, without going in circles.
29. 'As I mentioned earlier' will rarely earn you any extra marks - only use it if, somehow, it is really helpful.
30. Most essays require a formal register of language. Avoid colloquialisms. To help your language skills, read some literary criticism during your course.
    

For more advice read How to write a good English exam answer on Crossref-it.info