Exceeding Wordcounts in French

Mackleton

So I have just listened to the RTE getting it right podcast for French and the guy says that when the limit for q.1 is 90 words, thats fine for a C grade but if you want an A it needs to be up to 120 words. However my grind teacher said to NEVER exceed the wordcount as you are only leaving room to make mistakes. Does anyone have a definitive answer to these contradicting opinions?

PS. I have downloaded all of these podcasts relevant to my subjects and so far they are quite good if anyone was interested they are available in itunes and are free.

cabla

If your not great at writing french, id advise ou to keep around the 90 words as there is room for mistakes..But it is true, to get your A its advisable to write a lot..120.

adamcp

We were always told if you want a good mark 90 words or 75 words or whatever isn't enough

Mackleton

Hmmm I managed an A2 in the mock witout going one jot over the count but maybe thats why I didnt get the A1

Insect Overlord

I got 39/40, 29/30 and 29/30 in the pre by writing no more than ten words over the suggested amount in each. My own teacher recommends going maybe up to 30 words over the limit if we're very confident. However, he has also told us on many occasions that the bare minimum with no mistakes is just as effective. Make use of the usual learned-off phrases such as "de temps en temps", "a mon avis", "je suis dáccord avec..." etc.

colm-ccfc84

I aim to write a bit more than the word guide. If it is 75 try and do 90-95 and if it is 90 try and do 115 or so. I wouldn't get too caught up in counting the words, it is the quality of the french that counts, providing you have an adequate amount written. I got 100 marks out of 100 in this part of the exam in the pre.

shazzyshaz

ah! je suis tout a fait d'accord avec an fhile!!

nedward

Write as much as you want. If you go over, you're more likely to make mistakes, but you can't be penalised for writing French trop simplement.

tolosenc

The teacher in the Institute said don't go more than 10 words over. You will just wind up making mistakes, and a really sad-ass corrector might dock you marks for not having "condensed your thoughts" adequately.

Kurtosis

It's best if you do about 120 words for the 90 word question and 90 for the 75 word q. However you should only go over the recommended word count if your ability is of such a level that you will not make extra mistakes. So if you're up to scratch, go for the 120 words.

:|

obl wrote:

The teacher in the Institute said don't go more than 10 words over. You will just wind up making mistakes, and a really sad-ass corrector might dock you marks for not having "condensed your thoughts" adequately.

:rolleyes: If the teacher in the institute told you to jump off a bridge........

Everyone has different opinions on this, best to aim for slightly over, they're not gonna dock marks for writing too much. The 90 thing is just guidelines

md99

yep, exceed away, I exceed like mad, shows your eagerness and desire to do well provided you've no major errors...