How to get an A1 in English?

BL1993

I was wondering if someone could tell em what is the best way to study and prepare for English. I'm only in 5th year and would love to get an A1 in the subject. How much time should I be investing per night studywise and how do what to study and how?

Thanks!

Muggwoffin

Now I'm not going to be the best authority as I'm currently a 6th year and have yet to sit the exam but I'd say that one of the greatest helps to your vocabulary and skill at composing is going to be reading books outside of the course. Anything really, as long as it's well regarded also 5th years are doing Hamlet too yes? If so there is an audio version somewhere on the internet. Download it and stick it on your MP3 player, listen to it now and then to get the quotes in your head

anothernight

In my opinion (I got an A1), the best thing you can do is read a lot (newspaper articles, novels, etc) and practise writing essays. Try your best when you're doing essays for homework, especially the poetry, comparative and single text essays. It really pays off

YouthNovel

I got an A1

I also viewed my script and it turns out I got 50/50 on QB and 100 marks for the essay...

wanna know how?...

gimme money

lol

not jokin bout the marks though

my hint: use humor in a clever way. WIT TO WIN!

johnmcdnl

I never studied anything and I got an A2 :eek:

but it's just down to how much you read and when your doing a letter or whatever be a complete wanker in it basically and rant and rave and bitch about everything under the sun.. otherwise your boring and you'll just look like another average student.. by giving out about everything it looks like you know what your talking about...

read papers and after hours actually... you'll find so much news politics and general **** like that that you'll become knowledgeable in loads of stuff and will be more than able to do a speech or something for your essay at least.. you've probably been told not to do the short story essay because everyone does it - well this is 100% correct - do something different and you'll stand out... I wrote a speech to my class mates about my hopes for the future after leaving school or something like that and I managed to talk on for ages and ages about the banking, about religion being the scourge of the world, how war comes from religious hate, and bits about the environment... just made it sound argumentative and followed the right format etc etc and it worked for me..

it's just about being more personal, trying to stand out - it's what everyone tells you - and it's right... that's the personal writing side of it anyway


as for the poetry and drama and comparative - just know the stories inside out... remember the names of the characters (i know - for someone with an A2 you'd think I would have been doing better than "the characters" because i forgot their names) but anyways - just be political or whatever and seem to be knowledgeable and educated so it seems that you actually know more than what the notes book said - but don't go off rambling...

answer the question - obvious i know - but ANSWER THE QUESTION - not ohh i can put my Kavanagh essay in here - NO YOU CAN't YOU CAN'T EVER PUT YOUR KAVANAGH ESSAY IN EVER... you learn loads off about kavanagh and plan an essay on the day and don't ever consider learning an essay... if you try to learn essay's good luck to you with your B2 if you get lucky - simple as... if you want an A1 you'll be fit to make it up on the day and that's the most important thing I've got to say - know all the notes about every poem and you'll be grand - have an idea how to link them etc etc - but don't start learning an essay of and trying to fit it in - it doesn't work like that - same as in maths your not allowed change to question to suit yourself - same goes in English - answer what they ask you... and stick to the point..

answer what they ask you and nothing else - too bad if you can't put that 2 page essay of info into the answer - they didn't ask for it so don't tell them - tell them what they ask for - sounds simple but so many people don't do the most basic thing - answer the question...

and last of all it's probably hypocritical coming from me but anyways - write write write write write write read write write



and finally - QUALITY, not quantity

anothernight

johnmcdnl wrote: »

answer the question - obvious i know - but ANSWER THE QUESTION - not ohh i can put my Kavanagh essay in here - NO YOU CAN't YOU CAN'T EVER PUT YOUR KAVANAGH ESSAY IN EVER... you learn loads off about kavanagh and plan an essay on the day and don't ever consider learning an essay... if you try to learn essay's good luck to you with your B2 if you get lucky - simple as... if you want an A1 you'll be fit to make it up on the day and that's the most important thing I've got to say - know all the notes about every poem and you'll be grand - have an idea how to link them etc etc - but don't start learning an essay of and trying to fit it in - it doesn't work like that - same as in maths your not allowed change to question to suit yourself - same goes in English - answer what they ask you... and stick to the point..

I'm completely against learning essays off by heart, but I must admit that the poetry essay that I did was sort of learned off. Not on purpose mind you, it was simply that I liked Yeats so much that I always answered questions on him when I was given the choice, which made me accidentally learn most of what would be a standard Yeats essay (a general structure, outline and all the necessary vocabulary, as well as the details that could make it stand out). I still got an A1.

I think it might be a good idea to have a general outline of what you'd say for each poet that you choose to learn very well (no shortcuts here!). I don't mean learn off an essay, I mean just the outline of each poem/theme you'll write about, and the structure you're most likely to use for the essay. It can be very helpful as during the exam you don't have much time to think about structuring your answers correctly and nerves can also get in the way.


My English teacher is an excellent teacher. She made us focus mostly on Paper 2 due to the sheer amount of learning that you'll have to do for it. Most people in my class got higher results than people in the other class, where their teacher seemed to focus on Paper 1. I think you're better off learning things very well for Paper 2, and just reading loads for Paper 1.

Johnmcdnl is right in saying that you must make sure that you know the name of the characters. You wouldn't believe how annoying it is to forget their names in the middle of the exam!

ddyradd

Hi, I also obtained an A1 grade in this years Leaving Certificate (96%).

Although the advice you have received so far is excellent and really targets the key areas you must focus on, I believe you should learn off essays.

I simply would not have achieved a high grade if I hadn't "rote learned" and that is a fact. There are people out there and even in my class who have a fantastic ability with the English language and can make up essays in an exam. This is simply not true for me. In preparing I found it helpful to learn off essays in terms of points. So lets say you have six points about Boland's work for example, if you learn off a general discussion on these points eg. a page of foolscap or so, you have a wealth of material to choose from. It's all about preparation and if you have a huge amount of material prepared (I had approximately 13 essays learned off !!!!!) you have a greater amount of material at your disposal.

Furthermore, I would say remember that the question is so essential !. Someone mentioned above about a Kavanagh essay and they are entirely right. So many people throw away marks by inserting the essay they learned off in the wrong place. I found my approach of breaking an essay down into points really hepled here as I could relate each one directly to the q asked.

i AM AGAINST ROTE LEARNING. IT IS SIMPLY NOT EDUCATION. However, for an A1 in LC English, for me, it was imperative

Dr. Ring

johnmcdnl wrote: »

I never studied anything and I got an A2 :eek:

but it's just down to how much you read and when your doing a letter or whatever be a complete wanker in it basically and rant and rave and bitch about everything under the sun.. otherwise your boring and you'll just look like another average student.. by giving out about everything it looks like you know what your talking about...

read papers and after hours actually... you'll find so much news politics and general **** like that that you'll become knowledgeable in loads of stuff and will be more than able to do a speech or something for your essay at least.. you've probably been told not to do the short story essay because everyone does it - well this is 100% correct - do something different and you'll stand out... I wrote a speech to my class mates about my hopes for the future after leaving school or something like that and I managed to talk on for ages and ages about the banking, about religion being the scourge of the world, how war comes from religious hate, and bits about the environment... just made it sound argumentative and followed the right format etc etc and it worked for me..

it's just about being more personal, trying to stand out - it's what everyone tells you - and it's right... that's the personal writing side of it anyway


as for the poetry and drama and comparative - just know the stories inside out... remember the names of the characters (i know - for someone with an A2 you'd think I would have been doing better than "the characters" because i forgot their names) but anyways - just be political or whatever and seem to be knowledgeable and educated so it seems that you actually know more than what the notes book said - but don't go off rambling...

answer the question - obvious i know - but ANSWER THE QUESTION - not ohh i can put my Kavanagh essay in here - NO YOU CAN't YOU CAN'T EVER PUT YOUR KAVANAGH ESSAY IN EVER... you learn loads off about kavanagh and plan an essay on the day and don't ever consider learning an essay... if you try to learn essay's good luck to you with your B2 if you get lucky - simple as... if you want an A1 you'll be fit to make it up on the day and that's the most important thing I've got to say - know all the notes about every poem and you'll be grand - have an idea how to link them etc etc - but don't start learning an essay of and trying to fit it in - it doesn't work like that - same as in maths your not allowed change to question to suit yourself - same goes in English - answer what they ask you... and stick to the point..

answer what they ask you and nothing else - too bad if you can't put that 2 page essay of info into the answer - they didn't ask for it so don't tell them - tell them what they ask for - sounds simple but so many people don't do the most basic thing - answer the question...

and last of all it's probably hypocritical coming from me but anyways - write write write write write write read write write



and finally - QUALITY, not quantity

I totally disagree with some of the stuff your saying, and partially agree with the rest.

Firstly, I would totally recommend doing a short story/narrative for your essay. Yes, its fair to say that the vast majority of people will opt for this option, but if your essay is good enough, then you will come out with your A1 in this section. To do this, you need to do a number of things, mainly PREPARE an essay! I decided on an essay theme and chose to do a very general answer (that way, no matter what line or phrase you have to incorporate into your answer, you can do it quite easily and it shouldnt disrupt the overall flow of your essay). Also, MAKE SURE YOU INCORPORATE THE PHRASE OR WORD MORE THAN ONCE TO ENSURE YOU GET YOUR MARKS FOR RELEVENCE! Get your essay corrected by your english teacher, and by other english teachers in your school. Dont do this behind your teachers back because they may get offended. Just explain that youd like a few different teachers to correct it because english is so subjective. Once the essay is of A1 standard, file it for your exam and learn it.

You cannot learn something for your question B's so there is no point in even trying. All you can do here is show off your literary ability. In other words, this is an area where your fluency in relation to english comes into play. Nice turns of phrase, impressive vocabulary and a nice flow to your sentence can boost your marks here. Also, ensure you know formats for letters and diary entries. Note: For diary entries, the more personal the response, the better. Continually change your vocabulary when addressing a particular feeling, but do it with a different word each time to ensure your response does not sound repetitive.

As for answering a QA, all you can do here is learn stylistic features of writing and the tools with which the author makes their article/extract intriguing (bit of an overlap from your poetry section). Practise various exam-type questions and hopefully you will do well here.

Poetry: When analysing a poem in class, take every single note down. Anything your teacher says can be the difference between you grasping the concept of what the poet is trying to achieve and you formulating your own conclusion, to no avail. Poetry is tedious at times, but like your essay for paper one, construct general answers dealing with their style and exactly what aspect of each poem appealed to you (while at the same time making links between your poems...that is crucial!). Make sure that the quotes you use are relevant to the point your making and are backed up with sufficient evidence. Remember: PQE (Point, Quote and Explain). Put your all into these sample answers and trust me, it will pay off. Get it corrected and alter any mistakes. Then practise by taking your answer and adapting it to the poetry questions in exam papers. If you can confiedently do this, then the peotry section will be a walk in the park.

Unseen poetry: all you can do is learn poetic techniques (simile, assonance, alliteration, syntax, etc...) and be able to confidently explain how each contributed to your personal impression of the poem. Again, vary your vocab!

You can take the same approach to your comparative assignment. Obviously have a background knowledge of what aspect you'll be dealing with (i.e. Theme or Issue, General Vision and Viewpoint, Literary Genre or Cultural Context, and STICK TO IT). You'd be surprised how easily one can wander off topic but honestly you wont have time for that. Necessities include a good knowledge of characters, suitable quotes and a very good understanding of the story you've studied. Short opening and conclusion will suffice and most of all, make sure you use phrases relevant to your topic...e.g: in General Vision and Viewpoint... " This quite negative approach taken by the author only heightens the bleak outlook of this text and certainly bettered my understanding of the term General Vision and Viewpoint".

As for your Shakespearian Drama, you NEED and excellent knowledge of your text, characters and subplots. Above anywhere else, this section is where you will need to learn the most quotes. Personally, our english teacher made us learn nearly 150 quotes and gave us a test every 20 to 30 quotes. I know that sounds tedious but honestly, if you set your mind to it, its not that bad. I learned a King Lear essay off for my exam but it didnt come up so I just had to merge what I had learned with the topic I was asked to deal with (Good vs Evil and how good always triumphs, or something like that). Thankfully, I knew so many quotes that it really bulked up my answer and when I viewed my script (I viewed all my scripts), I was after getting 47 or 48 out of 50 for an answer I hadnt even prepared.


Overall, it can be quite difficult to get an A1 in honours Leaving Cert English, simply because (on average), only 1 in 120 students get one.

Things to keep in mind are:

1) Timing: It may look impressive to have reams and reams of material written out that sounds elequent and fancy but bare in mind that you will have to reproduce this under time constraints in an exam. For my king lear essay, i wrote 2 pages where as others in my class wrote 3 to 4. Remember, its about quality, not quantity. Which leads me to....

2)No Waffling of any kind: Though the top student in my english class, I was notorius for going off the point and delving into "philosophical" territory, as my english teacher so politely put it. STAY ON POINT because there are serious marks going for it! As she said: "In college, they would love to see a pholosophical side of your writing, but in Leaving Cert, you just need to answer what you've been asked".


Thats all I can think of right now. If anything else pops to mind I'll let you know.

I genuinly hope you get your A1 in english because it is, in itself, a seriously impressive achievement. Out of all my other exams, English was the one subject that, had I not gotten an A1, I would have been seriously disappointed.

As for how much time you wish to dedicate to English, I personally spent about an hour and a half at my english every night. Thats because I would write something and read over it, and if I didnt like how it sounded, Id start all over again until I was satisfied. Your script needs to stand out from all the others when it comes to the marking process come June 2012, so follow those steps and im confident you'll do very well

All the Best

Chaotic_Forces

The people that were "good" at English managed to write 10 A4 pages at least in about 2 hours. Learn to write a lot and write quickly and ignore the pain.

MissBrightside

I also got a very unexpected A1 in english this year. Would definitely not recommend learning off essays. In my opinion it's a waste of time. This year the questions on paper 2 were much more specific e.g. we were asked about specific aspects of a particular poet's work. No more "Give a personal response" questions. You needed to be more focused. ALWAYS refer to the question in your answer. At least once in every paragraph. Rephrase it if you have to. They'll have to give you the marks for clarity of purpose. Clarity of purpose, coherence of delivery and mechanics can all be marked fairly objectively, so get these right and then work on getting the marks for language. Anyway this is just my opinion. Good luck!

soup1

BL1993 wrote: »

I was wondering if someone could tell em what is the best way to study and prepare for English. I'm only in 5th year and would love to get an A1 in the subject. How much time should I be investing per night studywise and how do what to study and how?

Thanks!

To be honest, dont believe people when they say you have to learn off essays and poetry answers! English, is probably the only subject that you can't study to get an A1. While I agree there is study involved, for me, it was all about exploring my imagination! At the end of the day, the SEC don't want reems of obsequious bullsh1t! They want your honest opinion expressed through unique structured syntax. There is not that much to it! Get reading and most importantly, do not be afraid to stand out! Make sure your script is different from the other 100 scripts the examainer has to go through.

partyatmygaff

There's no way to study for an A1 in English. The best advice anyone can give for English is to read.

That's to get an A1. To do "well" you're going to have to keep in mind a few points

- Never EVER regurgitate answers in English unless what you've learned matches perfectly to the question
- Refer to the question throughout your answers
- Be imaginative and creative with your language. Use it aesthetically but not ostentatiously. If you're able for it use odd (But NOT incorrect) syntax.
- Know your single text, comparatives and your poets exceptionally well. You don't need to memorise each and every poem you learn or learn off reams and reams of quotes. Just know the texts well and the quotes will come to you.
- Try and increase your writing speed. I know it's quality not quantity but there's no point in having impeccable English if you don't have enough time to put it to paper.

mulner92

Make your points always relevant to the questions as much as possible. Also remember it's the quality and not the quantity of an answer you give. I only wrote 4 pages on the poetry last year and it helped me get to an A

higgz

Here's my own audionotes for hamlet.

http://cl.ly/ccc97836f9d4ae651504

It's about 5 minutes of the major quotes and speeches from the play.

DHYNZY

I think you can advise someone how to do well in English, but its impossible to teach someone to get an A1. English was one of the only subjects, if not the only subject, that relied on momentary inspiration on the part of the student.

Mental_Legend

Hi everyone.

All these tips look great. My concern though is I seem to be unable to write an essay in English that's B3 standard or higher. I haven't failed any English exams and tests we've done, but I'm a bit worried that I might fail it in June. Was anyone who got an A when it mattered struggling like me at this stage? We have the "mini-mock" exams in the first week of November so I'll have a more accurate reflection of where I'm at then, but for now is there anything I can do?

nommm

The only way to improve your essays is to keep practicing writing them and try to find someone who will correct them and point out where you are going wrong. It's a shame because it's one of the biggest parts of the paper and most students struggle with it but a lot of teachers don't spend time on it.

SDTimeout

I done a lot of work over the summer on writing articles and such. I write for two websites now, and in my last two poetry responses on homework i have gotten A's. Up from C's last year, my teacher told me that i really put my point across in the essay's and you can see my personality coming out even through personal responses in poetry.

I read the guardian every day ( since june, English teacher suggested it after summer exam ) and read a variety of different blogs.

My aim is for an A in English mainly to prove a lot of people wrong last year when i did need help with my English. I was the butt of a lot of jokes from my year such as you can't write properly. I used to write very colloquial and that hampered me, mainly in punctuation situations.

I'm in 6th year myself as well and like others have said, read loads and make sure they are varied. Different styles can come in handy for different questions. Also bombard your teacher with correction.

Invest in a thesaurus too, you won't believe how many times in poetry you need to use words like however, linked with, in contrast etc and it's the range of your vocab that can push you up a grade or two.

spurious

Read, read and read. Expose yourself to different styles of writing.

Then read some more.

theowen

Learn off essays. Sparingly, but do. I don't mean base your whole mentality around learning them off. But, after you've learned every normally, can formulate good essays off the top of your head, learn A1 types that you will be able to just splurge out. Not ones which can be asked in funky ways etc.

I know I'm going to be spanked for saying this but many people do get As/high Bs from learning off stuff AND attaining a good knowledge of the text and so on.

spurious

theowen wrote: »

Learn off essays. Sparingly, but do. I don't mean base your whole mentality around learning them off. But, after you've learned every normally, can formulate good essays off the top of your head, learn A1 types that you will be able to just splurge out. Not ones which can be asked in funky ways etc.

I know I'm going to be spanked for saying this but many people do get As/high Bs from learning off stuff AND attaining a good knowledge of the text and so on.

Read the Chief Examiner's reports. The above is a VERY risky way to proceed. You could end up scoring zero for your learned off essay.

Would a real A student take that risk? Would they need to?

theowen

spurious wrote: »

Read the Chief Examiner's reports. The above is a VERY risky way to proceed. You could end up scoring zero for your learned off essay.

Would a real A student take that risk? Would they need to?

I needed to. Though I was incredibly lucky, 2 of the 3 essays I learned for King Lear came up!

Sure, a lot of my teachers last year said that as long as it fits the title, exactly, they have to correct it as if it was original etc.

implausible

A lot of good advice here, but I'd like to give my two cents' worth:
For Paper II, 90% of students need to have an essay prepared, not learned off, but prepared. You are under enough pressure in the exam already, besides having to come up with a structure for your essays in the time allowed. Know a structure and the main points of each paragraph and most importantly, answer the question asked.

For Paper I, I would not recommend relying on a learned-off short story, not because of originality, but of the difficulty most students have in getting their stories to be relevant. The short stories are marked hard. For a short story to get above 70, it needs to be fantastic, whereas a mediocre personal essay can get a B or above.

For everything else: read, read, read.

theowen wrote: »

as long as it fits the title, exactly, they have to correct it as if it was original

This is true.

Bob the Builder

Ah lots of wonderful points...

Muggwoffin wrote: »

Now I'm not going to be the best authority as I'm currently a 6th year and have yet to sit the exam but I'd say that one of the greatest helps to your vocabulary and skill at composing is going to be reading books outside of the course. Anything really, as long as it's well regarded also 5th years are doing Hamlet too yes? If so there is an audio version somewhere on the internet. Download it and stick it on your MP3 player, listen to it now and then to get the quotes in your head

Well said. Audiobooks, mindmaps, going to see plays will give you a much greater insight. Remember, quotes are essential in every aspect of the english exam. Lack of detail basically screwed up my whole english exam last year. Quotes are essential.

YouthNovel wrote: »

WIT TO WIN!

Agree completely. 100%. Learn different techniques of wit. But don't get sarcastic or cocky.

ddyradd wrote: »

Hi, I also obtained an A1 grade in this years Leaving Certificate (96%).

i AM AGAINST ROTE LEARNING. IT IS SIMPLY NOT EDUCATION. However, for an A1 in LC English, for me, it was imperative

For paper 2, yes, rote learning is essential as well as being familiar with everything in the play. You nearly have to be as knowledgable as Shakespeare was when he wrote his plays and you have to put yourself in the poets shoes.

For paper 1, practise makes perfect. Not rote learning tho.

btw, well done.... 96% is awesome.

nommm wrote: »

The only way to improve your essays is to keep practicing writing them and try to find someone who will correct them and point out where you are going wrong. It's a shame because it's one of the biggest parts of the paper and most students struggle with it but a lot of teachers don't spend time on it.

My biggest point - practise makes perfect!!! If your english teacher gives you a lot of homework, there's a reason for it. Unlike other subjects, homework makes the perfection of ability.

spurious wrote: »

Read, read and read. Expose yourself to different styles of writing.

Then read some more.

But nothing beats practise. You can't fool yourself into thinking that you are preparing for an english exam just by reading constantly and writing nothing.

Gax

Let your personality come through in your essays. not many examiners enjoy reading the same ReviseWise notes paraphrased in different ways describing King Lear or whatever.

almostnever

I'm one of those people who is totally against learning off essays, but each to their own.

+1 to the advice to read as much as you can get your hands on. Try to diversy what you're reading too, incorporate as many different styles as you can. A key skill in legal writing (I'm studying Law at the moment) is clarity and usually there's an element of argument or persuasion too, for this reason I'd say if you can possibly read a case or a section of it at least, it'll help enhance your vocabulary and inspire a bit of a flair. Having a knowledge of your texts is obviously extremely important; try to be quite flexible with this and apply the knowledge to the question in a coherent manner.

Oh, and answer the question. Seriously, if there are two pieces of advicd for English, they are read plenty and answer the question.

Good luck!

Also

I got an A1 in English last year woop
Keep up with your essays!
Read letters to the editor in the papers.
When writing essays think outside the box, try to take an angle on an essay that is not the one that immediately comes to mind, it will help make your essay interesting and stand out.
Improve your vocab, or make an effort to vary the vocab that you do use!
Take interest in what you are writing.
Try to be original and convey your own personal opinions!

surfergirl92

I used to be good at english.I went from an A strong student to loosing my flair, all thanks to ty and a **** english teacher in 5th year.I'm now left to my own command to make the most of nothing!I'd be delighted with B3 because le passion is DEAD.haha. Goodluck with the A1 laaad

Teutorix

My teacher keeps telling us we need ''x'' pages minimum to get full marks on questions. I handed up an essay that was a page short which I didn't even concentrate on as I was busy drinking at the weekend, as you do during 6th year, and she gave me an A1 and siad ''top class, well done Darren'' If the LC is this easy im sure ill sail it.

Quality over quantity is really the best way to go. Read and write often to improve your English.

Precious flower

Chaotic_Forces wrote: »

The people that were "good" at English managed to write 10 A4 pages at least in about 2 hours. Learn to write a lot and write quickly and ignore the pain.

Writing 10 pages won't get you an A1 if your just waffling not mention it'll just waste time you could have spent on another part of the paper that might be worth more marks, I'm sure no examiner wants to have to go through 10 pages. Write roughly 4 pages, make sure your points are short and make sense, you're not going to get marks if it takes you three sentences to say something that could be said in one. Make sure if your quoting that you can explain it and that it fits into what you've written, it's useless if you just put quotes in random places because you think you'll get marks for just putting it in. If you cannot back it up you won't get marks. As said earlier (PQE!!!). It's extremely important.