lana_banana101
Hi there,
I haven't sat my HSC yet but as a year12 student, I have always memorised my essays as well as the structure.
When some people say " it is better to do heaps of practice'' what do they mean by it? I always have an esssay memorised that I practice multiple times with slightly varying essay questions my teacher has provided to further prep for the exam but it involves the same structure/themes as well as utilising the same quotes to suit the response. I'm not a student that gets 19/20 or such but I do consistently get high B's and low A's (16-17/20) with all my essays. So I think you need a bit of both to do well. With the chances of getting a band 6, this is fully dependent on the content of your essay itself and I've gotten reviews from my friends and teachers multiple times before finalising my essay and this has helped heaps in terms of improving my marks. Overall, I think you do need to do both, but whichever method works well for you personally should be preferred. Hope you do great in your HSC!
Cheers
Llana_banana101
- Feb 7, 2024
- Joined Jul 25, 2022
I don't like to memorise responses because, depending on the question, I might end up writing a response that deviates from what the markers want me to answer. That means no matter how well I write, even if I use sophisticated language, techniques and examples, I'll never go beyond a C. If you're aiming for a Band 6 response, I don't recommend memorising essays, but rather, memorising ideas and quotes that can prepare you for any question the markers throw at you.
- Edited
I'm not doing the HSC (VCE student here), but I don't tend to memorise full essays. I usually have a general memorised essay structure or possible sentence structures (i.e. say for the introduction, I tend to have a very similar sentence structure, modified for each essay type and altered depending on the topic). However, this is more achieved through writing multiple practice essays, not through actually rote learning it. I've found that this has worked really well for me, and I've been able to do well in English so far without memorising full essays. I think overall memorising can be a bit of a waste of time, since you want to show the examiner or teacher that you can apply your knowledge to a range of topics with unique insights (it also takes away from essay practice time). They can easily tell when someone has just rote learned an essay and tried to slightly modify it to the topic (which can be a problem, as a memorised essay might not fit the topics given, which could lose you marks if you try to somehow modify it to suit it). That said, I know for some people memorising essays can be really helpful in achieving high marks, and some people are really good at it. However, I don't think it's a must when it comes to essay writing. I'd focus on memorising essay structures, sentence starters, synonyms, and ways of phrasing language to ensure your essay is as analytical and insightful as possible.
lana_banana101 No problem, I hope you enjoy both the extension subjects and hope everything goes well for your HSC! Thank you so much <3
Hey there! I'm currently in Year 12 and I'm doing HEX and 4U English, so I can't tell you what my ATAR/HSC marks are (yet), but I do have some personal thoughts about it that may be helpful
I think if you have a passion for subjects that require lots of reading and writing, then both the extensions definitely go well together and will utilise your skills to read wide sources and craft varied pieces of writing. However, I would recommend really planning out your time if you have these subjects.
I've already submitted my essay for History Extension, and am now purely focused on completing my Extension 2. I do regret not spending a more even amount of time on both the works a bit earlier, so my advice would be to not get tunnel vision.
Although it certainly has a fair share of challenges, I think if you like history and English it won't be as much of a chore as some other subjects, especially if you pick topic/s you like! I also enjoy the different writing styles, as when I wanted to be more objective and factual, I would work on my HEX essay, but when I felt more creative I go straight to my Extension 2. Additionally, if you're thinking going to uni, then HEX is a really good course to look at, especially with regards to learning how to research, correctly cite and use sources, and write in a more academic register.
Give it a go is my main advice if you're on the fence about it
Hey!
I reckon it's perfectly doable.
Have you watched the ATARNotes Major Works Crash Course lecture by Lily during the July lecture series? She did 4 majors including Ext 2 English and History Extension and still did well for her HSC!
Another well-known example I can think of is Gladys Lai from the Class of 2016. She did 4 units of English, 5 units of History (Ancient, Modern, and Extension) alongside Visual Arts (which also requires a major body of work!) and achieved a perfect 99.95 ATAR along with 5 state ranks.
I think oodies are overrated.
pretty sure my english teacher did (though 15 years ago). she got around an 87
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