Tag Archives: certificate

Hello leaving certs…

Posted on April 14, 2011 by | Comments Off on Hello leaving certs…

If you are browsing the site because it’s more appealing than sitting down and figuring out what 6 paragraphs you’ll write for each of the Hamlet questions I gave you, that’s OK. Being here is better than being on facebook (from an educational perspective anyway). It’s ok, you don’t have to close the facebook tab.

Anyway, I just want to draw your attention to the links section which is on the left hand side of the screen. Almost every year you are given the opportunity to discuss some aspect of our education system/your experiences of education in Paper 1 so if you get a chance click on the links and soak up some ideas from some brilliant writers. See the education blog and www.nataliemonroe.com

Another excellent link is to www.joe.ie but you should specifically search for articles by William Nestor. His style of writing is exactly what you’re going for if asked to write a magazine article and he deals with a lot of topics relevant to young people like yourselves (piggytails or no piggytails, I don’t think I fit into that category anymore). I also really like Eoin Butler’s style of writing, a childhood arch-enemy of mine who now writes for the Irish Times magazine – check out his website www.eoinbutler.com

Some general news sites to make use of are www.guardian.co.uk ; www.huffingtonpost.com ; www.irishtimes.com ; www.bbc.co.uk ; www.rte.ie and today I found an interesting article on why teenagers are such rebels – to read it click on http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/7511842/Fourteen-the-most-dangerous-age.html

Finally, the most amazing English department website in the country (which makes my whole effort look pretty pathetic – sob!) is this one from St. Columba’s College in Dublin.

That’s all for now but check back occasionally, I may send you looking elsewhere for inspiration. Now close the facebook tab and get back to work!

Evelyn.

p.s. Here’s a really funny blogger talking about the LC – this is the style of writing you want to aim for in Paper 1. Full of self-mockery, lighthearted yet true to life – click LC blog.

p.p.s. Here’s a more ‘serious’ look at strategies for doing well in LC English, most of which I’ve said to you already. Don’t be put off by his tone – it sounds like he never did anything BUT study for the entire year! Click here to read it.

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Advice on answering comprehensions

Posted on April 12, 2011 by | 3 comments

Comprehensions – General Guidelines

 

Your ability to read & understand texts is being tested.

Above all else remember this:  answer the question, the whole question and nothing but the question! Well actually, not quite – you do need some depth in your answer. This involves choosing relevant info, supporting with quotes, interpreting what is implied/suggested and evaluating it (Questions such as ‘has the writer succeeded in convincing you?’…. ‘what impact do these images make on you?’…’would you like to have shared this journey with character X?’…).

You must prove to the examiner that you can:

Write well – your answer needs to showcase an impressive vocabulary, to flow naturally from point to point and to offer an in-depth analysis of the text.

Pick out relevant information

Rephrase it in your own words (this shows you understand the info)

Use quotes (keep them relatively short) to support the points you make. Never begin with a quote – this is the writing equivalent of putting the cart before the horse and it will lose you marks. Make your point/statement FIRST, then support it with a quote.

Interpret texts – understand not just the specific points they make but also the view of the world being offered. This means you can see the pieces of the puzzle AND how they join together into a bigger picture or view of the world. Ask yourself if the writer is biased in any way.

Depending on the question you may be asked to:

Figure out the message of the text & the point(s) the writer wishes to make.

Offer your own opinion – if asked – but stick closely to discussing what’s in the text.

Comment on the style of writing – informative, persuasive, argumentative, descriptive. You must be able to identify techniques but MORE IMPORTANTLY you must comment on their effectiveness. Ask yourself ‘why did the writer use this style? what effect does she want this technique to have on me, the reader?’

Discuss the visual element of the text – photo(s), book cover(s), an ad or painting.

ADVICE: Time is tight – you have only 45 minutes so you must focus.

  1. Read the questions first, slowly and carefully. Underline important words.
  2. Rewrite the Q in simpler language if you’re not sure what you’re being asked.
  3. Read the passage. Underline/highlight anything you think you might use in your answers and number it (Q1 / Q2 / Q3).
  4. Pay attention to how many marks each Q is worth – 10 marks = ½ to ¾ pg / 15 marks = ¾ to 1pg / 20 marks = 1 to 1¼pgs
  5. Don’t get stuck making 1 point over and over – make 1 point for every 5 marks available, then add one! So 10 marks = 3 points 15 marks = 4-5points and 20 marks = 5-6 points
  6. Stick closely to answering the question asked. Some questions have two parts – don’t leave out half of the Q in your answer through carelessness. Avoid including material which is irrelevant to this question.
  7. Don’t simply summarise the text (unless specifically asked to) – try to figure out the overall message. You may be asked if you agree/disagree with the views expressed.
  8. When quoting directly from the text USE QUOTATION MARKS. Keep quotes relatively short and only use relevant ones.
  9. Be organised in your approach – make a point (in your own words), back it up with evidence from the text, then move on. Make a new point, back it up, then move on etc… However, make sure your answer flows by using phrases such as ‘also’ ‘furthermore’ ‘nonetheless’ ‘on the other hand’ ‘clearly’. Don’t use the same phrase twice.
  10. Don’t wander off on a tangent, waffling on about something that happened to you in your life. This is generally completely irrelevant to proving that you can read, interpret and offer an opinion on a piece of writing.
  11. Don’t spend too long on this section – you can leave space and come back to it at the end if you have time.

One very common error made my students is that they move on to Q2 but keep answering Q1. This happens a lot because students are so focused on getting the comprehension done on time. The info from Q1 is still fresh in their minds so they end up repeating themselves in the next Q. One way to avoid this is to write out the Q at the top of the page to force your brain to move on. Remember the questions are completely different so your answers should be too.

If you find yourself repeating info from a previous question

  • STOP.
  • Read the Q again.
  • Refocus.

It’s unlikely that you are answering the Q properly if you find yourself repeating the same points in different answers.

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Sample Personal Essay

Posted on April 11, 2011 by | 6 comments

This is a personal essay (I found it in an old foolscap a few years ago) from when I was in Leaving Cert. It’s not terribly original and the ending just kind of tails off pathetically but rather than fix it up I decided to leave it as I had written it at 17. It should give you a strong sense that there is a real difference between personal essays and short stories.

A Farewell to Adolescence

One of the scariest things about being in Leaving Cert. is realising that you are the oldest pupils in the school. In the first couple of days it gently hits you that the people who once intimidated you so much are all gone. Any intimidation that goes on now is probably your esteemed self complaining (loudly) in the presence of first years about how cheeky and wild they are. At this stage you usually find yourself commenting on the fact that your own year were NEVER that rude and boisterous, and you begin to despair for the youth of today. Where, oh where, did they ever go wrong?

It is about now you realise that you’re beginning to grow up. Talking about the ‘youth of today’ sets off alarm bells in your head because you’ve started to distance yourself from this section of society. You no longer include yourself in the category of ‘teenager’ or ‘adolescent’. Technically, you’ll be a teenager until the end of your nineteenth year, but being as mature and responsible as you are, you handily disregard this fact!

After the first couple of days in Leaving Cert, it not-so-gently whacks you full-in-the-face that other people have also started to regard you as a young adult. Teachers, parents, and adults in general expect you to think and act more responsibly, as befits your new position in society. THAT’s when you discover the role of young adult has as many drawbacks as advantages.

The first problem encountered is that of choosing a career! Of course, you’d always realised that EVENTUALLY you’d have to decide what to do with the rest of your life. But never in your wildest dreams or worst nightmares did you imagine just how difficult it would really be. The careers teacher bombards you with information about points, open days, college prospectus’, CAO-CAS forms, subject choices, apprentices and requirements. It vaguely registers somewhere in the back of your mind that you’ve heard all this before (perhaps in last years careers class???) but you weren’t really listening (at the time) because it was just kind of boring and irrelevant. Right now it’s about as far away from irrelevant as it can possibly be, and your head is in a whirl. Oh, to be back in first year when everything was simple and all anyone seemed to talk about was how wild and cheeky you were!

Added to this burden of deciding what to do with the rest of your life, is the workload of the average Leaving Certificate pupil. You seem to spend at least three hours every night doing homework alone. Wondering when you’ll get around to revising fourth year work is useless – you simply DON’T HAVE THE TIME! Every teacher seems to have some comment to make about how little work you’ve done, and how much you’ve left to cover. Being fulfilled, happy individuals, however, you don’t despair and it never even enters your head how hopeless everything is…

The last (and in my opinion the worst) part of saying farewell to adolescence is that of being responsible for your own destiny. Every teacher and parent in the country seems to adopt the policy of constantly telling you that how you do in the Leaving Certificate Examinations in June is entirely up to you! Teachers remind you daily that they’re not afraid of work and they’re doing the best they can for you. If you don’t pull up your socks and get down to work there’s nothing they can do about it. Their most commonly used phrase abound this time is “I can’t do the work for you!” You almost begin to believe the unspoken, follow-on-statement “I would if I could but I can’t”. Thus the weight of the world merrily thuds down onto your shoulders and this ‘growing-up’ process, this ‘farewell to adolescence’ seems less and less attractive every minute.

All is not doom and gloom however, and whilst the negative side of growing up is alive and well, there is also another, more desirable side blossoming satisfactorily, if you look at the other side of the coin. You begin to notice the extent to which your family life changes. Apart from a few sensitive areas, you’re pretty much a free agent. Your parents no longer freak out if you leave the house for more than half an hour. You don’t ask them any more if you can go out, they ask you if you are! It’s not childish teenage disco’s you’re going to either – it’s pubs and nightclubs. For the lucky minority who are already 18, it’s not even illegal! The smoker who started smoking in national school suddenly realises that he’s no longer breaking the law. You can even legally have sex!

A whole new world of possibility opens out before you, and somehow, life doesn’t seem so bleak anymore. You don’t get asked what age you are going into the cinema! Your mother doesn’t wait until you’ve gone to bed to watch the video she’s hired out – unless of course it’s an “adult” movie of the coloured kind that you don’t really want to watch anyway. And definitely not with your parents! Another advantage is the summer job which provides money, but more importantly, independence. I personally HATE having to ask my parents for money, and if I do, I have to tell them what it’s for. When you’ve got your own money, you can do what you like with it and are answerable to no-one.

All in all, growing up has both advantages and disadvantages. The process is both rewarding and painful, joyous and sad. Luckily this transition must only be experienced once in every lifetime because being “stuck in the middle” is quite an awkward confusing time. Overall my ‘farewell to adolescence’ will be a thankful one. I’ll be saying my goodbyes happily enough!

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Personal Essay

Posted on April 11, 2011 by | 8 comments

Some students have trouble getting their heads around the difference between a short story and a personal essay. If you write a personal essay then YOU aged 17 or 18, doing the Leaving Certificate, are writing about yourself. You can exaggerate, even make stuff up, but ultimately you are tied to offering the perspective of an Irish teenager. If you write a short story, your main character can be anyone – a homeless person, princess, pilot, animal, drug addict, sportsperson, banshee, baby in the womb, spy, slave, vampire, alien or angel. So personal essays are where you write about yourself. Short stories are fictional and can be set anywhere, anytime and be about anyone. In summary:

  1. A short story has a plot, setting and fictional characters!
  2. The style of writing is DESCRIPTIVE
  3. A short story could be ONE EPISODE of a TV show.
  1. A personal essay is a series of related ideas (or anecdotes) which reveal your personality, opinions, memories & feelings.
  2. The style of writing is up to you – you can use descriptive writing in one paragraph, rhetorical questions & lists in another, humour and exaggeration in another.
  3. Each paragraph uses ONE core idea.
  4. A personal essay COULD NOT be made into a TV show.

When writing a personal essay your personality must take centre stage – your attitudes, feelings, hopes, desires and beliefs are revealed. The quirkier the better – the last thing you want is to come across as the same as everyone else!

Follow the six rules of essay writing. Plan in advance, organise your ideas. Use some of the following techniques:

  • Quotes from bands/singers, writers, philospohers, friends, calendars!
  • Anecdotes from your past. Of course you can always describe an event that happened to someone else and pretend it happened to you.
  • Descriptive style so the reader is drawn into the experiences you evoke.
  • Reflection on your experiences/beliefs/attitudes – show an awareness of how you have become the person you are.
  • Imagination – you are free to wander off on a tangent, letting your thoughts flow naturally…as long as you eventually return to the point.
  • Humour – be as funny, sarcastic and brutally honest as you are in real life. It’s so refreshing because students tend to be puh puh puh puh puh puh puh puh pokerfaced and overly serious in the exam. (Then you meet them in real life and they’re a total scream but didn’t manage to get this across in their writing. So sad ;-(
  • Hyperbole – take the truth & exagerate it. Make your writing dramatic.
  • Observations about life, love, lucozade and lemonade. Here is your chance to muse about everything.
  • Identify problems & offer solutions. Don’t be a Moaning Myrtle!

Here’a another discussion of the personal essay for a different perspective on it:

http://litreactor.com/columns/up-close-and-personal-a-personality-expose-of-the-personal-essay

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Sample short story

Posted on April 11, 2011 by | 28 comments

The following short story is an exercise I did in class with a group of Ordinary Level Leaving Certificate students. It is too short for an exam and it’s no masterpiece but it will give you the gist of the ingredients that go into writing a short story. It’s a bit like painting by numbers except it’s storytelling by numbers. Read the full story first, then look at the breakdown of how it was put together.

The graveyard was cold, dark and dreary. One weary old oak tree leaned over the entrance gate and broken battered headstones were scattered all around. I could hear the sound of the howling wind and the creak and groan of branches as they swayed in the storm. The smell of fear and rotting leaves filled my nostrils and I swallowed deeply afraid I would get sick.

As I walked towards my brother’s grave, I heard another noise. It was slow heavy footsteps. I turned. A tall muscular man was walking towards me. His face was tough & covered in stubble to hide the scars which criss-crossed his jaw.

“I don’t think this is such a good idea” I shouted over the wind.

“It’s too late to change your mind” the man replied in a low threatening voice. “Either we dig him up now or you spend the rest of your life wondering how he died”.

“Ok, ok” I mumbled, afraid to say anything more in case the lump in my throat would cause tears to run down my face.

I could still remember the day those two army officers arrived at my house to tell me my brother was dead. Their cold hard faces gave little away when I asked how he died. “Killed in the course of duty” was all they would say. Everything else was “classified”. They handed me a letter from my brother, saluted, then turned and left, the click-clack of their shoes on the pavement slowly dying away. I stood frozen to the spot, dazed, confused and devastated. I finally opened the letter with trembling fingers but only one line stared back at me. “I’ll always be with you brother. Karl”. What did he mean? How could he be with me ever again? He was dead.

Now I leaned heavily on the rusty shovel in my hands and started to dig, determined to uncover the truth. The scar-faced man beside me began to dig at the other end and soon my brother’s coffin began to emerge from beneath the layers of sodden earth. Faced with this moment of truth, I began to panic. What if I was wrong? I knew Karl hated the army, I knew he wanted out. His girlfriend Sarah hadn’t turned up at the funeral, hadn’t contacted her family in the two months since his death. But maybe she just needed some space?

I looked down at the coffin as my hired helper tugged at the lid with a crowbar. With a loud snap the lid flew back revealing the frozen corpse inside. My whole body filled with relief – there was a dead man in the coffin. But it wasn’t my brother.

Now look at the analysis of how the story was put together step by step.

STEP ONE: WHERE – describe the place where the story happens. Sentence 1 & 2 describe sights, 3 & 4 sounds & smells:

The graveyard was cold, dark and dreary. One weary oak tree leaned over the entrance gate and broken battered headstones were scattered all around. I could hear the sound of the howling wind and the creak and groan of branches as they swayed in the storm. The smell of fear and rotting leaves filled my nostrils and I swallowed deeply afraid I would get sick.

STEP TWO: WHO – introduce/describe the characters. Describe what you did/saw/heard/smelt.

As I walked towards my brother’s grave, I heard another noise. It was slow heavy footsteps. I turned. A tall muscular man was walking towards me. His face was tough & covered in stubble to hide the scars which criss-crossed his jaw.

STEP THREE: WHAT happens between these two characters? Usually one character wants something and tries to get it but something goes wrong. This is revealed here through dialogue.

“I don’t think this is such a good idea” I shouted over the wind. “It’s too late to change your mind” the man replied in a low threatening voice. “Either we dig him up now or you spend the rest of your life wondering how he died”. “Ok, ok” I mumbled, afraid to say anything more in case the lump in my throat would cause tears to run down my face.

STEP FOUR: FLASHBACK – a memory from before this story began.

I could still remember the day those two army officers arrived at my house to tell me my brother was dead. Their cold hard faces gave little away when I asked how he died. “Killed in the course of duty” was all they would say. Everything else was “classified”. They handed me a letter from my brother, saluted, then turned and left, the click-clack of their shoes on the pavement slowly dying away. I stood frozen to the spot, dazed, confused and devastated. I finally opened the letter with trembling fingers but only one line stared back at me. “I’ll always be with you brother. Karl”. What did he mean? How could he be with me ever again? He was dead.

STEP FIVE: RETURN TO THE STORY – what happens next? Focus on the thoughts and feelings of the main character.

Now I leaned heavily on the rusty shovel in my hands and started to dig, determined to uncover the truth. The scar-faced man beside me began to dig at the other end and soon my brother’s coffin began to emerge from beneath the layers of sodden earth. Faced with this moment of truth, I began to panic. What if I was wrong? I knew Karl hated the army, I knew he wanted out. His girlfriend Sarah hadn’t turned up at the funeral, hadn’t contacted her family in the two months since his death. But maybe she just needed some space?

STEP SIX: FINISH WITH A TWIST

I looked down at the coffin as my hired helper tugged at the lid with a crowbar. With a loud snap the lid flew back revealing the frozen corpse inside. My whole body filled with relief – there was a dead man in the coffin. But it wasn’t my brother.

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