My method for writing from year 7 to now has always been to follow my gut instinct...i have only really been practising writing fast, and clearly communicating my ideas, rather than memorising an essay. Albeit, i do struggle with timing and perfectionism so maybe the memorised would have been a better idea?
Also, do these memorised essays answer any specific questions? Im not sure how they work!
In all advice i read from Band 6 students they all mention these pre-prepared essays so i do feel a bit uncertain about myself here. I wanna know if im alone here or not!
You're definitely not alone in relying on instinct and practicing clarity in writing! Many students approach their writing with an intuitive method rather than memorizing essays, and both strategies have their pros and cons. It really depends on your strengths and preferences as a writer.
Memorized Essays:
Some students prefer to prepare pre-written, memorized essays for their HSC exams. These essays are usually tailored to themes, ideas, or common question types from past papers. The benefit of this is that it saves time during the exam since you already have well-thought-out arguments and analysis prepared. However, memorized essays can sometimes feel rigid and may not perfectly fit the specific question you're given, especially if the question is worded differently or asks for a unique angle.
The Gut Instinct Approach:
Following your gut instinct allows for more flexibility and creativity. Writing in response to the question means that your response will naturally be more specific and nuanced, which can sometimes lead to a stronger connection with the question. The downside is that it may take more time to structure your thoughts on the spot, which could lead to timing issues.
Balancing Both:
What some Band 6 students do is a hybrid method:
- Pre-prepare: They prepare several paragraphs or core ideas related to key themes or characters. Instead of memorizing entire essays, they might memorize key phrases, topic sentences, and quotes they know they’ll want to use.
- Adapt on the spot: When they see the question, they adapt these memorized ideas to fit the specific angle being asked. This gives them the benefit of a pre-prepared structure while still allowing flexibility.
What Might Work for You:
Since you mentioned struggling with
timing and
perfectionism, it might help to plan a bit more. You don’t have to memorize full essays, but having a few pre-prepared ideas or themes in mind (along with key quotes) can save time. You can still follow your gut instinct to adapt these ideas during the exam, which keeps your writing authentic but more efficient.
