How to Compose an essay for the Area of Study
This is a very demanding task because it requires students to explore, analyse, question and articulate whilst using a degree of flair and sophistication of expression. The fact that students must use a variety of texts in a variety of genres and media in addition to the prescribed text furthers exacerbates the difficulty of this task. The following are a guide of what you should include in your composition.
1. Make a note of all texts you will use in your composition including their mode of production. Ensure you draw your chosen texts from a variety of sources, in a range of genres and media, as directed in the Stage 6 Syllabus. If time allows try to use prose (fiction/nonfiction), film (feature/documentary), media (newspaper/magazine/television), multimedia (Internet site) and a visual text (painting/cartoon).
2. Identify which aspects of the prescribed text will best assist you in exploring, analysising, questioning and articulating the ways in which perceptions of changed are outlined. Stick to this plan.
3. Use the wording of the question in the introductory paragraph of your composition.
4. Outline the material to be used in the composition in its introduction.
5. Most tasks will have a how embedded in their phrasing, so therefore in the introduction of your composition construct a thesis which concentrates on the how, as outlined in the question.
6. In the first paragraph of your composition use a topic sentence focussing on the question but allowing an overall evaluation of the merit of your prescribed text. Topic sentences should be used throughout your composition.
7. Introduce the first aspect of your thesis relating this to your prescribed text simply and succinctly and in reference to the task. Then further elaborate, emphasising the text's qualities keeping in mind your focus area of the Area of Study.
8. Ensure that causality is established and maintained throughout, both between your paragraphs and within the sentences of each paragraph.
9. Quoting from the prescribed and other texts is essential in validating claims throughout.
10. Your composition must directly engage with the mode of production of texts you are using. Ask yourself if a marker can possibly mistake a film for a novel. What aspects of the film (editing, framing, mise-en-scene, design, acting, genre) can convince the assessor that this text is indeed a film?
11. Integration of texts/aspects of texts is desirable. In your second paragraph you can introduce your 1st self-selected text, comparing and contrasting this, where necessary, with prescribed text, whilst focussing on the aspect of the journey identified in the task.
12. Provide only a brief idea of what a text is about, using language appropriate to the type of text you are describing eg protagonist (dramatic text) persona (poem) hero (prose fiction) etc.
13. Do not simply retell the story, or give an account of the journey(s), analyse and critique the information and ideas.
14. Concentrate only on aspects of texts which can connect with the concept of the Area of Study.
15. Even fleeting references to aspects of texts not analysed fully can give a good impression as long as there is detailed analysis of the minimun number of texts specified by the question.
16. Use the correct number of texts from prescribed BOS Stimulus booklet . This will probably be only one but you must be prepared to engage with all six if need be.
. Reiteration of thesis is essential at the conclusion of your composition. Conclusion should also re-emphasise impact of change on the responder
This is a very demanding task because it requires students to explore, analyse, question and articulate whilst using a degree of flair and sophistication of expression. The fact that students must use a variety of texts in a variety of genres and media in addition to the prescribed text furthers exacerbates the difficulty of this task. The following are a guide of what you should include in your composition.
1. Make a note of all texts you will use in your composition including their mode of production. Ensure you draw your chosen texts from a variety of sources, in a range of genres and media, as directed in the Stage 6 Syllabus. If time allows try to use prose (fiction/nonfiction), film (feature/documentary), media (newspaper/magazine/television), multimedia (Internet site) and a visual text (painting/cartoon).
2. Identify which aspects of the prescribed text will best assist you in exploring, analysising, questioning and articulating the ways in which perceptions of changed are outlined. Stick to this plan.
3. Use the wording of the question in the introductory paragraph of your composition.
4. Outline the material to be used in the composition in its introduction.
5. Most tasks will have a how embedded in their phrasing, so therefore in the introduction of your composition construct a thesis which concentrates on the how, as outlined in the question.
6. In the first paragraph of your composition use a topic sentence focussing on the question but allowing an overall evaluation of the merit of your prescribed text. Topic sentences should be used throughout your composition.
7. Introduce the first aspect of your thesis relating this to your prescribed text simply and succinctly and in reference to the task. Then further elaborate, emphasising the text's qualities keeping in mind your focus area of the Area of Study.
8. Ensure that causality is established and maintained throughout, both between your paragraphs and within the sentences of each paragraph.
9. Quoting from the prescribed and other texts is essential in validating claims throughout.
10. Your composition must directly engage with the mode of production of texts you are using. Ask yourself if a marker can possibly mistake a film for a novel. What aspects of the film (editing, framing, mise-en-scene, design, acting, genre) can convince the assessor that this text is indeed a film?
11. Integration of texts/aspects of texts is desirable. In your second paragraph you can introduce your 1st self-selected text, comparing and contrasting this, where necessary, with prescribed text, whilst focussing on the aspect of the journey identified in the task.
12. Provide only a brief idea of what a text is about, using language appropriate to the type of text you are describing eg protagonist (dramatic text) persona (poem) hero (prose fiction) etc.
13. Do not simply retell the story, or give an account of the journey(s), analyse and critique the information and ideas.
14. Concentrate only on aspects of texts which can connect with the concept of the Area of Study.
15. Even fleeting references to aspects of texts not analysed fully can give a good impression as long as there is detailed analysis of the minimun number of texts specified by the question.
16. Use the correct number of texts from prescribed BOS Stimulus booklet . This will probably be only one but you must be prepared to engage with all six if need be.
. Reiteration of thesis is essential at the conclusion of your composition. Conclusion should also re-emphasise impact of change on the responder