The 40 minute essay conspiracy theory (1 Viewer)

[silvermoon]

I am in total agreement. I think it is close to impossible, if not impossible to demonstrate an indepth understanding of a module, covering all aspects of the syllabus whilst still showing a good style and a decent intro and conclusion in a pissweak 40 minutes. If they want us to yabber about so much, then they should give us more time.

but you aren't being asked to demonstrate understanding of the whole of your module, only the aspects they are asking you to comment on. Yes, it's perfectly acceptable to include references and commentary on other aspects of the module to show general undertanding, however, the question provides the focus for your response. where's the problem? of course 40 minutes isn't enough - luckily for me i write very quickly, but there's always more you could write. for example, i wrote 15/16 pages i think it was for my king lear essay in the HSC but there was much more i could have said if i'd had more time. you just have to know your limits and make sure you write on topic. The more you practice writing the faster you'll get

 

[silvermoon]

I'd consider myself a fairly fast writer, and I don't use one of those wanky gel pens. I use a cheap pen, that Bic one that you can buy in packs of 10 for about $2.40. Yeah that crappy pen, you don't need to spend a couple of dollars just for a pen, just get these el cheapo pens and just practice writing quickly. I can do about 14 pages in 40 minutes (I did this for an economics in class essay assessment)

http://www.mutr.co.uk/images/products/main/DSCN0756.jpg <= thats what I'm talkin about

yeah, i use em too coz otherwise i smudge what i've written. if you lean too hard on the desk as you're writing it becomes harder to move your hand fluidly and write quickly. if you use your non-writing hand to anchor the paper then you can make sure your wiritng hand never touches the paper allowing you to write faster. well, thats my tip. i can't say that the choice of pen has ever made any difference excepting if i'ev been usng one type for ages and then switch over and the grip is different. that can throw your style a little

 

[a8o]

I'd consider myself a fairly fast writer, and I don't use one of those wanky gel pens. I use a cheap pen, that Bic one that you can buy in packs of 10 for about $2.40. Yeah that crappy pen, you don't need to spend a couple of dollars just for a pen, just get these el cheapo pens and just practice writing quickly. I can do about 14 pages in 40 minutes (I did this for an economics in class essay assessment)

http://www.mutr.co.uk/images/products/main/DSCN0756.jpg <= thats what I'm talkin about

Agreed. Used them for my trials, they own.

 

[silvermoon]

just occured to me that we're talking about the pens as being the most important consideration for the exam...if only you could just write the brand of your pen on the first page of your booklet and that be it

 

[missjelly_baby]

well personally i used to always use the papermate kilometric pens in everything - school work, exams etc. u can get them in a multicoloured pack of ten for about $2. it wasn't until i ran out of a pen in my trials that i started to use gel pens. I used to hate gel pens but i found that your hand hurts less because u tend to put less pressure on the page cos the ink is smooth and stuff. the only downside is they tend to be a lil bit expensive and run out quickly. par example, in an english exam, like today, i used half my pen but wrote about 20 pages all up which is kinda a PB for me. So there are up sides and down sides to the use of gel pens ... i suppose its just a personal choice.

 

[aurora_05]

Gel pens are so handy. Yes they run out faster and yes they cost a little more but...it's worth it if you can get that extra bit of information in cause your hand is going to last that little bit longer before it falls off...
Gel pens all the way

 

[Bokky]

Is it also true that markers who are marking the paper, not just in english, but in any other subject, that if they cant read ur writing they just give up on trying to make out what it says that they just give u full marks for it? Coz ive read some past responses from students who got a band 6 and they're writing practically looked like chinese letters and i couldnt make a single word out.

 

[switchblade87]

If examiners really wanted to see what people knew about? their texts and modules, why are the exams made to seperate those who can write and order their ideas quickly from those with slower writing skills and who need to have more thinking time before answering a question?

For example, I ran out of time in the trial befor covering my related text for powerplay, but that doesn't mean that I didn't have an understanding of it. Yet a fast writer who merely read a summary of the book could quickly regurgitate some notes they read about it, even if they did't comprehend them, and they get the marks.

If in the future your prefession involved the study of literature, surely you're capabilities are measured on your understanding, not being able to write as many pages as possible in a time limit.

Obviously I'm hopeless at 40 min essays. And why do I now feel like I could write a 50 page essay in 2 min on my hatred of this system?

There's got to be other's that share this opinion?

Since he was fixing his mistakes... (in bold)

Where the hell did this thread come from? 2K2, wtf...

 

[CLRNCE]

three hours!!

damn straight! i think exams should be three hours so that we have time to think and write what we need to! i was chatting to my english teacher the day before the exam and she was telling me that she gets pissed that all the essays for lear are so superficial and yet it is one of the greatest tragedies ever written. i agree with her and say that if they want us to study such friggin complicated texts and expect us to understand them and be able to articulate that then we should be given an hour on each essay! it's not that much to ask!!
and i have to say that the people saying they can only write 5 pages in 40 minutes i surely hope you are talking about A4 pages and not booklet pages cause that's not much if it is booklet pages!!
anyway best of luck to everyone for the rest of their exams!

 

[paper cup]

damn straight! i think exams should be three hours so that we have time to think and write what we need to! i was chatting to my english teacher the day before the exam and she was telling me that she gets pissed that all the essays for lear are so superficial and yet it is one of the greatest tragedies ever written. i agree with her and say that if they want us to study such friggin complicated texts and expect us to understand them and be able to articulate that then we should be given an hour on each essay! it's not that much to ask!!
and i have to say that the people saying they can only write 5 pages in 40 minutes i surely hope you are talking about A4 pages and not booklet pages cause that's not much if it is booklet pages!!
anyway best of luck to everyone for the rest of their exams!

some peiple have small writing...OK look just go into the exams and write what you know, do the best you can don't worry about idiotic things like how many pages.

 

[silvermoon]

i dunno --> i still think worrying about what type of pen you're using has to be the most ridiculous thing in here so far

 

[ScottyG]

yes I am one of those people that gets severely disadvantaged because I simply CAN NOT write fast enough in a 40 minute essay
So I am forced to be more concise but in the end it does cost marks as I don't have the chance to show as much knowledge as the guy who wrote 10 pages

I suffer from the same thing, can maybe get out 600 words in 40minutes if im lucky. I'm still managing marks in the high eighties, low nineties, and came 2nd in advanced English this year, but the teachers have all told me that I'll start to get hammered if I don't pick my word count up.

I even got a comment on one of my papers about how I should 'manage my time' because the teacher figured it was a short answer because I ran *out* of time. Fact is, I had 50minutes for that section, knew exactly what I was writing, went flat out and still only managed around 2 1/4 A4 pages.

Just can't write any quicker.

 

[ifsonotso_100]

that's pretty shocking, 600 words, i wonder how you came second with that, minimum for high band essays require at least 950 and above.

 

[05er]

that's pretty shocking, 600 words, i wonder how you came second with that, minimum for high band essays require at least 950 and above.

That's bollocks.
Quality, not quantity.

 

[ifsonotso_100]

yes, but u need alot of quality to do well, tell me if you are comparing two texts, or even four how you can have enough quality to do all of them well with 650 words, essays need to be at least 900 plus, and band 6 ones are normally about 1100 words. its impossible to do 650 words for the journey one and expect to do well, as well as ones such as frontline- 4 texts so u are an idiot if u think u can get away with 650 and do well, 650 is probably only okay for a short story but its got to be bloody brilliant to get close to full marks.

 

[IWishIWasAModel]

my hand writing is really terrible and i simply can not write more than 4 pages in 40 minutes, and this is when I know the essay off the top of my head AND have it next to me to reference (I was practising) my last page was actually illegible.. i was fully aware that i wasnt writing words by the time i got there... i really need help with how to write quicker... cause it has nothing to do with how fast i think... its really just how fast i write... and by the end of writing just one essay my hand gets so sore i cant even move it out of a pen holding position..

 

[KillerIsMe]

I have an RSI in my wrist.
My first exam with it I got an extra five minutes every half an hour and struggle to write a single paragraph.
Next I got a writer who was younger and couldn't spell simple words which wasted a lot of time.
I got given a computer for my year 11 exams and term 4 exams last year, but I probably won't get it for the HSC, so I'm pretty much screwed.

 

[tehrobzorz]

on a side note...HSC markers are just normal teachers who get paid more...PER HOUR. im not completely serious, but...5+pages? need i just say again...they're paid by the hour ^^" ( $60 ish if i recall correctly from my teacher - she was so happy )

/ridiculousness