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Today we looked at critical essays: the markers’ instructions from 2008 and some actual students’ essays. I gave out 10 essays and we looked at 2 and were surprised but (I hope) encouraged by the leniency of the marking.

If you weren’t there and would like these exemplar essays, do email me and I’ll send them as an attachment, together with the marks awarded. You’ll also find handwritten versions of these on the SQA website, under Services for Learners, NQ subjects (choose English), English Higher Critical Essay workshop – the marking instructions are there too.

I also, cruelly, made the class write a critical essay in the second part of the class, which wasn’t quite 45 minutes, so the homework is to finish it and do another one. If you weren’t there, please do this for next week, again in a strict 45 minutes. If you were in class, please try to do the other one at home; or any essay or close reading. If you email it to me then I can mark it in advance, but on the other hand it's better practice for the exam to use handwriting.

Here are the titles:

Choose a play in which a character is at odds with one or more than one of the people around him or her.

Show how the dramatist makes you aware of the character’s situation and discuss to what extent this led to a greater understanding of the concerns of the play.

and

Choose a poem which presents a character to whom you react with sympathy, dislike or laughter.

Show how the poet arouses this response from you and discuss how important it is to the overall impact of the poem.

Next week I’d like to have suggestions of what you want to do: go over texts? Do a class critical essay? Some more close reading?

The final week, the 13th, I imagine you might prefer to stay at home and revise, but I will be there as usual at 1.15 and available for any tuition on request, so do feel free to come then if you want. If no one turns up by 1.30, then I’ll go, but I’m happy to stay if anyone wants to discuss anything to do with English.

Vitamins and revision

Nothing interesting is going to happen from now on, I’m afraid, people! Today we went over in some detail the 2008 Close Reading. Please do/finish this for homework.

We also considered the language on the label of a Vitamin Water bottle. Remember to practise your analytical skills as you live your life between now and May 15. Read adverts, labels, leaflets, newspaper articles – anything – and look at the sentence structure, word choice and so on.

Next week we shall be looking at actual students’ essays and the SQA’s marks for them, and then doing a timed essay on literature. So come prepared! No more spoon-feeding…

Do some revision. Write some essays. Do not have any fun.

Happy Easter

Sorry that this is rather a late post.

In our most recent class, we mainly looked at two pieces of writing: one on garden birds and one on Wikipedia. The first was humorous and the second more serious; but both used sentence structure, word choice, imagery etc. Do pause in your reading over the next weeks and ask yourself the sorts of questions that the SQA does – just to give yourself confidence that you do, indeed, know how the question setters will have been thinking.

I’m writing this at home without my record of work with me, but I’m sure I must have given you homework. If not, download the 2008 paper from the SQA website (http://www.sqa.org.uk/) and do that – at least passage 1. But as well as this, you must revise – look at the Language Skills book if you’re at all uncertain about Close Reading, but also re-read the novel and the play and learn – well, I’d suggest four poems, ideally, off by heart and memorise what there is to say about them. Do also read my notes on the novel and the play and look up the internet – you’ll find lots of other things there, for inspiration and reassurance. Learn quotes: 10 per novel, 10 per play and lots and lots for the poems (which is why it’s easier to learn them off by heart, in my opinion).

And then do one or more essays from the past papers. Limit yourself to 45 minutes per essay and force yourself to ignore distractions. Remember, if you get the mark you need in a few weeks’ time you never have to do this again!

Remember too that you must be able to write about the literary techniques of the novel, the play and the poem without even thinking, when May 15 comes. There will be no time to sit trying to work them out from first principles: you’ll be too busy concentrating on answering the question.

See you on the 22nd. Have a good Easter.