How to study for upcoming English Test (1 Viewer)

[wannabesurgeon]

Hey all. I have my 2nd English Test coming up in 2 weeks about Module-A Comparative study (Richard III and Looking for Richard) and have no idea how to study for it to get the highest marks possible. It's a Detailed Critical Response. I absolutely hate English, My teacher just blabs on and I go into a daydream. I'm not going to escape the fact English counts no matter what and this is why I need some advice on how to study/prepare for it as I haven't really in my past years.

I haven't read Richard III in my own time as every time I try to read it, I don't even understand it but we have read it with the audio in class. The bad thing is my teacher stops it every second and has a 10 minute talk about 1 sentence and this is when I start to daydream :\ . It's the same case with the documentary also as the teacher just makes us write notes about all this stuff we don't even need to know. I know it's bad but I really need some advice on how to approach study/prepare for it and what I should include in the study. Thanks

 

[LoveHateSchool]

Heya, I did that comparative study

What do you have to for the task? Because I can then tell you how to best prepare? Is it an in class essay or something?

 

[wannabesurgeon]

Heya, I did that comparative study

What do you have to for the task? Because I can then tell you how to best prepare? Is it an in class essay or something?

Yeah it's in class. The task outline is: "Compose a Detailed Critical Response on your set texts, integrating a provided excerpt"

Thanks

 

[caramelmacaron]

I did different texts for my comparative study, but what I did was make a page with two columns. On one side, I wrote a point/theme/technique within my first text, and then on the other side, I wrote a corresponding point/theme/technique from my second text. This helped me to build links between the texts, and by the end of it, you can narrow down what you've got, and from the most important points, draw together a thesis statement, arguments and then find quotes based on the links you've found between the texts.

In terms of the Shakespeare text, have you tried Sparknotes? It's definitely not something to solely rely on, but to get an idea of what the play is about, they have a No-Fear Shakespeare section where they translate it into everyday English, which would be a good place to start. There's also some discussion of themes and characters which may give you some ideas for finding links between the texts.

Ultimately, the most important thing with Module A is forming an argument through examining links between the texts, and comparing and/or contrasting them, so focus on that, and you should be fine. Good luck!

 

[LoveHateSchool]

Yeah it's in class. The task outline is: "Compose a Detailed Critical Response on your set texts, integrating a provided excerpt"

Thanks

Is the provided excerpt say perhaps a quote like "Text's understanding is enriched through examining connections between one another" or will it be an excerpt from the play. Not clear on it.

Have you got notes/an essay scaffold with examples of things that are in common with the text (i.e exploration of universal themes) and differences and why they differ (HINT: Your argument for why things differ will almost always be context, it's a massively drummed in concept in Mod A). You should be using your notes and scaffolds to practice different Richard III essays and get teacher to mark/feedback , so you will experience in being able to mould your knowledge base to the question on the day.

Assertions on the topic should be backed by techniques where possible. Many people neglect to mention techniques in the docudrama, and just say "this happens". Also people can kinda just stick Shakespeare quotes all over the place without explaining the implication of its inclusion in the play or the technique it is embodying.

Example:
The play uses Richard's symbolic deformity of arm and back to mark him as an evil character due to Elizabethan superstition. Chiaroscuro is used in the docudrama to visually convey this point to the modern audience, as his deformity no longer has the same contextual connotations.

This module is all about making connections, you have to build your understanding of both texts to be able to make articulate insights into both.

 

[wannabesurgeon]

I did different texts for my comparative study, but what I did was make a page with two columns. On one side, I wrote a point/theme/technique within my first text, and then on the other side, I wrote a corresponding point/theme/technique from my second text. This helped me to build links between the texts, and by the end of it, you can narrow down what you've got, and from the most important points, draw together a thesis statement, arguments and then find quotes based on the links you've found between the texts.

In terms of the Shakespeare text, have you tried Sparknotes? It's definitely not something to solely rely on, but to get an idea of what the play is about, they have a No-Fear Shakespeare section where they translate it into everyday English, which would be a good place to start. There's also some discussion of themes and characters which may give you some ideas for finding links between the texts.

Ultimately, the most important thing with Module A is forming an argument through examining links between the texts, and comparing and/or contrasting them, so focus on that, and you should be fine. Good luck!

Nice idea! I'll try spark notes since I have only read the book once in class and I don't have the patience to read it again since I don't understand it! Thanks for your ideas!

Is the provided excerpt say perhaps a quote like "Text's understanding is enriched through examining connections between one another" or will it be an excerpt from the play. Not clear on it.

Have you got notes/an essay scaffold with examples of things that are in common with the text (i.e exploration of universal themes) and differences and why they differ (HINT: Your argument for why things differ will almost always be context, it's a massively drummed in concept in Mod A). You should be using your notes and scaffolds to practice different Richard III essays and get teacher to mark/feedback , so you will experience in being able to mould your knowledge base to the question on the day.

That's all it says for the excerpt they have not made it clear at all so I will ask my English teacher about that tomorrow. As for a scaffold or notes, we haven't done much in class except really dumb stuff about politics. The only thing I do have is some notes about Contextualization of Richard III but it is only 2 pages! My teacher is really bad, and she is just getting worse so I'll have to do it myself. Since I haven't read the book (Only in Class) and we have only watched the 1st 10min of the documentary what's my best way of starting a scaffold and comparing now rather then when we finish the film like the end of next week?

Thanks for your reply LoveHateSchool!

 

[LoveHateSchool]

That's all it says for the excerpt they have not made it clear at all so I will ask my English teacher about that tomorrow. As for a scaffold or notes, we haven't done much in class except really dumb stuff about politics. The only thing I do have is some notes about Contextualization of Richard III but it is only 2 pages! My teacher is really bad, and she is just getting worse so I'll have to do it myself. Since I haven't read the book (Only in Class) and we have only watched the 1st 10min of the documentary what's my best way of starting a scaffold and comparing now rather then when we finish the film like the end of next week?

Thanks for your reply LoveHateSchool!

I'd say whatever the excerpt is, it will lead whatever your essay ends up being on.

Seeing as the task is soon, I recommend watching the full docu now and writing notes. Also read the play and use Sparknotes to note important things. Then you can compare and contrast what you find. My hint would be to find universal themes (politics, duality, manipulation, role of women etc.) and find HOW due to context, these are changed between the play and the docudrama. Once you have this in your head, you can think of potential thesis you may be able to argue for an essay (Mod A essays always tie back to context and connections). To scaffold, you may group your techniques for film and docudrama by theme, as you will then have an idea of what you would include on say, a paragraph about the role of women etc.