How to get better at responsive writing and English ? (1 Viewer)

[xibu34]

I'm wondering if there are any specific study that one can do to help improve their responsive writing/analysis. I fee l that my creative writing is in a good place right now but when I right responsively my structure just seems kind of all over the place and messy. I usually use PEEL (all we have been taught) and just go through the language techniques and their effect on the text. I also explain the idea conveyed through the text etc. I assume this is pretty normal but I just can't help but feel my writing is sub-par, especially for Advanced.

 

[jimmysmith560]

Since you feel that your writing is currently not where you want it to be, it seems that you require certainty regarding the quality of your writing so that you gain a better insight into your own writing. This can be done by seeking feedback on your writing from someone with good writing capabilities, which can come from your teacher, a fellow student and/or a tutor. Implementing any suggestions that they may have will consequently enable you to improve your writing.

An issue I have experienced both at school and at university was writing in a descriptive manner as opposed to critically/analytically. The latter is favoured in terms of providing a higher quality response overall. I was eventually able to rectify this problem in two stages:

• Stage 1 - HSC: Having been in Australia for approximately one year at the time and being a student whose native language is not English, developing good quality responses in year 11 was rather difficult. In year 12, I was able to improve my knowledge of the English language, which has in turn enabled me to improve my writing. However, I sought additional feedback on my writing as I felt that I could still enhance and take my writing to higher standards, which involved me attempting to combat descriptive writing and instead focusing on critical/analytical writing. I did this by writing responses to different questions and seeking feedback and subsequently implementing suggestions accordingly. I was eventually satisfied with my improvements and felt ready to complete the HSC.
• Stage 2 - University: University imposes higher standards of writing, particularly within degrees that emphasise writing capabilities. My first and second years saw me experiencing the same issue as that of HSC English, despite the enhancements to my writing in year 12. However, I have considered the feedback I have received from lecturers/tutors on my assignments throughout both years and, by the end of my second year, I had significantly improved my writing, leading me to superior performance.

You mentioned that you use PEEL and that you explain the idea(s) that a particular text(s) conveys. Based on this, it seems that your writing is well-structured since your approach to responsive writing is clear, meaning that the only thing that technically remains is to check whether there are areas of improvement that you could work on, which, as I mentioned, can be done by constantly seeking relevant feedback.

I hope this helps!

 

[chaevely_park]

I'm wondering if there are any specific study that one can do to help improve their responsive writing/analysis. I fee l that my creative writing is in a good place right now but when I right responsively my structure just seems kind of all over the place and messy. I usually use PEEL (all we have been taught) and just go through the language techniques and their effect on the text. I also explain the idea conveyed through the text etc. I assume this is pretty normal but I just can't help but feel my writing is sub-par, especially for Advanced.

I personally follow these steps:
1. Know your texts IN AND OUT. Know all of the themes, ideas, concepts, perspectives, values, etc. you can discuss!
2. Practice essay-writing. Start with generic questions, then narrow your focus down to specific questions. When you are writing your essay, always plan it out before hand, and make sure to have a SHARP THESIS that actually ANSWERS THE QUESTION.

A good essay should:
- Have a sharp thesis that answers the question (a question usually has a few key aspects - make sure you are addressing those, and using keywords from the qs)
- Have strong and relevant context + textual analysis
- Argument (i.e. your response) should be flowing and developing throughout the essay
- Have a strong, unique voice - should give unique insights in each paragraph that adds on to your thesis

I'll give you an example:
e.g. If my thesis was, "Individuals seek spirituality to relieve fears surrounding death", ONE of the 3 insights (bc 1 per paragraph) I would have is that "We feel relief from the idea/illusion that death is not the end, but rather a journey into the afterlife"

If you are unsure about your essay-writing, ASK YOUR TEACHERS! They will mark it for you - just make sure you print it out, double space the lines and write your name!!

3. Practice adapting my essay into a variety of questions - coming up with unique, insightful thesis statements
A good essay (19-20/20) should be answering the question perfectly AND uniquely that people usually don't talk about!!

Hope this helps

 

[xibu34]

I personally follow these steps:
1. Know your texts IN AND OUT. Know all of the themes, ideas, concepts, perspectives, values, etc. you can discuss!
2. Practice essay-writing. Start with generic questions, then narrow your focus down to specific questions. When you are writing your essay, always plan it out before hand, and make sure to have a SHARP THESIS that actually ANSWERS THE QUESTION.

A good essay should:
- Have a sharp thesis that answers the question (a question usually has a few key aspects - make sure you are addressing those, and using keywords from the qs)
- Have strong and relevant context + textual analysis
- Argument (i.e. your response) should be flowing and developing throughout the essay
- Have a strong, unique voice - should give unique insights in each paragraph that adds on to your thesis

I'll give you an example:
e.g. If my thesis was, "Individuals seek spirituality to relieve fears surrounding death", ONE of the 3 insights (bc 1 per paragraph) I would have is that "We feel relief from the idea/illusion that death is not the end, but rather a journey into the afterlife"

If you are unsure about your essay-writing, ASK YOUR TEACHERS! They will mark it for you - just make sure you print it out, double space the lines and write your name!!

3. Practice adapting my essay into a variety of questions - coming up with unique, insightful thesis statements
A good essay (19-20/20) should be answering the question perfectly AND uniquely that people usually don't talk about!!

Hope this helps

Thanks for taking the time to reply this has definitely made it a lot clearer for me. As for teacher marking, I go to a pretty lowly ranked public school (like no B6's in years) and I feel that the teacher would find it very tedious to mark my practice essays and probably dislike me for giving them extra work.

 

[xibu34]

Since you feel that your writing is currently not where you want it to be, it seems that you require certainty regarding the quality of your writing so that you gain a better insight into your own writing. This can be done by seeking feedback on your writing from someone with good writing capabilities, which can come from your teacher, a fellow student and/or a tutor. Implementing any suggestions that they may have will consequently enable you to improve your writing.

An issue I have experienced both at school and at university was writing in a descriptive manner as opposed to critically/analytically. The latter is favoured in terms of providing a higher quality response overall. I was eventually able to rectify this problem in two stages:

• Stage 1 - HSC: Having been in Australia for approximately one year at the time and being a student whose native language is not English, developing good quality responses in year 11 was rather difficult. In year 12, I was able to improve my knowledge of the English language, which has in turn enabled me to improve my writing. However, I sought additional feedback on my writing as I felt that I could still enhance and take my writing to higher standards, which involved me attempting to combat descriptive writing and instead focusing on critical/analytical writing. I did this by writing responses to different questions and seeking feedback and subsequently implementing suggestions accordingly. I was eventually satisfied with my improvements and felt ready to complete the HSC.
• Stage 2 - University: University imposes higher standards of writing, particularly within degrees that emphasise writing capabilities. My first and second years saw me experiencing the same issue as that of HSC English, despite the enhancements to my writing in year 12. However, I have considered the feedback I have received from lecturers/tutors on my assignments throughout both years and, by the end of my second year, I had significantly improved my writing, leading me to superior performance.

You mentioned that you use PEEL and that you explain the idea(s) that a particular text(s) conveys. Based on this, it seems that your writing is well-structured since your approach to responsive writing is clear, meaning that the only thing that technically remains is to check whether there are areas of improvement that you could work on, which, as I mentioned, can be done by constantly seeking relevant feedback.

I hope this helps!

Do you know if there are other places where I could get writing suggestions ? Teachers at my school are fairly lazy and I probably wouldn't be able to afford a tutor unfortunately.

 

[jimmysmith560]

Do you know if there are other places where I could get writing suggestions ? Teachers at my school are fairly lazy and I probably wouldn't be able to afford a tutor unfortunately.

You can try seeking feedback/suggestions regarding your writing on BoS as a start. You may end up receiving relevant advice from academically capable students, so it would be a good idea to create a thread for that purpose when needed.