How to study for economics essays? (1 Viewer)

[goobypls]

Hi I'm just wondering what is the best way to go about improving my economics essays as I got 12/20 for my essay in my half yearly and I really need to improve if I want to stand a chance at getting a solid band 5 (my aim). I don't find much of the content in the course overly difficult its just the sheer quantity of it and making it stick in my brain that usually gets me. How would you guys go about preparing for essays? Would doing skeleton essays for each topic be a good idea and then proceeding to write a few of them? I know it might be a bit late to start learning effective study skills but I'm really unsure how to best prepare myself for essays in the trials and HSC.
Thanks.

 

[photastic]

Unless you're a genius who can formulate an essay on the day using your stats, you would pre prepare essays that could be adapted on the day. I guess skeleton essays do work but I prepared essays that were broad and I would simply rearrange words to fit the question on that day. I suggest writing an essay and send it to your teacher beforehand.

 

[Phaze]

Essay skeletons are the way to go, you essentially write an essay then condense it down into a very compact structure. On the day I usually dotpoint out the memorised structure on the side of the sheet and then you pretty much stretch it out and bam you have an essay. Things such as stats and quotes you need to memorise, if you're not the best at that then before the test/night before grind it so you remember it for a short amount of time, as soon as the test starts write it down somewhere then you can forget about it which relieves some of the stress.

 

[Cleavage]

I disagree with the notion that it is best to prepare essay skeletons.

I think a general understanding of the Australian economy and Global economy can come with reading the news daily. From there, you know from general knowledge Australia's outcomes for key stats and positions, such as CAD, unemployment, growth and monetary stance.

Learn the theoretical content through making notes, answering questions and watching youtube videos, of which there are many.

Pair the knowledge obtained through these two areas, into an essay which analyse classical economic theory, with real world examples and exceptions, and you should have a winning essay. This is how I've written my essays, and I have got 20/20 marks for my last four essays, including 20/20 in half yearly (nexus can verify).

If you don't feel confident with this method, practice. Practice, not memorise.

Don't memorise economics, be economics. Let it flow through you.

 

[mreditor16]

Absolutely agree with Cleavage, that is very much along the lines of what I did for Economics and it definitely worked for me. This will especially pay off for you in exams with unconventional essay questions, as well as unusual / left-of-field questions in short answers as well.

In summary, definitely go with what Cleavage said!

 

[Triage]

just to ad my 2 cents worth, I used to get low teens/20 and can now consistently get high teens and this is how I got it: I realised that the essay is a different beast to the short answer. I used to write extremely long short answers as my essay which does not work.

What you need to do in the essay is NOT list every single thing you know about the topic and replicate the textbook. You need to mount an argument.

You should absolutely litter your essay with examples to validate the claims you are making. This is only done by sifting through many news articles and wikipedia pages. I literally view wikipedia pages for various concepts and view the criticisms of them, which given that the HSC economic course has such a socialist bent isn't hard to find. I will also literally search Sydney Morning Herald for a particular concept and look for a good case study. E.g. companies that have structurally changed and survived the past appreciation of the Australian dollar.

Furthermore, you are not marked on a big long list of words that you drop in your essay or concepts that you outline. You are marked on genuine economic understanding. Thus, as Cleavage said, you need to let it flow through you. Even if you never mention a particular case study that you have researched, the depth of your understanding will increase and it will be inevitably presented through your writing.

Good Luck

 

[Mikasa]

I definitely agree with understanding economics. Unlike English teachers, they don't expect you to be flowery with your language so Eco essays are definitely easier to write in that respect. I think the trick to Economics is to write as much as you can and include as many relevant details (and links of course) so the marker does not have any reason to mark you down.

 

[mreditor16]

I definitely agree with understanding economics. Unlike English teachers, they don't expect you to be flowery with your language so Eco essays are definitely easier to write in that respect. I think the trick to Economics is to write as much as you can and include as many relevant details (and links of course) so the marker does not have any reason to mark you down.

Yes, but don't just put down everything you know - be selective and choose relevant examples and develop a flow of thought that addresses the question on the day. A very good thing to do will be to do a plan (a quick one) before you do your essay with main points and examples/stats you might use.

 

[Triage]

Yes, but don't just put down everything you know - be selective and choose relevant examples and develop a flow of thought that addresses the question on the day. A very good thing to do will be to do a plan (a quick one) before you do your essay with main points and examples/stats you might use.

yeah I agree here.

Particularly, I look for short run, long run, structural and cyclical. this frequently becomes the foundation for my essay.