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struggling with essay writing speed (1 Viewer)

0hNivlek

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Wow i havent counted how much i wrote before in 40 minutes. Let me check my previous assessment!

Edit: Gave up counting, handwriting too messy lol.
 
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Uncle

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everyone has to love maniella.

:) :spzz: :burn: :rudolf:

Wow i havent counted how much i wrote before in 40 minutes. Let me check my previous assessment!

Edit: Gave up counting, handwriting too messy lol.
go nuts.
handwriting isnt part of the marking criteria (it was before 2001).
though it kind of puts off the marker.
 

Freddie09

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hey i have the same problem, i just can't write fast enough and then i structure my sentences all wrong so i scribble them out and start again and i end up with like, a page of inky scratchings that don't mean a hell of a lot to anyone. Its a majour set back!
feel your pain!! lol
 

tessayu

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do you think and then write or do you think while writing? i think that this makes some difference.

if you have to think and then write perhaps you should do a quick 2 minute draft, or a set of dot points that come immediately to your head after you read the question and then you can quickly refer back to your awesome ideas during the exam without having to sit and think "now what was that point again?"

lol ... just a suggestion ... i'm able to do 4-5 pages of writing in about 40 minutes, so it could help (and apparantly my writing's tinier than others...)
 

johony

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Johnny, how much can you write in 40 minutes?

I've never practiced/ridiculously attached a battery to my pen at all, and can manage to squeeze in 1200-1400, depending on my mood. But like the other poster said, quality > quantity.
i dont know about word count, but if i had to take a stab it'd be around 600-700

writing bigger probably will help, i know it speeds up my writing; its a matter of remembering to do it every time

another problem is that i think too much in exams, which culminates in nicely written passages; but not much length.

ill iron these things out in the next coupla weeks
 

Casper_18

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Someone suggested in an older forum to tape batteries to your pen in normal situations and in an exam write without them...I dunno if it will work. but give it a go
 

johony

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Everyone says that .. doesn't it break your hand?
it wont break your hand - it just wont work

btw, guys i did my first english exam today and i only managed to put out 3 3/4 pages (about 2/3 of my planned essay). very very annoyed since i had everything so well planned and prepared, but i couldn't finish off my essay within 50 minutes - perhaps because i was hesitant or didn't write quick enough - i dont know.

i'll see how i go next week with the next paper on julius caesar, probably will do a lot more work under pressure to make sure it doesnt happen again.
 
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absorber

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If you write small, write bigger...I'm being serious, because not only will it make your writing more readable, it will convince teachers that you've written more even if you haven't, it's psychological. Teachers judge just as much by quantity as by quality; I write big in exams, I have what you could almost call 'walls of text', makes it look like I've written heaps even when I haven't (though tbh I'd like to think I usually do), works for me!
 

cassiecocaine

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If you write small, write bigger...I'm being serious, because not only will it make your writing more readable, it will convince teachers that you've written more even if you haven't, it's psychological. Teachers judge just as much by quantity as by quality; I write big in exams, I have what you could almost call 'walls of text', makes it look like I've written heaps even when I haven't (though tbh I'd like to think I usually do), works for me!
I'm really not sure if that is true. If you load your sentences up, and make the whole essay jam packed, leaving out any unnecessary information, it really doesn't matter how short it is, as long as it contains everything the criteria asked for... I'm pretty sure, anyway.

I really have to practice writing in exam conditions... Some people have said to me that its quicker to write in running writing, but that just makes my writing illegible, aha.
 

duckcowhybrid

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If you write small, write bigger...I'm being serious, because not only will it make your writing more readable, it will convince teachers that you've written more even if you haven't, it's psychological. Teachers judge just as much by quantity as by quality; I write big in exams, I have what you could almost call 'walls of text', makes it look like I've written heaps even when I haven't (though tbh I'd like to think I usually do), works for me!
QFT. My handwriting is so large that I fit 4-5 words per line and I write about 4-5 pages in exams. Regardless, I still score highly due to this, as teachrs think i've written 4-5 pages and don't realise it's 900-1000 words. it also helps that I focus a lot more on quality rather than quantity.
 
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Ive got the same problem, my mum thinks ive got dysgraphia (poor handwriting)
I am currently applying for extra time in the HSC, i thought it was too late as the deadline had run out, but apparently its not, so id suggest asking your year advisor if u could get extra time. My problem is mainly my very bad pen grip, where i apply way too much pressure to the pen and page, But im seeing an occupational therapist soon so ill see what they think.
 

absorber

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I'm really not sure if that is true. If you load your sentences up, and make the whole essay jam packed, leaving out any unnecessary information, it really doesn't matter how short it is, as long as it contains everything the criteria asked for... I'm pretty sure, anyway.

I really have to practice writing in exam conditions... Some people have said to me that its quicker to write in running writing, but that just makes my writing illegible, aha.
IMO, teachers shouldn't judge by quantity, but I reckon they do; then again, in a subject like english, quantity is necessary to meet the criteria of showing in depth knowledge and understanding of texts
 

annabackwards

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IMO, teachers shouldn't judge by quantity, but I reckon they do; then again, in a subject like english, quantity is necessary to meet the criteria of showing in depth knowledge and understanding of texts
Some people i know write heaps but there's nothing in them, so they get a crap mark.
Others write ~5 pages maybe and they get good marks. I highly doubt you could get high marks with 1 page lol so i guess it's a balance of both.
 

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