The Key To Completing an English Exam? (1 Viewer)

[AKONS]

I've tried searching for past forums about this and checked websites and can't find any opinions.

Long story short, how many minutes would you guys spend on each section of the English advanced paper 1 and paper 2 exams?

 

[jimmysmith560]

The suggested time allocations by NESA seem quite reasonable. For Paper 1, NESA suggests:

• allowing approximately 45 minutes for Section I
• allowing approximately 45 minutes for Section II

You may perhaps feel that you might be able to write your Section II essay in less than 45 minutes, especially if you have a thorough knowledge and understanding of your essay. If that ends up being the case, you can use spend any additional time on Section I as it is likely that this section will be more demanding mainly because it entails analysing and responding to unseen stimuli.

For Paper 2, NESA suggests:

• allowing approximately 40 minutes for Section I
• allowing approximately 40 minutes for Section II
• Allowing approximately 40 minutes for Section III

As you can see, it is assumed that you will need the same amount of time to complete each section. Of course, things may differ in your particular case, as you may feel like you won't need as much time to complete Section I and Section II, particularly if you have a thorough knowledge and understanding of your essays. Instead, you would use any additional time to ensure your Section III (Module C) response is of the highest possible quality.

I hope this helps!

 

[akhan324]

The suggested time allocations by NESA seem quite reasonable. For Paper 1, NESA suggests:

• allowing approximately 45 minutes for Section I
• allowing approximately 45 minutes for Section II

You may perhaps feel that you might be able to write your Section II essay in less than 45 minutes, especially if you have a thorough knowledge and understanding of your essay. If that ends up being the case, you can use spend any additional time on Section I as it is likely that this section will be more demanding mainly because it entails analysing and responding to unseen stimuli.

For Paper 2, NESA suggests:

• allowing approximately 40 minutes for Section I
• allowing approximately 40 minutes for Section II
• Allowing approximately 40 minutes for Section III

As you can see, it is assumed that you will need the same amount of time to complete each section. Of course, things may differ in your particular case, as you may feel like you won't need as much time to complete Section I and Section II, particularly if you have a thorough knowledge and understanding of your essays. Instead, you would use any additional time to ensure your Section III (Module C) response is of the highest possible quality.

I hope this helps!

I don’t really think suggesting spending less time on essays is wise, it depends a lot on the links u make and some essay questions are more demanding than others

 

[jimmysmith560]

I don’t really think suggesting spending less time on essays is wise, it depends a lot on the links u make and some essay questions are more demanding than others

I didn't technically suggest aiming to spend less time on essays. At the end of the day, the actual time allocations for each section will depend on the capabilities of individual students, meaning they will likely vary. Regarding Paper 1, I found that Section I was more demanding in terms of time, and when I felt like the time I was spending on this section could potentially affect my Section II response, I decided to switch to and complete the latter, which required significantly less time and therefore allowed me to use the remaining time to complete Section I.

The main difference between essays and unseen stimuli is that the student will be familiar with the prescribed texts of the former, unlike the latter, where they will be required to analyse those texts and subsequently answer questions based on those stimuli, which can be more intellectually demanding than to produce an essay response, and may thus require more time.

 

[tito981]

I've tried searching for past forums about this and checked websites and can't find any opinions.

Long story short, how many minutes would you guys spend on each section of the English advanced paper 1 and paper 2 exams?

For paper 1, since it takes me a bit of time to read then re-read comprehension text, i normally spend the whole of the 10 mins reading time reading and re-reading the first 2 texts and while doing that i think of my main points. Then i allow 50 mins for the rest of the comprehension and i normally finish like 2-3 mins ahead of time so then i just spend the rest doing the essay.

For paper 2, i would spend the 5 min formulating a thesis and topic sentence for mod A essay, then go straight into the essay which should take me like 32-35 mins dependent on the difficulty of the question. Mod B takes me the same time so 35 mins at least. Then i try to spend at least 45 mins for mod c since im shite at it.

 

[hiiitsme]

For paper 1, since it takes me a bit of time to read then re-read comprehension text, i normally spend the whole of the 10 mins reading time reading and re-reading the first 2 texts and while doing that i think of my main points. Then i allow 50 mins for the rest of the comprehension and i normally finish like 2-3 mins ahead of time so then i just spend the rest doing the essay.

For paper 2, i would spend the 5 min formulating a thesis and topic sentence for mod A essay, then go straight into the essay which should take me like 32-35 mins dependent on the difficulty of the question. Mod B takes me the same time so 35 mins at least. Then i try to spend at least 45 mins for mod c since im shite at it.

Maybe a minute at the end to cry as well