Post by g***@gmail.comHi all,
I'm currently about 1/3 of the way through a distance learning course
for English Language AS/A2 and am finding all it a bit daunting. I
started in January and the exams are in June so I'm already starting to
worry that I've bitten off more than I can chew. English is my mother
tongue and I'm what you'd call a "mature student" but I'm a little
concerned at the sheer amount of knowledge that appears to be needed.
I was wondering if someone could give me some advice on the main areas
and themes the examiners concentrate on. Also, are the Letts Guides
any good for this subject (I found them VERY useful for my General
Studies exam).
Any decent tips from people who've taken this subject recently would be
MUCH appreciated.
I took that exam in June 2001. I was 27 at the time, so I guess I was
in the same "mature student" category as you describe yourself.
One thing I remember the teacher saying at the beginning of the
course was that *anyone* could take the exams and be able to answer
the questions. This is because they don't test you on some obscure
rule or formula or piece of knowledge, but rather you are being tested
on the knowledge that you have had in your own head since you were a
toddler. That is, your implicit knowledge of English. The difference,
however, between a scrape-through pass and a top grade is being able
to assign the right labels to that knowledge.
The exams were, basically, all of a similar format in which you were
presented with a piece of text (it could be from anywhere -- the texts
I remember from my exams were instructions from a VCR manual, a news-
paper article, a magazine 'commentary' feature, and a recipe). Then,
it was simply a matter of identifying the features of each type of
text (e.g., the recipe contained a lot of imperatives) and being able
to give the correct names for the different constructions, etc. And
that was it, basically -- analyze the text to death and try to identify
as many grammatical features as possible that typify that style of
writing. Along with each feature you identify, a justification for
*why* the author chose that way of writing rather than some other way
is also expected (e.g., use of passive sentences in a newspaper report
because the agents of the action are not relevant to the story and the
passive voice allows the agents to be elided... and so on).
The only other thing about the English Language exams that I remember
needing a little extra care was the... I can't remember what they called
it now. The paper where you get a booklet of texts about two weeks
before the exam... "Desk Study"? or something similar? Anyway, I'm sure
you know which paper I mean.
The essential thing on that paper is to take the material that is given
in the take-home booklet and rewrite it. Basically, that part of the
exam seems to concentrate on how well you can take information given in
one register/style/genre and re-present it in another. So what you'll
find is a lot of detail and a whole heap of information which might
seem daunting to memorize, but just remember that you take the booklet
into the exam with you, so it's not essential to remember the details,
just remember the context that they're in and where to find them. Then,
when asked to write whatever for the exam (in my case, it was a radio
interview script and a diary entry) use the details in the text and put
them into your re-written piece. If there's a passing reference to a
name of a person in one of the given texts, use that as the name of a
fictional character you need to create for your re-writes, for example.
A couple of books that cover the grammatical and stylistic stuff you'll
need to know:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0333628322/
That's the really thick and dense one. She actually puts a lot more in
the book than you'll need for the exam, but if you're interested in
English (and elementary linguistics) in any way, it'll be good reading.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0198314787/
That one is a slimmer read and cuts to the essentials. If you're looking
at it secondhand, make sure it's the latest edition, as it was revised
for the AS/A2 exams.
--
BdeV