Many secondary students choose to
focus on their continuous writing at the expense of their
situational writing when it comes to Paper 1 of the English
O-Levels. After all, the continuous writing component has a larger
word count (350 to 500 words) than the situational writing one (250
to 350 words). However, both components are worth 30 marks
each.
For this reason, students should ensure they
don’t neglect their situational writing. Here are some tips to help
them score well.
1. Make
full use of Purpose-Audience-Context
Teachers often stress the importance of
identifying the PAC (Purpose-Audience-Context) before writing
– and for good reason. Students must show that they are aware
of whom they are addressing and what their objective is, and
be sensitive to the circumstances described in the question. Once
identified, a situational writing piece should have at least two
sentences to address each of the three – Purpose,
Audience and Context.
2. Explain
your objective in your introduction
The question will state what the situational
writing is about, but many students forget to include this in their
introduction. Even if it feels like they are repeating the
question, students should explain what their piece is about in the
introduction and why they are writing it. This will show that they
understand the objective and purpose behind the situational writing
question.
3. Circle
keywords and cross them out as you write them
Unlike continuous writing questions which have
at most two sentences, the situational writing question is often a
long wall of text. Students should circle keywords so that they
have visual cues for the question requirements. Once they have
covered those keywords, they should cross them out. This will
ensure that they are not penalised when it comes to task
fulfilment.
4. Use the
same keywords in the question
Students should use the same
keywords from the question so that it is clear which part of
the question they are answering. This will prevent any points from
being inadvertently missed out by the marker, especially if they’re
written in a different order from how they are presented in the
question.
5. Read the
first two or three paragraphs thoroughly
A common mistake students make is to go
straight to the bullet points, and ignore the first few paragraphs
of the question (since they make up the aforementioned wall of
text).
However, these few paragraphs are critical
because they reveal the PAC of the question, and there are often
keywords hidden in the question. These paragraphs should be read
closely and carefully to identify any key information.
6. Remember
to look at the handout provided
The situational writing question consists of
two parts – the question itself and an accompanying handout.
It’s easy to forget about the handout while under exam stress, and
students should remember to annotate it as thoroughly as they do
the question paper. In their answer, they should also make clear
and specific references to the handout.
7. Include
at least one personal response
Students should include their own opinion and
interpretation of the handout and question, which is most easily
expressed by writing their personal response in the piece. At
the very least, they should indicate if they feel positively or
negatively to the information in the question, and explain why they
feel that way.
Remember, the situational writing piece carries as much
weighting as continuous writing composition!
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