Essay Feedback

Positives There were no hopeless cases – even the ones who failed All showed good understanding of poem and Morgan’s aim There was some excellent personal engagement with the text Well structured Solid awareness of techniques

Negatives Awful spelling and punctuation (possessive apostrophe!) Look up words and learn them! Not enough reference to the question – you must link back to this regularly. Evaluation (more on this later) Expression – quite a few examples of this. Ideas expressed clumsily or not really writing in proper sentences. Formulaic, list-like analysis. Avoid “’Last Mistresses’ has connotations of… ‘Buttresses’ is an example of…”. Linking your points to question will help with this.

Evaluation This is an area that needs development. When you evaluate in an essay you are making a comment on the successes (or failures) of the author. E.g. Perhaps the most prominent/significant/poignant… A key point in the poem occurs when… Whilst Morgan’s description of the weather does play an important role in our understanding of setting, it is his description of the solitary man in the sestet that is most hard-hitting as we gain a fuller appreciation of the effect this area has on its inhabitants.

Marking key SP = spelling P = punctuation EXP = poor expression – grammar etc CBPB = could be put better GD= good ? = your guess is as good as mine

Guide to marks 25 – Cat 1 21/23 – Cat 2 17/19 – Cat 3 13/15 – Cat 4 9/11 – Cat 5 fail In the exam you have two essays, and generally the following cut-off points apply: 36 + = a 32- 35= b 26-31 = c

Read through the comments Write down what you key areas for improvement are. Don’t be disheartened with your mark. You will get better with consistent work.

Next essay We will be working on a ‘Shooting Stars’ essay. In groups choose the best question from the following possibilities: 2007/13 2008/17 2011/32 We will not be doing this timed. Let’s concentrate on nailing style and content first. Topic sentence quote analysis Evaluation 3 points needed.