AREA OF STUDY - BELONGING SECTION III 2013 An approach for the Half Yearly examinations and beyond

What does Section III attempt to assess? How the concept of belonging is conveyed through the representations of people, relationships, ideas, places, events and societies that they encounter in the prescribed text and texts of their own choosing related to the Area of Study. Assumptions underlying various representations of the concept of belonging. How the composer’s choice of language modes, forms, features and structures shapes and is shaped by a sense of belonging. The ways in which they perceive the world through texts. The ways in which exploring the concept and significance of belonging may broaden and deepen their understanding of themselves and their world.

Notes from the 2011 Marking Centre Stronger responses demonstrated the candidate’s ability to skilfully engage with the comment and apply their knowledge to develop a strong thesis. Better responses sustained this thesis throughout the response through a discerning selection of textual detail and a perceptive analysis of both the prescribed text and a text or texts of their own choosing. These candidates applied conceptual ideas to their responses and used textual details as a means to support their level of conceptual understanding. They showed a discerning choice of texts, using related materials that clearly demonstrated insight into the concept of belonging and the question being examined.

How to develop your understanding of the stimulus set in the task (showing synthesis) Highlight ALL the key words in the question (not what you want to note, but all the words that are providing the clues to the answer). Annotate all the key words of the question with your own words. Use the annotations to re-write the stimulus in your own words. Note: that by doing this, you are going beyond simply re-writing the key terms of the task and showing your marker that you are synthesising the material, therefore developing depth in your response from the beginning of your response.

Example of a stimulus Texts may show us that belonging involves compromise. Re-write could be: An individual may need to negotiate their sense of identity, as a way of understanding more fully their place in their broader community.

How to develop insightful thesis statements (showing synthesis) Take a key term of phrase from the Area of Study rubric and turn it into a question/ For example: Relationships, acceptance and understanding How do relationships develop acceptance and understanding? Use your answers to shape an insightful thesis. For example: Thesis: A lack of understanding of others’ circumstances and perspectives can lead to exclusion and ostracism.

Activity Belonging, not belonging may vary Context may shape sense of belonging Connections – people, places, groups and communities Notions of identity Relationships, acceptance and understanding Potential to enrich or challenge Modified over time Chooses not to belong Barriers that prevent belonging Exclusion Voice or absence of voice (lack of voice)

How to develop perceptive representation of thesis (synthesis) Take your thesis statement and develop an explanatory sentence. This provides depth of your understanding and presents it ‘in your own words’. For example: A lack of understanding of others’ circumstances and perspectives can lead to exclusion and ostracism. Paradoxically, not belonging creates its own inclusive group. Lack of understanding may have caused the initial exclusion, but those excluded, understand each other’s plight and nourish each other.

How to develop astute analysis T – TECHNIQUE Identify explicitly the device used by the composer. E – EFFECT and EVIDENCE Connect this with the purpose of the device and provide a correct and/or appropriate example from the text. M – MEANING Meaning links the representation back to the concept being explored. i.e. go back to the thesis and explanatory sentence. Note: That the meaning is what discriminates the astute analysis.

Notes from the 2011 Marking Centre In sound responses, candidates engaged with the concept and used their knowledge to develop a thesis in response to the question. Many candidates approached the question in a logical and structured way, but often relied on an overview of texts and description as a means of discussion. These responses tended to list rather than analyse textual details and features, and adopted a series of explanations. Some of these responses were reliant on textual analysis at the expense of a well-developed and coherent line of argument. Links between texts were evident, but remained undeveloped. Candidates did not sustain their conceptual discussion throughout the response.

Notes from the 2011 Marking Centre In weaker responses, candidates attempted to consider the importance of place in affecting one’s sense of belonging, but experienced some difficulty in using textual evidence or features to support a discussion of the texts. Candidates often resorted to storytelling with intermittent reference to, rather than an analysis of, textual features. Weaker responses were often colloquial, conversational and segmented, demonstrating a varying control of language and displaying an elementary knowledge of the concepts and the texts studied. Some candidates established a simplistic thesis in their introduction that was not sustained or developed throughout the response.