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Assessment Exam tips IGCSE English Writing tips

The Magic of Examiner Reports

victortanws
 

Examiner Reports are released by Cambridge International after each examination session. These reports summarize the general performance of students, highlight common strengths and weaknesses, and provide constructive feedback for both students and teachers.

Put simply?

They’re awesome, and if you want to do well on the IGCSE, you should read them.

In this blog post, we will discuss the immense value of reading Examiner Reports for the IGCSE First Language English 0500 examination and how they provide invaluable insights into what examiners are looking for.

At the same time, they reflect the overall judgement of examiners for the essays of students for particular examination sessions and therefore provide key insights into the way that Cambridge as an organisation evaluates different scripts, which in turn can help you to better contextualise the marking criteria that has been provided in the mark scheme documents that you have no doubt seen so far.

“But Victor!!!” you might be saying…“I don’t want to spend my time reading dumb stuff like that!!!!”

Well hold on, hold on.

What if I told you that this ‘dumb stuff’… Was actually one of the master keys towards unlocking excellence on the IGCSE First Language English exam?

Unlocking the Marking Criteria

One of the difficulties of understanding how to do well in a language-based exam for students is that there are various ways to operationalize excellence in language. While it’s true that for other exams such as mathematics and science exams some degree of creativity and insight can lead to novel approaches and answers, it remains true that the possible sample space of excellent responses for First Language English and other exams is much wider, and it also remains true that it is more difficult for students to understand how to operationalize excellence through their work just from reading the marking criteria.

Here is where the \magic/ 🪄 of examiner reports comes in!

Examiner reports are absolutely invaluable in helping you to unlock the marking criteria for the IGCSE First Language English exam, because they offer comprehensive and actionable steps for you if you’re practicing for the exam, and they serve as a wonderful practice aid for you to check whether you are able to do well in particular practice exams.

Let’s look at the first part of the examiner report for the June 2022 IGCSE.

0500_s22_erDownload

Observe here that there are key messages for each paper, and also general comments about what constituted excellence for the paper. We won’t discuss the entire thing, but there are also specific analyses on a question-by-question basis.

I won’t go into everything here today (more resources will be provided to our Premium members soon).

Here’s one sample:

…And here’s the next:

Wow.

As you can see, the report specifically breaks down these questions.

Think about that and the value that it’s offering – in the first case, it is telling you exactly how the best candidates did question 2d) and how they came to deliver responses on Writer’s Effect.

In the second example, it is literally breaking down Question 3 for you by telling you the ways in which the candidates approached the question and the way that people thought about the question, which you can in turn reference as you write your own exam responses; you could implement a routine of practicing a past paper, following that up by having your essay graded (submissions for essays to our essay bank(s) are open!)

To sum up, why are examiner reports valuable to you?

(sorry to be annoying, but you’ll have to sign up for a free or premium membership to read the next bit c: – reminder that purchasing the book gains you access to premium member privileges… For now!)

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Conclusion

I hope I’ve shown you that Examiner Reports for the IGCSE First Language English 0500 examination are a powerful tool for students seeking to understand what examiners are looking for in the context of the marking criteria, and also that they are something valuable to look at in your quest for mastery or for convergence towards writing stellar essays that fit the marking criteria while at the same time helping you to excel.

By analyzing these reports, students can gain invaluable insights into the expectations of examiners, avoid common pitfalls, learn from real examples, and fine-tune their writing techniques to achieve the highest possible marks.

As the saying goes, knowledge is power, and in the case of the IGCSE First Language English 0500 examination, Examiner Reports are a key to unlocking that power – they are not the only key, but are definitely something that you should consider as part of your repertoire!

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The Power of Intelligent Practice

victortanws
 

Embarking on a journey of self-improvement can be daunting, especially when it comes to enhancing one’s writing skills.

The natural resistance to change and the inertia that accompanies the start of any significant personal endeavor can pose formidable obstacles.

However, overcoming these challenges is not only possible but essential in the pursuit of becoming a proficient writer.

And the biggest of these challenges?

Practice.

We live in a world of easy gratification, where many people will tell you that the easiest way to do certain things is almost always the best way – as a society we have a notion of instant gratification and a habit of justifying our inability to do things on grounds of impossibility.

Is it surprising then that people often talk about how you can’t learn how to write well and just give up all the way?


Sorry, but that’s lame. It’s the easy thing to do, and it is an excuse. Don’t be the fox that complained about the sour grapes. If you must be a fox, be one that succeeded, and can hand grapes down to the next generation 🙂

So seat up, and buckle down – because you know what’s cooler than spinning your wheels about “impossibilities” that were only impossible because you didn’t try?

Succeeding.

Therefore, in this blog post, we will delve into the importance of practice and intelligent strategies to help you break through these barriers and elevate your writing abilities.

Ready? Let’s go!

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As you embark on this transformative journey, take solace in the fact that countless individuals before you have faced similar challenges and emerged as more confident and capable writers.

By dedicating yourself to the strategies outlined in this blog post, you too can unlock your full potential and experience the incredible power of practice and perseverance in your writing and beyond.

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Assessment Exam tips IGCSE English Writing tips

Unlock the Secrets to High-Scoring Narrative Essays: A Comprehensive Guide.

victortanws
 

One of the most challenging but also fascinating things about IGCSE First Language English (0500) is that students get to write both narrative and descriptive essays, specifically in Section B: Composition of Paper 2.

Narrative writing is a particularly interesting piece, one that many English teachers in fact tell their students to steer away from, thereby telling them not to take on the challenge because they fear its complexity; how do you write a narration or a story that leads to a good mark, after all? It’s not a simple question.

Moreover, it’s not a question that all teachers either wish for their students to address or are prepared to teach about in class, but one that becomes much more easily addressable when students begin to understand the mark scheme for narrative writing on the IGCSE.

In this post, I’ll share valuable insights and strategies to craft outstanding narrative essays that not only fetch top marks based on the mark scheme descriptors but also support your long-term development as a writer.

Well, that’s exactly what this blog post is for – to help you break it all down!

We will be looking at a Cambridge sample mark scheme provided for Paper 2 on the Cambridge International website, drilling in specifically on the criteria for Narrative Writing, referencing Table A, Composition: Content and structure and Table B, Composition: Style and accuracy.

Click the following links to view samples of the question paper, its accompanying insert, and once again, the mark scheme.

(A note that applies to all students in general – READ YOUR MARK SCHEMES AND COMMIT TO UNDERSTANDING THEM AS THEY ARE HOW MARKS ARE ASSIGNED AND THE GROUND TRUTH THAT EXAMINERS MUST REFER TO WHEN ASSIGNING MARKS!)

For each piece of advice in this piece, I will provide an accompanying justification that correlates with the band descriptors used to assign marks to your narrative essays and is designed to elevate your writing so that it deserves the highest possible marks as you consistently practice, read, and improve.

Let’s dive in!

(But before you do that, sign up for a membership if you haven’t already gotten one!)

Conclusion:

Crafting a high-scoring narrative essay requires a well-developed plot, engaging characters, descriptive language, and a polished writing style. By following the guidelines outlined in this blog post, you’ll be well on your way to creating captivating narratives that not only earn top marks but also support your long-term development as a writer.

Remember, the journey to becoming a skilled writer is an ongoing process, so stay committed to learning and growing with each essay you write and neither be discouraged by small failures or too swept up in receiving a perfect grade from your teachers (many of you will); the world of powerful writing is vast and deep, and you will have more to learn no matter what stage of life you arrive at.

Good luck, power through, and may all the work that you are doing now benefit you greatly for beyond the confines of this exam as well as later into life!

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