Four Myths Killing Your HSC English Prep

If you’re in Year 12 right now, you know what’s fast approaching. We all do. The first HSC exam papers… for some students, the hardest exams of all. You might be feeling nervous, energised, terrified, exhausted, equanimous… or, dare I say, excited? (hears a chorus of “errm”)

However you feel, one thing is clear: you’re going to be sitting in that exam hall smashing out your responses soon. And you probably want to knock your exams out of the park. But here’s the problem: many students waste those crucial weeks leading up to the exams.

You’ve probably got your trial results by now. How do you feel — elated or deflated? However you’re feeling, that part matters less than this: what are you going to do next? Over many years of tutoring, I’ve seen the same stubborn myths about HSC English crop up again and again — and they’re the very myths that hold students back when it matters most.

These myths aren’t born from laziness so much as misconceptions about success. Either way, they stop students from reaching the marks they really deserve.

So let’s name them. And then let’s dismantle them.

Not sure how to prepare? Don't blindly follow the HSC English myths...

Myth 1: You just need to improve your base/scaffold HSC English essays.

Student: “I just need to tweak my base essays using the feedback from my trials, right?”

Teacher: “Yeah, no. You should actually answer at least FIVE practice questions for each module. You can’t just walk in with a word-perfect response. Why? Because you haven’t practised adapting your ideas to different questions, silly!”

Here’s the thing: too many students treat HSC English as a regurgitation exercise. The implied mantra is: refine an essay to Band 6 level and vomit it forth on the day, tweaking the thesis and topic sentences to “ATQ” (Answer the Question). I’ve even heard of some teachers in some high-ranking schools encouraging exactly this strategy (though most don’t, thankfully).

So, what’s going on here? You’re being trained to rote learn, not to think critically, and this actually works fairly well if you want a maximum of 16/20. BUT the very best essays, those that score full marks, need to properly answer the question. In reality, this means doing more than tweaking a pre-written essay. It means practising the skill of being able to answer a wide range of questions, often departing from your pre-written masterpiece and using backup ideas, quotations, and analyses to help you craft a response that fundamentally answers the question, not just through verbal gymnastics in each topic sentence (examiners can easily see what you’re doing).

ACTION: Practise timed responses and be prepared to use different quotations and analyses than those used in your base essay. I’ve posted this in a previous blog, but I’ll put it here again. This should be your road map for the Common Module, Mod A, and Mod B. Learn it, love it, live it:

Myth 2: You’ve got your imaginative piece of writing prepared and memorised for Mod C. You’ll be fine. The question is bound to give you the option to write an imaginative piece, right? (*nervous laughter*)

Student: “It’s taken ages to hone my imaginative piece, and I just can’t write imaginatively on the spot – I’m just not good at it. I’ve also kind of got a discursive planned as a backup. So, I’m going to use these, ok? Thanks.”

Teacher: “I admire your wild sense of optimism regarding two things:

1. Are you absolutely sure the question will give you the ‘imaginative’ option?

2. What if you get a prompt that is a heart-stopping curveball – something precise and focused – or an extract you must incorporate that is wildly different to your base piece?

I’ve got a vignette for you. I had a student last year at a high-ranking school who spent ages honing his imaginative base piece. Hours and hours replacing phrases, incorporating figurative devices, cutting down words to make it manageable within the time allowed. Then came the actual exam, and what was the Mod C task? Write a discursive or persuasive essay… No imaginative option!!! Just let that sink in. Feel that awesome wave of adrenaline and cortisol seep through your body.

I actually respect NESA for doing this. What are we really doing if this whole Mod C enterprise is just getting students to memorise and regurgitate narratives? No wonder students are feeling progressively sicker before exams: exam halls have figuratively turned into large vomitoria. 

Sick of regurgitating the same base essay?

But I’ve got a prediction. You heard it from me first: I think the Mod C task this year will only allow you to write a persuasive essay. Why? Because I think the chief examiners have realised most students’ modus operandi, and the purpose of this section is surely to see how well you can write on the spot in response to something new. I bet they’re going to give you something you aren’t expecting.

So, what to do? Sure, have your base imaginative and discursive pieces planned and memorised. (I know I can’t stop you; you’re going to do it anyway.) But please, please, please practise writing new responses to past paper questions and other questions from your teachers or tutors. Perhaps you can use phrases, vocabulary and techniques from your planned pieces, but please get comfortable writing new pieces under timed conditions. And do not neglect persuasive writing.”

ACTION: Continue to hone your base imaginative and discursive pieces (I wouldn’t bother with a base for persuasive writing, as I imagine the prompt would be rather specific). In timed conditions, write a minimum of THREE new imaginative responses, THREE new discursive responses, and THREE persuasive responses to past paper/trials questions. Get feedback after each attempt.

Myth 3: It’s too late to improve your ability to write unseen short-answer responses

Student: “I’ve just never been good at short-answer questions. I can’t get the meaning of the unseen texts…”

Teacher: But you can improve. The method here is simple. Do more past paper questions in timed conditions. Have your tutor review and provide feedback on them. Repeat. There are scores of past papers and trial questions for you to answer.

Also, take heed of the following tips:

Tip 1: Answer the what before you answer the how. If a question asks you how a writer explores/presents/portrays something (e.g. a human experience), always identify what that thing is: is it an experience of anxiety, of incredulity, of confusion, a paradoxical experience concerning nostalgia and fear of the past…? Whatever it is, make sure you clearly state this in the opening sentence.

Tip 2: However many marks, double it, and that’s how many minutes you should spend on the question.

Tip 3: As a general rule of thumb, for 3 marks, analyse 2 decent-sized quotations; for 4 marks, analyse 3 quotations; for 5 marks, analyse 4 quotations… etc

Tip 4: DO NOT exceed your self-imposed time limits. Don’t write too much for 3-mark and 4-mark responses. You’re wasting time, and you need that time for the essay question.

ACTION: Practise handwriting responses under time pressure – but make sure you get your tutor to mark your responses and provide feedback. Aim for a target of 20 questions completed before your exam. (“But sir, that’s mental!” “No, it’s not: get back to work.”). And revise the devices in the English Terms doc. Go on! Get in there. Look, cover, write, check. Old school methods never fail.

Myth 4: Your handwriting doesn’t really matter; examiners are paid to make sense of it

Student: “Like, low-key, it might even help me that some of my words are illegible because the examiner will probably just assume I know what I’m writing about…” (*sound of tumbleweed*)

Teacher: Definitely not. Reading awful, illegible handwriting is more painful than rolling over your own toe with the wheel of your chair (#studytrauma). I don’t want to start a sentence with ‘back in my day’, but… Back in my day, when I was at school, teachers would just refuse to mark scripts that had poor handwriting. These days, with everyone using laptops, the handwriting problem has become far worse.

I’ve had two students this year receive feedback for their trials, warning them about their excruciatingly bad handwriting, and it’s really quite sad. They’re answering the questions well, their analyses are strong, they’re acing it! Except they’re not, because the teacher is having to take a part-time course in palaeography just to parse their sentences.

I honestly think bad handwriting works subconsciously on the examiner’s mind. They’ve already marked twenty-three scripts, they’re under the throes of a sugar crash from too many custard creams, and then they open your script… And they can’t read a damn word of it – it looks like a spider has stumbled into an inkwell and run back and forth along the paper… How do you think they feel? Exhausted, peeved… disrespected, actually.

Poor handwriting + Custard Cream Crash™ = WORSE MARKS

Have you ever heard that court judges are far more likely to give harsher sentences to convicted criminals before lunch, while they’re inconveniently ‘hangry’? And more lenient sentences after a cheese sandwich and a cup of tea. (Caveat: the veracity of these findings is up for dispute.) In the same emotional vein, I think examiners are far more likely to give higher marks if the handwriting is clear and legible. Not pretty, mind. No one cares about your handwriting being pretty – just legible. Proper capital letters, clear vowels, proper punctuation. If you need to, get a handwriting practice book. Practise handwriting responses to past paper questions in timed conditions and keep it legible.

ACTION: If you’ve had no problem with handwriting, you’re good. If your handwriting is questionable, practise improving it by writing responses to past paper questions while keeping a focus on legibility. Use a handwriting practice book if need be. Ask your parent or a friend to read your writing aloud. If awkward pauses, polite laughter, and “umms” ensue, you know you’ve still got some work to do.

There you have it. Myths dispelled. Now get back to your revision. And remember: don’t lazily bank on the belief that the right essay question will come up; don’t expect an imaginative task; don’t think there’s nothing you can do about short-answer responses; and make sure your handwriting is neat and readable.

You got this. The finish line is so close, you can almost taste the freedom (remember freedom?). Don’t slump during this final leg. Get your study timetable organised, get up early, prioritise sleep, and avoid avoidance.

Jeff Spicoli: ready and willing to go the extra mile to prepare for his HSC English exams