how to set an english paper ii

8/3/2019 How to Set an English Paper II

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The first problem that faces any teacher setting a comprehension PaPer' of course,is where to find the material. Fiction is quite suitable for lower secondary work' butthe Cambridge examiners seem to prefer factual accounts for 'O' Level, amd perhapsa teacher is safer sticking to non-fiction as far as uPper secondary work is concerned'The happiest huntiig ground for passages of suitable style and length I have alwaysfound to iie in three main areas: t. ravel writing. memoirs. biography and autobiograPhY'These types of writing rend ro have all of the qualities that we are looking for. I

suggest that'the Passages ihould contain the following qualities:' The Passage should be a self-contained incident'. The passage should be of around a thousand words or so (or which can beeasily edited to rhat length) '. The passage should havi a central theme (for summary purposes) '' The Passage should be of intrinsic interest'. The p^rug. should be at an appropriate level of readability'Most of rhe passages in this book have been chosen from that type of work andrvirh those criteria in mind.

trBng[f,sh Paper

Tnres of QuestionThere are a number of types of questionsexaminations, and each has its advantages and

u'hich apPear on 'O' Level PaPer IIdisadvantages.

1. Simple Information RetrievalThistypeofquestionislikelytotaketheformofasimplequery'".1.1..\ 4rere

cloes Hatch iivel" fqu.stion 1 (a) on the example passage] and will general\'be $'orlhonly one mark. g"i".lr. rhis type of question is so simple its use at 'O' Level is ratherrestricted, and it usually upp.ui, onirjorrc. or t$'ice, perhaps as a confidence booster'It might appear a little moie often at lower secondary level'The advantage of this rype of question is that it is easy to mark, but its disadvantasesoutrveich rhis, as rJch a quesrion is necessarily closed, offering no scope for interpretation,anci also encourages "lifting" from the passage'

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2. Inforrnation ProcessingThis type of question assumes in the student the abiiity to:' infer. interpret. evaluate. show a connection. show cause and effect

and is exemplified by a question such as "why do you think the expedition leader allorvedhis divers to keep the cracked pieces of porcelain?", fquestion 3 (d) on the examplepassage] where ih. urrr*",. is not given in the passage bul must be inferred'' ifrir sort of question is widely used at'O'Level and should be introduced, evenif only in a limited way, early in lower secondary school so Lhat students can gainexperience in answering it.The advantage of ittis rype of question is that it works at a higher thinking levelthan the first rype of question. Its disadvanlage, for some people anyw^y, is that it canlead to a wide range of acceptable answers'3. Vocabulalv

This rype of question takes two forms. The student is called upon either:a. to explain aword or phrase (either literal or figurative) taken from the Passage,such as 'Why is the word 'maP' in inverted commas?" lquestion 1 (b) (i) onthe examPle Passage]orb. to select a meaning to fit a given word, such as question 2 (b) on the examplepassage.

Form (a) is usually present on 'o' Level papers, while form (b) is always Present'With the questions which take form (b), teachers should note the wording used on

the.O,.Level prp.r and reproduce ir on their own papers to get the students used to followingthat particular instruction.4. Others

Reference questions, such as 'lMhat does the word 'this' in line 29 refer to?"This type of qrrestion is not used extensively, but it is not uncommon, and is. ,rr.irrl checl that students are following the gist .rf a passage.General knowledge questions, such as iWhat is a publicity stunt?", which de pendson knowledge galned'from outside the paper- These should be used sparingly,as in many *.t " local student may not have the linguistic experience to dealwith them. Thev rarely appear on 'O' Level, although a number of years agothere was t a;ffi; *hose correct answer depended on a prior knowledge ofthe barter system of trading.

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c. Explaining idioms. Again, teachers should be wary in their use of this type ofquestion, such as "Explain the meaning of the expression 'If push carne toshove' in line 24". Although in general there will be some contexhral clue whichwiil lead the student towards the correct answer, in some cases (Iike this one,perhaps), such a question might bafile him.For culnrral reasons, therefore, perhaps it is better that questions of type (b) and

(c) should be avoided whenever possible.

Phrasing of Inferential QuestionsIn asking inferential questions of type 2, teachers should try to ensure thatinformation is processed rather tharfjust "lifted". This can be achieved by opening upquestions through the use of phrases iike the following:.@..?. What evidence is there to suggest ...?' Why is '.. an appropriate word to use here?. What feeling is iuggested by the use of -..?. What does the expression ... tell you about the author's feelings here?. Suggest reasons why .... Explain why ...Note that in recent years the Cambridge examiners have begun to specify paragraphsfrom which information is to be retrieved, so that some answers which might otherwisebe correct may have to be ruled out.

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Setting Vocabulary QuestionsSome points to remember:. Don'tjust go for difficuit words - someLimes a simpler word used in an unusualway is more testing.. Do choose words whicli allow the use of contextual clues-. Do choose a wide range of parts of speech.. Do indicate clearly the key words to be explained rather than confuse thestudents by asking for the whole of a phrase. This can be achieved by usingthe following t'?e of phrase:. Which word suggests ...?' Explain in your own words .... What is the difference benveen .,.?' Paying particular attention to the highlighted words ...

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Setting SummarY QuestionsNtake sure student.s are given' in the rubric:. the pordon of their P^,,.'g. thar the information is to come from, e.g. ..Usineonly the material from line 24 to linc BB "'". an upper *ora ii*i, -

*no longer than 160 rvords"' an openit'g senlence' which should indicatei' Point of view andii. rhe tense to be used

".g. 'T;; rno'nt"t our father agreed to take rhe rrip' I ".''. a clear indication of the particular"poinu the stude nts are Lo look for:,.... the proti"*, and dificulties the author encountered and the actions hetook to deal with them "'""'.. what you saw and did and tire reasons for your acfions "'Always do the summary question yourself' to check:^. the number of points available' andb. if it can in fact be done in 160 words'Under(a),lSto22poinsisaboutright'Fewe.rthanthatmighrmakethesummarytoo difficult for mosr r,rr!".ro, while moie than that might make it either t'oo easy orlooconfusing.Ithastobesaid,no,'"u..,that.o'levels=ummarieshavebeensetwith

"o t'uu,.,0d::ili,l; t"il,T;-"r, can be done roo easilv - in 120 words or rewer, perhaps- then rephrase the quesrio", .ptJt'tp' bf ad.di"g another key word' Similarly' if thesummary proves ro U"'i*possibie in tire number of words given, change or remove akey word to lignten the siud.ntr' u,rri.rr. Remember, however, that you are likely tobe able to do u ,,,t"*uty in far fewer words than the average student'

FinillyAlwaYs check Your questions for:. clarity I' ambigrritr be made and marks to be awarded. correlation between Points to, wording of questions in ,et"tion to Past examination paPers and previous 'o'levels. related questions, which shouldnot 1 (a) and (b). sequence of questions'Do allow interpretations which arethe wording-of the questlon'Don't exPect students to read Your

be shown to be related, i'e' 1 (a) (i) and (ii) '

not whal you meant but which are justified by

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And l{ow Not To Do ItThe passage which I have been referring to from time to [ime is something of afalse friend. It was put together by a major educalional establishment in Singaporesome years ago, and was in use in their 'O' Level courses for some time. I will sparetheir blushes by not naming rhe establishment concerned. I call it a false friend because

on the surface it looks, and is meant to look, like an 'O' Level Paper II. The lengthis the same, the rubric is the same, and it was designed to help students get throughtheir'O' Level.There, however, the similarity ends. Of course, it is possible forjust about anyonewho is compiling an 'O' Level qpe paper to find mistakes creeping in, and I am notfor a moment suggesting that all of the papers in this book are completelyfree of glitches.It is rare, however, for so many differqpt types of error to creeP into a single PaPer ashave wormed their way into this one.Ler us examine it in some detail. Questions i (a) and 1 (b) (i) are fine. Question1 (b) (ii), however, is far roo general. The question is not specific enough, as the workof the two men is interconnected in many different ways. Perhaps if the question hadspecified, for example, the work that the men do in paragraph one it would have beenclearer.Question 1 (c) (i) is hopeless. A reading of the appropriate part of the Passagereveals that three interesting things happened, two to do with the sonar and one withthe magnetometer. It is anyone's guess, therefore, which two the setter happens to beafter. The related question 1 (c) (ii) only compounds the felony, as in order to ge! theanswer right you need to have read the mind of the setter and guessed correctly rvhichpoints he wanted. In other words, to get part (ii) right you had ro have got Part (i)right. This interdependence is not recommended.

Question 1 (d) gives no indication of how the marks are to be allocated for eachpart. Is it 2+2 , 3+1 or 1+3? In addition, the second part can be answered by "lifting".Question 1 (e) needs to be more specific. There are a number of possible answers

- the age of the u'all, the cannon, the anchor and the porcelain. Perhaps studentscould be directed to a particular paragraph and asked for two specific factors that mightheip determine the age.2 (a) is also non-specific. There are two marks available, and it is very likely thato1e of them is for an explanation of the word "reluctantly", but what is the other for?"They"? "Made for"? "Surface"? Again, it might have been an idea to use one of thosephrases like "...paying particular aLlention to the highlighted words..."It is difficulr ro do roo much damage with a vocabulary question like 2 (b), buteven here there is grossness. It is ridiculous to take a rt'ord like the first one, "nerve",and ask the students to explain it in isolation when clearly it is part of a noun phrase,"Nerve centre", and is thus unable to stand alone. Effectively, the students have beenasked t-o answer an impossible question.Quesrion 2 (c) presents problems rvhich might have been avoided with a litt]ethought and some editing. The divers are using both a "lift" (line 66) and an "airlift"(line 63), apd srudenrs unfamiliar rvith deepsea salvage equipment (the majoriti', I

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suspect), are certain to become confused. Ir does not help that the questioll can in faclb. ..l.q.tatelv answerecl by "lifting" from the passage' The sarne is Lrue of 3 (a) ancl3 (b).The worst errors, horvever, are unfortunately in the qtteslion which is worth rhemost marks - the one, therefore, where students have most to lose - the summary'Firstly, the wording of the question, the specified length of the answel and thervhole format of the rrriri" are totally differeni from what is found at 'O' levei- Thepunctuation wirhin the question has.an error in it, and the insuuctions are very vague'rvith students lefi ,lrr.rrr" as to whether to concentrate on the work actually done byDorian himself or the work thar he might have done rvith the help of other divers'To add to this confusion, no task is specified. No key words are given to guidethe student and there are no opening *otat given, so that the student is unable todefine eirher the point of view he is to write from or the appropriate tense to use'If teachers want a model of what not to do' I think this is it!

Sample of a Poorly Conceived Engtish Paper IIRead the following passage carefully before you attemPt any questions' Answer all thequestions. Yo.l ure-.ecominended to answer them in the order set' Mistakes in spelling'jrlncrrrution and grammar may be penalized in any part of the paper'

So itwasjust anot,her day on the fustbss M,the converted trawlerwhichwas Hatch's home and the nerve centre of the search. The sun shone downpitilesslyasithaddonewithregularmontonyduringthelvholeexpedition.Max de Rham was stretched out on Lhe promenade deck reading a Frenchnovel between survey lines. It was the turn of Biji, his iong-rime assistant,ro study the side-scan sonar, housed in a tiny cabin. Btji YT looking for anyunusual dark shapes emerging on the "map", One diver, Hals, was proppedtlPonatowererected""tr'.Reef,directingthpSiweePoftheboat,whiiea'oth.r diver, Dorian, was trying to concentratb at the long drop stationwhere less and less frequently he was asked to release the buoy which wouidmark a spor which was worth invesrigating'Sud^denly,justafternoon'thesonarbecameveryinteresting.Unaccountable images appeared and there were odd deep holes' apparentlyon rhe sea bed.. et itre sime time the magne[ometer started clicki'g awaylike crazy, suggesting that magnetic objects were scattered around in anarea one hunJred u.ra tnirty feet in length - an exciting

design..Drop',shoutedMax,andDorianlergoofthebuoy.ThefustlzssMmade a slow semi-circle and stopped'

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Discussion started: should they tr-ail over t}e area again, or trust thatthe buoy was close enough to the "find"? Anyway it was promising enoughto cail Hatch over from the Reef.Secretly Max was very excited but he did not want to raise Hatch'sspirits too high: there had been enough disappointments. The two men'quickly kitred themselves up in their diving gear, got into the dinghy andsped over to where the buoywas bobbing around. Into the water theywent,Hatch first. By pulling themselves down on the line stretching from themarker buoy to its anchor they quickly reached the ocean bed, one hundredand twenty feet below. It was grey and featureless down there, and theyneeded to use their compass to swim iowards the first of those strangedepressions.It turned out to be a hole, six feet wide and five feet deep' Max divedin, down to the bottom. A Morey eel scuttled out of his way but he hardlynoticed it - emerging from the cloud his prodding hands had'created inthe cavity was a r*iil *hit. encrusted coffee cup. Max gathered it up andswam towards Mike who had taken another direction. He had made towardsa shoal of fish - snaPPers and grouPers - well aware that such aconcentration of fish is a good indication of awreck. As Max tried to attractHatch's attention, both men swam slapbang into a brick wall. They eyedeach other in wonder. What had they found - was it a modern wreck? Soontheir questions were answered. Close to the partially collapsed wall was amassive anchor, Lhe tu'in of the one found on the Reef'The n^ro men had arrived at an underwater oasis, alive with fish andcoral. They, had little time to admire the scenery Much more interestingro them was the sight of cannon, lying in profusion at all angles. Hatchsnrted to dig t.o,.t d the cannon and came across some jagged objecS. Rutby,now theii'dive time was almost exhausted. Reluctandy thel'made for thesurface, Hatch clutching his odd shapes, Max his complete coffee cup'As the anxious divers gathered around them, Hatch rubbed away theaccumulated marine gTowth and the broken objects came uP gleaming

blueand white: it was porcelain. Hatch was back in business.No one had an,v idea of the idendry of the rgreck or the contents ofthe cargo. More to tfie point, itrvas odds-on that anv merchandise had beensmashe"d to pieces over the years. But, if there were no certainties' therewere plenq.' of fancies.\4rhen'Hatch had ied his flotilla out of Singapore harbour in early Marchhe had high hopes of the "Big One". He had been salvaging on the AdmiralStellingwJrf ReLf for years, mainh'bringing uP tin' Tl:." h" had found thejunk, *Li.n hacl1,ieldecl chinese sevenreenrh-cerrrury lr{ing porcelain rt'hich"sold at Christie's Amsterdam auctior-r house for almost nvo million pounds'This rime, rhanks ro the decision to join him of Max de Rham, with his yearsof experience - as u,e li as his sophisticated dctectiot-t equipmerrt - Hatchrtas confidellt that tirel,rvould ,,u""p the Reef, alrcl tire adjacent ocean, cleatr'

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tl Theirmaintoolwastheairlift,w}richblervawaytlresandandcoraiandmarinedetrittrsandexposeclthecratesandtireiooseporcelain.Onediver rvould operare this while the other would carry the porcelain by thearmful to the lift, a one-metre-square steel box' rvhich was lowered after thedivers and which held six plastii rubbish baskets, with drainage holes' Thefindsrvereplacedinthesebucketsandwhentheywerefullthesignalrvasgiventothesurfacetohaulupthebox.Totryandlivenupthisexhausringworkthediverscompetedtoseewhichpaircouldpackupthemostporceiainin one fifty-minute srint. T.ne record was tweive baskets full of dinner plates'seven hundred Pieces in ail'Themiraclewastha[thecargohadremainedvirtuallyintact.Thiswasthanks ro rhe tea as much as to th; slow sinking of the vessel. The tea heldtheporcelainfirminitsglutinous.grip'Butifitensuredissurvival'italsomade condi[ions v"f r,u.? for the d]u.^. Ir rose up from the chests cloudingrheir visibility; its rhick clogging smell made breathing difficult' Il rvaser,erwvhere, a dark, pungenriim.lit*"r like searching in a tea pot, especiallywhen the weathe , iru, "r,o.*y and currenrs whirled around the divers.Thereweremoreandmoredaysonwhichdivingwasimpossibleandrhewreckseemedtohaveyieldedupallitsexcessivebounryoncethedivershad turned over the cabin area. Eariy on, they had learned to be very carefulas they washed ttre porcelain on-the barge' Out of mugs and 'iars couldtumblejewels and r-'ull rtarrr.s and glasser. It*ur agreed thar nothing shouldbe held nu.t, .u"rything was to 6e auctioned' If a diver was fond of aparticular object he had lound, he could bid for it later. only the crackedpiecescouldberetained.Intheeventmostofthediversnowhavesmall,tut select, collections from the wreck'WhileHatcharrangedthedeparturefromthesite,itwasagreedrhatthere should be a *.dJrlo.., expiorarion of the area outside the hull. Atrenchwasdugontheoff-chancerhatobjectsmighth.avefallenover|hesidesoftheshipduringitsdeaththroes.Soonrhecollapsedcookhouse,

. the brick wall of which "Hutch and Max had found in that firsl exploratorydive over a month previously, was reached'Hatch *.s getting our of the decompression chamber; Ma-x was setlingready to ,Jive. Ii*as boriun who-was sucking awaiy ?t the bricks rvirh hisairlift on rhe sea bed. suddenly he gasped through his speaking rube,..surface! suface!,, Both Ma-x and Hatih ihought he was in trouble. The nthemagicwordswhichweretotransformHatch'sexpeditionin|othestuffof dreams - "Gold. I found gold'"

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Answer the following questions.1 (a) Where does Hatch live? [1 mark](b) (i) \ ary is "map" in inverLed commas?(ii) \Arhat did Hans and Dorian's jobs have to do with Biji? [3 marks](c) (i) what rwo rhings happened after noon that were interesting?(ii) What do you think these things indicated? [4 marks](d) .,Itwas grey and featureless down there, and they needed to use their compassto swirn towards the first of those strange depressions. (iines 28-30)(i) Explain "It was grey and featureless"'(ii) How did they overcome rhis? [4 marks](e) How do you think Hatch and Max determined how old the wreck was?[2 marks]

(a) Explain in your own words what issurface" (lines 4M7). meant by"reluctantly they made for the[2 marks]

[5 marks][2 marks]

(b) choose five of the following words. For each of them give one word or shortphrase (of not more than seven words) which has the same meaning as theword has in the Passage.(i) nerve (line 2)(ii) pitilessly (line 3)(iii) trail (line 19)(ir') scuttled (line 32)(r') prodding (line 33)(vi) profusion (line 44)

(vii) odds-on (line 52)(viii) sophisticated (line 61)(c) What was the airlift and how did rhe divers use it?

Explain why the porcelain had remained in good condition. [2 marks]Why u'as Hatch thinking of leaving? [1 mark]why do you rhink Hatch wouldn't allow any diver to retain a favourite pieceof porceiain he might have found? t2 markslwhy do you think Hatch aliowed them to keep cracked pieces? [2 marks]

Dorian was one of fhe divers on the Rcstlzss M. Write a summary of the part hepiayed. You'll find information throughout the'stor1" sometimes his name ismentioned and ar oti]er limes a -|ob is mentioned generally as diver's work' \bursummary should be I'ro longer tlian 140 words' [20 marks]

3 (a)(b)(c)(d)

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how to set an english paper ii

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