2. Learning Objectives:
Review/recall approaches to various
question types for the reading exam
Draft question-specific targets for
tomorrow based on a skills
assessment of your responses
3. How should I approach
the reading paper?
One hour
Read the questions first – why?
Highlight/annotate as you read the source
material
Identify the key words in the questions –
what type of question is it and what skills
do I need to complete a high level
response?
4. Introduction to source material
We will now watch a short video clip linked to
today’s source material:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hLQNhkV
YiM
(from 6 minutes in)
You should pay particular attention to Number 13,
Strands of Gold, who is nearest the camera and
who falls at Becher’s Brook. The internet essay
is written by the jockey involved, Peter
Scudamore.
5. Resources
Each pair should have the following:
Newspaper article text (x2)
Questions and internet essay source (x2)
Lined paper
Step 1: Read the questions and identify the
following:
•Key words
•Type of question
6. Question types – reading time
1. A locate and retrieve question that requires
interpretation/inference
2. A writer’s impression question
3. A how question
4. Compare and/or contrast question
You now have ten minutes to read
and highlight/annotate the source
material
7. Question 1: According to Peter Scudamore, what
is it like to ride in the Grand National? (10)
(8-10 marks)...a detailed and well-considered
interpretation supported by appropriate
selection of evidence. The best answers
answers should be thorough, perceptive and
cover a range of points with insight and
accuracy.
So, what do these words mean and how is
this mark band achieved?
8. Question 1: According to Peter Scudamore, what
is it like to ride in the Grand National? (10)
HORSE SENSE: This was not a
particularly difficult question but it
was vital to make inferences and
not simply offer a jumble of
quotations!
9. Question 1: According to Peter Scudamore, what
is it like to ride in the Grand National? (10)
YOUR TASK:
1. In pairs discuss, then record all the inferences
you could make from reading the source
material.
2. Write a short paragraph in response to the
question – remember to use inference as
below:
Scudamore clearly feels the nature of the race is
unpredictable as he explains in a dramatic
opening paragraph that despite ‘moving easily’ in
a ‘near-perfect’ first circuit of the course, how
‘suddenly, it all went wrong.’ He develops this by
describing...
10. Question 1: According to Peter Scudamore, what
is it like to ride in the Grand National? (10)
Inferences you could have
made included:
It is unpredictable
It is dangerous
It is frightening
It is exciting
It is noisy
It is chaotic
It is
demanding/challenging
It is too much for some
jockeys/overwhelming
11. Question 2: What does Peter Scudamore think and feel
about the Grand National in this section of the essay? (10)
(8-10 marks)...select appropriate detail from
the text to sustain a valid interpretation.
These answers should be thorough as well as
methodical, covering a range of points
accurately and clearly making inferences.
So, what do these words mean and how is
this mark band achieved?
12. Question 2: What does Peter Scudamore think and feel
about the Grand National in this section of the essay? (10)
The Chief Examiner’s Top
Tips:1st - At the very least, the best approach was
to track the text methodically and use
third-person with the verbs ‘think’ and
‘feel’
2nd - It is vital to get an overview of what the
writer was saying – some thoughts and
feelings were explicit and some were
implicit – his argument had some
subtleties
3rd - The writer’s position was not totally
straightforward – you are being tested on
your ability to follow a developing
argument – be careful not to jump to a
13. Question 2: What does Peter Scudamore think and feel
about the Grand National in this section of the essay? (10)
Your Task:
1. Select a series of thoughts and feelings that show a
developing argument (you will need contrasting
connectives)
2. Write a short paragraph as in the exemplar below
showing the subtleties of the writer’s argument:
Scudamore is clearly a lover of the Grand National as
evidenced by his praise of the event, although his
view is balanced out by also pointing to some of the
negatives. His feelings of loyalty and commitment
were suggested when he stated he would defend it
to its ‘last breath’. However, he also felt that this
year’s race was agonising to watch and not a great
14. Peer assessment point
You will now be given a
mark scheme for the
first two questions
Use it to assess the
responses of your
peers
Remember, these
assessments are
skills-based and you
have not been writing
full answers
Complete a WWW and
an EBI for each answer
15. Question 3: How does Andrew Tyler try to convince his
readers that the Grand National should be banned? (10)
HOW QUESTIONS
These questions in the exam will require you to analyse
the methods used by the writer who is trying to convey a
certain point of view or attitude.
Typical questions:
How does the writer/article/leaflet
encourage/persuade…?
How does the writer convey a certain
attitude/idea/image?
The key word in this question is how and you should make
some use of P.E.A. in your answer
16. Question 3: How does Andrew Tyler try to convince his
readers that the Grand National should be banned? (10)
HOW QUESTIONS
The exam questions will almost certainly require analysis of
how a particular text is attempting to influence its audience. It
could be selling a product or promoting an idea or a point of
view, but writing is never really neutral, particularly this kind of
writing.
As you read each text, try to establish a sense not only of its
topic (what it is about) but also of the writer's viewpoint (what
the writer really thinks about the topic). DEVELOP A SENSE
OF OVERVIEW
Consider:-
What is written + How it is written +
intended effect on the audience.
17. Question 3: How does Andrew Tyler try to convince his
readers that the Grand National should be banned? (10)
(8-10 marks)...explore the text in detail and
make valid comments/inferences. The best
answers should combine specific detail
with overview and show understanding of
persuasive methods and/or language.
Look for a clear sense of ‘how’ rather than
‘what’
The best answers analyse rather than spot
detail
18. Refused at the third?
What the chief examiner said:
What is not required is the aimless ‘naming of
parts’
I would no more ban the Grand
National for an example of
alliteration than I would visit
Glastonbury for a short sentence
I would like to repeat a comment I
made in last summer’s report in the
hope that repetition is as effective as
many of the candidates suggest it is:
‘this approach... can prove to be
disastrous’
Weaker candidates saw this
merely as an opportunity to
indulge in a relentless hunt for
technical jargon
19. Question 3: How does Andrew Tyler try to convince his
readers that the Grand National should be banned? (10)
What you should do to successfully negotiate this type
of question:
‘Candidates could make good progress
by looking closely at the detail of what
was said and even more if they took
opportunities to explain or comment on
those details’
Factual detail is what usually gives
substance to an argument but the best
answers:
•Do look at methods in support of the
argument
•Do analyse the choice of language
•Do have a conceptual overview
20. Question 3: How does Andrew Tyler try to convince his
readers that the Grand National should be banned? (10)
Your task – As in the exemplar below, write a short
paragraph in answer to the question.
Remember:
Look for a clear sense of ‘how’ rather than ‘what’
The best answers analyse rather than spot detail
Tyler makes use of emotive language in describing the
crowd’s reaction as ‘gasps of horror’ to leave his readers in
little doubt about the appalling nature of the spectacle the
race goers have witnessed. He then raised and challenged
the claim made by some that the race is being made ‘safer,
safer, safer’ by countering with a short and uncompromising
‘No, it’s not’.
21. Question 4: According to these two writers, why is the Grand National
dangerous?
Organise your answer into two paragraphs using the following
headings:
Peter Scudamore’s views
Andrew Tyler’s views (10)
(8-10 marks)...clearly and appropriately collate
material from different sources and make cross-
references. These answers should be clear,
coherent and thorough.
But check out the comments from the chief
examiner about what largely proved to be a
disaster...
22. Question 4: According to these two writers, why is the Grand National
dangerous?
Organise your answer into two paragraphs using the following
headings:
‘I thought that I might be apologising for how
embarrassingly straightforward this question was, but it
proved to be inexplicably difficult...
...the examining equivalent of Becher’s Brook, at which
large numbers fell dramatically.
I did wonder about those who answered the question by
telling me that Scudamore loved the race while Tyler
wanted it banned.’
So what went wrong? LOOK at he question
again.
23. Question 4: According to these two writers, why is the Grand National
dangerous?
Organise your answer into two paragraphs using the following
headings:
Peter Scudamore’s views
Andrew Tyler’s views (10)
Clear presentation – use paragraphing at
the very least, but if the question asks
for headings, why not use them?
Clear thinking about what the writer says – use
relevant information and make a wide range of
points
A conceptual grasp of the two texts - combine a little
overview into your answer to show a conceptual grasp
of the two texts
Good answers require:
24. Question 4: According to these two writers, why is the Grand National
dangerous?
Organise your answer into two paragraphs using the following
headings:
Peter Scudamore’s
views
Andrew Tyler’s views
(10)Your task: Select
a ‘wide range’ of
‘relevant’
evidence from
each text that will
feed into your
answer and write
a full answer
under timed
conditions – if you
jump the last, it’s
an easy ten
25. Final peer assessment
Use the mark scheme
provided for the last two
questions
Use it to assess the
responses of your peers
Remember, these
assessments are skills-
based and you have not
been writing full answers
Complete a WWW and
an EBI for each answer
