english language essay and objective

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Writing objectively How and when to use an impersonal tone

For another look at the same content, check out the video on YouTube (also available on Youku ). There is a worksheet (with answers and teacher's notes) for this video.

Academic writing is generally impersonal and objective in tone. This section considers what objective writing is , how objective academic writing is , then presents several ways to make your writing more objective . There is also an academic article , to show authentic examples of objective language, and a checklist at the end, that you can use to check the objectivity of your own writing.

What is objective writing?

Objective writing places the emphasis on facts, information and arguments, and can be contrasted with subjective writing which relates to personal feelings and biases. Objective writing uses third person pronouns (it, he, she, they), in contrast to subjective writing which uses first person pronouns (I, we) or second person pronoun (you).

How objective is academic writing?

Although many academic writers believe that objectivity is an essential feature of academic writing, conventions are changing and how much this is true depends on the subject of study. An objective, impersonal tone remains essential in the natural sciences (chemistry, biology, physics), which deal with quantitative (i.e. numerical) methods and data. In such subjects, the research is written from the perspective of an impartial observer, who has no emotional connection to the research. Use of a more subjective tone is increasingly acceptable in areas such as naturalist research, business, management, literary studies, theology and philosophical writing, which tend to make greater use of qualitative rather than quantitative data. Reflective writing is increasingly used on university courses and is highly subjective in nature.

How to write objectively

There are many aspects of writing which contribute to an objective tone. The following are some of the main ones.

Use passive

Objective tone is most often connected with the use of passive, which removes the actor from the sentence. For example:

• The experiment was conducted.
• I conducted the experiment.
• The length of the string was measured using a ruler.
• I measured the length of the string with a ruler.

Most academic writers agree that passive should not be overused, and it is generally preferrable for writing to use the active instead, though this is not always possible if the tone is to remain impersonal without use of I or other pronouns. There is, however, a special group of verbs in English called ergative verbs , which are used in the active voice without the actor of the sentence. Examples are dissolve, increase, decrease, lower, and start . For example:

• The white powder dissolved in the liquid.
• I dissolved the white powder in the liquid.
• The white powder was dissolved in the liquid.
• The tax rate increased in 2010.
• We increased the tax rate in 2010.
• The tax rate was increased in 2010.
• The building work started six months ago.
• The workers started the building work six months ago.
• The building work was started six months ago.

Focus on the evidence

Another way to use active voice while remaining objective is to focus on the evidence, and make this the subject of the sentence. For example:

• The findings show...
• The data illustrate...
• The graph displays...
• The literature indicates...

Use evidence from sources

Evidence from sources is a common feature of objective academic writing. This generally uses the third person active. For example:

• Newbold (2021) shows that... He further demonstrates the relationship between...
• Greene and Atwood (2013) suggest that...

Use impersonal constructions

Impersonal constructions with It and There are common ways to write objectively. These structures are often used with hedges (to soften the information) and boosters (to strengthen it) . This kind of language allows the writer to show how strongly they feel about the information, without using emotive language, which should be avoided in academic writing.

• It is clear that... (booster)
• It appears that... (hedge)
• I believe that...
• There are three reasons for this.
• I have identified three reasons for this.
• There are several disadvantages of this approach.
• This is a terrible idea.

Personify the writing

Another way to write objectively is to personify the writing (essay, report, etc.) and make this the subject of the sentence.

• This essay considers the role of diesel emissions in global warming.
• I will discuss the role of diesel emissions in global warming.
• This report has shown that...
• I have shown that...

In short, objective writing means focusing on the information and evidence. While it remains a common feature of academic writing, especially in natural sciences, a subjective tone is increasingly acceptable in fields which make use of qualitative data, as well as in reflective writing. Objectivity in writing can be achieved by:

• using passive;
• focusing on the evidence ( The findings show... );
• referring to sources ( Newbold (2021) shows... );
• using impersonal constructions with It and There ;
• using hedges and boosters to show strength of feeling, rather than emotive language;
• personifying the writing ( This report shows... ).

Bailey, S. (2000). Academic Writing. Abingdon: RoutledgeFalmer

Bennett, K. (2009) 'English academic style manuals: A survey', Journal of English for Academic Purposes , 8 (2009) 43-54.

Cottrell, S. (2013). The Study Skills Handbook (4th ed.) , Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan.

Hinkel, E. (2004). Teaching Academic ESL Writing: Practical Techniques in Vocabulary and Grammar . Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc Publishers.

Hyland, K. (2006) English for Academic Purposes: An advanced resource book . Abingdon: Routledge.

Jordan, R. R. (1997) English for academic purposes: A guide and resource book for teachers . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Example article

Below is an authentic academic article. It has been abbreviated by using the abstract and extracts from the article; however, the language is unchanged from the original. Click on the different areas (in the shaded boxes) to highlight the different objective features.

Title: Obesity bias and stigma, attitudes and beliefs among entry-level physiotherapy students in the Republic of Ireland: a cross sectional study. Source: : https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031940621000353

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Below is a checklist for using objectivity in academic writing. Use it to check your writing, or as a peer to help. Note: you do not need to use all the ways given here.

Next section

Read more about writing critically in the next section.

• Critical writing

Previous section

Go back to the previous section about using complex grammar .

• Complex grammar

Author: Sheldon Smith    ‖    Last modified: 05 February 2024.

Sheldon Smith is the founder and editor of EAPFoundation.com. He has been teaching English for Academic Purposes since 2004. Find out more about him in the about section and connect with him on Twitter , Facebook and LinkedIn .

Compare & contrast essays examine the similarities of two or more objects, and the differences.

Cause & effect essays consider the reasons (or causes) for something, then discuss the results (or effects).

Discussion essays require you to examine both sides of a situation and to conclude by saying which side you favour.

Problem-solution essays are a sub-type of SPSE essays (Situation, Problem, Solution, Evaluation).

Transition signals are useful in achieving good cohesion and coherence in your writing.

Reporting verbs are used to link your in-text citations to the information cited.

OASIS: Writing Center

Scholarly voice: objectivity.

Try to present your argument in as objective a way as possible. Avoid judgmental and emotive language, as this often reveals that you are presenting an opinion rather than evidence or a logical argument. Note, however, that whether a phrase or word is judgmental or emotive often depends on the context. It is best to avoid phrases like "it is right , " "I believe," or "I feel . " Often these types of statements lead the writer into bias , a mistake that academic writing avoids. Remember to back up your arguments with sources and facts in order to give you credibility and a more objective tone.

For example, take a look at this sentence:

I feel that childhood obesity is unhealthy, and children’s eating habits are not right.

Note the use of "I" and the judgmental phrase "not right." Try to think of a way to portray the same information without inserting yourself or your opinion. For example, instead of saying I feel, ask yourself, "Is this a fact?" If it is a fact, write it as a statement:

Childhood obesity is unhealthy.

With this statement, you are stating a fact and removing yourself to maintain your authorial distance. Also, rather than saying their eating habits are not right (after all, who is to judge what is right and wrong in eating?), you can use statistics and valid sources to back up your ideas:

Two major causes of childhood obesity are poor nutrition and uneducated food choices (Fredricks, 2010).

Here you are giving information rather than giving a judgment. See APA 7, Chapter 5 for more guidelines for reducing bias.

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4 Chapter 4: Writing and Teaching to Language Objectives

• All teachers are language teachers.
• Language and content strengths and needs provide a foundation for creating learning objectives.
• Content objectives support facts, ideas, and processes.
• Language objectives support the development of language related to content and process.
• Objectives must be directly addressed by lesson activities.

As you read the scenarios below, think about how your classroom context might be like those of the teachers depicted. Reflect on how you might address the situations these teachers face.

STOP AND DO

Before reading the chapter, discuss with your classmates why the students and the teachers in the scenarios may be having problems. What information or understandings can provide solutions for the teachers?

Both teachers in the chapter-opening scenarios recognize that their students need language help. Like many teachers, however, they have misunderstandings about how language learning occurs, a lack of knowledge about how to integrate content and language, and no notion of why they should. Teachers can help students access the academic content of the class; however, if language is a barrier to access, then they must also consider ways to help learners access the language they need. Contrary to Ms. Alvarez’s belief in the scenario, students do not “absorb” language without scaffolding and focused attention, just like they need for learning content (Crawford & Krashen, 2007). A specific focus on central skills and concepts is critical to learning both language and content. This specific focus on language is important in all classrooms, whether content is presented in an elementary classroom in a thematic unit or in a secondary classroom as a discrete subject. This focus is important because, as we outlined in Chapter 1, each content area has jargon, technical vocabulary, and genre that is specific to that content area. Because ELL and other language teachers may not be well versed in the vocabulary and discourses of all the content areas, regular classroom teachers are probably best suited to teach these types of language with the support of language educators. In essence, all teachers are language teachers to some extent, even if they teach the language of only one content area, as they often do at the secondary level. Chapter 3 focused on understanding students’ needs, backgrounds, and interests. Although content standards and goals for specific grade levels are often prescribed in statewide curricula, the objectives and activities that help learners reach those goals can and should be based on what teachers discover about their students. This chapter focuses on integrating social and academic language needs into content lessons so that all students can access the academic content. An important aspect of teaching language across content areas and themes is understanding how to develop appropriate and relevant language objectives as part of lessons. The development of language objectives and activities that support the objectives is the main emphasis of this chapter.

Understanding Objectives

Different texts call learning objectives by different terms, but it is the idea behind them that is important rather than the exact label. In this text, objectives are statements of attainable, quantifiable lesson outcomes that guide the activities and assessment of the lesson. Objectives differ from goals and standards , which can also be called “learning targets” and are very general statements of learning outcomes. Objectives are also different from activities or tasks , which explain what the students will do to reach the objectives and goals. Objectives typically follow a general format, as outlined in the formula below:

“Students will be able to” + concrete, measurable outcome + content to be learned

The three parts of this formula are equally important. First, “students will be able to”—often abbreviated SWBAT—indicates that what follows in the objective are criteria against which a student’s performance can be evaluated after the lesson. Note that starting an objective with the words “Students will” is not the same as SWBAT because “Students will” indicates what activities the students will do rather than the outcomes that they are expected to achieve from participating in the activity. Second, the concrete, measurable outcome presents the criterion that the evaluation will focus on. The chart in Figure 4.1 presents a list of possible action verbs that can be used to state the measurable outcome. Finally, the third part of the objective states the exact content to be learned and sometimes also includes to what degree it should be mastered (100% accuracy, 9 out of 10 times, etc.).

Figure 4.1 Measurable verbs. Source: Adapted from Action Verbs for Learning Objectives © 2004 Education Oasis™ http://www.educationoasis.com

Content objectives

Most mainstream teachers are accustomed to writing content objectives. Content objectives support the development of facts, ideas, and processes. For example, in a unit about the Civil War, one of the content objectives might be:

• SWBAT name three of five central causes of the Civil War in writing.

Others might include

• SWBAT list the major battles of the Civil War.
• SWBAT recite the first section of the Gettysburg Address.

Which objectives the teacher chooses may depend on the dictates of standards, grade-level requirements, and curricula. Whatever criteria are used for choosing them, those objectives should be developed based on what students already know and need to know and provide a strong guide for the development of the rest of the lesson.

Look at the standards and other content requirements for teaching in your current or future area(s). Write one or more content objectives that might be appropriate for the students that you plan to or do teach. Refer to Figure 4.1 for action verbs. Then review others’ objectives and see what questions you still have about content objectives. [1]

Language objectives

Constructing Language Objectives

The first step in creating language objectives is to determine social and academic language needs based on content objectives. Language needs can fall into these five general categories (adapted from Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2016):

• Vocabulary : Including concept words and other words specific to the content, for example, words that end in -ine , insect body parts, parts of a map, precipitation, condensation, and evaporation.
• Language functions : What students can do with language, for example, define, describe, compare, explain, summarize, ask for information, interrupt, invite, read for main idea, listen and give an opinion, edit, elicit elements of a genre.
• Grammar : How the language is put together (its structure), for example, verb tenses, sentence structure, punctuation, question formation, prepositional phrases.
• Discourse : Ways students use language, for example, in genres such as autobiographies, plays, persuasive writing, newspaper articles, proofs, research reports, speeches, folktales from around the world.
• Language learning strategies : A systematic plan to learn language, for example, determining patterns, previewing texts, taking notes.

For example, the chart in Figure 4.3 shows some of the language in these categories that students might need in order to meet the stated content objective in a lesson on the Civil War.

Figure 4.3 Determining language needs.

STOP AND THINK

Can you think of more examples of the five kinds of language listed previously? Can you think of other types of language that students might need in order to meet the content objective in Figure 4.3? Depending on the teacher’s understandings of her students’ language needs and on what she sees as the most important language elements to emphasize, she might choose one or more of the following language objectives for this lesson:

• SWBAT spell the following vocabulary correctly: economy, secession, federal, abolition .
• SWBAT listen carefully for main ideas from a reading on the Civil War .
• SWBAT use past tense verbs to write complete sentences .

Figure 4.5 Sample objective development process.

Look at Figure 4.5. For each objective, underline the concrete, measurable outcome and circle the content to be learned. Check your answers with a partner. Every content objective does not necessarily require a language objective, and some lessons do not have language objectives at all because all students can access the content with skills and vocabulary that they already possess. However, it is important to examine possible language barriers to content in every lesson and to address them if needed. In summary, the important features of language objectives include the following:

• They derive from the content to be taught.
• They consider the strengths and needs of students.
• They present measurable, achievable outcomes.

First, review the objective(s) you wrote for the Stop and Do about content objectives above. List all of the potential language that students might need in order to access the information and achieve the objective(s). Then choose the most important language, without which students could not possibly access the content, and write one or more language objectives that address this language need.

Teaching to the Language Objectives

Creating language objectives is a good start for addressing the social and academic language needs of students, particularly ELLs, but equally important is that lesson tasks address the objectives. This chapter presents some guidelines for making sure that students meet the language objectives. Chapters 7–11 present specific ideas for teaching to language objectives in a variety of disciplines. Guideline 1: Integrate language and content Just as tasks that address content objectives are integrated into the whole lesson rather than being addressed one by one, language objectives should also be integrated into the lesson and not taught in isolation from it. For example, these objectives were chosen for the Civil War lesson:

• Content: SWBAT state three of five central causes of the Civil War in writing.
• Language: SWBAT use reading strategies to uncover main ideas from a reading on the Civil War.

The teacher could teach about the central causes of the Civil War, separately teach how to identify main ideas, and then hope that the students will apply their knowledge to their Civil War task. This process, however, is problematic in several ways. First, it indicates to students that language is separate from content when it is actually derived directly from the content. In other words, teaching the language objective without content removes much of the context for the language. Second, it breaks up the lesson into chunks, each of which constitutes a separate preparation for the teacher. This is neither an efficient use of the teacher’s and students’ time nor an effective way to teach language. [2] As noted in Chapter 1, some authors believe that all language is contextualized to some extent, but treating language separately from content takes away the specific context that gives the language meaning, making the language more difficult to understand and use. A better choice is for the teacher to integrate the content and language. So, for example, while the students are looking for the causes of the Civil War in their textbooks, the teacher can ask them how they figure out what the causes are, and the students can make a list of strategies to find main ideas. They can practice together by finding the first cause of the Civil War and explaining to each other how they found it. This choice makes the lesson more efficient (by teaching the two objectives at the same time) and effective (helping students see how language and content are related and moving them toward reaching both objectives). Guideline 2: Use pedagogically sound techniques In the past, language was typically taught through drill and practice, exercises with few context clues, and mechanical worksheets. Research has found that these techniques are effective for very few students in very limited contexts. Effective language instruction, in addition to being integrated into content instruction, should meet the following basic criteria:

• It is authentic . This means that it comes from contexts that students actually work in and that it is not stilted or discrete just for grammar study. It is language that students need for a real purpose.
• Language is taught both explicitly and implicitly . Students are both directly exposed and indirectly exposed so they can use strategies to figure out some meaning on their own.
• It is multimodal . Students are exposed to language through different modes such as graphics, reading, and listening, and they can respond in text, drawing, and voice.
• It is relevant . Not all students in a class need all of the language instruction. The teacher can choose to whom the lesson is aimed (small groups, individual students, the whole class) to make it relevant.
• It is based on interaction . Collaboration and cooperation help learners test their assumptions about language.

Guideline 3: Break down the language Each language objective can actually imply a variety of smaller topics. For example, for students to learn past tense, they have to understand what it means in a time sense and also that there are regular and irregular past tense verbs (e.g., those with -ed added, those with alternative changes), different spellings (e.g., go/went), and different pronunciations (e.g., sometimes the -ed ending is pronounced “ed” and sometimes it is pronounced “t”). As with any content, the instructional approach can go whole to part or part to whole or both ways, depending on how students learn best. For example, the teacher might have students read a passage and ask how we know when the events happened (whole) and then review the various aspects of past tense (parts). Or the teacher and students can point out the different aspects of past tense verbs in a required reading first and then work toward a more general understanding of how it helps us know when events occurred. Either way, the parts of past tense should be examined in light of their use in class content. [3] Figure 4.6 summarizes these three basic guidelines for language instruction. Additional guidelines are presented throughout this book.

Figure 4.6 Basic guidelines for helping students meet language objectives.

After reading the chapter, what would you tell the teachers in the chapter-opening scenarios to help them with their concerns?

Every teacher is a language teacher, at least in part, because the language of the content areas requires students to learn social and academic language in order to access the content. Teachers can use their content objectives, which support facts, ideas, and processes, to determine language objectives, which support the development of language related to content and process. Then, by following principles of good pedagogy, teachers can integrate the language and content in lesson activities. Following this process helps make learning more efficient and effective and ensures that all students have a chance to succeed. As crucial as this is, the next chapter shows that there are additional important components of lesson design that teachers can master in order to help all students achieve.

For Reflection

• You as a language teacher . How are you, or will you be, a language teacher? Think about the ways you and your students use or will be required to use language in your classroom. What do these uses mean for your teaching?
• Choosing modes . Think about a lesson you have observed or taught. How can you include more modes so that students are exposed to language in a variety of ways?
• Meeting the standards . Choose one of the content standards from your current or future grade level or content area. Develop one or more content objectives and then create language objectives for the same standard.
• Break down language . Choose a grammar point, language function, or discourse. Using any resources that you need to, list all the aspects of your choice and describe how you might use steps to teach your choice to your current or future students.

Crawford, J., & Krashen, S. (2007). English learners in American classrooms: 101 questions, 101 answers . New York: Scholastic. Echevarria, J., Vogt, M., & Short, D. (2016). Making content comprehensible for English learners . Boston, MA: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon.

• Find state and national standards by content area on the Education World website at http://www.educationworld.com/standards/index.shtml . ↵
• To decontextualize means to consider something alone or take something away from its context. ↵
• In addition to the techniques and strategies described in this text, others can be found in many excellent guides. See, for example, Herrell and Jordan’s (2016) Fifty Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners (5th edition) and Making Content Comprehensible for English Learners: The SIOP Model (5th edition) by Echevarria, Vogt, and Short (2016). ↵

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1.17 Writing Style: Objective and Subjective

What is style.

In English speaking and writing contexts, styles can be categorized into two distinct groups: subjective and objective. A combination of both styles, however, can be used. Skilled writers know how to distinguish the two. They also know which style or which combination of styles is appropriate for which context. Likewise, careful readers can detect which style(s) is (are) being used in a given text.

The term subjective is used to describe a writing style that is based on personal beliefs or preferences.  Subjective language often

• includes personal pronouns,
• is emotive,
• is exaggerated, and
• passes judgements.

The term objective is used to describe a writing style that focuses on facts and uses balanced, disinterested language that leads readers to critically evaluate the content presented in the text. Objective writing style does, in fact, include judgement. The judgements are supported by facts and are presented in a distant way.

Examples of Subjective and Objective Writing Style

She loves the snow. (opinion)

It is snowing heavily. (fact)

She loves the snow because she is a skier. (opinion with a fact)

Employees will probably be late to work today because it is snowing heavily. (prediction based on fact)

The order picker messed up our order terribly. (opinion, emotive language)

The order picker neglected to include several items in our order. (vague fact, negative language)

The order picker messed up our order; he neglected to include several items. (vague fact, negative language)

Two boxes of cleaning solution were not included in this morning’s order. (fact presented in an impartial manner)

In 2016, Zara launched its Join Life line as an initial step towards increasing product sustainability. (fact)

In 2016, Zara launched its Join Life line as an initial step towards supposedly increasing product sustainability. (fact, emotive language challenging the fact)

The Join Life women’s collection consists of about 280 pieces. (fact)

Zara’s other collections include about 1,500 items in its women’s dress category. (fact)

While Zara purports to be interested in sustainability, its sustainability collection includes only 280 items. (fact, judgement)

Zara is simply trying to trick customers into believing that it is concerned about sustainability, for a mere 280 of its items are part of its Join Life line. Moreover, most of its products are manufactured by underpaid labourers who live in some of the poorest countries in the world. (strong judgement supported by some fact, strong emotive language)

Compared to its other collection of over 1,500 items, Zara’s sustainability collection includes only 280 items. It, therefore, appears that Zara’s is doing little to address sustainability issues. (judgement based on fact, language is distanced)

The content about Zara was sourced and adapted from the reference below.

Objective Style in Report Writing

A report is a document created to impart information to a specific audience for a specific purpose. In the business world, reports can be informational or analytical. Whether informational or analytical, report writers present their information using balanced, disinterested language so that report readers can make their own conclusions once they have read the report. Therefore, it is critical for report writers to use effective structure and appropriate  language.

Well written reports

• are effectively structured,
• include critical analysis of research,
• provide various perspectives if required,
• include evidence-based arguments, and
• maintain an objective tone.

Strategies for Achieving an Objective Tone

1. use the passive voice (sparingly).

Since the passive voice removes the actor from the sentence, using it is an effective way of establishing an objective tone. While using the passive voice is effective, a report that relies heavily on it would be cumbersome to read, so it should be used sparingly.

2. Use Ergative Verbs

To convert some passive voice constructions, use ergative verbs. Ergative verbs are used in the active voice even though they do not have a real actor.  Common ergative verbs used in business include  begin, start, increase, decrease, accumulate, reduce, advance, and improve.

3. Focus on the evidence.

Use introductory words or phrases that focus on the evidence.

• The study highlights
• The graph indicates
• The report suggests

4.  Use information from your sources.

• Olive (2021) summarizes the Icelandic study. He notes….
• In his article, Rodriguez (2021) comments on Canadian work culture.

5. Use “It and There” sentences.

These sentences are often used with  hedges  (to soften the information) and  boosters (to strengthen information). Such sentence constructions allow comments on something without using subjective  language.

6. Personify the subject of the sentence.

Use phrases as indicated in the examples below.

• This report explores some effective implementations of the four-day work week.
• This report concludes that more research should be conducted before Company ABS considers implementing a four-day work week.

Coughlan, B. (2021, June 21). Why most eco-lines are just another form of greenwashing . re/make. https://remake.world/stories/news/why-most-eco-lines-are-just-another-form-of-greenwashing/?gclid= EAIaIQobChMIh9WL3MDj8wIVqGpvBB3KJQlVEAMYASAAEgJeVPD_BwE#post-14925

Writing and Critical Thinking Skills for BUSN732 Students Copyright © by Sylvia Vrh-Zoldos and Lillian Mak is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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• Writing Tips

6 Tips on Achieving an Objective Tone in Writing

• 5-minute read
• 11th July 2021

An objective tone is standard in most formal business and academic writing. But how can you make your writing sound objective? Our top tips include:

• Try to avoid unnecessary use of the first person and first-person pronouns.
• Focus on facts and cite sources clearly to back up your claims.
• Aim for balance and consider multiple perspectives.
• Beware of emotive language that betrays a subjective opinion.
• Use a formal writing style throughout.
• Have your writing proofread to make sure it is always error-free.

For more detail on how to achieve an objective tone in writing, read on.

1. Try Not to Use the First Person

Objective writing aims for a neutral, impersonal tone. As such, you should try to minimise the use of the first person and first-person pronouns such as ‘I’, ‘me’ and ‘mine’, which put too much focus on you as the writer of the document.

One option is to use the passive voice more. For instance:

I will outline the main arguments. -> The main arguments will be outlined.

However, this can sound awkward or leave your writing unclear (e.g. the sentence above does not specify who or what will outline the arguments). As such, it is often better to stick to the active voice and use the third person instead. For example:

This paper will outline the main arguments.

Here, the meaning is clear, but we avoid using any first-person pronouns.

2. Focus on Facts and Data

Objective writing should be clear and factual. As such, you will need to:

• Research your topic extensively – Before you start writing, make sure to research the topic in detail so you are clear on the facts.
• Always cite your sources – Citing sources adds credibility to your writing by showing your reader where your information came from.
• Consider your sources ­– Where you get information from matters. Your sources should be unbiased, especially in academic writing. Before citing something or quoting a fact, then, make sure it is from a trustworthy source .

If you can back up your claims with well-researched facts, your writing will come across as much more objective than if you simply make unsupported claims.

3. Be Fair and Balanced

If you present only one side of an argument in your writing, it could appear biased and lose credibility. To achieve an objective tone, then, you must show balance. And this means sharing different viewpoints and perspectives.

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This is especially important if you are presenting an argument in academic writing where acknowledging potential counterarguments or competing points of view is a key part of testing the strength of your position. But it also applies to business writing, where considering multiple perspectives provides important context and shows that you have researched the issue thoroughly.

You don’t always have to give every opinion equal weight or present every possible argument, though, or you run the risk of overwhelming the reader with too much information. Instead, focus on the key perspectives in the subject area.

4. Avoid Emotive Language

Typically, objective writing should avoid emotive language or words that suggest a subjective opinion. For example:

Smith (2020) offers a brilliantly clever solution to this terrible problem.

Here, the words ‘brilliantly clever’ and ‘terrible’ don’t add anything substantive to the sentence. Rather, they signal something about the author’s opinion. And by adding this kind of emotive language, we prompt the reader to respond in a particular way (e.g. to see the solution as ‘brilliantly clever’).

This is not to say you should never offer an opinion in objective writing (e.g. you may need to weigh the benefits of certain actions and recommend the best option to meet a specific objective, which will inevitably involve an element of opinion). But you should present your opinions in a neutral tone and back them up with facts, not relying on emotive or otherwise subjective language to influence your reader.

5. Keep Your Writing Formal

As well as the subjective and emotive language discussed so far, objective writing should avoid informal and colloquial language. This includes:

• Using standard spelling and grammar throughout.
• Avoiding contractions (e.g. instead of using ‘can’t’, use ‘cannot’).
• Cutting out all slang and informal figures of speech.
• Using the correct technical language for your subject area.

This formal style is common in business and academic writing as it reduces the strength of the individual’s voice and thus contributes to an objective tone.

6. Have Your Work Proofread

Errors in writing suggest a lack of care or attention to detail (even when this isn’t true). To make sure your documents have a truly objective, authoritative tone, then, it pays to get them proofread by the writing experts.

Our editors are available 24/7, all year round, so we are always here to help. You can even try our services for free ! Get in touch today to find out more.

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• The four main types of essay | Quick guide with examples

The Four Main Types of Essay | Quick Guide with Examples

Published on September 4, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

An essay is a focused piece of writing designed to inform or persuade. There are many different types of essay, but they are often defined in four categories: argumentative, expository, narrative, and descriptive essays.

Argumentative and expository essays are focused on conveying information and making clear points, while narrative and descriptive essays are about exercising creativity and writing in an interesting way. At university level, argumentative essays are the most common type. 

In high school and college, you will also often have to write textual analysis essays, which test your skills in close reading and interpretation.

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Table of contents

Argumentative essays, expository essays, narrative essays, descriptive essays, textual analysis essays, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about types of essays.

An argumentative essay presents an extended, evidence-based argument. It requires a strong thesis statement —a clearly defined stance on your topic. Your aim is to convince the reader of your thesis using evidence (such as quotations ) and analysis.

Argumentative essays test your ability to research and present your own position on a topic. This is the most common type of essay at college level—most papers you write will involve some kind of argumentation.

The essay is divided into an introduction, body, and conclusion:

• The introduction provides your topic and thesis statement
• The body presents your evidence and arguments
• The conclusion summarizes your argument and emphasizes its importance

The example below is a paragraph from the body of an argumentative essay about the effects of the internet on education. Mouse over it to learn more.

A common frustration for teachers is students’ use of Wikipedia as a source in their writing. Its prevalence among students is not exaggerated; a survey found that the vast majority of the students surveyed used Wikipedia (Head & Eisenberg, 2010). An article in The Guardian stresses a common objection to its use: “a reliance on Wikipedia can discourage students from engaging with genuine academic writing” (Coomer, 2013). Teachers are clearly not mistaken in viewing Wikipedia usage as ubiquitous among their students; but the claim that it discourages engagement with academic sources requires further investigation. This point is treated as self-evident by many teachers, but Wikipedia itself explicitly encourages students to look into other sources. Its articles often provide references to academic publications and include warning notes where citations are missing; the site’s own guidelines for research make clear that it should be used as a starting point, emphasizing that users should always “read the references and check whether they really do support what the article says” (“Wikipedia:Researching with Wikipedia,” 2020). Indeed, for many students, Wikipedia is their first encounter with the concepts of citation and referencing. The use of Wikipedia therefore has a positive side that merits deeper consideration than it often receives.

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An expository essay provides a clear, focused explanation of a topic. It doesn’t require an original argument, just a balanced and well-organized view of the topic.

Expository essays test your familiarity with a topic and your ability to organize and convey information. They are commonly assigned at high school or in exam questions at college level.

The introduction of an expository essay states your topic and provides some general background, the body presents the details, and the conclusion summarizes the information presented.

A typical body paragraph from an expository essay about the invention of the printing press is shown below. Mouse over it to learn more.

The invention of the printing press in 1440 changed this situation dramatically. Johannes Gutenberg, who had worked as a goldsmith, used his knowledge of metals in the design of the press. He made his type from an alloy of lead, tin, and antimony, whose durability allowed for the reliable production of high-quality books. This new technology allowed texts to be reproduced and disseminated on a much larger scale than was previously possible. The Gutenberg Bible appeared in the 1450s, and a large number of printing presses sprang up across the continent in the following decades. Gutenberg’s invention rapidly transformed cultural production in Europe; among other things, it would lead to the Protestant Reformation.

A narrative essay is one that tells a story. This is usually a story about a personal experience you had, but it may also be an imaginative exploration of something you have not experienced.

Narrative essays test your ability to build up a narrative in an engaging, well-structured way. They are much more personal and creative than other kinds of academic writing . Writing a personal statement for an application requires the same skills as a narrative essay.

A narrative essay isn’t strictly divided into introduction, body, and conclusion, but it should still begin by setting up the narrative and finish by expressing the point of the story—what you learned from your experience, or why it made an impression on you.

Mouse over the example below, a short narrative essay responding to the prompt “Write about an experience where you learned something about yourself,” to explore its structure.

Since elementary school, I have always favored subjects like science and math over the humanities. My instinct was always to think of these subjects as more solid and serious than classes like English. If there was no right answer, I thought, why bother? But recently I had an experience that taught me my academic interests are more flexible than I had thought: I took my first philosophy class.

Before I entered the classroom, I was skeptical. I waited outside with the other students and wondered what exactly philosophy would involve—I really had no idea. I imagined something pretty abstract: long, stilted conversations pondering the meaning of life. But what I got was something quite different.

A young man in jeans, Mr. Jones—“but you can call me Rob”—was far from the white-haired, buttoned-up old man I had half-expected. And rather than pulling us into pedantic arguments about obscure philosophical points, Rob engaged us on our level. To talk free will, we looked at our own choices. To talk ethics, we looked at dilemmas we had faced ourselves. By the end of class, I’d discovered that questions with no right answer can turn out to be the most interesting ones.

The experience has taught me to look at things a little more “philosophically”—and not just because it was a philosophy class! I learned that if I let go of my preconceptions, I can actually get a lot out of subjects I was previously dismissive of. The class taught me—in more ways than one—to look at things with an open mind.

A descriptive essay provides a detailed sensory description of something. Like narrative essays, they allow you to be more creative than most academic writing, but they are more tightly focused than narrative essays. You might describe a specific place or object, rather than telling a whole story.

Descriptive essays test your ability to use language creatively, making striking word choices to convey a memorable picture of what you’re describing.

A descriptive essay can be quite loosely structured, though it should usually begin by introducing the object of your description and end by drawing an overall picture of it. The important thing is to use careful word choices and figurative language to create an original description of your object.

Mouse over the example below, a response to the prompt “Describe a place you love to spend time in,” to learn more about descriptive essays.

On Sunday afternoons I like to spend my time in the garden behind my house. The garden is narrow but long, a corridor of green extending from the back of the house, and I sit on a lawn chair at the far end to read and relax. I am in my small peaceful paradise: the shade of the tree, the feel of the grass on my feet, the gentle activity of the fish in the pond beside me.

My cat crosses the garden nimbly and leaps onto the fence to survey it from above. From his perch he can watch over his little kingdom and keep an eye on the neighbours. He does this until the barking of next door’s dog scares him from his post and he bolts for the cat flap to govern from the safety of the kitchen.

With that, I am left alone with the fish, whose whole world is the pond by my feet. The fish explore the pond every day as if for the first time, prodding and inspecting every stone. I sometimes feel the same about sitting here in the garden; I know the place better than anyone, but whenever I return I still feel compelled to pay attention to all its details and novelties—a new bird perched in the tree, the growth of the grass, and the movement of the insects it shelters…

Sitting out in the garden, I feel serene. I feel at home. And yet I always feel there is more to discover. The bounds of my garden may be small, but there is a whole world contained within it, and it is one I will never get tired of inhabiting.

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Though every essay type tests your writing skills, some essays also test your ability to read carefully and critically. In a textual analysis essay, you don’t just present information on a topic, but closely analyze a text to explain how it achieves certain effects.

Rhetorical analysis

A rhetorical analysis looks at a persuasive text (e.g. a speech, an essay, a political cartoon) in terms of the rhetorical devices it uses, and evaluates their effectiveness.

The goal is not to state whether you agree with the author’s argument but to look at how they have constructed it.

The introduction of a rhetorical analysis presents the text, some background information, and your thesis statement; the body comprises the analysis itself; and the conclusion wraps up your analysis of the text, emphasizing its relevance to broader concerns.

The example below is from a rhetorical analysis of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech . Mouse over it to learn more.

King’s speech is infused with prophetic language throughout. Even before the famous “dream” part of the speech, King’s language consistently strikes a prophetic tone. He refers to the Lincoln Memorial as a “hallowed spot” and speaks of rising “from the dark and desolate valley of segregation” to “make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” The assumption of this prophetic voice constitutes the text’s strongest ethical appeal; after linking himself with political figures like Lincoln and the Founding Fathers, King’s ethos adopts a distinctly religious tone, recalling Biblical prophets and preachers of change from across history. This adds significant force to his words; standing before an audience of hundreds of thousands, he states not just what the future should be, but what it will be: “The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.” This warning is almost apocalyptic in tone, though it concludes with the positive image of the “bright day of justice.” The power of King’s rhetoric thus stems not only from the pathos of his vision of a brighter future, but from the ethos of the prophetic voice he adopts in expressing this vision.

Literary analysis

A literary analysis essay presents a close reading of a work of literature—e.g. a poem or novel—to explore the choices made by the author and how they help to convey the text’s theme. It is not simply a book report or a review, but an in-depth interpretation of the text.

Literary analysis looks at things like setting, characters, themes, and figurative language. The goal is to closely analyze what the author conveys and how.

The introduction of a literary analysis essay presents the text and background, and provides your thesis statement; the body consists of close readings of the text with quotations and analysis in support of your argument; and the conclusion emphasizes what your approach tells us about the text.

Mouse over the example below, the introduction to a literary analysis essay on Frankenstein , to learn more.

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is often read as a crude cautionary tale about the dangers of scientific advancement unrestrained by ethical considerations. In this reading, protagonist Victor Frankenstein is a stable representation of the callous ambition of modern science throughout the novel. This essay, however, argues that far from providing a stable image of the character, Shelley uses shifting narrative perspectives to portray Frankenstein in an increasingly negative light as the novel goes on. While he initially appears to be a naive but sympathetic idealist, after the creature’s narrative Frankenstein begins to resemble—even in his own telling—the thoughtlessly cruel figure the creature represents him as. This essay begins by exploring the positive portrayal of Frankenstein in the first volume, then moves on to the creature’s perception of him, and finally discusses the third volume’s narrative shift toward viewing Frankenstein as the creature views him.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

• Ad hominem fallacy
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At high school and in composition classes at university, you’ll often be told to write a specific type of essay , but you might also just be given prompts.

Look for keywords in these prompts that suggest a certain approach: The word “explain” suggests you should write an expository essay , while the word “describe” implies a descriptive essay . An argumentative essay might be prompted with the word “assess” or “argue.”

The vast majority of essays written at university are some sort of argumentative essay . Almost all academic writing involves building up an argument, though other types of essay might be assigned in composition classes.

Essays can present arguments about all kinds of different topics. For example:

• In a literary analysis essay, you might make an argument for a specific interpretation of a text
• In a history essay, you might present an argument for the importance of a particular event
• In a politics essay, you might argue for the validity of a certain political theory

An argumentative essay tends to be a longer essay involving independent research, and aims to make an original argument about a topic. Its thesis statement makes a contentious claim that must be supported in an objective, evidence-based way.

An expository essay also aims to be objective, but it doesn’t have to make an original argument. Rather, it aims to explain something (e.g., a process or idea) in a clear, concise way. Expository essays are often shorter assignments and rely less on research.

The key difference is that a narrative essay is designed to tell a complete story, while a descriptive essay is meant to convey an intense description of a particular place, object, or concept.

Narrative and descriptive essays both allow you to write more personally and creatively than other kinds of essays , and similar writing skills can apply to both.

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Subjective vs. Objective Essay: Examples, Writing Guides, & Topics

Subjective or objective essay writing is a common task students have to deal with. On the initial stage of completing the assignment, you should learn how to differentiate these two types of papers. Their goals, methods, as well as language, tone, and voice, are different.

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A subjective essay focuses on the writer’s personal opinion, while an objective one represents valid facts. So, be careful when composing an objective paragraph or paper. Don’t let your beliefs take over real arguments supported by substantial evidence.

In short, differences between these styles concern the following:

• The ground for objective essays is facts; for subjective essays – personal opinions and beliefs.
• Objective papers report the findings from scientific sources, while subjective ones describe the writer’s thoughts.
• The objective essay’s goal is to help the reader make a decision. Subjective writing aims to reflect the author’s vision of the issue.

So, if you face this task for the first time, you may need some explanations. Custom-writing.org experts prepared a list of tips on how to write objective and subjective essays. Some topics, as well as objective and subjective writing examples, will also be useful.

• 🆚 Subjective vs. Objective

🔗 References

🆚 subjective vs. objective essays.

First and foremost, let’s find out the critical differences between the writing styles. Take a look at the following table and shed light on this issue.

An objective essay is a presentation of the material with no independent opinion involved. Only facts matter in this paper, and only facts can back up some assertions. Writing subjective essays implies introducing your standpoint on a particular problem.

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📋 How to Write an Objective Essay

Writing any essay consists of three parts: preparation, the actual writing, and revision. During the first one, you need to decide on your topic and do a little research. You can see how it looks in a real example.

Objective Essay Example: The Portrayal of Odysseus

In Odyssey, Homer portrays Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, as the true epic hero. The depiction of Odysseus is thoughtfully knitted together with the themes of love and loyalty that further magnify it, painting a holistic picture of a long 10-year journey home. Although it can be argued that some of Odysseus’s personality traits he displays cannot be applied to a true hero, he is still depicted following a very specific heroic archetype.

Now, let’s get into more detail!

Objective Essay Topics

If you’ve decided to write an objective essay, you need to come up with a topic. The topic gives a reader a brief overview of what will be covered in the paper.

Here are ten great examples:

• While the differences between Italy and Spain are evident, the resemblances are striking.
• There are several similarities between the movies “Deep Impact” and “Armageddon.”
• Compare and contrast the capitals of two English-speaking countries.
• Somatic symptoms in people with PTSD can be influenced by age, gender, and avoidance.
• Some might argue, but being overweight carries a social stigma.
• Environmental factors contribute to the phenotypic expression of psychological disorders.
• Although the exact reason remains unclear, depression is affected by sex, gender, hormonal changes, and age.
• When comparing and contrasting the Bible and Quran, it seems that they have more similarities than differences.
• Musical ability is the result of influence on the person from outside.
• In comparison to extroverts, introverts draw power from within themselves to use it in future activities.

Objective Essay Structure

We shall continue with exploring an essay structure. Note that the parts described below are essential for any essay.

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• Introduction . The introduction is usually the part that broadly describes the topic and gets the interest of the reader. This part of the paper should cover some background information and present the purpose.
• Hypothesis . In case your essay has one, state it in your introduction. A hypothesis includes information about how you intend to prove or refute the claim. It briefly describes the way you intend to do so.
• Arguments . Present one side of the argument. In the next paragraph, present the opposing one, using such words as “however,” “nevertheless,” and “although.” The task is to provide the readers with two sides of the argument.
• Evidence . Provide the evidence for all of your points. Keep the balance in providing proof and refutal. Omit your personal opinion, rather than include the evidence you find informative and convincing.
• Conclusion . Summarize the arguments both for and against the position. While remaining objective, shortly go over the information you presented as evidence. If the instructions require a personal opinion, in conclusion, you might write one. In other cases, briefly recap the parts of the essay. Shorten sentence generator would be greatly beneficial in such endeavor.

📜 How to Write a Subjective Essay

As we’ve mentioned earlier, a subjective essay represents the author’s vision of a particular issue. You have an opportunity to introduce your point of view without supporting your ideas with evidence from the primary sources. However, make sure your arguments are still logical and adequate.

Now see how to write a subjective essay in the sections below.

Subjective Writing Example

A well-chosen topic is the vital determinant of a successful essay. Yet, the process of selecting an idea for your paper might be challenging. That’s why you may find our example helpful.

The rapid pace of development of modern technologies increases the demand for oil and gas every year. A considerable amount of these resources is necessary to maintain both industrial enterprises and private equipment. Despite active production, there are still many unexplored places on Earth, potentially rich in oil and gas deposits. However, while making them public would help solve the existing problem, I’m afraid I disagree with this proposal.

Subjective Essay Topics

Check our list of subjective essay topics, choose the one you like the most, or inspire and come up with your idea!

• The fake and too glamorous life presented in social media leads to the development of an inferiority complex among teenagers.
• The information flows within the country should not be controlled by the governments.
• Since developed nations provoked the climate crisis, they should take full responsibility for their past actions and reduce carbon emissions in the atmosphere.
• Cyberbullying should be a matter of the same importance as physical abuse.
• Remote learning opens more opportunities and expands the students’ horizons.
• Instead of catching up with fashion trends, it is better to develop your unique style.
• People should have enough rest to reduce the levels of anxiety and decrease the chances of depression.
• Studying abroad is an experience worth trying.
• Planning and scheduling are perfect strategies to deal with procrastination.
• While applying for a job position, work experience is more significant than having a degree.

📝 Subjective Essay Structure

When you deal with this task, you have full freedom of choice. You can decide for yourself what idea to support and what arguments to present. Still, you have to structure even a subjective essay properly.

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Here are the elements you have to include in your paper:

• grab the readers’ attention;
• introduce your subject;
• state your position in the thesis statement.

Important note: your thesis should be clear and straightforward. Let your audience understand your opinion.

• Description . Dive deeper into your topic and describe your issue in detail. However, don’t go too far. Avoid including irrelevant facts and unnecessary information. Follow the principle “quality over quantity” to keep your reader engaged.
• Opinion . After describing your issue, move to the most crucial part of your essay—opinion. State it clearly and concisely. Although you don’t need to provide any evidence from scholarly sources, your ideas should be supported by substantial arguments or examples from your personal life.
• Conclusion . In the last paragraph of your subjective essay, restate your thesis statement. Don’t introduce any other ideas here. To make your paper more dynamic, ask a provocative question at the end. It may motivate your reader for further investigation of your subject.

A helpful tip:

Before submitting your work, make sure it is coherent. Check if all of your ideas follow the logical flow. To avoid redundancy and wordiness, mix shorter sentences with longer ones and apply transitional phrases. Polish your essay, turn it in, and wait for your perfect grade.

Thanks for reading the page! Share it with your peers who may need some guidance as well. Our writers are ready to explain any other essay type , not only objective or subjective ones.

Learn more on this topic:

• How to Write an Expository Essay in Simple Steps
• Nursing Reflective Essay Example and Guidelines for Students
• Essay on Dengue Fever: How to Write + Free Examples
• French Essay Writing: How-to Guide and Examples
• How to Write a Rebuttal Essay: Jackie Michael, Pen and the Pad
• Writing Objectively: OWLL, Massey University
• Subjective vs Objective: Difference and Comparison, Diffen
• Objective and Subjective Claims: TIP Sheet, Butte College
• Evidence: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Organizing Your Argument: Purdue Online Writing Lab, College of Liberal Arts, University of Purdue
• Argumentative Paper Format: Courtesy the Odegaard Writing & Research Center, University of Washington
• How Do I Write an Intro, Conclusion, & Body Paragraph: LSA Sweetland Center for Writing, the University of Michigan
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Writing All About Me paragraph is probably one of the most usual assignments. For example, students might write it when entering an academic institution. Such work gives an opportunity to introduce yourself, your skills, and goals. However, it is not the only possible situation.

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Glad to know that. Thank you very much, Farhana!

Subjective and reflective.

That’s right, Raj 🙂

Thank you for this information. I submitted my subjective essay, which was rejected by my teacher for lack of an attractive hook. After reading your info on writing subjective essays, I know what I should change in my paper to get a good grade.

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July 7, 2021

How to learn and improve English for Academic Purposes (EAP)

What are Academic English skills and how to improve them

Are you comfortable using social English? Awesome!

But what about the English at universities and in textbooks? Awful?

Learning academic English doesn’t have to be terrible.

It can be terrifically rewarding to follow your interests, working a little every day over time (rather than cramming a lot in a short time) in order to build reading and writing skills.

Improving your English for professional and academic communication is a journey that goes step by step. Joining an Intensive English program can provide guidance.

The importance of English for Academic Purposes cannot be underestimated if you’re attending university or seeking work in the USA, Canada, UK, or other English-speaking country. Communication skills make or break careers.

What exactly is English for academic purposes (EAP)? How is it different from social English?

Here are the main characteristics of academic English:

• More formal. That means avoiding slang, contractions, and idioms. Meanwhile, you adhere to strict formatting rules. Formatting means the way your text looks on the page: font, margins, line breaks, footnotes, punctuation, italics, and other formalities.
• Less personal. Instead of saying “I think,” you present data, logic, and reasoning. However, your academic English style can still reflect your personality as long as you stay objective. 
• More structured. Academic text and speech follow organizational plans. Sentences, paragraphs, and essays are carefully structured and connected. Papers and presentations tend to be linear, which means moving in a straight line from point A to B to C and so on, starting with the introduction, continuing through body paragraphs, and arriving at the conclusion. 
• Less opinionated. Academic English aims for objectivity, presenting facts and balancing different perspectives. Instead of boldly asserting “ X is definitely true, ” academic writing tends to cautiously suggest that  “ X may be true because… ” or “ It is possible that X is true…”  Opinions are supported by arguments and open to revision. 
• More evidence: Academic English includes data from research, quotations from experts, and paraphrases of other texts. You cite sources, crediting other authors for their work while adding your own analysis. If you don’t cite sources, the professor may think you stole the ideas; in other words, you plagiarized. Plagiarism is an academic violation that can lead to failing the class or getting expelled.
•   More precise and concise. The ideas are complex, but the language is clear and brief. While some specialized vocabulary may be necessary in your field, academic English doesn’t require fancy lingo, complicated grammar, and lengthy lecturing.  You choose the best words to get your point across effectively–and then move on to the next point.

When learning how to improve Academic English, you focus on being objective, organized, and precise. To what purposes?

When producing academic English for an essay assignment or a class presentation, you may be doing one (and probably more) of the following modes of critical thinking:

• Comparing and contrasting
• Analyzing causes or effects
• Describing a process
• Organizing categories
• Arguing for or against a position
• Summarizing research
• Analyzing art and literature
• Explaining a topic

Who wants to look at how to improve Academic English? Raise your hand.

How to learn Academic English

You reach academic English skills on two roads: reading and writing.

University coursework involves lots of reading, often hundreds of pages a week, followed up by writing assignments such as essays, short answers, and forum discussions.

The key to reading academic English is to read actively. You can’t be passive. You can’t just flip pages and move your eyeballs from left to right.

Active engagement involves thinking before you read, thinking while you read, and thinking after you read. Developing academic English on your own before university, you should feel free to choose books, articles, and web sites that fire up your interest and imagination. A motivated reader stays active.

Unlike reading for fun on the beach, reading English for professional and academic communication calls for different strategies, such as:

• Reading with a purpose –to complete the assignment. This involves reading at different speeds.   You might rush through irrelevant chapters while slowing down and scrutinizing crucial passages.
• Scanning and skimming the entire book front to back. You do this before starting on page one. By surveying the author’s approach to the topic, you begin thinking about how to complete your assignment.
• Asking questions about the text and topic before, during, and after reading a passage. 
• Distinguishing main points from supporting points.
• Sorting facts from opinions.
• Analyzing the ideas while you read.
• Thinking critically about the author’s evidence, reasoning, and persuasiveness.
• Evaluating sources. Does the author support claims by citing biased political blogs or credible researchers?
• Taking notes, highlighting, attaching post-its–whatever works for you–to collect and organize ideas.
• Figuring out unfamiliar vocabulary from context WITHOUT a dictionary. Constantly looking up words gobbles up too much time.

The more you read, the more vocabulary you learn, the more knowledge you retain, and the more understanding you develop of academic writing styles, sentence structures, and persuasion strategies. 

Besides active reading, the second main focus of academic English is essay writing. Critical thinking is the underlying principle of English for Academic Purposes. When you write essays, you put your critical thinking into greater action.

Writing is an art, not a science. There are millions of equally effective ways to use academic English to write about a topic.

As you acquire greater academic English, your own unique writer’s voice emerges. Your writing voice expresses your viewpoint, personality, values, and background. Your style of writing reflects your way of thinking.

However, basic principles of academic English persist, such as clarity, concision, and structure.

Essays need an introduction to attract the reader’s interest and establish the context or importance of the topic. Most importantly, the beginning of the essay presents a thesis statement with your main idea, purpose, or argument.

The ensuing body of the essay provides the supporting evidence, explanation, and elaboration. Academic English essays rely on facts, data, and logical reasoning. 

The conclusion wraps up the argument with final comments.To create a sense of closure, an academic English essay may conclude with a prediction, opinion, or call to action.

See how the structure of an academic English essay is linear–meaning, it goes in a straight line? 

Like a story, essays have a beginning, middle, and end. The beginning sets the stage of your thesis, the middle presents the action of your argument, and the ending creates a feeling of satisfaction. 

When writing academic English , you also must keep in mind your readers. You’re not writing to yourself for fun–you’re communicating with an audience to persuade.

What does your audience already know and believe about the topic?  Don’t explain what should already be obvious to your reader.  Conversely, don’t assume readers will see what may not be obvious (to them). 

Might your reader bring biases or assumptions to the topic? What strategies would most effectively persuade a general audience? What arguments would alienate or annoy your reader?  Shape your arguments to refute the counterarguments you anticipate. 

Besides taking care of the reader, you also pay close attention to your word choice, sentence structure, and grammar. Though just scratching the surface, here are some tips to improve Academic English:

• Avoid generalizations. Instead, get specific. Don’t say “everybody.” Say “79% of adult males between the ages of 18 and 30.”
• Avoid hyperbole. Instead of overstating your case, stay cautious. Don’t say, “This discovery is the most controversial and consequential in US history.” Instead say, “This finding sheds light on three major causes of political polarization in the US.”
• Avoid repetition. Instead, make your point once. Make it effectively. Make it impactful. Make it perfect. But don’t make the same point again and again and again and…
• Avoid gendered language. Instead of saying businessman, say businessperson. Instead of saying manmade, say synthetic. Instead of referring to a surgeon as he , refer to surgeons as they. 
• Use active verbs: Dynamic verbs bring life to your sentences. (However, passive voice is appropriate in highly objective scientific writing, such as research and lab reports.) 
• Use correct verb tense. Again, focus on the verbs in a sentence. Check the form (past or present?), number (singular or plural), and time sequence (what’s before and after what?)
• Use complete sentences.  Every sentence must have a subject and predicate (verb). The worst things to have in academic English writing are fragments (incomplete pieces of sentences) and run-ons (super long, incorrect sentences that you must divide up into shorter, correct sentences.)
• Vary sentence length and structure. Variety is the spice of academic writing. For instance, craft a careful, detailed sentence with relative clauses, descriptive language, and details. Then add a short punchy sentence for impact. A good range runs from around 3 to 50 words per sentence.

Examples of English vocabulary for Academic English

Let’s explore three aspects of Academic English vocabulary: phrasal verbs, biased language, and the Academic Word List . 

Phrasal verbs in academic English

Academic English usually avoids informal phrasal verbs like check out (investigate) and pig out (eat a lot). 

But some phrasal verbs are ok in English for professional and academic communication. Some phrasal verbs are formal, or at least neutral, and thus appropriate for academic English. Some phrasal verbs lack one-word alternatives with the same exact meaning. Without a better option, you choose the phrasal verb, even in academic English.

Here are 10 phrasal verbs common in English for academic purposes:

• carry out an experiment = conduct an experiment 
• bring about changes = cause changes
• put forward a theory = advance or propose a theory 
• account for the findings = explain the findings
• point out the flaws = indicate, identify, and explain the flaws
• set forth your reasons = state or present reasons in speech or writing 
• ascribe to the movement = believe the movement is a cause or source of blame or credit.
• verge on despair = to almost be in a state of despair, but not quite yet
• allude to an idea –  indirectly mention an idea
• adhere to guidelines = obey or follow guidelines

Remember, your number one job when trying to improve English for professional and academic communication is clarity. Phrasal verbs may muddy things up. (muddy up = making things unclear.)

Avoiding phrasal verbs is NOT an absolute rule. Using a few phrasal verbs is fine. But too many phrasal verbs can make your academic English unclear. 

To improve the clarity of your academic English, here are 10 phrasal verbs and their one-word equivalents.

Biased language may contain racial, religious, gender, or other stereotypes. Biased language may carry unwanted political, ideological, or emotional meanings. Biased language may cause strong emotional reactions in your readers. Biased language is distracting, manipulative, and alienating.

In sum, biased language makes your English less persuasive and less objective. Objectivity and persuasiveness are crucial in academic English.

As discussed above, one type of biased language is gendered words. For instance, say congressional representative instead of c ongressman or congresswoman.

Ethnicity and race are topics to handle with care. Instead of saying American Indian (general), careful writers refer to members of the Navajo nation (specific). Little things count; for example, terms like Black or Hispanic are capitalized.

Avoid labels that define an individual by a single trait. Instead of saying the disabled , say people with disabilities. Physical impairment sounds more respectful than handicapped in academic English. 

Socioeconomic status is another source of potential bias. Instead of saying poor people (general judgement), say individuals with an annual income below $13,000 (specific data). Describing jobs with dignity, custodian is preferred to janitor , for instance.

To avoid age discrimination, academic English often prefers senior citizen to old people, or even the elderly. Instead of saying teenager, academic English writers narrow down statements to males between the ages of 13 and 18, for example. 

Notice how academic English aims to report data and cite specifics, not make generalizations or cast judgments.

To respect strong political or religious beliefs, choose respectful words like dedicated instead of negative words like fanatical . Devout Catholic sounds objective; rabid Catholic sounds insulting.

Sexual orientation is another sensitive topic. For instance, same-sex marriage is considered preferable to gay marriage. Learn the acronym LGBTQIA+, which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex, and asexual, with the plus sign allowing other subjects like polyamorous and ally.

Keep in mind that terms that were acceptable twenty years ago may be offensive today, and today’s preferred terms may become inappropriate ten years from now. Language norms evolve.

Mastering unbiased language requires cultural sensitivity, life experience, and knowledge that you can’t get from books.. That’s why joining an intensive academic English course is so helpful in learning the most appropriate and objective vocabulary for the university and workplace. 

As you improve your use of formal phrasal verbs and unbiased language, you also need to strengthen your grasp of the most common general academic vocabulary. 

How many academic English words should you learn?

Answer: exactly 570 words rank as the most common in academic English.

Developed by Averil Coxhead, Professor in Applied Linguistics in the School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies at the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, the Academic Word List consists of 570 words. 

The academic English vocabulary on this list is not specially connected with any particular field; rather, the 570 words appear frequently in all general academic English, making them the most useful to learn.

Below are 10 examples of words on the Academic Word List. These examples show you how to improve Academic English no matter your field: engineering, business, or computer science. 

English for professional and academic communication requires you to use words from the Academic Word List confidently and naturally. That requires identifying the part of speech (verb, noun, adjective, adverb) and using it in a sentence.

Also, don’t forget to practice pronouncing the word by itself and in a sentence. Listen to the pronunciation online five times and record yourself saying it five times. 

Your sentences don’t need to be long and elaborate, but it’s helpful to connect the vocabulary to a specific idea of interest relevant to English for professional and academic communication. This helps you remember the meaning and learn how it fits with other words such as prepositions and noun objects.

Without academic English words like these, you’ll struggle to understand and produce basic academic English, no matter if you major in economics, law, or sociology. 

Related blog articles

While you book your Intensive English course or other academic English or business English course , improve your language skills by reading our free English articles or watching our free English lesson videos.  

• Learn how business and academic English lessons can broaden your mind and open up a world of opportunities .  Academic and business English writing specialization pays off professionally by improving your ability to edit phrases, structure arguments, and persuade peers.
• Learn techniques for brainstorming essay ideas for typical assignments in Academic English lessons or business English courses. 
• Learn techniques for outlining essay ideas for typical assignments in Academic English lessons or business English courses. 
• Watch fun and informative videos with English tips useful for work, school, and creative writing. We continuously update our free English playlists of easy-to-understand videos . 
• How intensive is an intensive English course at ILI?
• Literate Mending in Multilingual Families
• How to Improve your Academic English and Business English Writing Skills
• An Interview with MJ Adams: An International Host and Global Citizen
• What Is the Difference Between Social and Academic English? (Part 1 of 2) and Social vs Academic English: What is the difference? Part 2

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What is an English Language essay?

February 1, 2018

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Go ahead and tilt your mobile the right way (portrait). the kool kids don't use landscape....

From year 7-10 the traditional essays we have written have had an introduction, three body paragraphs and a conclusion. In these essays we write about characters, plot points and themes. Hence, it is understandable that upon entering English Language in year 11 or 12, it can be difficult to grasp a hold on how to write an essay without characters, plots or themes. To be precise, the requirement in an English Language essay is to ‘use key linguistic concepts and metalanguage appropriately to discuss/analyse/investigate…in an objective and systematic way” (English Language Study Design) .

What does this mean?

Essentially, in section C of the exam, you are required to present a discussion of a given idea. The word ‘discussion’ is defined as ‘a conversation or debate about a specific topic.’ In this sense, your essay is effectively a written conversation which needs to display an understanding of both sides of the topic.

In saying that, it is still important to form a contention, such as ‘indeed non-standard varieties are more acceptable in speaking than in writing in the Australian context’ however in arguing this contention, you must to explore both sides to show the examiner your understanding of language in Australian society.

The overarching idea of the essay is presented to you in the form of a prompt. For example, in the 2016 VCAA exam, a possible essay prompt given was: “In Australia today, variations from the standard tends to be more acceptable in speaking than in writing.”

In this prompt, the idea to be discussed is standard vs. non-standard Australian English. The main idea or topic forms an umbrella under which the essay is formed. This is the foundation of your essay. Each main argument will relate to this topic. In this example, standard vs non-standard Australian English is a topic from which an array of sub-topics can be extracted, the choice of which is to your discretion.

The sub-topics you choose to delve into will depend on your preferences and strengths. You may choose to discuss online-speak, ethnolects or Australian slang in relation to non-standard English, or legal and political jargon in relation to standard English.

Regardless of the choice of sub-topic, each body paragraph must explicitly link to three things; the prompt, the topic sentence and the contention. This is the criteria for your discussion. Ensuring clear links to these three will assure the examiner that you have confidence in the material you are discussing.

Your body paragraphs should be used to show the examiner how the ideas you have chosen to talk about relate to the prompt provided. Here it is necessary to use a combination of contemporary media examples, personal examples and linguist quotes as a means to prove the link between your chosen paragraph idea, your contention and the prompt. Try to find the most relevant examples which clearly demonstrate your line of thinking to the examiner. You don’t want to give them a reason to question the arguments you choose to present.

It is also important to be wary of this so that your essay flows in an orderly, sequential manner. Each idea presented within a paragraph and across the essay itself should follow a pathway, one leading into another. Use the ending of each body paragraph to come back to your essay prompt and reiterate your contention. This ensures you stay on topic and the examiner can clearly visualize your understanding of your topic.

In the end, your job in your essay is to present a discussion of a given prompt; an understanding of both sides. Use examples and explanations to show your examiner that you comprehend how the prompt can be debated.

Helpful Hints:

• Writing the very first sentence of your essay can be difficult. Sometimes, to get yourself into the flow of writing, it can be helpful to integrate a linguistic quote into your first sentence. This also helps solidify your contention. For example:
• “One’s idiolect, particularly lexical choices and accent can be strongly indicative of their unique identity and the social groups to which they belong; it is the most natural badge of symbol of public and private identity (David Crystal)”
• Your topic sentence for each paragraph should contain a link to the essay prompt, to the topic of your paragraph and to your contention. A link to all three elements should be identifiable. Below is an example of a topic sentence for the given essay prompt. “The language we use is the best indicator of who we are, individually, socially and culturally. Discuss.”
• Ethnolects are a quintessential indicator of cultural identity as they are strongly identifiable by their unique phonological characteristics.
• This topic sentence shows a clear identification of the topic of the paragraph (ethnolects), a connection with the prompt, (cultural belonging) and a contention, (ethnolects are indeed indicative of cultural identity)
• Rather than introducing linguist quotes with expressions such as “in the words of…” or “as said by…” using linguist quotes discretely where they are integrated as part of the sentence will improve the flow of your essay. Consider this example.
• “The use of the interjectory ‘reh’ expresses the cultural identity individuals associate themselves with and is part of the language they use as ‘a means to an end of understanding who [they] are and what society is like (David Crystal).”
• Not all your contemporary essay examples need to come from news articles or social media. Students can often get caught up doing aimless research trying to find examples through research which really isn’t all that necessary. You should try to find examples of language use in every-day life. Perhaps consider other school subjects you study and the jargon you used within these subjects. You can quite easily discuss this use of language in your essays. Here is an example of a student using the metalanguage from VCE Accounting as an example for their essay.
• Jargon and taboo language are often used to express social identity as they are demonstrative of social groups one wishes to belong to. Jargon terms such as, ‘equity,’ ‘profit margin’, ‘cash flow statement,’ ‘debt ratio’ and ‘accrued’ belong to the financial and accounting semantic field. Their use suggests the individual is knowledgeable in business and finance and further suggests they are likely to be working in the business sector. The use of jargon in one’s vernacular can therefore provide hints of the individual’s social identity and is significant to their individual identity.

Link to David Crystal interviews to pick out quotes and ideas for your essays:

Link to Kate Burridge on TED Talk talking about Euphemisms; a good source for examples of euphemisms and how they are used in society. This can be used as foundation for a paragraph in your essays:

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Theme vs. Motif vs. Symbol

Themes, motifs and symbols are different kinds of narrative elements - they’re parts of a story that help to shape its overall effect. However, even though they’re words we use all the time in our English studies, it isn’t always easy to tell the difference!

This post will take you through some definitions , give you some examples and show you how you can use them in essays too. Let’s start with the broadest of the three…

What Is a Theme?

A theme is an idea or a subject that an author wants to explore. Themes appear throughout a work, and they’re often abstract ideas rather than concrete images that you can explicitly identify. Themes usually appear in interactions: for example, a parent reuniting with a child might evoke the theme of parenthood or family, an experience of discrimination might evoke the theme of prejudice or racism, a character facing a difficult choice might evoke the theme of morality or conflict, and so on. As you might be able to see, themes can require us to read between the lines because they are usually implied.

What Is a Motif?

A motif is something a bit more specific. Rather than an abstract idea, we’re looking for a concrete object (usually physical items, but also potentially sounds, places, actions, situations or phrases) that returns time and time again throughout a text. This repetition of motifs helps to create structure for a text - it can tether parts of the story to or around a central image. Because motifs are often linked to a theme , they can also serve as a reminder of that theme’s importance. For example, if the central theme was family or parenthood, the author might create a bird’s nest outside a character’s room; as we watch the bird and the chicks grow throughout the text, parallels are also drawn back to the theme.  

What Is a Symbol?

You can think of symbols as motifs minus the repetition . It’s the more default word we use when referring to an object that represents an idea, and unlike a motif, symbols only need to appear once to have an impact. They can simply tell us more about a character or situation in that instant, at that specific time, rather than being a parallel or recurring throughout a text. However, they’re still identified in a similar way to motifs: symbols are also concrete objects and they’re still connected to themes. 

Examples of Themes, Motifs and Symbols

Here are some text-specific examples for a closer look at these terms: 

Check out our Macbeth , Rear Window and The Great Gatsby blog posts for more on these texts. If you’re studying other texts, have a look at our list of text guides in The Ultimate Guide to Text Response .

Identifying and Using Themes

Themes usually come across in interactions , and a possible first step to identifying them is thinking about if an interaction is good or bad, and why. For example:

In Rear Window , one of the neighbours berates everyone else for failing to notice their dog’s death.

This is a bad interaction because:

• a dog dying is never any good
• it tells us that none of these neighbours are looking out for or really care about each other
• someone may have killed the dog

The theme we might identify here is duty. The film might suggest that we have a duty to look out for our neighbours (without sacrificing their privacy) or to do our part to keep the neighbourhood safe from potential criminals.

Another example might be:

In The Great Gatsby , the Sloanes invite Gatsby over for dinner without really meaning it.

• it tells us how nasty the Sloanes are
• Gatsby still seems to be a misfit despite his wealth
• Tom is at best complicit in the Sloanes’ insincerity 

The themes here might be society, wealth and class . This interaction shows us where these characters really stand with regard to these categories or ideas. Because he is ‘new money’, Gatsby cannot understand or fit in with the cruel and disingenuous customs of ‘old money’.

Most interactions in a text will fit into a theme somewhere, somehow - that’s why it’s been included in the story! Try to identify the themes as you go , or maintain lists of interactions and events for different themes. Because themes are so broad, they’re useful for guiding your understanding of a text, particularly as you’re reading it. They also provide a great foundation for essay planning since you can draw on events across the text to explore a certain theme.

Identifying and Using Motifs & Symbols

While themes can generally appear in texts without the author needing to make too much of an effort, motifs and symbols have to be used really consciously . A lot of interactions might just be natural to the plot, but the author has to take extra care to insert a symbol or motif into the story.

To identify either, pay attention to objects that might feel unusual or even unnecessary to the scene at first - from the examples above, Gatsby showing Daisy his shirts might seem like a strange detail to include, but it’s actually an important symbol in that moment. Then, you go into the brainstorming of what the object could represent - in this case, Gatsby’s newfound wealth. Symbols in particular often appear at turning points : the relationship between two characters might take a turn, an important sacrifice might be made or perhaps someone crosses a point of no return - all of these are potential plot points for the author to include symbols. For motifs , look more for repetition . If we’re always coming back to an image or an object, like Daisy’s green light or Lisa Fremont’s dresses, then it’s likely that image or object has significance.

Symbols and motifs can be more subtle than themes, but they will also help to set your essay apart if you find a way to include them. You’d usually include them as a piece of evidence (with or without a quote) and analyse what they tell us about a theme. For example:

‍ On the surface, Gatsby appears to be financially successful. Over several years, he has acquired many material belongings in order to demonstrate his great wealth. For example, Fitzgerald includes a scene featuring Gatsby tossing his many ‘beautiful’ shirts onto Daisy, who sobs as she admires them. This display of wealth represents the superficial natures of both characters, who prize material belongings over the substance of their relationship.

You don’t need a quote that’s too long or overpowering ; just capture the essence of the symbol or motif and focus on what it represents. This is a really good way to show examiners how you’ve thought about a text’s construction, and the choices an author has made on what to include and why. To learn more about text construction, have a read of What Is Metalanguage?

Writing an Analysing Argument (or Language Analysis) essay can be difficult, and sometimes selecting language that won’t sound repetitive is the tricky part. If you’re looking for ways to overcome that hurdle and make your writing sound more formal, then this is the blog for you. 

In these tables are simple sentence starters you can use to formalise and clarify your ideas in a non-repetitive way. This blog takes into account the most important elements of a Language Analysis, such as analysing visuals and connecting a technique back to the author’s intention (that is, what they want the audience to think/feel/do). 

Within these tables, I’ve included a sentence example for each phrase. The examples are in response to a fictional article by Samantha Pearson, What’s wrong with using online lingo in everyday life?. The article is about Gen Z's use of online lingo and argues that the concern surrounding its potential implications is unfounded. If you’d like to see the entire original article and an A+ essay written in response (along with a number of other sample articles and high-scoring essays), you’ll find all of this and more in How To Write A Killer Language Analysis .

If you’d like to see a detailed guide on Language Analysis, including what you're expected to cover, how to prepare for your SAC and Exam and more, check out our Ultimate Guide to VCE Language Analysis .

We’ve explored themes, literary devices and characters and development amongst other things over on our After Darkness by Christine Piper blog post. If you need a quick refresher or you’re new to studying this text, I highly recommend checking it out!

Here, we’ll be breaking down an After Darkness essay topic using LSG’s THINK and EXECUTE strategy , a technique to help you write better VCE essays. If you’re unfamiliar with this strategy, you can learn about it in our How To Write A Killer Text Response study guide.

Within the THINK strategy, we have 3 steps, or ABC. These ABC components are:

Step 1: A nalyse

Step 2: B rainstorm

Step 3: C reate a Plan

Let’s get into it!

The Prompt: 

‘While Ibaraki clearly suffers the consequences of his actions, it is those closest to him who pay the highest price. Discuss.’

Step 1: Analyse

This is a theme-based prompt, and the keywords are: suffer, consequence, actions and highest price . You want to explore both the evidence that supports the statement and also any evidence that may offer a contradiction to the statement. From here you can find the definition of the keywords to help develop some questions to explore.

Step 2: Brainstorm

To suffer is to be affected by or subject to something unpleasant. 

• Is Ibaraki the only one who suffers? Who else suffers? Kayoko, Johnny, Stan, Sister Bernice.
• How do characters deal with their suffering differently? Kayoko and Sister Bernice abandon their relationships with Ibaraki, Johnny becomes agitated and spiteful, Stan becomes depressed. 

A consequence is a result of an action. 

• Are the consequences negative or positive? Johnny being outspoken in the internment camp angers the traditionalist Japanese, but creates a sense of kinship amongst the half-blood Japanese. 
• Can characters overcome these consequences or learn from them? Ibaraki eventually learns from his mistakes and grows as a result. 

An action is the process of doing something, typically to achieve an aim. 

• Is it Ibaraki’s actions, or lack thereof that lead to consequences? It is often his silence and obedience that cause trouble. For example, not telling Kayoko about his work leads to the failure of their marriage.  
• Is it only Ibaraki who makes mistakes? Sister Bernice ignores her religion to confess her love for Ibaraki. 
• What are the factors that cause the characters to act in the way that they do? Ibaraki’s guilt and fear of authority and judgement prevent him from speaking up on multiple occasions.  

Highest price refers to Ibaraki’s suffering being above all else. 

• Is this true? Ibaraki loses his dignity, his friends, his wife, his unborn child, his family, his job and his freedom. However, he does partially regain these.  
• Who suffers the most? Kayoko has a miscarriage and her marriage to Ibaraki fails. Stan is assaulted by other internees and is eventually killed by a guard. Johnny becomes an outcast in his community and is bullied by other internees.  

At this point, you can begin to group your ideas and evidence from the text to support your claims.

Throughout the novel, Piper uses a variety of literary devices including dialogue, simile and foreshadowing to convey her message of every action having a consequence . The most prominent of these is her use of imagery and metaphor which she uses to illustrate Ibaraki’s guilt and the way it impacts his actions. However, the story is not only centred around Ibaraki. Piper also highlights that people will often face consequences no matter what decision they make. She does this through her use of foil characters (characters who are used to highlight a particular trait in another character). For example, Ibaraki’s fear and obedience are emphasised by the courage of Kayoko and Johnny Chang. These characters, alongside Ibaraki, face suffering as a result of their actions. 

From these ideas, the main themes I am going to explore are what factors affect the character’s actions, and how the consequences of these actions can lead to negative, but also positive change. 

Step 3: Create a Plan

Paragraph 1:

• Whilst the novel centres around Ibaraki’s actions and their consequences, he is not the only character that makes mistakes and is forced to face the repercussions.

Paragraph 2:

• It is not necessarily Ibaraki’s actions, but lack of action that often results in the suffering of those around him. Consider the reasons for his lack of action: his blind devotion to authority, his fear of judgement, his ongoing guilt and regret from previous situations.
• Ibaraki’s lack of action acts as a perpetuating factor for the suffering of those closest to him, but it is not the only factor.

Paragraph 3:

• Ibaraki may pay the highest price for his actions. The structure of the storyline to include a chapter from Ibaraki’s perspective years later indicates that these consequences have ultimately led to positive change.

Now it is time to write the essay!

Set during the Pacific War, Christine Piper’s After Darkness explores the difficulties and misfortunes many face during wartime. Depicting the rise and fall of Japan’s war efforts (1) , After Darkness highlights that all actions have consequences of varying severity, particularly those of protagonist Dr Ibaraki Tomokazu. Throughout the novel, Ibaraki’s lack of action perpetuates the suffering of those closest to him, however, this is shown to be one of many factors and often initiates positive change within him, allowing his character to develop. Fundamentally, After Darkness highlights that change can only occur if people face the repercussions of their actions. (2)

Annotations (1) In the introduction, it is important to introduce the text with context . As After Darkness is predominantly set in 1942 during wartime in both Japan and Australia, it is important to include this in the introduction in order to explore the essay topic with a complete understanding. 

(2) Another key part of the introduction is to briefly introduce the topics you will discuss throughout the essay.

Throughout the novel, Piper emphasises the idea that all actions have consequences, however, this idea is not limited to Ibaraki. Across the three novel strands, protagonist Dr Tomokazu Ibaraki’s suffering as a result of his mistakes is depicted through both his internal and external dialogue. Ibaraki makes many significant mistakes throughout his lifetime, one of these being his failure to perform a dissection of a child when working at Unit 731. Despite ‘not [being] [him]self’ (3) when asked to perform the operation, Ibaraki is promptly fired. His termination of employment is not the only consequence of his failure, as shame continues to take over his confidence. This is illustrated when he was ‘unable to go on’ during an operation in Broome, despite being in a completely different scenario. Through Ibaraki’s flashback of ‘Black dots on a child’s belly’, Piper indicates the torment and lasting effects of consequences on an individual (4) . Whilst the novel centres around his mistakes, it is revealed that Ibaraki is not the only character who is forced to face the repercussions of their actions. Despite acting as foils for Ibaraki and presenting many different qualities, Australian internees Johnny Chang and Stan Suzuki also struggle immensely to overcome the results of their behaviours. Johnny Chang’s outspoken nature is often shown to cause disruption among the camp, for example, labelling the imperialist Japanese as ‘emperor worshipping pig’s.’ In standing for his beliefs, Johnny creates a tense division within groups, leading to the half Australian internees being treated like ‘outcasts’. Conversely, Stan’s introverted behaviour results in his eventual death (5) . Piper’s contention that all actions have consequences is arguably enforced strongly through Stan’s death, as it results from the failure of many characters to act. Ibaraki’s inability to open up, Johnny’s selfishness and Stan’s loss of self are inevitably all factors leading to his eventual demise. This is ultimately reinforced when Johnny states ‘It should’ve been me Doc’, indicating he has finally realised his role in the tragedy.

Annotations (3) In order to embed quotes , words, prefixes and suffixes can be added to ensure the sentence flows correctly. However, you must indicate that you have edited the quote by placing your changes in square brackets. Here, the original quote was ‘not myself’ but it has been changed to fit the sentence. 

(4) Whilst it is important to include quotes, it is even more important that you analyse how the author uses the quote to convey a message. In this case, the example of one of Ibaraki’s many flashbacks is used to bear Piper’s belief that one cannot escape the repercussions of their actions.

(5) Comparison is a powerful way of exploring the author’s ideas throughout the text. Here, Johnny’s outspoken nature is contrasted with Stan’s ‘introverted behaviour’, yet both concede repercussions. This supports the idea that all actions have consequences, no matter their nature.

Ibaraki’s lack of action acts as a perpetuating factor for the suffering of those closest to him, however, it is not the only factor. After Darkness shows the faults in many of Ibaraki’s actions, suggesting his mistakes lead to the misfortunes of many of those around him but this is only partially true. Stan Suzuki’s death is a pivotal moment in the novel where Ibaraki begins to truly express his emotions and open up about the pain he feels (6). Ibaraki realises that he ‘could have done something’ when opening up to the investigators of Stan’s death, leading to the conclusion that Ibaraki is to blame. Piper illustrates that suffering results as a combination of factors through the later revelations of Johnny’s escape attempt and the instability of the ‘trigger-happy’ guard who shot Stan. This idea is reinforced through the breakdowns of Ibaraki’s close relationships with Kayoko and Sister Bernice. Whilst Ibaraki’s emotionally distant nature catalysed the loss of these significant relationships, it was not the only factor. Both Kayoko and Sister Bernice are structured with similar characteristics in the novel, one being their confidence and strength in their beliefs. Nevertheless, both women lack this characteristic when it comes to their relationship with Ibaraki (7) . Ibaraki admits his separation from Kayoko is his ‘greatest regret’, and whilst the first-person perspective does not give an insight into Kayoko’s side, she is shown to lack her usual self-assuredness. Similarly, Ibaraki’s allowance of ‘silence [to] stretch between…’ him and Sister Bernice is hurtful and a failure on his behalf, yet she still willingly confesses her feelings, aware of the risks involved. This is evident when ‘her eyes dart away from [his]’, implying she is ashamed of her statement as it contradicts her religion and the terms of their work relationship and friendship. This results in an abrupt end to their friendship as the embarrassment of the repercussions of her actions overwhelm Sister Bernice. Whilst the series of mistakes that Ibaraki makes throughout the novel show that his actions cause grief for both him and the people around him, they also highlight that the misfortune of others is not always the fault of one individual.

Annotations (6) Referring to specific events in the text is extremely useful to support your ideas and claims. However, it is important that you avoid over-explaining the event, as this will lead to you retelling , rather than analysing the text. See How To Avoid Retelling the Story for more tips. 

(7) An often-overlooked literary device is the use of foils . A foil is a character that is used to highlight a particular trait in another character, often a flaw. In this case, Piper uses the similarities between Kayoko and Sister Bernice, and the ultimate failure of their relationships. This highlights Ibaraki’s repetition of his mistakes, which we can attribute to his ongoing guilt. 

Ibaraki ultimately pays the highest price for his actions; although this is shown to result in positive change. Through her descriptions of Australia and Japan, Piper uses the juxtaposition of light and dark imagery to illustrate how suffering can lead to learning and growth. Facing racism in Broome when labelled as a ‘Bloody Jap…’, trauma from his experiences in Unit 731 and hardship during his internment at Loveday, Ibaraki is constantly a victim of circumstance. Even so, the pressures and torment of these events force him to seek the support of others. The colourful descriptions of the ‘pink spur of land crested with green’ foreshadow the positive change to come for Ibaraki (8) . This becomes evident when Ibaraki finally opens up to Stan in the infirmary about his separation from Kayoko. Ibaraki’s development as a character continues as he learns to trust despite the unfair circumstances of being interned. Although memories of trees haunting the river’s edge ‘like lost people’ and the bark of red trees appearing ‘like blistered skin’ continue to plague Ibaraki’s conscience, they force him to confront his past and in turn begin to heal. Through the retrospective novel, Piper describes Japan as where ‘darkness crowded the corners’ and Ibaraki worked ‘in the basement’, indicating his misguided obedience and attachment to silence. This not only illustrates (9) Ibaraki’s trauma, but emphasises his drastic development through his experiences. The importance of the consequences Ibaraki has faced throughout his lifetime are reinforced in the final pages of the novel after he reads Sister Bernice’s letter and has an epiphany. The discovery that he had ‘clung to the ideal of discretion’ creates a sense of hope for Ibaraki’s future and emphasises his newfound understanding of life through the consequences he has faced. (10)

Annotations (8) Ensure you don’t just randomly place quotes throughout the essay, but instead, analyse them to give them meaning. An easy way to do this is by including the quote , its connotations and what emotions or ideas they provoke, followed by why the author has used it. In this case, the quote was the ‘pink spur of land crested with green.’ Its connotations were positive such as colour, happiness, and hope. These connotations were used to foreshadow positive change. 

(9) Using a variety of vocabulary such as ‘illustrates’, ‘explores’ and ‘demonstrates’ shows that you are not only identifying what the author is doing but that you understand how and why they have done it in this way. This is ultimately the goal of a text response essay. 

(10) It is important to ensure the flow of your essay to show sophistication in your writing. It is not only the ideas you have, but the way in which you convey and explain them that ultimately indicates your understanding of the text. A simple way to do this is to use a summary sentence at the end of each topic that subscribes to the idea and links to the previous or following paragraph. 

Essentially After Darkness highlights the necessity of facing consequences for our actions to promote learning and growth. Whilst Ibaraki and many other characters suffered as a result of their behaviour, Piper asserts that Ibaraki is not the overall perpetrator but ultimately pays the highest price of all. (11)

Annotations (11) Just like the introduction, the conclusion is a brief summary of the discussion topics throughout your text response. Most importantly, after exploring all of the evidence you must form a stance in relation to the essay topic. Many students believe that this needs to be a simple and definite yes or no, which is not the case. Instead, I have suggested that Ibaraki is not the only one to blame for other character’s suffering, but that ultimately, he paid the highest price. Check out 5 Tips for a Mic-Drop Worthy Essay Conclusion if you need more help finishing your essay off with a bang!

If you found this essay breakdown helpful, then you might want to check out our After Darkness Study Guide which includes 5 A+ sample essays with EVERY essay annotated and broken down on HOW and WHY these essays achieved A+ so you reach your English goals!

After Darkness is usually studied in the Australian curriculum under Area of Study 1 - Text Response. For a detailed guide on Text Response, check out our Ultimate Guide to VCE Text Response .

‍ Station Eleven is usually studied in the Australian curriculum under Area of Study 1 - Text Response. For a detailed guide on Text Response, check out our Ultimate Guide to VCE Text Response .

Breaking Down a Station Eleven Essay Prompt

We've explored themes, characters, symbols and provided a summary of the text over on our Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel blog post. If you need a quick refresher or you’re new to studying this text, I highly recommend checking it out!

Here, we’ll be breaking down a Station Eleven essay topic using LSG’s THINK and EXECUTE strategy , a technique to help you write better VCE essays. If you’re unfamiliar with this strategy, you can learn about it in our How To Write A Killer Text Response study guide.

Without further ado, let’s get into it!

The Prompt: ' The distortion of memories can be harmful.' Do you agree?

The first thing to note about this prompt is that it's a theme-based prompt, focussing specifically on the theme of memory, which plays a significant role throughout the novel! But more specifically, it's asking directly about the impacts distorted (i.e. misrepresentative/twisted/warped) memories have on individuals, and whether this is harmful or not. So ultimately, you have to look at which memories are distorted throughout the novel, and evaluate whether this process is ultimately helpful to the characters or not.

Not sure what we mean by ‘theme-based prompt’? Then, you’ll want to learn more about the 5 types of essay prompts here .

‍ Step 2: Brainstorm

• Many characters' memories are altered significantly from what actually occurred - this is especially relevant for the characters living after the pandemic, as memories naturally distort over a 20-year period
• The two main characters we see whose memories are altered the most are Tyler and Kirsten - both of whom were children during the collapse of civilisation
• For Tyler, his recollections of the past are all dominated by violence and this has a significant impact on his worldview. One could very easily argue that it is this distorted view of reality that ultimately leads to the formation of his cult and the subsequent harm he inflicts
• Thus, in the case of Tyler, it is quite clear that the distortion of memories has been quite harmful
• However, on the other hand, Kirsten has had to commit unspeakable acts, (as implied by her being unable to remember her past/childhood), but this is seen as a coping mechanism, allowing her to move forward in life
• Thus, for Kirsten, the manipulation of her memories through her forgetting is ultimately rather positive!
• Memory distortion doesn't just relate to these two characters - it also affects Clark quite severely
• He is shown to be quite unhappy in the pre-apocalyptic world, which is a stark contrast to his fulfilment by the end of the novel. What causes this?
• This can be attributed to his distortion of memories which allows him to view the old world in a far more positive manner, with significant nostalgia
• Thus, like Kirsten, Clark's distortion of memories is also presented as largely beneficial
• So ultimately, while there are downsides to manipulating one's memories (Tyler), Mandel shows that distorting memories is largely a positive coping mechanism for many characters!

From my brainstorming, I'll be approaching the essay with the following contention: 

Distorting memories can be harmful but more often is beneficial.

Now it's time to work out our paragraph ideas.

P1: Tyler's distortion of memories is largely detrimental and therefore harmful because they are tainted with violence and thus exacerbate his suffering.

P2: However, Kirsten uses this as a coping mechanism, enabling her to move forward from the trauma associated with the collapse of society and therefore the distortion of memories is necessary in her case.

P3: Further, Clark's rose-tinted view of the past world allows him to come to terms with the collapse of society and again is beneficial.

While Emily St. John Mandel's post-apocalyptic novel Station Eleven illustrates the harm which can be associated with the distortion of memories, it ultimately expounds on the benefits which can be garnered by those who alter their perceptions of reality given how this can serve as an invaluable coping mechanism to process trauma. The non-linear structure of her novel, achieved through the interweaving of pre- and post-lapsarian scenes (1) , allows her to sculpt parallels between her characters who are able to accurately recall both the positives and the negatives of the 'modern world'. She thus advocates that whilst the distortion of memories can perpetuate and enable violence, it can alternatively result in tangible benefits when utilised in a positive manner, thus exposing Mandel's credence in how this can actually serve to benefit individuals and entire communities as a whole.

Annotations (1) It is really useful to show an understanding of how the novel has been constructed and why - so through Station Eleven not following a traditional model of time, this allows Mandel to really contrast between her characters - namely Kirsten and Tyler.

Mandel expounds (2) how the distortion of memories can ultimately exacerbate the suffering experienced by vast sectors of the community, arguing that it is this which actively perpetuates harm due to the inability of humans to adequately process trauma, particularly trauma which stems from one's childhood given the loss of innocence which accompanies this. Indeed, Tyler, who was characterised as a young boy during the 'neutron bomb' of the Georgia Flu and the subsequent destruction of civilisation 'had the misfortune of remembering everything', ultimately resulting in dire consequences for the majority of characters who interact with him. Mandel condemns Tyler's innate desire to justify the pandemic, arguing his inability to forget, process and fully comprehend ‘the blood drenched years of the collapse’ drives the creation of his cult which eventually perpetuates great suffering. This ultimately results in significant consequences, thus allowing her to denounce how the distortion of memories (with Tyler's recollections largely being defined by extreme violence and gore) can be extremely harmful. Indeed, 'ruling with a combination of charisma, violence and cherry-picked verses from the Book of Revelations', Tyler damages the overwhelming majority of people he comes into contact with, from having numerous 'child brides' to rendering the town of St. Deborah by the Water 'unsafe' to his cult containing only a few 'true believers', (3) serving as the embodiment of humanity's insatiable lust for power. Through his reciting of only phrases from the Book of Revelations, labelled the most exclusionary and brutal book of the New Testament (4) , Mandel condemns the selectivity of Tyler's beliefs, advocating that his internalisation of only the most harmful and violent phrases exemplifies the lack of benefits associated with violently distorting memories given the inability of humans to process such immense trauma and suffering. Whilst Mandel explains Tyler's actions as stemming from the violence underpinning his childhood, particularly given that he was raised by a 'lunatic' whom others deemed 'unsaveable', she dispels the notion that this excuses them, arguing the degree of hardships inflicted by Tyler himself are unjustifiable, thus further exposing her credence in the necessity of being able to forget harmful memories in order to overcome them. Ultimately, through her portrayal of Tyler's inability to forget his childhood as 'a boy adrift on the road', Mandel reveals the potential for harm to be imposed due to the distortion of memories so that they are marked by violence, arguing that this can indeed be overwhelmingly dangerous.

Annotations (2) It is great to use action words such as 'expounds' instead of the basic 'shows’ as this demonstrates a more in-depth understanding of the author’s views and values (ensuring you meet VCAA Criteria 2: Views and Values ).

(3) When making claims such as that Tyler harms 'the majority of people he comes into contact with', it is great to show multiple examples, so that your claims are properly backed up with appropriate evidence!

(4) This is a really great point to draw out that other students may not consider - Tyler never references any other components of the New Testament and only focuses on the most violent sections of one particular book.

However, Mandel also displays a belief in the positives which can be gleaned by those who inherently distort their memories as a mechanism to process traumatic times in their lives, arguing this can provoke significant, tangible benefits. Conveyed through the non-linear structure of her novel, Mandel sculpts parallels between Tyler and Kristen given their similar ages and respective connections to protagonist Arthur through him serving as their father and father figure respectively, with the significant difference being that only the latter was able to forget 'the year [she] spent on the road…the worst of it' (5) . As such, only Kirsten is able to adequately move on from this extremely traumatic period in her life, exemplifying Mandel's credence in how the distortion of memories can truly serve as an invaluable coping mechanism allowing individuals to overcome significant harm, with Kirsten experiencing a large degree of post-lapsarian fulfilment given her 'friendships' with her fellow members of the Travelling Symphony, her 'only home'. Despite Kirsten's past being underpinned by significant violence, with her having three 'knife tattoos' to commemorate those she has had to kill in order to survive, her continued ability to adapt her memories into less traumatic ones is applauded, with her murders having been portrayed as occurring 'slowly…sound drained from the earth' as a way for her to process 'these men [which she] will carry with [her] for the rest of [her] life', thereby exposing Mandel's credence in the necessity of being able to overcome trauma through distorting memories. As such, she ironically went on to perform Romeo and Juliet following one such event which, given Mandel's depiction of the unparalleled significance of artistic forms of expressionism facilitating human wellbeing as Kirsten 'never feels more alive' than when she performs, exposes Mandel's illumination of how altering false realities (6) can ultimately provoke tangible benefits given Kirsten's ability to simply move on despite the traumatising nature of the truth. Ultimately, through the juxtaposition between Tyler and Kirstens' distortion (7) of memories, Mandel expounds how distorting memories can wield both consequences and benefits, with the latter occurring when employed subconsciously by individuals to process harmful memories.

Annotations (5) It is quite sophisticated to go back to the construction of the novel throughout the essay (as opposed to just briefly mentioning it in the introduction!). This shows you truly understand why the author structured the novel the way she did, which in this case is to highlight the similarities and differences between Kristen and Tyler.

(6) Try to avoid repeating 'distortion of memories' every single time - it is great to use synonyms such as 'false realities', but make sure you're using the right words (see annotation 2 for more information).

(7) Note how this links back to paragraph 1 (given that these two points are so similar and go off of one another) which makes the essay flow better. We are showing that our argument is well-structured and follows logical patterns.

Furthermore, Mandel similarly explores the benefits of utilising the distortion of memories as a coping mechanism and how, especially when this is done through the lens of nostalgia, it can facilitate unprecedented satisfaction. Indeed, Clark is depicted to be the literal embodiment of post-lapsarian fulfilment (8) given his ability to, albeit through rose-tinted glasses, appreciate the 'taken-for-granted miracles' of the 'former world' through his position as the 'Curator' at the 'Museum of Civilisation'. Subsequently, he serves to expose Mandel's belief in the benefits of altering one's recollections in an overwhelmingly positive manner. As such, Clark 'spend[s] more time in the past…letting his memories overtake him' as he maintains integral cultural artefacts which 'had no practical use but that people wanted to preserve'. This ultimately eventuates into a significant degree of fulfilment for not only Clark himself, but also the other residents of the Severn City Airport, the children of whom 'like all educated children everywhere….memorise abstractions' of the pre-lapsarian society, with the entire Airport community revelling in the everyday 'beauty' of objects not typically appreciated by the general populace. In doing so Mandel highlights her belief regarding the significance underpinning the benefits which can be gained from those whose memories are distorted to cope with losses in a positive manner, arguing this can enable a substantial increase in wellbeing. This is exacerbated through the juxtaposition in Clark's pre- and post-lapsarian fulfilment, for in the former he is denigrated as merely an unhappy 'minimally present...high functioning sleepwalker' (9) . Overall, through her portrayal of Clark's satisfaction despite his elderly status and the loss of everyone dear to him, Mandel exposes her belief in the value of distorting one's memories in an overwhelmingly positive manner, advocating this can facilitate the forming of one's intrinsic purpose and thus fulfilment.

Annotations (8) You want to show how characters correlate to specific themes, and if one embodies a particular idea, then you should clearly state that! It shows examiners you really know your stuff. See this blog for more about the themes and characters in Station Eleven . 

(9) Again, you want to clearly highlight how Clark is distorting his memories, including by providing evidence to back up your claim.

Ultimately, Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven exemplifies the limitations of the human psyche when affected by trauma, arguing that the distortion of memories can have either a positive or negative impact upon the individual. Whilst she cautions her audience against the dangers of adhering to selective recollections, she simultaneously presents the benefits which can be garnered from this, alongside the ability to liberate oneself from such harmful memories.

For more Station Eleven writing samples, check out this blog post , which compares three different paragraphs and analyses how they improve upon one another.

If you found this essay breakdown helpful, then you might want to check out our Station Eleven Study Guide where we cover 5 A+ sample essays with EVERY essay annotated and broken down on HOW and WHY these essays achieved A+ so you reach your English goals!

We've explored themes, characters, literary devices and historical context amongst other things over on our Women of Troy by Euripides blog post. If you need a quick refresher or you’re new to studying this text, I highly recommend checking it out as well as our Ultimate Guide to VCE Text Response .

Here, we’ll be breaking down a Women of Troy essay topic using LSG’s THINK and EXECUTE strategy , a technique to help you write better VCE essays. If you’re unfamiliar with this strategy, you can learn about it in our How To Write A Killer Text Response study guide.

Step 1: A nalyse Step 2: B rainstorm Step 3: C reate a Plan

The Prompt: ‘“We are loot my son and I, soldiers’ plunder.” Discuss how Euripides highlights the plight of women taken as slaves in war.’ 

The first thing to note about this prompt is that it is a 'how’ question , it is essentially asking us to identify the literary techniques Euripides has employed in order to ‘highlight’ the women’s ‘plight’. The noun ‘plight’ is defined as a troublesome or unfortunate situation, yet we must consider this word in the context of war. How do the women suffer? In other words, how does Euripides demonstrate to his reader just how dejected the women are as slaves?

It is relatively simple to identify the literary techniques which consistently appear throughout Euripides’ play, such as imagery, metaphor and simile ( not entirely sure what literary techniques are? We have a list of them for you here ). However, keeping in mind we have to form three paragraphs, we should consider Euripides’ authorial voice more broadly. For example, the women consistently lament their disillusionment with the gods. This is not a literary technique in itself, but it is still a literary choice which Euripides has made and which has been deepened with more specific literary devices like metaphor. The same could be said for the women’s struggle for hope, and the contrast between their joyous pasts and dismal futures.

Unlike a ‘to what extent’ question, we do not have to form an argument. Instead, we must forge a discussion of Euripides’ literary decisions as a playwright.

P1: Euripides juxtaposes the triumphant pasts of the Trojan women with their tragic futures. The 'shining citadels of Troy' are now a 'black smokened ruin’.

P2: Euripides illuminates the women’s attempts to retain futile hope. Note that hope also comes in the form of revenge.

P3: The dramatic irony of the play renders the women’s desperate calls upon the gods all the more tragic. Here, we can also make reference to the prologue, and Athene’s ploy to create a storm on the Greeks’ journey home which also ultimately affects the women.

At the heart of the conflict in The Women of Troy , lies the anguished 'suffering' (1) of the Trojan women as they confront their fates as 'slaves', and remember their pasts as wives and mothers. In his tragedy, first performed in Athens circa 415 BCE, Euripides amplifies the conflicted voices of the Trojan women, voices which are by contrast suppressed and disregarded in the Homeric works the Iliad and the Odyssey . Euripides’ stark dichotomy between the glories and 'rituals' of the past, and the sombre 'grief' of the present, elucidate the magnitude of their losses, both material and moral. For as Andromache laments, these women have been objectified as 'loot', mere spoils of war to be abused and exploited. (2) The women’s tendency to clutch onto chimerical (3) hopes and values only serves to further illuminate the profundity of their suffering once these ambitions have been brutally quashed in the 'dust' of their 'smoke blackened ruin' of Troy. Perhaps most significantly, Euripides juxtaposes the lingering though pitiful hope of the women with the gods’ complete 'desert[ion]' of Troy, positioning the women in an ironic chasm of cruel abandonment. Thus, the plight of women as wartime captives is dramatised by Euripides, corralling the audience into an ultimate stance of pity and empathy.

Annotations: (1) It is often useful to embed short/one word quotes in your essay (we teach you how in How To Embed Quotes in Your Essay Like a Boss ). It shows you have a great understanding of the text, and reads fluidly as opposed to overly long quotes.

‍ (2) Here, I have addressed the quote in the prompt in a single sentence, unpacking Euripides’ analogy of Andromache and Astyanax as ‘loot’. By comparing the two characters to war spoils, he is suggesting that they have been stripped of their free will and autonomy.

‍ (3) It is really important to vary your vocabulary in order to increase the sophistication of your essay. The adjective ‘chimerical’ refers to an ideal which is impossible to achieve.  

Euripides’ juxtaposition between the dismal future of the Trojan women and the zenith of their pasts, further illuminates the chasm of their sufferings and losses as the ultimate victims of wartime atrocities. Chiefly, Euripides contrasts Hecuba’s former royal status with the demoralizing fate of her captivity, encapsulating this tragic fall from nobility with the ironic imagery, 'throned in the dust’. Yet perhaps what truly emphasises her plight as a slave is her enduring role as a maternal figure of leadership, encapsulated in her regard of the chorus as '[her] children' and her reciprocated address as 'dear queen' and 'your mother'. Despite the 'death agony' she feels, she chooses to maintain her nobility through the depth of her morality, dramatizing the pitiful nature of her plight (4) . Moreover, Euripides’ juxtaposition between the 'shining citadels of Troy' and the 'misery' of the chorus elucidates the significance of 'home', a source of solace which has been barbarically stripped away from them. Likewise, Andromache laments her past as a dutiful and faithful wife, contrasting her fidelity against her fate as a 'concubine' to the formidable Neoptolemus (5) . Euripides implies that Andromache must abandon her reputation as the 'perfect wife' – the very attribute for which she was chosen especially – doomed to confront a life of sexual slavery, an unwilling mother of Neoptolemus’ children.

Annotations: (4) Here, I have used the word ‘plight’, making sure I am engaging directly with the prompt. It is often easy to fall into the trap of creating a generalised essay which only loosely adheres to the question. 

‍ (5) It is more sophisticated to specify the name of Andromache’s husband (Neoptolemus), rather than to just simply state ‘Andromache’s husband’ (even though he is not featured as a character in Euripides’ play).

Euripides (6) characterises the women by their tendency to clutch on to 'hope[s]' and ideals that are impossible to fulfil. Almost a coping mechanism of sorts, the chorus paradoxically romanticise the Greek landscape in the first episode, lauding the 'sacred halls', 'green fields', 'beautiful river[s]' and 'wealth' of Hellas. Yet, their ardent critiques of their future 'home[s]' rejects any notion that the women truly believe these glorifications of the Greek realm. Similarly, Hecuba is motivated by her futile hope that Astyanax may one day seek vengeance and be 'the savior of Troy' by 'rebuild[ing]' the city. Yet tragically, this doomed hope is violently quashed by Odysseus 'blind panic' and acute lack of rationality: the 'liar' and 'deceiver' who 'lead the Greek council' in their debate. Though this hope initially provides her with some form of solace, all comfort is dashed with the announcement of his 'butchery'. Likewise, Cassandra is motivated by her own pursuit for revenge, lauding her 'sacred marriage' to Agamemnon as an event worthy of 'praise' and 'celebration'. Yet her hope is also jaded, for she must in the process 'flout all religious feeling' as a slave of Agamemnon’s 'lust', until she meets her painful hour of death at Clytemnestra’s hands.

Annotations: (6) Notice that several of the sentences have begun with ‘Euripides characterises’ or ‘Euripides illuminates’, engaging with the ‘how’ part of the prompt. We are showing what the author has done and why.

Ironically, Euripides illuminates the plight of the Trojan women through his dramatic elucidation of the gods’ callous abandonment of the ruined Troy. Euripides juxtaposes the past 'rituals', 'dances', 'songs', 'sacrifices', 'offerings' and 'ceremonies' of the chorus with their bitter laments that 'the gods hate Troy' and that they are ultimately characterised by avarice. They are neither answered not consoled in their ultimate time of mourning, for the audience is aware that Poseidon has fled the scene in the prologue, disillusioned by the 'ceas[ing]' of 'worship', leaving 'nothing (…) worth a god’s consideration' in the fallen city. What is also rendered ironic by Euripides, is Athene’s formidable ploy to 'make the Greeks’ return home a complete disaster.' Regardless of Athene’s true motives for instigating this ultimate pursuit of comeuppance, the fact remains that the women too must endure this perilous journey to Greece. Not only are the despairing wives, mothers and daughters condemned to 'abject slavery' on foreign soil, they are 'innocent: victims who may – alongside the Greeks – find themselves on the shores of Euboea, among the 'float[ing] (…) corpses' of the Greek soldiers. They are not simply abandoned by the gods, they are, directly or indirectly, punished. (7)

Annotations: (7) This is a more original point which other students may not automatically think of. We often view Athene’s ‘ploy’ as a deserved punishment of the ‘murderous’ Greeks, yet there is no true justice, for the women too are ultimately affected.

In a play which serves to fill the silence of the Trojan women in the legendary works of the Iliad and the Odyssey (8) , Euripides augments the pitiful plight of the Trojan women with agonizing references to past 'happiness', and equally unbearable forecasts of their roles as 'slaves' of Greek lust. They are indeed 'loot' and they are indeed 'plunder' – as Andromache so bitterly laments – yet their plight is recorded in the works of 'poets' to come, remembered as a legacy of stoicism 'a hundred generations hence.' Taken as our 'great theme', these women are 'sufferer[s]', yet they are also heroes.

Annotations: (8) Just as I have done in the introduction, I have referred to the context of the play in the conclusion. The Iliad and the Odyssey provided the framework for Euripides’ play, so by referencing Homer’s works we are showing the examiner that we have an understanding of the historical context. 

If you'd like to dive deeper into Women of Troy, check out our A Killer Text Guide: Women of Troy study guide. In it, we teach you how to how to think like a 50 study scorer through advanced discussions on topics such as views and values and metalanguage, we provide you with 5 A+ sample essays that are fully annotated and everything is broken down into easy-to-understand concepts so that students of all levels can understand and apply what we teach!!

The idea of VCE English assessments can sometimes be a bit daunting. Always so much you want to write, never as much time as you need and they always seem to come around sooner than you think. But there is never as much cause for alarm as you think and I’m willing to guarantee that almost everyone reading this is so much better than they think at English . 

You’ve already come so far from where you started in your high school English journey. I’d like to challenge anyone reading this to go and find the earliest English essay you’ve got tucked away somewhere. I’ve done this myself and, if yours is anything like mine, you’ll be almost disgusted by what you find. Year-7-me just loved to retell the story, cling to my rigid TEEL formulas and leave my quotes just dangling, write the same basic paragraph three times and call it a complete essay. Not a pretty read and I’m sure a couple of you can relate. But, this exercise does at least prove a very valuable point: you are capable of improving at English .

So let’s start thinking about that essay you’ve got coming up again. You’ve just given yourself a nice confidence booster with that walk down memory lane, reminding yourself that you are a more-than-capable English student these days. But all you now want to do is your very best for this next essay. But how do you keep improving between now and then? After all, if you knew what you had to do to improve your English, you’d already be doing it, right? So what we’re going to do now is to have a look at what taking your essays to that next level really looks like; how you can improve your writing between now and then, whenever that might be. 

So to do this, we’re going to take an already good paragraph and improve it together. Take this one, one that I conveniently prepared earlier to a Station Eleven prompt that has to do with the theme of memory/history.

Part 1: The Good Paragraph

Q: Mandel shows the importance of remembering the past. To what extent is this true?

A: In Station Eleven, the characters often find meaning from the creation of enduring legacies. Mandel demonstrates this idea through the naming of Jeevan’s son after his brother, Frank. By creating such an enduring legacy for a character who believes in the power of such legacies - 'they’re all immortal to me' - Mandel implies that characters like this are able to achieve meaning and fulfilment by preserving these legacies. Mandel also uses the character of Miranda to highlight the importance of legacies to provide meaning where Miranda lacks it in her day-to-day life. Even though Miranda’s life is left incomplete by her sudden death, the beauty in the scene of her death suggests that a sense of fulfilment has been achieved despite the emptiness of her life relative to other characters: 'its extravagant sunsets and its indigo sea'. Hence, the meaning in her life comes from the legacy that she creates from the art she makes in her 'independent' life. This is contrasted against the character of Arthur, whose legacy does not influence any events in the post-flu world, because of his failure to create legacy or meaning beyond his day-to-day life. Further, Arthur’s death in the hectic Elgin Theatre has far less beauty than that of Miranda, implying less fulfilment in his life. Therefore, Mandel uses her text to demonstrate the value of creating legacies that allow others to remember the past.

Let’s call this our good paragraph. I’ve modelled this off of an essay I found from my Year 10 self, as happy as Year-10-me would have been with this performance, it’s far from perfect. But, it is a very functional paragraph that does all that a paragraph really needs to do. It introduces an idea, justifies it with evidence, links back at the end and doesn’t waste too much time retelling the story. So now we get to the fun bit: we’re going to take this already good paragraph, and turn it into a better paragraph.

So how do we make a good paragraph better ? 

Well, for a start, we can integrate our quotes so that the paragraph reads better . You’ll see in just a second how much of a difference this can make. This is something I learnt to do between Years 10 and 11. Other improvements that could be made include answering the prompt more directly and using some of the language of the prompt within our answers. So let’s change this and see now what these small differences do to our paragraph.

Part 2: The Better Paragraph

A: In Station Eleven, the characters often find meaning from the creation of enduring legacies that allow others to remember the individuals who came before. Mandel demonstrates this idea through the naming of Jeevan’s son after his brother, Frank. By creating this symbolic memorial for a character who believes that such legacies can allow individuals such as actors to become 'immortal', Mandel implies that characters like this are able to achieve meaning and fulfilment through their legacies. Furthermore, Mandel also uses the character of Miranda to highlight the importance of creating a legacy through one’s art to provide meaning where Miranda lacks it in her day-to-day life. Although abruptly killed off in the middle of the text, Mandel imbues her death with a certain beauty through its 'extravagant sunsets and indigo sea'. In doing so, Mandel provides a sense of completion about Miranda’s life and suggests that a sense of fulfilment has been achieved despite the emptiness of her life relative to other characters. Hence, the meaning in her life comes from the legacy that she creates from the art she makes in her 'independent' life. This is contrasted against the character of Arthur, whose legacy does not influence any events in the post-flu world, because of his failure to create legacy or meaning beyond his day-to-day life. Further, Arthur’s death in the hectic Elgin Theatre has far less beauty than that of Miranda, implying less fulfilment in his life. Therefore, Mandel uses her text to demonstrate the importance of creating legacies that allow others to remember the past.

There we have it. The paragraph has been rewritten based on the ones I wrote in Year 11 and we have the first signs of improvement. The topic sentence now references the ‘remembering the past’ aspect of the prompt. The linking sentence now uses the ‘importance’ part of the prompt. All of the same quotes are used but are now integrated (check out How To Embed Quotes in Your Essay Like a Boss if you need more help with this). 

We’ve made sure not to have more than one sentence starting with Mandel (a small nitpick but still a nice addition). It flows better. It answers the prompt more directly and suddenly we have a better paragraph . Year-11-me has shown improvement and with this comes better scores and more confidence: something that’s very important for success in English. If you’re confident and proud of what you’re writing, then you’ll have higher marks and, even better, more fun!

We haven’t changed much and the paragraph is already better . But it’s not my best paragraph. Between Years 11 and 12, I learnt even more things. I was taught to write about not only the world of the text but also the world around us that we and Mandel live in: you’ll notice that this better paragraph talks more about ‘characters’ that live ‘in the text’ whereas my best paragraph would talk more about the text in the context of the world you and I live in . I learnt to make my topic sentences more abstract and broad so that they relate more to our own world and less to the world of the text and remind whoever’s assessing that my ideas apply to everyone and not just within the texts. I learnt to respond more directly to different types of prompts (Discuss, To what extent is this true?, How does Mandel… and others) and I learnt to be more direct in discussing the views and values of Mandel (what she likes, what she doesn’t like, what she wants to see more of in the world)

So let’s apply some final changes, and see what our paragraph looks after two more years of refining English. This final paragraph is almost exactly the same as one I wrote in timed conditions before my final exam.

The Final Part: The Best Paragraph

A: Mandel explores the importance of legacies, not only as sources of meaning for their creators, but also for their roles in allowing others to remember the roles of those who came before. Such an idea is explored through the naming of Jeevan’s son, securing the legacy of Frank. By affording such a permeating influence to an individual who writes of and appreciates the 'immortal[ity]' of long-dead actors, Mandel implies that an appreciation of the inherent value in a legacy and its ability to influence future events is a key quality in individuals. Furthermore, Mandel uses the character of Miranda to highlight the importance of creating a legacy that outlives oneself to provide meaning. Although abruptly killed off in the middle of the text, Mandel imbues her death with a certain beauty through its 'extravagant sunsets and indigo sea'. In doing so, Mandel provides a sense of completion about Miranda’s life and suggests that a sense of fulfilment has been achieved despite the emptiness of her life relative to other characters. Hence, Mandel suggests that the meaning in Miranda’s life comes from the legacy that is the art she makes in her 'independent' life that continues to influence events and allow others to remember the past long after her death. Mandel provides contrast through her exploration of Arthur, whose legacy does not influence any events in the post-flu world because of his failure to create legacy or meaning beyond his day-to-day life. Further, Arthur’s death in the hectic Elgin Theatre has far less beauty than that of Miranda, reinforcing Mandel’s view that individuals who forfeit control of their own legacies, as Arthur does, lead far less completed and fulfilled lives. Therefore, Mandel highlights the immense importance of creating legacies that allow others to remember the past and encourages greater appreciation of the value of legacies in contemporary society.

So, two years later, and we’ve got what is still essentially the same paragraph, just brushed up to an even better, or best , standard. So if we’re using the same evidence, exploring the same characters and introducing the same ideas, why is this paragraph better than the last two?  

Well, if you study the topic and linking sentences, they discuss the concept of a legacy being a means of allowing others to remember the past and the importance of such a thing and everything in-between links this concept to the text. ' Mandel highlights the immense importance' represents a subtle but nice nod to the wording of the prompt by giving an ‘extent’ to which Mandel ‘shows’ or highlights. Every piece of evidence is discussed in reference to what Mandel believes about the world around us and how individuals should act in modern society. 

And there’s something very nice that we can now reflect on. This paragraph has gone from good to much better without having to introduce any new ideas. There are no overly complex interpretations of the text, we’ve just taken the same skeleton of a paragraph and made it look better without changing its real substance. 

And one of the wonderful things about making efforts to improve the quality of your writing is all the confidence that comes with this, whether this be from getting better at discussing views and values , learning to integrate your quotes or any achievement like this. I know that my confidence surged as my English got better and, as I got more confidence in my writing, I got more confidence in what I wrote about. My interpretations of the text became more and more obscure and a bit whacky at times and I had fun writing about these things. If you improve your writing, you’ll improve what you’re writing about which will mean you’ll have more fun writing and the cycle of improvement will just continue.  

So to cap off, I thought it might be nice to have a checklist of sorts that you might be able to put against your own writing.

What’s the next step I could take in improving my English?

• Are all my quotes properly integrated ? (Hint: if the sentence doesn’t make sense without quotation marks, the answer is no)
• Have I got more than a couple of sentences starting the same way or could I vary my sentence structure a bit more?
• Have I explicitly used some parts of the prompt in my own writing so that I can directly answer the question in my essays?
• Am I writing about both the world of the text and the world we live in outside of the text instead of just the characters and relationships within the text?
• Are my topic and linking sentences describing a concept that relates to the prompt with everything in-between relating this concept to the text? (I found this a very useful way of thinking of paragraphs)
• Is all of my evidence being discussed in relation to the views of the author ?
• Does my essay/paragraph explain what the author would like to see more of/less of in modern society based on what is explored in the text?
• Is my essay/paragraph specific to the exact wording and type of prompt?

And these are just some of the improvements that could be made. I’m sure each of you could ask teachers and past students and find many, many more tips on improvement. Just as long as you’re thinking about what the next step in your English might be, then you’re already headed in the right direction. So good luck and happy writing!

Let’s talk about emoji’s. There is a wide debate about whether or not these small icons we know as emoticon’s are the birth of a whole new language. What once started off as a :) at the end of an email has rapidly grown into a vast array of icons which serve multiple purposes and convey various meanings. I would not call emoji’s a new language for it lacks grammar; the very foundation which kneads a language together. Most often, emoji’s are used in conjunction with words on online platforms to enhance communication. The laughter emoji or smiling emoji is frequently used to close social distance or convey a sense of playfulness where a message may be perceived to be hostile. They can also be used to save face and reduce personal embarrassment. Frankly, emoji’s can be used to express a range of emotions and conversational tones which are difficult to achieve with words alone. In this way, they cater for the inability to use intonation and paralinguistic features such as hand gestures, facial expressions within written speech.

As emoji’s become a more prevalent part of online communication, they have begun to carry their own connotations. The eggplant and water-drop emoji’s are classic examples of this within young adolescents. However, even within smaller social groups, emoji’s can take on secondary meanings. (You probably have emoji’s within your friendship group which have connotations or act as inside jokes).

In this way, emoji’s are not replacing our language, but rather, they are an addition to comprehension of written language.

While emoji’s don’t have a complex syntactical system, they are loosely governed by grammatical rules. While this does not constitute emoji’s as a new language, one can still communicate meaning by stringing emoticons through semantic fields. Content words can be replaced with emoticons, however the relationship between emoticons must be inferred or expressed through functional words.

Hence, there can be communication difficulties when the relationship of an emoji to context is not effectively implied or explained. Julie Bishop’s use of the red faced emoji to describe Vladimir Putin on Twitter is a classic example of this notion. This emoji used on its own caused confusion as to what Julie Bishop thought of Putin, whether he was an angry man or whether she disapproved of him. Due to limited context and no words to back up Bishop’s opinion, there was controversy around her response.

Emoji’s are an addition to the written mode of language, catering for paralinguistic features which cannot be expressed through words. However, due to the lack of complex grammar binding emoji’s they cannot become a new language.

Language has many uses which go beyond simple communication. Language can be used to entertain, to convey abstract ideas and to mold one’s perspective. A strong understanding of linguistic features, of words and their connotations can allow one to manipulate their language in order to convey certain ideas and thoughts. This brings us to the topic of face needs. One’s face need is the sense of social value that is experienced during social interactions. There are two types of face needs; positive face needs and negative face needs. Positive face refers to the need to feel accepted and liked by others while negative face describes the will to do what one wants to do with freedom and independence.

In daily conversations and in media, language is used to either appeal to face needs or to avoid meeting face needs. Basic politeness markers are frequently used to appeal to face needs, often subconsciously. Imagine a teacher asks you to pass them the pencil they just dropped. Most likely, they will ask something along the lines of, “are you able to pass me that pencil please?” The teacher’s relationship with you is that of an authoritative nature. Therefore, when asked to pick up the pen, you will almost certainly oblige unless there is a compelling reason not to. While the teacher has technically posed a request or a question, it is a in fact a command in disguise. The teacher has an expectation that you will pick up the pen, however, by framing this command as a question, it appears as though you are being given a choice. This appeals to your negative face needs as you are not being imposed upon to pick up the pen, but are given a choice should you wish to “pick it up”. In situations where interlocutors do not have a very close social distance, linguistic features such are politeness markers, rising intonation and interrogative sentences are used to appeal to negative face needs. If this same situation occurred with a friend, they might say something along the lines of ‘oi, chuck us that pen.’ This is a blatant disregard for negative face needs, but due to the close social distance between you and your close friend, appealing to negative face needs for such small things is unnecessary.

Appealing to negative face is most commonly observed in interactions with strangers or with those who do not have a strongly established relationship. However, appeals to negative face needs can also be observed with close individuals, particularly used to further the relationship by extending its boundary. For example, when asking a big favour from a relatively new friend one will most likely use methods to appeal to negative face needs, using phrases such as, ‘do you mind if,’ ‘would it be possible if,’ ‘could I please ask you a huge favour’. Such phrases do not impose of the individual, allowing them to “choose” whether or not to oblige. Appealing to the negative face demonstrates that one recognizes the other’s freedom and wish to do as they wish. 

Appealing to positive face needs occurs through slightly different linguistic and paralinguistic techniques. Compliments, minimal response, eye contact, politeness markers and the use of interrogatives are all ways in which one can appeal to another’s positive face needs. These techniques are very often employed in radio and television interviews. It is the duty of the host to make their guest feel welcome and wanted on the show. Television hosts such as Jimmy Kimmel and Ellen often introduce their celebrity guests by mentioning their achievements, thus making them feel special. They frequently employ interrogatives to display avid interest in their guests. Furthermore, back-channeling and vocal effects such as laughter allow the guests to feel that their presence is welcome and appreciated. Think of this from the perspective host and their social purpose. They want to make their guests feel appreciated to promote their viewership and build solidarity with the guests so they may return on the show.

This is interview is an example of positive face needs where interviewer Rajeev Masand compliments Stanger Things actors Milly Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp at the beginning of the interview for their show.

Tom Holland on Ellen:

In this example both Tom Holland and Ellen meet one another’s positive face needs. Politically correct language and euphemisms are also another example of appeals to positive face needs. Calling people ‘differently abled’ is done in attempt to avoid discrimination and allow individuals of different abilities to feel equally accepted and welcome. However, this does not always come across as intended. Often politically correct labels are not embraced by the given community as they feel that such labels further alienate them from society. Politically correct labels can act as reminders to such groups that they are considered minority or, they may feel that these labels are a feeble attempt to push aside previous, conflicting history. This is important to note as it demonstrates that appealing to face needs can sometimes be a hit or miss. In everyday conversation, people use cues in attempt to understand the individual they are conversing with and hence alter their language accordingly. They will use these cues to understand how to use language to appeal to the face needs of the other individual. In a context with school friends, there is likely to be less use of politeness markers and politically correct language as the pre-established relationship means there is a mutual understanding the one does not wish to offend. In contrast, the use of language is likely to be very different in transactional conversations, interviews and conversations with an authoritative relationship.

Techniques used to appeal to face needs always come back to the social purpose of the interlocutors and the contextual factors. By understanding the link between these elements, you can form a holistic analysis of face needs. Therefore, when writing about face needs in your exam and sacs, it is vital to be considerate of the context as this impacts how face needs are approached. 

Here are some other examples of celebrity interviews where there is evidence of appeals to positive face needs. Watch them carefully and you’ll notice the specific linguistic features used in these interviews to build solidarity with the guests and create engagement with the show. The hosts compliment their guests and frequently employ minimal response to allow the conversation to progress smoothly. There are minimal overlaps as the hosts are cautious not to talk over their guests. You will notice that in certain interviews, when the host and guest are known to one another, appeals to face needs are not adhered, allowing them to strengthen their bond and further audience engagement.

Malala Yousafzai on Ellen:

Eddie Redmayne interview on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert:

For an overview of English Language, the study design, what’s involved in the exam and more, take a look at our Ultimate Guide to English Language .

How To Effectively Build an Essay Evidence Bank

Essays in English Language require contemporary examples of language being used in Australia , in order to justify your response to the topic. English Language essays are often said to only be as good as the examples that are used, so it follows that your essays will only be as good and interesting as the examples that you find. It’s a really good idea to start collecting examples, or evidence, in a “bank” from day one, and throughout the year as you prepare for essay SACs and the final exam. Great examples not only lead your discussion, but also make your essay more interesting and therefore stand out.

What Makes a Good Piece of Evidence?

Primarily you want your evidence to comprise examples of how language is being used within a specific context in contemporary Australia . For instance, you might explore how leaders in Australia use overtly prestigious language with Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews’ use of the formal vocative phrase 'my fellow Victorians' at a press briefing. You may not always be able to find a specific instance of a particular language feature being used, which can be especially true for language that is not frequently used in public contexts, such as slang and ethnolects . It is okay to just have general examples that you discuss in these instances; perhaps the ellipsis (omission of understood words) of auxiliary verbs in varieties such as Greek Australian English . What is important is that the majority of your examples are actually instances of language features being used , and not simply a quote of someone else’s analysis of language, such as a linguist’s quote. Such quotes can be used in essays, but should complement your own discussion of your own examples.

Good examples must also be 'contemporary', as per the majority of essay prompts. As a general rule of thumb, ask yourself if the example you have is older than two years , and if so you may want to think of something newer. This does not mean you can never employ an older example. For instance, you may want to discuss language change in an essay, which sometimes necessitates discussing the historical context of certain language features.

How To Build an Example Bank

Many students find it highly beneficial to create a table or list of examples that they will practice and get comfortable with – you cannot bring this into the exam of course, but it is a very effective tool for preparation. In your table or list, consider including the following:

• Your example itself (this may not always be just a quote, sometimes you might have a phonetic transcription, for instance)
• The context that surrounds the example
• The metalanguage that you can use to analyse it
• The areas of the study design and essay topics it can cover
• A few short sentences of analysis

An example is given below:

These examples do not necessarily have to be something that you put a huge effort into going out and finding, so long as you make sure that you write down interesting language features that you come across in your day-to-day life . Keep an eye on places like the news, social media ( including emojis and text speak ), and any Australian television, radio, podcasts you watch or listen to. You will of course also discuss different examples of contemporary language use in class too, so make sure to add them as well.

Getting evidence is only step one of preparing for essay writing in English Language, but is the most important step for writing interesting and engaging essays. Keep in mind that this doesn’t have to be a solo activity; collaborating with classmates and group discussions, especially as you prepare for the exam can be a great way to make evidence collection fun. Be sure to check out our other blog, What Is an English Language Essay? for other tips and tricks to make your essays stand out.

There are several strategies you can use to your advantage to extend yourself in VCE English Language. 

Make Finding Examples a Habit

One simple way to expose yourself to more examples is to follow news pages on social media so that you can see regular updates about current affairs. Have a read through of point 7: Year 12 Essay Topic Categories in our Ultimate Guide to English Language so that you can understand what types of examples you should be keeping an eye out for. 

Right from the start of the school year, make sure you set up a system to keep track of your examples. You could do this by setting up a document with headings (such as ‘free speech’, ‘egalitarianism’, ‘ political correctness ’, ‘double-speak’, ‘ethnolects’ and ‘ Australian identity ’) and adding examples to this document throughout the year as you find them. For more information about the potential headings you could use, have a look at the dot points in the VCE English Language Study Design from page 17 onwards. 

I’d also highly recommend checking out Building Essay Evidence Banks for English Language as it teaches you a great table method for storing and analysing your examples. 

The advantage of creating an example/evidence bank of some sort is that if you start looking for examples right at the start of the year, you’ll have more time to analyse and memorise them. Additionally, you’ll also be able to use them far earlier in your essays, which means that the quotes and examples you select will become much easier to remember for the final exam.

Have a Basic Understanding of Australian History, Politics and Social Issues

Having a basic understanding of Australian history, politics and social issues is highly beneficial for enhancing your analytical skills for English Language. This is essential in developing strong contentions for your essays. Some key issues that would be worth having some background information on include the following:

Australia’s colonial history and treatment of Indigenous communities, racism, and the language surrounding these matters.

 Look into the following: 

• How does language reflect or perpetuate prejudice? 
• How does hate speech affect social harmony? 
• How can language be used to establish in-group solidarity?

Sexism, racism, ableism, homophobia and transphobia.

• How can bias and prejudice be conveyed through language? 
• What are some examples of implicit and explicit bias? 
• What role does political correctness play in this context? 
• Does political correctness create benefits or does it restrict societies? 

Environmental issues, and the way this intersects with politics. 

• How can euphemisms , doublespeak, and bureaucratic language be used to obfuscate or mitigate blame? 

Immigration and refugee policy related discourse. 

• What are the origins of pejoratives such as ‘boat people’ and ‘queue jumper’ that are frequently used against refugees? 
• How does this influence the values or beliefs of a society? 

Business and economic issues, labour exploitation 

• How can bureaucratic language and jargon be used to mislead and manipulate?

Political affairs (historical and recent)

• How can formal language be used to mitigate blame and responsibility, negotiate social taboos, or establish national identity? 

Having an awareness of key events and social issues in Australia, an understanding of the groups that make up Australia, and exposing yourself to a diverse set of media is really important in developing your essay writing skills. It does take time, but what will ultimately happen is that your discussions in your essays will be much more insightful and demonstrate a well thought out argument.

Apply Your Critical Thinking Skills

When writing essays, try your best to apply your critical thinking skills . Identify the assumptions you’re making when you present a certain point, and try to develop arguments against your position so that you can better understand why you have chosen your side. Developing a holistic and detailed contention is far better than just picking one side out of simplicity, as it allows you to demonstrate consideration and analysis of a range of factors that affect a certain issue. Use your evidence (contemporary examples, linguist quotes and stimulus material) to develop your points, and position yourself to be mindful of any biases you may have by continuously asking yourself what has influenced your way of thinking. Above all, try to discuss your essay prompts with your peers, as this will provide you with different perspectives and help you strengthen your own point. 

Consistently Revising Metalanguage

Consistently revising metalanguage is crucial for doing well in English Language. Throughout Year 12, consistently revising metalanguage will be your responsibility. It is likely that you’ll be spending a greater proportion of class time in learning content, and writing practice pieces. Therefore, it’s really important to figure out a way that works best for you in being able to frequently revise metalanguage. Flashcards are useful for revision on the go, as well as making mind maps so that you’re able to visualise how everything is set out in the study design. 

One issue students run into when it comes to learning metalanguage is that they’re able to define and give examples for metalanguage terms, however, they are unable to understand how those terms fit into the categories under each subsystem. For example, a student is able to remember what a metaphor is, but unable to recall that it fits under semantic patterning. Similarly, a student may know what a pause is, but not know if it’s part of prosodic features or discourse features. 

It’s important to know what all the categories are because the short answer questions usually ask you to identify features under a particular category (e.g. you’d be asked to talk about semantic patterning, not metaphor or pun). Therefore, spending time on just revising the definitions alone isn’t sufficient in learning metalanguage. You also need to be able to ensure that you can recall which category each term fits under. Refer to the study design (pages 17-18) , for a list of categories you need to remember; these include: 

• Prosodic features
• Vocal effects
• Phonological patterning
• Processes in connected speech
• Word classes, word formation processes
• Sentence types
• Sentence structures
• Syntactic patterning
• Features of spoken discourse
• Strategies of spoken discourse
• Semantic patterning
• Sense relations/other semantics

Using Meaningful Examples in Essays

When you talk about a certain variety of English, say for example ethnolects or teen speak, rather than just providing a lexical example or translation, try to find a contemporary example of the term being used in the media, online or by a prominent individual. For example, rather than saying:

  ‘The lexeme ‘bet’ is an example of teen speak which allows young people to establish solidarity ’,

you could say:

 ‘ Bakery owner Morgan Hipworth, who largely has a teenage following and is a young person himself, employs teenspeak in a video recipe, where he responds to the question “Can you make a 10 layer cheese toastie?” with “Bet, let’s go. ”’ 

This will provide you with a better opportunity to talk about in-groups and identity, rather than just defining and identifying an example as part of a particular variety. In doing so, you’re better able to address the roles of different linguistic examples in a contextualised and detailed manner. 

In Building Essay Evidence Banks for English Language you’ll see that a short analysis for each of your examples (the ones you are collecting throughout the year) is encouraged, but, you could take things one step further - add on an extra column and combine your analysis and example in a practice sentence. Head to the blog to learn more about building evidence banks .

A focal point of the English Language Study Design, specifically Unit 4 Area of Study 1, is the construction of the Australian identity through language. In order to understand how language is used to reflect the Australian identity, it is important to first understand what values or standards of behaviour an Australian identity is comprised of.

When it comes to constructing essays, it is important to find contemporary examples from Australian media and link them to Australian cultural values. These examples must be explained using subsystems to display their linguistic relevance.

Australian cultural values are influenced by Australia’s history. Convict settlement, the influence of the British monarchy, an influx of new migrants and globalization of language have all influenced the cultural values Australian’s hold today. These events in history have enabled Australians to develop values by which they hold themselves, including egalitarianism, mateship, antiauthoritarianism and larrikinism.

The most significant value is that of egalitarianism. This is the doctrine that all people are equal and deserving of equal rights and opportunities. Class distinctions are far less significant in Australian society compared to the United Kingdom where social circles have been constructed around rigid hierarchies. In contrast, Australians of lower socio-economic standing typically do not see themselves as being less equal than privileged Australians.

This notion is reflected in the language used in Australian society. Addressing individuals as ‘mate’ and using colloquialisms such as ‘pollies’ to refer to politicians demonstrates that Australians value one another on an equal ground, irrespective of socio-economics or class.

This value extends into Australia’s sense of multiculturalism. Australia houses citizens with diverse ethnic backgrounds and prides itself on this cultural diversity. Many ethnolects have established themselves within Australian culture overtime and spread across society. These ethnolects are also finding their way onto platforms such as television to reflect present Australian society. Comedians such as Nazeem Hussain or the Channel Nine show, ‘Here come the Habibs’ use phonological, lexical, syntactical and semantic features of their respective ethnolects in a comedic manner to portray cultural diversity in a public space and celebrate the Australian value of multiculturalism.

Ethnolect speakers express their multicultural identity by molding Australian English along with their ethnic language to create their unique ethnolect. This is particularly evident with Greek and Lebanon English speakers who adopt Australian colloquialisms but retain their ethnic accent. They also often insert an interjectory such as ‘reh’ into everyday discourse as a way of promoting solidarity with others within the ethnic society.

The Australian value of anti-authoritarianism is largely reflected through the lexical choices of individuals. This value is derived from the Australian notion of egalitarianism. Australians have a far greater tendency to use expletives than those from other English speaking countries. The relaxed manner in which the Australian society perceives language use is indicative of their disregard for social hierarchies and authority figures.

The ease with which comedic remarks can be made about influential figures and politicians in the Australian media, indicates this very idea. The SBS series, The Feed recently released a facebook video “How Politicians Speak” mocking politicians by imitating political language in everyday conversations, using excessive hedging and obfuscation and a highly formal register. This Facebook video can be further explained using the subsystem of semantics. The meaning of the video is greater than the literal words being spoken by the actors. There is cultural context required to understand the humorous intent of the video. Through this cultural context, the video is able to reach out to its audience and express this anti- authoritarian way of thinking.

The tendency to ridicule politicians and authoritative figures can be explained by a phenomenon known as ‘tall-poppy syndrome’ which describes the tendency to degrade, attack or cut down individuals because they have risen in the social hierarchy. As a country which deeply values humility and embodies the ‘battler’ persona, Australians automatically become critical when those around them climb the social ladder. Snide comments and banter are tools used to remind those rising through the ranks that they are not better than anyone else. Furthermore, the tall-poppy syndrome is an explanation for why Australians consistently ridicule and mock their politicians. Comedian, Tim Minchin recently gave a speech to a graduating class at the University of Western Australia. In this speech, he used crude language and blunt remarks to give advice to the students while simultaneously deflating their sense of self with phrases such as, ‘opinions are like assholes, in that everyone has one’. Embossed within this simile is the concept of humility and egalitarianism that depict the tall-poppy syndrome.

Most examples of Australian language will ultimately tie back to these values. This includes the general Australian accent, Australian colloquialisms, phonological features of Australian English such as assimilation and the use of high rising terminal. The features of this language are linked to the values this language is used to express.

This link is particularly evident in political speeches, debates and comedic material. In relation to essay writing, there are a few steps to be conscious of when showing these links. Try to understand your examples using subsystems and which subsystems are relevant for the given example. Is the language-use significant on a phonological level, morphological level, lexical level, syntactic level or semantic level?

Throughout the year, you will be required to research and collect such contemporary examples which reflect Australian values. In your essay, you are required to demonstrate the significance of your example, use metalanguage to explain the example and then link this example to the values it reflects in Australian society and finally explain what this means for the essay prompt. Following this sequence of steps will ensure that you are able to discuss Australian Identity and Language in a holistic manner.

Link to “How Politicians Speak” Facebook video:

Link To clippings of Nazeem Hussain’s SBS show “Legally Brown” which turns Political Incorrectness on its head:

Link to Kate Burridge interview on Studio 10 explaining the trend towards the General Australian Accent:

• What Is English Language?
• VCE English Language Study Design
• What's Involved in the Exam?
• How To Study for English Language
• Metalanguage List
• Sample Essay
• Year 12 Essay Topic Categories

1. What Is English Language?

Study design stuff.

English Language is 1 of the 4 different English subjects that are offered as part of the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE). In this subject, you’ll explore how individuals and groups of various identities use different varieties of English, and how this ties in with reflecting their values and beliefs. English Language will provide you with a substantial understanding of the impact language has on societies, what it communicates about ourselves and the groups that we identify with, and how societies in turn can also influence language.

If you’re feeling uncertain about what exactly this subject entails, don’t worry! Let’s go through what’s involved in each unit, and what you’re expected to do in each.

2. VCE English Language Study Design 

Note: The study design contains a metalanguage list for Units 1 & 2 and for Units 3 & 4. They’re pretty similar, except the Units 3 & 4 list includes several new features, such as the addition of patterning (phonological, syntactic, and semantic), as well as a significant addition to the discourse subsystem (coherence, cohesion, features of spoken discourse, and strategies of spoken discourse). ‍

Area of Study (AoS1) 

AoS1 is called ‘the nature and function of language’. You’ll learn about the functions of different types of texts, the differences between spoken and written texts, how situational and contextual factors can influence texts, and most importantly, you’ll learn about metalanguage as per the Units 1 & 2 metalanguage list. 

Area of Study (AoS2) 

AoS2 is called ‘language acquisition.’ Here, you’ll learn about theories various linguistics and sociologists have proposed regarding how children acquire languages. Furthermore, you’ll also cover how second languages are acquired. One of the most important skills you’ll pick up in this AoS is how to apply metalanguage in discussions and essays.

English Across Time’, will provide you with a historical context for how we have achieved the form of English that we use today. You’ll learn about the processes which led to the development of Modern English from Old English, the changes this had on all the subsystems ( learn about the syntax subsystem here ), and the various attitudes that are held towards linguistic change.

‘Englishes in contact’, you will learn about the processes which have led to the global spread of English, the intersections between culture and language, and the distinctive features of pidgins, creoles and English as a lingua franca. 

‘Informal language’, will give you an understanding of the roles of informal language in the contemporary Australian context. You’ll learn about what makes texts informal, how this differs for spoken and written texts, and what social purposes can be achieved through informal language - such as maintaining or threatening face needs, building intimacy or solidarity, creating an in-group, or supporting linguistic innovation. 

‘Formal language,’ will provide you with a detailed insight of what makes texts formal, distinguishing features for spoken and written texts, and what social purposes can be achieved through formal language - such as reinforcing authority, establishing expertise, clarifying, obfuscating, or maintaining and challenging positive and negative face needs. 

In both of these AoS, you’ll be applying the Units 3 & 4 Metalanguage in your short answer responses and analytical commentaries. The additional metalanguage is typically taught in Term 1 of year 12, while you learn the content for Unit 3.

‘Language variation in Australian society,’ is a detailed study on how both standard and non-standard Australian English are used within contemporary society. You’ll learn about how identity is constructed through language, how varieties of English vary by culture (such as ethnolects or Australian Aboriginal English), and the attitudes that are held towards different varieties by different groups. 

In ‘Individual and group identities’, you’ll look at how language varies by different factors, such as age, gender, occupation, interests, aspirations, or education, and how these factors all contribute to our identities. You’ll learn more about in-groups and out-groups, and how they can be created and maintained through language. Furthermore, you’ll learn about the relationship between social attitudes with language, and how language can be shaped by, but also influence, social attitudes and community expectations. 

For more information, have a look at the study design . 

3. What's Involved in the Exam?

The Year 12 Exam involves 2 hours of writing time and 15 minutes of reading time. It has three sections:

• Section A: 15 marks (It is recommended that you spend approximately 20-25 mins in this section)
• Section B: 30 marks (It is recommended that you spend approximately 40-45 mins, and write 600-700 words)
• Section C: 30 marks (It is recommended that you spend approximately 45-50 mins, and write 700-800 words)

Make sure you have a read through of the assessment criteria for each section.

Section A is 15 marks of short answer questions. You are given a text, and you’re required to respond to questions about the stylistic and discourse features used in the text, while ensuring that you’re demonstrating a detailed knowledge of metalanguage through carefully selecting relevant examples from the text. 

A strong understanding of the metalanguage is really important, both in terms of knowing the meanings of each metalinguistic term, and also in knowing which category each term fits under (For example, knowing that inference is part of coherence and not cohesion). Therefore, it is important that you learn your metalanguage in terms of what each terminology means, and also in terms of which category each term fits into.

As a general guide:

• 1 mark – one idea or one example or one explanation
• 2 marks – one idea plus one or two examples with explanations
• 3 marks – two ideas plus one or two examples of each with explanations
• 4 marks – two or three ideas plus one or two examples of each with explanations
• 5 marks – three ideas plus one or two examples of each with explanations

One of the biggest mistakes students make here is not reading the questions properly. Students sometimes miss how many examples the questions specifies to identify (this information is often given as ‘identify 2 examples’ or ‘identify the purposes’ as plural), forget to check how many marks a question is, or mix up certain metalanguage terms, such as confusing sentence types with sentence structures. So, be very careful in answering these questions.

Here are some examples of short answer questions that have come up in past VCAA exams:

[Question 2, 2017 VCAA] - Identify and comment on the use of two different prosodic features. (4 marks).

‍ Here, you would identify 2 different prosodic features (pitch, stress, volume, intonation, or tempo), and discuss what effect they have on the text, taking contextual factors into consideration. For example, stress could be used to draw emphasis, or intonation could influence the emotion conveyed. 

[Question 1, 2015 VCAA] - What sentence types are used in lines 15 to 36? How do they reinforce the purposes of this text? (3 marks)

‍ Here, you would identify the relevant sentence types (declaratives, imperatives, interrogatives, and exclamatives), and explain their role in the text. You would also want to ensure that your explanations are specific to the context of the text.

[Question 9, 2010 VCAA] - Discuss the function of two different non-fluency features between lines 70 and 96. (4 marks)

‍ Here, you would identify two non fluency features (such as pauses, false starts, repairs, repetition) and give a 1 sentence explanation of its role or what it indicates.

[Question 1, 2012 VCAA] - Identify the register of the text. (1 mark)

‍ This question is quite straightforward, and you could use terms such as formal, informal, predominantly formal/informal in your response.

[Question 4, 2012 VCAA] - How does the verb tense in lines 9–34 support the purpose of this section of the text? (2 marks)

‍ Here you would identify whether the verb tense is in past, present, or future tense, and explain why it has been used in that way based on the contextual factors.

[Question 3, 2017 VCAA] - Using appropriate metalanguage, identify and explain two specific language features that reflect the speaker’s identity.(4 marks)

‍ Here, you can pick examples from any subsystem that relate to the speaker’s identity, such as jargon, colloquialisms, semantics of certain jokes, expletives, or pejoratives.

Note: The exams prior to 2012 have 2 sets of short answer questions, because analytical commentaries weren’t a part of the exam back then. This leaves you with lots of practice questions! However, do keep in mind that the metalanguage lists differed and certain features were categorised in different ways. For example, Question 2 from the VCAA 2013 exam asks you to talk about prosodic features, however, in the examiner’s report, pauses are suggested as an option. We know that in the present study design, pauses are classified as features of spoken discourse, under the discourse subsystem, whereas prosodic features are classified under the subsystem of phonetics and phonology.

Check out How To Respond to Short Answer Questions in VCE English Language if you need more help tackling Section A of the exam.

Section B is an analytical commentary (AC) worth 30 marks. The introduction for an AC is an explanation of the contextual factors, the social purpose, and the register, of the text. In the body paragraphs (generally three), you group your examples from the text by themes, and explain their roles. 

There are two main approaches for body paragraphs; the sub-system approach, and the holistic approach. In the sub-system approach, you would organise your examples so that each paragraph is addressing a specific subsystem. For example, your AC could be composed of the introduction, and then a paragraph on lexicology, one on syntax, and one on discourse. This approach is easier for when you’re starting out with ACs, but one of the issues with it is that you end up limiting yourself to just one portion of the text for the one paragraph. In the holistic approach, you would typically do a paragraph on social purpose, register, and discourse. In this approach, you are able to group examples from multiple subsystems and talk about how they work together in achieving specific roles in the texts. 

Make sure you’re attempting a range of different types of texts, such as, opinion pieces, recipes, oaths, editorials, advertisements, eulogies, social media posts, public notices, television transcripts, radio transcripts, letters, speeches, legal contracts, conversations, narratives, and more.

For more information, have a look at this video:

Section C is an essay worth 30 marks. There are a range of topics that can potentially come up in the exam, and it is really important that you practice writing a variety of essays. 

In essays, it is really important to ensure that you set out a clear contention in your introduction. This will basically tell the assessor what point you’re making in your essay, and it’ll also help you remember which direction to take your essay. After your contention, you need to signpost your ideas. This means that you need to summarise what 3 points you are stating in your body paragraphs. 

Here’s an exercise which is really helpful in refining introductions - When you’re writing your contention, write “In this essay, I will argue that [Insert contention]. I will do this by stating the following points [Insert signposting].” When you’re happy with your introduction, you can remove the underlined parts. This will help you really understand how the roles for contentions and signposting differ. You’ll also thoroughly understand what position you’re taking in the essay.

The body paragraphs follow TEEL structure. You begin with your topic sentence, state your evidence, explain it, and then link it back to your contention. You have three options for the type of evidence that you’ll use (stimulus material, contemporary examples, and linguist quotes), and it's important to use a combination of them. According to the exam rubric, you have to be using at least 1 piece of stimulus material. Contemporary examples should ideally be from the current year and the previous. Linguist quotes don’t have time restrictions but it’s a good idea to try and find recent ones.

One of the most important things in body paragraphs is to make sure that you’re able to link your example back to your contention. If you’re unable to do this, it means that your examples aren't relevant to the points that you’re trying to make. 

In your conclusion, you need to ensure that you don’t introduce any new examples or points. The role of the conclusion is to summarise and reinforce your points and your overall contention. 

If you would like further clarification, have a look at this post on English Language Essays.

4. How To Study for English Language

Time management and organisation.

Having a study timetable will make studying much less stressful than it needs to be. In your timetable, make sure you are allocating enough time for all of your subjects, as well as time for rest, extra-curricular activities, work, and socialising. A realistic time-table will also mean that you’re less likely to waste time trying to decide which subjects to study for. For example, every Sunday, you could spend 15 minutes planning out your week based on which assessments you have, and which subjects you would like to give time to. This becomes especially useful in SWOTVAC, where you’ll be responsible for ensuring you’re spending enough time on each subject whilst also balancing everything else outside of school. 

Here are some extra resources to help you with time management:

SWOTVAC: Planning Your Life

10 Hacks For Time Management

How to survive VCE - motivation and approach

Revising Metalanguage

Consistently revising metalanguage is one of the most important study methods for English Language. 

The basics of metalanguage are covered in Unit 1. Make sure you keep a clear set of notes for this content so that you’re able to look back on it to revise throughout the year. Before the year 12 year begins, you want to make sure that everything in the year 11 metalanguage list makes sense to you. Spending the summer holidays before year 12 begins in reinforcing the basics will help you throughout year 12, as you’ll be able to pick up on the new metalanguage much faster. One of the first things you'll cover is coherence and cohesion, so if you would like to get a head start, have a look at this post.

Throughout year 12, consistently revising metalanguage will be your responsibility. It is likely that you’ll be spending a greater proportion of class time in learning content, and writing short answer responses, analytical commentaries, or essays. Therefore, it’s really important to figure out a way that works best for you in being able to frequently revise metalanguage. Flashcards are pretty useful for revision, as well as making mind maps so that you’re able to visualise how everything is set out in the study design.

One issue students run into is that they’re able to define and give examples for metalanguage terms, however, they are unable to understand how it fits in in terms of the categories under each subsystem. For example, a student is able to remember what a metaphor is, but unable to recall that it fits under semantic patterning. Similarly, a student may know what a pause is, but not know if it’s part of prosodic features or discourse features. It’s important to know what all the categories are, because the short answer questions usually ask for you to identify features under a particular category. Therefore, spending time on just revising the definitions alone isn’t sufficient in learning metalanguage. You also need to be able to ensure that you can recall which category each term fits under.

Reading the News

For the essay, you’re required to use contemporary media examples as evidence (alongside stimulus material and linguist quotes). It’s really important for you to begin this process early so that you’re able to start using examples in essays as early as possible. For tips on how to find, analyse and store your examples, see our post on Building Essay Evidence Banks for English Language .

Having an awareness of Australia’s historical, political, and social context, will provide you with a more comprehensive perspective of the contemporary examples. So, if you don’t already do this, try to develop a habit of reading the news (The Conversation or The Guardian are a good place to start). Television programs like Q and A, The Drum, and Media Watch, will help you understand the Australian context, and often these programs will also discuss the roles of language, which directly links with what you're looking for as essay examples. It’s especially important to start early, and to build these skills over time, so that you are able to develop a holistic foundation. 

Extra Practice Pieces and Seeking Feedback

Doing extra practice pieces is a really effective way to develop and refine your analytical skills. Make sure you receive feedback for all your work from your teacher or tutor, as it’s the only way you'll know if you’re going in the right direction.

If you’re short on time, even writing up AC or essay plans, or just doing 1 paragraph, is an effective way to revise.

Learning Quotes and Examples

Memorising several pages full of linguist quotes and contemporary examples may seem daunting at first, but once you begin using them in essays, they’ll become much easier to remember. Right from the beginning of yr12, make sure you set up a document to compile your linguist quotes and examples into subheadings. For example subheadings such as ‘cultural identity,’ ‘jargon,’ ‘hate speech,’ ‘free speech,’ or ‘Australian values’ will make it easier for you to navigate your notes when you're planning your essays.

If you start early, you’ll be able to remember everything bit by bit as you progress through the year, which is definitely easier than trying to remember the evidence the night before the assessment. Additionally, you’ll be ready with quotes and examples as soon as you begin essays in class, so you’ll be able to use your examples earlier, hence learn them earlier, and therefore be able to memorise your quotes and examples in advance. If you’re in year 12 and you’re nearing the end of the year and still struggling to memorise your examples and quotes, try using flashcards to remember your evidence.  Make sure you’re doing a range of essays on different topics so that you’re able to apply and analyse your evidence. 

Learning From Your Mistakes

It can be pretty disheartening to make the same mistakes repeatedly and continue to lose marks. So, compiling the mistakes that you make throughout the year in a separate notebook or document is a fantastic way to keep track of the key things you need to remember. You’ll also be less likely to repeat those mistakes.

Group Studies

Studying in groups for English Language is a highly effective way to refine your understanding of the content, and see different perspectives in the way certain ideas can be applied. Revising metalanguage and testing your friends on their knowledge can be a light and engaging way to ensure you and your friends are on the right track. Sharing the ways you and your group have approached a specific AC is also an effective way to learn about different approaches. Discussing essay topics is a useful way in refining your arguments, as you’ll be exposed to different opinions and be able to work on ensuring that your arguments are relevant and strong.

See How To Extend Yourself in VCE English Language for more tips!

5. Metalanguage List

Please refer to pages 9-10 for the Year 11 list, and 17-18 for the Year 12 list !

6. Sample Essay

Language is fundamental to identity and consequently we draw on our linguistic repertoire to project different aspects of our identity according to context. Discuss this statement in the contemporary Australian context with reference to at least two subsystems in your response.

(This essay topic relates to Unit 4 - AoS1, ‘Language variation in Australian society.’) 

Introduction

Language plays a pivotal role in establishing and communicating various facets of identity. As such, individuals can alter their linguistic repertoire to establish in-group membership. Teenspeak is an effective mechanism in expressing teenage identity, but can also be used by the older generation to appeal to young people. Code switching between ethnolects and standard Australian English further illustrates how individuals can manipulate their linguistic choices to suit their environment, whilst simultaneously reflecting ethnic identity . Furthermore, jargon plays a critical role in establishing professional identity and signifying expertise or authority. Consequently, linguistic choices are capable of expressing diverse and multifaceted identities.

Body Paragraph

Teenspeak is capable of expressing identity and establishing in group membership amongst teenages, however it can also be used by those in the out-group to appeal to teenagers. Professor Pam Peters asserts that “Teenagers use language as a kind of identity badge that has the effect of excluding adults." Consequently, teenagers are able to establish exclusivity and in-group membership. Bakery owner Morgan Hipworth, who largely has a teenage following and is a teenager himself, employs teenspeak in a video recipe, where he responds to the question ‘Can you make a 10 layer cheese toastie?’ with ‘Bet, let’s go.’ Through using the teenspeak term ‘bet,’ Hipworth is able to relate and connect with his young audience while further asserting his identity as a teenager. This demonstrates how teenspeak can be effective in both establishing in-group membership, and expressing identity. Similarly, Youtuber Ashley Mescia’s extensive use of teenspeak initialisms in Instagram captions, such as ‘ootd’ for ‘outfit of the day,’ ‘grwm’ for ‘get ready with me,’ and ‘ngl’ for ‘not gonna lie,’ allows her to connect with her predominantly teenage following, thus allowing her to establish solidarity and in-group membership. This further indicates that teenspeak is an effective mechanism in expressing identity and building in-group membership. In contrast, teenspeak can also be used by older people in an effort to appeal to teenages. For example, in 2019, ABC’s Q and A host Tony Jones ended a promotional video for an opportunity for high-school students to appear on the panel with ‘It’s gonna be lit fam.’ This was done in an effort to appeal to younger people by exploiting the notion that it is often seen as cringeworthy when older people use teenspeak. Linguist Kate Burridge asserts that “older people using contemporary teen slang often sounds insincere and phoney,” and Jones was aware of this, however his purpose was to appeal to this to be able to further promote the video. Therefore, teenspeak is effective in both establishing in-group membership and expressing identity, and also appealing to the in-group and a member of the out-group.  

7. Year 12 Essay Topic Categories

1: australian english.

• Australian English differs from other national varieties – this theme looks at what makes Australian English unique and the factors that have contributed to its development over time. You can learn more by checking out our blog post on Australian Cultural Values
• What makes this variety unique as a national variety
• Broad, General, Cultivated accents
• Aboriginal English
• Attitudes towards Australian language varieties
• Standard Australian English and its prestige value
• Non-standard varieties operating in Australia
• Regional variation within Australia
• The role of language in constructing national identity
• Face needs (read blog)

2: Individual and Group Identity

• Social and personal variation (age, gender, occupation, interests, education, background, aspiration)
• Individual identity and group membership
• Standard and non-standard English and prestige varieties
• In-groups and exclusion
• Social attitudes to non-standard accents and dialects

3: Register

• Relationships between speaker/writer and interlocutors/audience
• Physical setting, situational and cultural contexts
• Subject matter/topic/domain/field
• Mode (spoken, written, electronic)
• Purpose/function of the interaction
• Social attitudes and beliefs of participants

4: Social Purpose of Language

• Inclusion and exclusion; in-groups and out-groups; social distance and intimacy
• How language can be used to uphold or threaten positive or negative face needs (read blog)
• Prestige forms of language
• Political correctness (read blog)
• Discrimination and hatespeech
• Euphemism and dysphemism (watch video)
• Taboo, pejoratives, and swearing
• Jargon, and how language establishes expertise
• Slang and colloquialisms
• Manipulation of language (obfuscation, doublespeak, gobbledegook)
• Politeness strategies and social harmony
• Language in the public domain; public language
• Linguistic innovation
• How language represents or shapes social and cultural, values, beliefs, attitudes
• How language can express identity 
• Other functions of language, such as recording, clarifying, entertaining, promoting, persuading, commemorating, celebrating, instructing, informing

5: Attitudes to the Varieties

6: Language Change

Although language change features more heavily in Units 1 & 2, it is still important to be aware of how language is changing in everyday lives to reflect social needs, attitudes and values. Consider the following:

• Australian English and its development and evolution over time
• Taboo, swearing and dysphemism and the role of changing social values
• Political correctness , non-discriminatory language and changing social values
• Linguistic innovation and informal language
• Technological advances and their impact on language - this includes emojis and text speak
• Global contact and other social changes and their impact on contemporary Australian English
• Migrant ethnolects and Aboriginal English

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Practice writing language objectives.

Language objectives highlight the language skills and goals that students will need to master a lesson. An ELL teacher can help you identify language goals for a lesson, such as:

·        Students can define and use key science vocabulary.

More Resources

Language objectives: the key to effective content area instruction for english learners.

This article provides an overview of how to use language objectives in content-area instruction for English learners and offers classroom-based examples from different grade and subject levels.

This article written for Colorín Colorado provides an overview of how to use language objectives in content-area instruction for English learners and includes:

• what a language objective is
• steps that teachers can take to create language objectives
• how to implement language objectives in a general education classroom
• how to align objectives to content and language standards
• ideas and resources on how to support teachers as they become familiar with this practice
• how to use language objectives in distance learning environments.

Language Objectives: An Overview

Mrs. Shell has been teaching eighth grade math for twelve years. She has deep content area knowledge and wants to provide all of her students with authentic activities and tasks to relate the significance of the mathematical concepts that she teaches to their lives. Mrs. Shell has always felt successful at teaching her classes but this year has been different. Her sections include students with more diverse backgrounds than previous years, particularly more English learners.

As Mrs. Shell was beginning to feel frustrated with her inability to reach all her students because of their needs, she learned about one way to make her content more comprehensible to all her students — creating and posting objectives that tell the students not just what content concepts they will learn in each lesson, but also the academic language they will need to learn and use to meet the state's math standards. With this knowledge, Mrs. Shell is now confident that she not only knows what to teach, but also how to teach it so that all her students can be successful.

Academic English

Generally speaking, academic English is the language of schooling and the language that helps students acquire and use the content area knowledge taught in schools (Anstrom, DiCerbo, Butler, Katz, Millet, & Rivera, 2010).

Teaching content to ELs: The challenge

In my work supporting general education and ESL/bilingual teachers who provide sheltered instruction for English learners (ELs), I have met many teachers like Mrs. Shell. While these teachers want to provide effective instruction for their ELs, often they don't see themselves as language teachers and so they aren't sure where to begin with their students.

These teachers aren't alone, however, and they are facing a challenge shared by teachers across the country. We know that for school-age students, academic language is crucial for school success (Francis, Rivera, Lesaux, Kieffer, & Rivera, 2006). In addition, research allows us to state with a fair degree of confidence that English learners best acquire English when language forms are explicitly taught and when they have many opportunities to use the language in meaningful contexts (Goldenberg, 2008).

Yet while the explicit instructional support that ESL and bilingual teachers provide is essential to English learners' academic language development, English learners receive a majority of their instruction from general education and content area teachers who may not have experience teaching academic language development.

The question becomes then: What do general education classroom teachers need to do in order to support the academic English development of language learners in both face-to-face and virtual environments, especially when English learners are one of many types of students they serve?

Teaching content to ELs: The solution

One principle that teachers of English learners can begin to apply immediately is creating and posting language objectives for their lessons (whether in the classroom or online in a virtual space. Many teachers are familiar with using content objectives to identify what students will learn and be able to do in the lesson. However, they are less likely to include language objectives that support the linguistic development of their students.

Implementing language objectives can be a powerful first step in ensuring that English learners have equal access to the curriculum even though they may not be fully proficient in the language. This is because the second language acquisition process requires opportunities for the language learner to be exposed to, practice with, and then be assessed on their language skills (Echevarria, Short, & Vogt, 2008).

To this end, language objectives:

• articulate for learners the academic language functions and skills that they need to master to fully participate in the lesson and meet the grade-level content standards (Echevarria, Short, & Vogt, 2008).
• are beneficial not only for language learners but for all students in a class, as everyone can benefit from the clarity that comes with a teacher outlining the requisite academic language to be learned and mastered in each lesson.

Now let's take a closer look at some examples and how to write language objectives.

Writing Language Objectives

Interview with dr. jennifer himmel.

Learn more about language objectives in this podcast interview with Dr. Himmel from Teaching Multilingual Learners, produced by Tan Huynh.

What is a language objective?

Language objectives are lesson objectives that specifically outline the type of language that students will need to learn and use in order to accomplish the goals of the lesson. Quality language objectives complement the content knowledge and skills identified in content area standards and address the aspects of academic language that will be developed or reinforced during the teaching of grade-level content concepts (Echevarria & Short, 2010).

These objectives involve the four language skills (speaking, listening, reading, and writing), but they can also include:

• the language functions related to the topic of the lesson (e.g., justify, hypothesize)
• vocabulary essential to a student being able to fully participate in the lesson (e.g., axis, locate, graph)
• language learning strategies to aid in comprehension (e.g, questioning, making predictions).

Below are examples of language objectives for different content areas and grade levels. They come from the Common Core State Standards for Math and English Language Arts (2012) and state standards in New York and California.

• Common Core State Standards for Math and English Language Arts, 2012
• Learning Standards for Core Curriculum , New York State Department of Education, 1996
• Science Content Standards for California Public Schools, K-12 , reprinted 2003

How do I create effective language objectives?

Video bonus.

Language objectives are directly correlated to content objectives. Once a teacher determines the lesson topic from the appropriate content standards, the teacher will want to begin thinking about the academic language necessary for English learners to complete the tasks that support the content objectives. This identification of the academic language embedded in the lesson's content will become the basis for the lesson's language objectives.

You can use the following guidelines to start thinking about appropriate language objectives for the lesson:

• Decide what key vocabulary, concept words, and other academic words students will need to know in order to talk, read, and write about the topic of the lesson. Those words might be taught as a language objective. They should include technical terms, such as ecosystem , and terms like distribution that have different meanings across content areas. Other terms to highlight are those that language learners may know in one context, such as family (as in parents, siblings, etc.), but that have a different use in science (e.g., family of elements in the periodic table).
• Consider the language functions related to the topic of the lesson (e.g, will the students describe, explain, compare, or chart information). See your state English Language Proficiency (ELP) standards for examples of these functions for English language arts, math, science, and social studies for all English proficiency levels and grade-level clusters.
• Think about the language skills necessary for students to accomplish the lesson's activities. Will the students be reading a textbook passage to identify the stages of mitosis? Are they able to read a text passage to find specific information? Will they be reporting what they observe during a scientific demonstration to a peer? Do they know how to report observations orally? Acquiring the skills needed to carry out these tasks might be the focus of a language objective.
• Identify grammar or language structures common to the content area. For example, many science textbooks use the passive voice to describe processes. Additionally, students may have to use comparative language to analyze two related concepts. Writing with the passive voice or using comparative phrases might be a language objective.
• Consider the tasks that the students will complete and the language that will be embedded in those assignments. If students are working on a scientific investigation together, will they need to explain the steps of the procedure to one another? The language objective might focus on how to explain procedures aloud.
• Explore language learning strategies that lend themselves to the topic of the lesson. For example, if students are starting a new chapter in the textbook, the strategy of previewing the text might be an appropriate language objective.

(Adapted from Short, Himmel, Gutierrez, & Hudec, 2012. Used with permission.)

Aligning Language Objectives and Standards

English language proficiency (elp) standards.

Developing appropriate language objectives for lessons involves becoming familiar with a state's content area and ELP standards. Whereas the content standards will provide the topic of the lesson and what exactly the students should be doing with that topic (e.g., solving problems, creating models, ranking ideas), the English language proficiency or development standards help to identify language skills and functions that students should be working on to achieve academic language fluency. These ELP standards can help to identify:

• communicative tasks (e.g., retelling, asking clarification questions)
• language structures (e.g., sequential language, past-conditional tense)
• types of texts students need to understand (e.g., informational text versus literature).

English Language Arts (ELA) standards

Other resources in addition to the ELP standards are a state's English Language Arts standards or the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy in History, Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects (CCSS). The English Language Arts and Literacy CCSS might be especially useful to teachers of English learners due to its attention to literacy across the content areas.

Additional resources to consult, especially if a state is a member of the WIDA consortium , are the Model Proficiency Indicators (MPIs) outlined in their ELP standards . The MPIs outline what an English learner at a specific level of English language proficiency can do in a language domain (e.g., listening) by addressing the language functions embedded in an example topic for that content area with appropriate scaffolds or support (Gottlieb, Cranley, & Cammileri, 2007). Classroom texts and other materials (e.g., science investigations, primary source documents) are other good sources to consult when preparing a lesson.

Classroom example #1: The cell cycle

To demonstrate how teachers can begin to explore identifying academic language in a lesson, let's look at how one teacher, Mr. Zhang, approaches this task.

Mr. Zhang's 7th grade science students have been working on the cell cycle. The content standards for 7th grade science indicate that students must be able to investigate and understand that all living things are composed of cells, with a key concept being cell division. The content objective for this lesson asks the students to compare and contrast the cycle of a normal cell with a cancer cell.

Because the students have already focused on the new vocabulary and grammar structures in this unit, Mr. Zhang and Mr. Lewis, the ELL teacher, decide that addressing the language functions required to complete tasks should be their next linguistic goal for the students. From there, Mr. Zhang and Mr. Lewis brainstorm some scientific language related to the cell cycle that might need to be directly taught in order for the students to master the content and ELP standards:

• The language of comparison — in order to have students explain what they learned about the normal and cancer cell cycle (e.g., more than…less than)
• Sequencing — in order to have students clearly outline the steps in the cycle for each type of cell (e.g., first, second, finally)
• Recording ideas in a graphic organizer — for students to be able to identify main ideas and organize them (e.g., Venn diagram),
• Summarizing — either orally or in writing, in order to have students demonstrate mastery of the topic.

Once Mr. Zhang and Mr. Lewis have identified the language objectives they want to focus on, they must look at the state's grades 6-8 ELP standards. When they look at the standards, they see that the students at low-intermediate to advanced language proficiency must be able to record information from oral input and explain, with detail, the similarities and differences between ideas/concepts/things. Given these ELP standards and the content objective, they decide that the best use of class time is to highlight oral language development and thus create the following the language objective:

Students will be able to orally explain the differences and similarities between normal and cancer cell cycles.

Getting Started

How can i get started, planning template.

The Content and Language Objectives planning template used in SIOP Model workshops offered by CAL helps teachers begin to practice writing their own objectives.

Careful lesson planning

In creating measureable and student-friendly language objectives that support the content objectives, it is important that learner tasks in the lesson are aligned with the objectives. It is not enough to have well-written objectives that promote language acquisition if the lesson is lacking in tasks that support the objectives. If the language objective for a middle school social studies lesson is for the students to orally retell the key characteristics in a historical event using sequential language, it is important that the teacher previews sequential language with the students, such as providing sentence stems or frames, and builds into the lesson some structured pair work so the students have an opportunity to retell the event to a peer. Therefore, careful lesson planning is another essential step in preparing effective language objectives.

Collaboration

It is also useful for content area and ESL/bilingual teachers to plan lessons together, as we saw with the 7th grade science lesson scenario involving Mr. Zhang and Mr. Lewis. In this co-planning scenario, each teacher used his expertise to better integrate content and language instruction for the language learners. This type of collaboration can help a teacher like Mr. Zhang learn more about the second language acquisition process of his students and can help a teacher like Mr. Lewis become more familiar with the grade-level content expectations that his English learners encounter in content area classes.

How do I know which language objectives are best for my students?

The language objective that the teacher selects will depend on what the English learners in the class need most at that point in the year and what language is most important to understanding the content concepts. If the students have already spent a good deal of time working with new vocabulary, then the teacher might consider having students use that vocabulary to develop their writing skill by writing a summary of the process they followed.

Conversely, the teacher might want to help students become more proficient with a particular type of graphic organizer in order to develop more strategic language learning. As all teachers know, teaching is a dynamic and complex process that requires a multitude of decisions to be made. However, the advance planning required in creating language objectives allows teachers to better anticipate the academic English needs of all students thus increasing the comprehensibility of the lessons.

It is important for teachers to realize that even though their lesson may include all four language skills (it is good if they do, since the language skills reinforce one another), they do not need to post a language objective for every language-related item addressed in the lesson. Teachers address many instructional needs in a 50- or 60-minute class period. Rather than highlighting all language uses in a particular lesson, it is important for the teacher to think about what is non-negotiable in that lesson.

In other words, the teacher should keep the perspective of the English learner in mind and ask, "Of all of the skills and functions addressed in my lesson, which is most important for helping students meet the grade-level standard and develop their language proficiency?" These objectives then must be measureable (i.e., can you see or assess the student's mastery of that objective?) and written in language that accounts for the linguistic and cognitive development of the students.

Language objectives: More examples

A second grade English Language Arts class language objective might be something like this:

" I can write describing words about Charlotte and Wilbur. "

A language objectives for a high school English Language Arts class might look something like this:

Students will be able to orally justify their character's actions during a discussion group.

How can I make language objectives "student-friendly"?

Both of the above objectives are measurable, but both also take into account appropriate developmental stages of the students. Teachers of young students (e.g., PK or K) may even want to consider further adapting the objectives. For example, we have seen kindergarten teachers use symbols such as a pencil to symbolize "write" and a mouth to symbolize "talk" when they post their objectives for the children to see. We have also seen teachers of young learners rely on pictures to show the key terms they want the students to use or to convey the topic of the lesson (e.g., a picture of a ruler and of hands to discuss standard and non-standard measurement).

One way that teachers can ensure that their language objectives are measureable and student-friendly is by using appropriate verbs. Because language objectives should provide students with practice in the four language skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking, verbs related to those skills might include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Summarize in writing

It is also important to not equate low language proficiency with limited cognitive ability. Therefore, teachers will want to make sure that the language objectives they create also reflect tasks that fall on the higher end of Bloom's Taxonomy and use verbs (e.g., orally justify) accordingly.

As noted above in the guidelines to creating language objectives, language functions are also a potential source for language objectives. Verbs related to language functions might include:

• Orally explain
• Report findings in writing

Classroom example #2: Solving math inequalities

This example offers some ideas for creating language objectives using the Common Core and WIDA ELP standards.

CCCSO Math Standard: Solve equations and inequalities in one variable

Math task: Solve multi-step inequalities that involve multiplying or dividing by variables

Content objective: Students will be able to solve inequalities

WIDA ELP Standard, Language of Math: Rephrase or recite phrases or sentences involved in problem solving using models and visual support in L1 or L2 with a partner; Explain to peers, with details, strategies for solving problem

Possible language objectives:

• Students will record ideas in a graphic organizer showing the steps in the process.
• Students will write a summary of the process followed to solve the problem.
• Students will define and use key math vocabulary (list key vocabulary).
• Students will read a story problem, identify key information, and solve the problem.
• Students will create their own story problems.

When should I share language objectives with students?

To help students take ownership of their learning and provide explicit direction to students, especially the English learners who are processing content in a new language, it is important that objectives be stated at the beginning of the lesson and reviewed with the students at the end of the lesson to allow them to assess if they have met the objectives (Echevarria, Vogt & Short, 2008).

How this happens may differ according to the grade level and content area of the class. Some teachers like to have the students choral read the objectives, while teachers of older students sometimes have them record the language objectives in their journal in addition to asking an individual student to read them aloud. Some teachers, such as those who teach science, like to reveal the objectives later in the lesson, perhaps after the warm up or exploratory activity, so that they can maintain an inquiry-based approach (Echevarria & Colburn, 2006).

Should I differentiate language objectives based on my students' language proficiency?

Although all teachers have students of varying language proficiency and skill levels in their classes, it is not necessary to differentiate language objectives by creating and posting multiple language objectives that reflect these proficiency levels. Rather, teachers should have one language objective that is appropriate for all students to meet. To provide the appropriate differentiation, the teacher would provide different scaffolds (e.g., adapted text, visuals, sentence frames) for students to use in order to reach the objectives.

For example, an appropriate language objective for an upper elementary language arts class might be for the students to be able to orally list text features found in a non-fiction book. For lower proficiency language learners, the teacher may give them a word bank from which to choose the text features; therefore, the students are meeting the same objective but with the appropriate amount of linguistic support from the teacher.

Using language objectives in a distance learning environment

While teachers like Ms. Shell understand that the characteristics of good teaching for English learners does not change in a virtual environment, they do understand that instruction will necessarily need to look different in order to account for the challenges that distance learning presents for many learners.

Accordingly, teachers will need to think through how to:

• present language objectives to learners in engaging ways
• measure learner understanding of the objective throughout the delivery of the lesson
• assess student mastery towards those objectives.

Presenting language objectives

Many different ways exist for teachers to present language objectives in remote learning. For example, teachers might:

• begin every virtual class by orally reading and presenting the content and language objectives in their Google slides and then asking students to briefly summarize in the chat box the activities they will be doing in that lesson to meet those objectives.
• post the objectives at the top of a shared digital document that serves as a capture sheet for the lesson. A teacher might then ask learners to self-assess their progress towards meeting those objectives at the end of the document.
• use live or recorded videos, especially when working with English learners with lower English proficiency. These videos can include props, for example ears to signify a listening objective.
• use realia, such as rocks, if one of the lesson's language aims is for students to orally describe different types of sedimentary rocks.

Monitoring student understanding and engagement

Teachers in distance learning environments must also carefully consider how they will assess learner understanding and engagement throughout the lesson. Given the challenges virtual learning platforms present towards capturing data on learner comprehension (e.g., paralinguistic cues such as facial expressions, gestures, posture) teachers working in virtual environments know that it is more important than ever to ensure that students clearly understand the content and linguistic aims for each lesson.

Using comprehension checks and assessing progress

It is also essential that students understand how teachers will measure their progress towards meeting each objective. Towards this aim, teachers must build in multiple comprehension checks throughout the lesson that align to the lesson's objectives. Teachers can:

• use apps such as Kahoot to create quick and simple comprehension checks throughout a lesson
• incorporate turn and talks via breakout rooms at preset intervals throughout a lesson that provide the teacher an opportunity to determine if students are practicing the academic language highlighted in the language objective
• visit the breakout rooms and use a simple oral language checklist to measure student progress towards linguistic aims of lessons, or teachers can capture that information via the use of shared digital documents where students synthesize in writing their oral discussion.

At the conclusion of a lesson, teachers can assess student progress towards meeting objectives via:

• tickets out that are submitted digitally
• the recording of a Flipgrid or use of another video platform where learners respond to a prompt that requires learners to use the academic language highlighted in the lesson's objectives.

Teachers can respond to the submitted tickets out or video with feedback that explicitly targets the students use of the language. When appropriate, teacher can provide learners with additional resources and/or support towards mastering that particular language skill or function. Teachers might also use that linguistic data to inform mini-lessons conducted to small groups of English learners during office hours or intervention time.

How can I learn more?

For more information on the SIOP Model, see Making Content Comprehensible for English Learners: The SIOP Model (Echevarria, Short, & Vogt, 2008).

Although language objectives can be implemented in any lesson design approach, they are especially congruent with sheltered instruction and the SIOP Model. Since language objectives ensure that teachers meet the unique linguistic needs of English learners, they are sometimes easier to implement in the context of instructional practices espoused by the SIOP Model.

Practices that focus on explicit academic language teaching include:

• development of key vocabulary
• peer-to-peer interaction
• meaningful activities that allow learners to practice the academic language in authentic contexts.

Below are other resources that can help you learn more about creating language objectives and about integrating academic language into content area classes.

Final Thoughts

We realize that it takes teachers some time to become very comfortable with creating language objectives, but our experience has shown that the implementation of language objectives can bring immediate benefits to instruction. Some immediate benefits include teachers understanding more concretely that they are both a content area and language teacher — as one teacher said in a CAL SIOP Model workshop, "I now see myself as a math teacher AND a language teacher".

We have also observed that when teachers consciously plan to meet the academic English needs of their learners, they end up with better planned learner tasks, and students begin to have more ownership of their content area and language learning. When it comes to building proficiency in academic English, as many teachers in our workshops remind us, "If you want to see it, you have to teach it." Therefore, if teachers want to see language development, language objectives are a great first step in helping teachers explicitly teach it.

Recommended Resources

• Crafting Language Objectives to Support ELLs (ELLevation)
• Language Objectives: Google Site (Supporting English Language Learners)
• Using Content and Language Objectives to Help All ELLs with Their Learning (Achieve the Core)
• How to Write Language and Culture Objectives (Empowering ELLs)

Further reading

Short, D., Himmel, J., Gutierrez, S., & Hudec, J. (2012). Using the SIOP Model: Professional development for sheltered instruction . Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics.

Echevarria, J., Vogt, M.E., & Short, D. (2010). The SIOP Model for teaching mathematics to English learners . Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Echevarria, J., & Short, D. (2011). The SIOP Model: A professional development framework for a comprehensive school-wide intervention . Center for Research on the Educational Achievement and Teaching of English Language Learners (CREATE) Brief. http://www.cal.org/create/resources/pubs/professional-development-framework.html

Himmel, J., Short, D., Richards, C., & Echevarria, J. (2009). Using the SIOP Model to improve middle school science instruction . Center for Research on the Educational Achievement and Teaching of English Language Learners (CREATE) Brief. http://www.cal.org/create/resources/pubs/siopscience.html

Short, D., Vogt, M., & Echevarria, J. (2010a). The SIOP Model for teaching history-social studies to English learners . Boston: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon.

Short, D., Vogt, M., & Echevarria, J. (2010b). The SIOP Model for teaching science to English learners . Boston: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon.

Vogt, M.E., Echevarria, J., & Short, D. (2010). The SIOP Model for teaching English language arts to English learners . Boston: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon.

About the Author

Jennifer Himmel is the Project Director for the National Center for English Language Acquisition at the Manhattan Strategy Group. She previously served as the SIOP Manager at the Center for Applied Linguistics, a non-profit organization for language education research, policy, and practice in Washington, DC. She has served as a curriculum developer and research associate for the U.S. Department of Education funded project, Center for Research on the Educational Achievement and Teaching of English Language Learners (CREATE) that is investigating academic achievement of ELLs in grades 4th-8th, and as a language testing specialist for the WIDA ACCESS for ELLs® language proficiency test. She currently manages the SIOP Model professional development service line and provides technical assistance and professional development in sheltered instruction to districts and schools.

Video Clips: Language Objectives

How to write language objectives: tips for ell educators.

In this video from Syracuse, NY, Jesus Ortiz, a bilingual teacher, learns how to write a language objective from Areli Schermerhorn, a peer evaluator with expertise in ELL and bilingual education.

Dr. Cynthia Lundgren explains language objectives

In this excerpt from her Meet the Expert interview , Dr. Cynthia Lundgren explains the value of writing language objectives when teaching English learners.

Anstrom, K., DiCerbo, P., Butler, F., Katz, A., Millet, J., & Rivera, C. (2010). A review of the literature on academic English: Implications for K-12 English language learners . Arlington, VA: The George Washington University Center for Equity and Excellence. Education.www.ceee.gwu.edu.

Echevarria, J., & Colburn, A. (2006). Designing lessons: Inquiry approach to science using the SIOP Model. In A. Lathman & D. Crowther (Eds.), Science for English language learners (pp.95-108). Arlington, VA: National Science Teachers Association Press.

Echevarria, J., Vogt, M., & Short, D. (2008). Making content comprehensible for English learners: The SIOP Model . Boston: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon.

Echevarria, J., & Short, D. ( 2010). Programs and practices for effective sheltered content instruction. In California Department of Education (Ed), Improving education for English learners: Research-based approaches . Sacramento, CA: CDE Press.

Francis, D., Rivera, M., Lesaux, N., Kieffer, M., & Rivera, H. (2006). Practical guidelines for the education of English language learners: Research-based recommendations for instruction and academic interventions . Portsmouth, NH: RMC Research Corporation, Center on Instruction. www.centeroninstruction.org/files/ELL1-Interventions.pdf

Goldenberg, C. (2008). Teaching English language learners: What the research does-and does not-say. American Educator , Summer 2008, pp. 13-44.

Gottlieb, M., Cranley, E., & Cammilleri, A. (2007). Understanding the WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards: A resource guide . Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System, on behalf of the WIDA Consortium.

World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (2007). WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards . Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System, on behalf of the WIDA Consortium http://www.wida.us/standards/elp.asp

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Common Core State Standards Initiative

English Language Arts Standards

The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects (“the standards”) represent the next generation of K–12 standards designed to prepare all students for success in college, career, and life by the time they graduate from high school.

The Common Core asks students to read stories and literature, as well as more complex texts that provide facts and background knowledge in areas such as science and social studies. Students will be challenged and asked questions that push them to refer back to what they’ve read. This stresses critical-thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills that are required for success in college, career, and life.

The standards establish guidelines for English language arts (ELA) as well as for literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects. Because students must learn to read, write, speak, listen, and use language effectively in a variety of content areas, the standards promote the literacy skills and concepts required for college and career readiness in multiple disciplines.

The College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards form the backbone of the ELA/literacy standards by articulating core knowledge and skills, while grade-specific standards provide additional specificity. Beginning in grade 6, the literacy standards allow teachers of ELA, history/social studies, science, and technical subjects to use their content area expertise to help students meet the particular challenges of reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language in their respective fields.

It is important to note that the grade 6–12 literacy standards in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects are meant to supplement content standards in those areas, not replace them. States determine how to incorporate these standards into their existing standards for those subjects or adopt them as content area literacy standards.

The skills and knowledge captured in the ELA/literacy standards are designed to prepare students for life outside the classroom. They include critical-thinking skills and the ability to closely and attentively read texts in a way that will help them understand and enjoy complex works of literature. Students will learn to use cogent reasoning and evidence collection skills that are essential for success in college, career, and life. The standards also lay out a vision of what it means to be a literate person who is prepared for success in the 21 st century.

• Key Design Consideration
• Students Who are College and Career Ready in Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening, & Language
• How to Read the Standards
• College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Reading
• College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Writing
• College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Speaking and Listening
• College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Language
• Introduction for K-5
• Kindergarten
• Introduction for 6-12
• Grade 11-12
• Introduction
• Language Progressive Skills
• Measuring Text Complexity: Three Factors
• Range of Text Types for K-5
• Texts Illustrating the Complexity, Quality, & Range of Student Reading K-5
• Staying on Topic Within a Grade & Across Grades
• Range of Text Types for 6-12
• Texts Illustrating the Complexity, Quality, & Range of Student Reading 6-12
• English Language Arts Appendix A
• English Language Arts Appendix B
• English Language Arts Appendix C

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WAEC English Language Questions and Answers 2023/2024 (Essay and Objectives)

Here are the WAEC English questions and answers. You will see WAEC English objective, theory, and test of oral questions for free. You will also understand how WAEC English questions are set and every detail you need to know about the WAEC English examination

Table of Contents

EXAMINATIO N SCHEME

There will be three papers to be taken:

Papers 1, 2 and 3. Papers 1 and 2 will be combined in a composite paper to be taken in one sitting.

WAEC English Questions and Answers 2023 (Expo)

The 2023 English answers will be posted here on 17th May during the exam.

Today’s WAEC English Answers Loading…

WAEC English OBJ

1-10: DBBADCBABC 11-20: BBACDBDABC 21-30: BCBDACBCDA 31-40: DCCABCCACD 41-50: CADCBBDCBA 51-60: CAAAABBDBA 61-70: ACBDACDBAB 71-80: ABBACDBDBC

WAEC English Oral Answers Loading…

1-10: CACDACBCAD 11-20: DBACBACBCC 21-30: ACCDADCBBC 31-40: ADBDDADCCB 41-50: CDCBCADCBA 51-60: BDBBDBABCB

(7) -Parents should ensure that their children take active part in chores and duties at home. -Parents should teach their children the strategy to face challenges in life. -Parents should train their children on the need to have dignity, integrity and manners. -Parent should train their children in appreciating the value of hard work -Parent should train their children to abide by the fundamental laws of the land. -Parent should serve as a role model to the children in terms of righteousness and character

(7) *Children should be inculcated the principle of contentment. *The principle of humanity should be the watchword for every child. *Children should be taught to be resilient even in the midst of difficulties. *Integrity and prestige should be the hallmark of every child bequeathed from their parents *Children should be taught to follow the proper way of doing things. *Obedience should be seen as a precious quality

Mma Koku left home on a cold windy Monday morning to see how Koku would amount to something in life

Mma Koku was forced with whirlwind on her way to meet the pathfinder

Mma Koku plonked into muddy pothole she hadn’t seen in time

He was the very first person to earn the highest postgraduate degree from the village of koomla

A thread bare sweater over an equally aged wrapper

Widow’s mite

The pathfinder was compassionate

Mma Koku’s expectation concerning her son was to be successful in life

Mma Koku was in her early 70’s

Personification

(a) Adverbial clause

(b) It modifies the verb “shall see”

(I) Fragile

(III)A duty

Once upon a time, in a quaint little village nestled amidst rolling hills, lived a humble baker named Alfred. Alfred was known far and wide for his exquisite bread-making skills and his genuine love for his craft. Every day, he would wake up at the crack of dawn, meticulously knead the dough, and bake the most mouthwatering loaves of bread the villagers had ever tasted.

One sunny morning, as Alfred began his usual routine, he realized to his dismay that his pantry was nearly bare. The flour, the main ingredient for his delectable bread, was running dangerously low. Panic surged through his veins as he contemplated the thought of disappointing his loyal customers by having to close his shop for the day.

With a heavy heart, Alfred decided to take a stroll through the village, hoping to find someone who could spare him some flour. He knocked on every door, but to his dismay, everyone seemed to be facing the same shortage. As he wandered the village streets, he noticed a peculiar sight—a young girl named Lily sitting on a bench, holding a half-eaten loaf of bread.

Curiosity piqued, Alfred approached the girl and kindly asked her about the bread. Lily explained that her family was going through tough times, and they could only afford to buy half a loaf of bread. With a sympathetic smile, Alfred shared his predicament, explaining his shortage of flour and his fear of disappointing his customers.

Without hesitation, Lily’s face lit up with an idea. She offered Alfred the half loaf of bread, suggesting that he could slice it, toast it, and sell it as a breakfast option to those who couldn’t afford a whole loaf. Intrigued by the young girl’s wisdom, Alfred agreed and thanked her for her ingenious suggestion.

Alfred hurried back to his bakery, his spirits lifted by the prospect of providing something rather than nothing to his customers. He meticulously sliced the half loaf into thin pieces, carefully toasted them until they turned a beautiful golden brown. As the aroma of freshly toasted bread wafted through the air, the villagers’ curiosity drew them to the bakery.

Word quickly spread throughout the village that Alfred had created a new breakfast option, and the villagers flocked to his shop, eager to try it. To their delight, the toasted bread was a huge hit. The villagers praised Alfred’s ingenuity and commended him for making the best out of a challenging situation. The half loaf that Lily had offered turned out to be a saving grace, not only for Alfred but also for the villagers who could now enjoy a delicious breakfast despite the scarcity of resources.

Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. The village gradually emerged from its difficult times, and Alfred’s bakery flourished once again. As a gesture of gratitude, Alfred decided to share a portion of his profits with Lily’s family, ensuring that they, too, could enjoy the fruits of their ingenuity and generosity.

The saying “Half a loaf is better than none” resonated deeply with the villagers and became a constant reminder of the power of making the best out of any situation. Alfred, Lily, and the entire village learned that even in times of scarcity, a little ingenuity, resourcefulness, and a generous heart can transform half a loaf into a gift that nourishes both the body and the spirit.

I hope this letter finds you well. I was thrilled to receive your message expressing your interest in studying at my school. It would be fantastic to have you here! Allow me to provide you with all the information and advice you need to make a decision.

Our school, [School Name], is renowned for its excellent academic programs and supportive learning environment. We offer a wide range of courses across various disciplines, ensuring that you can find a program that aligns with your interests and goals. Our experienced and dedicated faculty members are committed to providing high-quality education and nurturing the intellectual growth of our students.

To help international students like yourself, our school provides comprehensive support services. The International Student Office assists with visa applications, enrollment, and any other administrative matters. They also organize orientation programs to help you settle into your new environment and connect with fellow international students.

Regarding accommodation, our school offers both on-campus and off-campus housing options. On-campus residences provide a convenient and immersive living experience, fostering a sense of community. However, if you prefer off-campus housing, the International Student Office can guide you in finding suitable accommodations in the surrounding area.

As for extracurricular activities, our school has a vibrant and diverse student community. There are numerous clubs and organizations catering to various interests, including sports, arts, culture, and community service. Engaging in these activities is a great way to make friends, explore your passions, and enhance your overall university experience.

In terms of facilities, our campus boasts state-of-the-art resources and amenities. We have well-equipped libraries, modern laboratories, computer labs, and multimedia centers to support your academic pursuits. Additionally, there are recreational facilities such as sports fields, fitness centers, and student lounges for relaxation and socializing.

One aspect you may be interested in is the cost of education. While tuition fees vary depending on the program, scholarships and financial aid options are available for eligible students. I recommend checking the school’s website or contacting the admissions office for detailed information on scholarships and financial assistance programs.

Lastly, our school is located in a vibrant and culturally rich city. [City Name] offers a plethora of opportunities for entertainment, exploration, and personal growth. From museums and art galleries to theaters, music venues, and outdoor recreational areas, there is always something exciting happening. The city also provides excellent transportation networks, making it easy to navigate and explore different parts of the region.

I hope this overview of our school has been helpful in giving you a glimpse of what to expect. If you have any further questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to reach out. I am more than happy to assist you in any way I can.

Wishing you all the best in your decision-making process, and I truly hope to welcome you to [School Name] soon!

Warm regards,

THE IMPORTANCE OF REVIVING THE ACTIVITIES OF CLUBS AND SOCIETIES IN SCHOOLS

The school experience is more than just academics. It is also about discovering new interests, making friends and learning valuable life skills. Joining clubs and societies in school can help students achieve all of these things and more. However, in recent years, the number of students participating in these extracurricular activities has decreased. This article will discuss the importance of reviving the activities of clubs and societies in schools.

Firstly, clubs and societies provide a platform for students to explore their interests beyond academics. Students can join a club or society based on their hobbies, talents or passion. For instance, a student interested in photography can join the photography club, while a student who loves music can join the music club. Being part of a club or society allows students to meet like-minded individuals, share ideas and broaden their knowledge. By participating in these activities, students can discover their hidden talents and develop skills that can be useful in their future careers.

Secondly, clubs and societies help students develop social skills and build friendships. Students who join clubs and societies are often exposed to a diverse group of people. This helps them to learn how to interact with others who have different backgrounds or personalities. Being part of a club or society also gives students a sense of belonging and community. They can make new friends, share experiences and create memories that will last a lifetime.

Thirdly, participating in clubs and societies can help students develop important life skills such as leadership, teamwork, and time management. Clubs and societies often have officers and leaders who are responsible for organizing activities, managing resources and leading meetings. By taking on these roles, students can improve their leadership skills and learn how to work effectively as a team. They can also learn how to manage their time and prioritize tasks, which is an essential skill for success in any field.

Lastly, being part of a club or society can help students stand out when applying for college or jobs. Colleges and employers are often interested in applicants who have demonstrated leadership skills, teamwork and a commitment to extracurricular activities. By participating in clubs and societies, students can showcase their skills and experience, which can give them an advantage over other applicants.

In conclusion, reviving the activities of clubs and societies in schools is crucial for the overall development of students. These extracurricular activities provide a platform for students to explore their interests, develop social skills, build friendships, and acquire important life skills. It is important for schools to encourage students to participate in clubs and societies and provide the necessary resources and support to make these activities successful. By doing so, schools can create a vibrant and engaging environment that will benefit students both academically and personally.

CONCERNS OVER THE LACK OF MAINTENANCE OF PUBLIC FACILITIES

I write to express my deep concern regarding the persisting issue of the neglect and inadequate maintenance of public facilities across our nation. It is disheartening to witness the sorry state of these essential assets that are meant to serve the public, and I believe it is high time we address this pressing matter.

First and foremost, the neglect of public facilities has a significant impact on the quality of life for citizens. Parks, playgrounds, community centers, and other public spaces are meant to foster a sense of community and provide recreational opportunities for individuals of all ages. However, due to the lack of maintenance, these facilities have become dilapidated, unsafe, and unsightly, discouraging their use and depriving people of valuable spaces for leisure and social interaction.

Moreover, the deterioration of public facilities poses potential risks to public health and safety. Crumbling infrastructure, broken equipment, and unkempt surroundings can create hazardous conditions, leading to accidents and injuries. The lack of regular inspections, repairs, and upgrades further exacerbates the risks, making it imperative for authorities to take immediate action to ensure the well-being of the public.

Furthermore, the neglect of public facilities sends a discouraging message about our society’s priorities. Public spaces are a reflection of our collective values and commitment to the well-being of our communities. When these spaces are allowed to decay, it conveys a lack of concern and respect for public resources and undermines the sense of civic pride. It is essential that we preserve and enhance these spaces, as they contribute to the overall development and happiness of our citizens.

To address this issue, a collaborative effort between government bodies, local communities, and concerned citizens is crucial. Firstly, adequate funding must be allocated to support regular maintenance and upgrades of public facilities. This can be achieved through budgetary allocations, public-private partnerships, and community-driven initiatives. Additionally, it is vital to establish a comprehensive system for regular inspections and maintenance, ensuring that repairs are promptly undertaken and preventive measures are implemented.

Furthermore, citizen engagement plays a pivotal role in maintaining public facilities. Encouraging community participation through volunteer programs, awareness campaigns, and partnerships with local organizations can foster a sense of ownership and responsibility among citizens, leading to better maintenance and utilization of these spaces.

In conclusion, the lack of maintenance of public facilities is a pressing concern that demands immediate attention. By recognizing the importance of these spaces, allocating adequate resources, and promoting community involvement, we can restore and revitalize our public facilities, creating environments that enhance the quality of life and strengthen the social fabric of our nation.

Yours sincerely,

More Answers Loading….

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PAPER 1 : Will consist of eighty multiple choice questions, all of which should be answered within 1 hour for 40 marks.

PAPER 2 : Will consist of five essay topics and a passage each to test candidates’ comprehension and summary skills. Candidates will be expected to write an essay on one of the topics and answer all the questions on Comprehension and Summary passages. The paper will last 2 hours and carry 100 marks.

PAPER 3 : Will consist of sixty multiple choice items on Test of Orals for candidates In Nigeria and Liberia, and that on Listening Comprehension for candidates in Ghana, The Gambia and Sierra Leone. All the questions will be answered in 45 minutes for 30 marks.

Note: The questions below are for practice

In each of the following sentences, there is one word in italics and one gap. From the list of words lettered A to D, choose the one that is most nearly opposite in meaning to the word in italics and that will, at the same time, correctly fill the gap in the sentence.

Binetou’s inquisitiveness is in sharp contrast with her sister’s _______

A. indifference

B. noisiness

C. calmness

D. dullness

2. Though at first it appeared an insignificant idea, it turned out to be quite

A. outstanding

B. successful

C. remarkable

D. interesting

3. After grasping the fundamental aspects of his job, Kwesi had to cope with more ______ procedures.

A. advanced

B. academic

C. subsidiary

D. secondary

4. The youth prefer discussing contemporary issues to _______ ones

B. uninteresting

D. political

5. As erroneous as it might sound, the Headmaster’s assumption was quite ______

6. Halima likes to dwell on trivial , rather than _______ matters

7. We all know that Bola is insolent whereas Ade is __________

A. cowardly

B. respectful

8. A few days after Musa’s __________ , his sister longed for his departure

B. entrance

9. Algebra seems complicated , but with practice it becomes _________

C. accessible

D. achievable

10. Mrs. Agide is unassuming whereas her twin sister is __________

A. cheerful

B. boastful

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that best completes each of the following sentences.

11. At Christmas, employees of Sugar Factory receive huge ____________

A. benefits

B. dividends

D. salaries

12. The exposed milk in that container has turned ___________

13. Not all activities champion _____ causes

C. concrete

D. favourable

14. The Mayor gave a glowing ______________ at the funeral of the city’s only curator

A. citation

B. statement

D. commendation

15. At the end of __________, the National Anthem is played on our radio station

A. programming

B. production

C. transition

D. transmission

16. The defence counsel was unable to convince ______ of John’s innocence

A. plaintiff

17. Unfortunately, corruption is the ____________ of most African countries.

C. disaster

D. backbone

18. The ______ results proved that the patient had hepatitis.

A. investigation

B. diagnosis

19. The new book has beautiful ____________ which make it attractive.

A. illustrations

B. demonstrations

C. illuminations

D. compositions

20. Their marriage was finally __________ after years of hostility

A. cancelled

B. annulled

D. separated

Recommended: WAEC Biology Questions and Answers for 2021 (Theory and Objectives)

After each of the following sentences, a list of possible interpretation is given. choose the interpretation that is most appropriate for each sentence

21. Can you imagine Oka behaving as he has all the knowledge in the world? This means that Oka

A. does not really know everything

B. knows so much more than we think

C. is admired by everybody

D. respects other people

22. Akin is too full of himself. This means that Akin

A. talks too much

B. eats too much

C. is too proud

D. is quite annoying

23. she slogged her guts out for the examination. This means that she

A. she failed the examination despite working hard for it.

B. passed the examination despite not working hard for it

C. used unfair means to face the examination

D. really worked very hard for the examination

24. I admire Modou: very few people can stomach all of Adaeze’s insults. This means that Modou

A. tolerated Adaeze’s insults

B. was a weakling

C. had no answer to Adaeze’s insult

D. did the right thing by remaining silent.

25. After months of battling with stroke, he is now a shadow of his former self. This means that he

A. is now frail

B. is vulnerable

C. is hopeless

D. has almost recovered

26. Kura, you can’t be too careful when dealing with Wang. This means that Kura

A. has no reason to be suspicious of Wang.

B. can fully rely on Wang

C. has to be very careful in his relationship with Wang

D. may feel free in the company of Wang.

27. Don’t tell me another cock and bull story. This means that the speaker does not want to

A. be further baffled

B. hear the same old story

C. hear another drab story

D. be further deceived

28. Had he confessed much earlier, she would have trusted him This means that he

A. had confessed earlier on, but he wasn’t trusted

B. had confessed much earlier on, and he was trusted

C. hadn’t confessed much earlier on, and he was trusted

D. hadn’t confessed earlier on, and he wasn’t trusted

29. Kola: You really worked hard to win the case. Didia: You don’t know the half of it.

A. it wasn’t as difficult as Kola had thought

B. Kola’s statement wasn’t actually correct

C. it was even more difficult than Kola could imagine

D. winning the case didn’t mean much to Kola

30. Femi is too clever by half. This means that Femi

A. displays his cleverness in an annoying way

B. is not as clever as he thinks

C. pleases everyone he meets

D. hides how clever he really is.

From the words lettered A to D below each of the following sentences, choose the word or group of words that is nearest in meaning to the word in italics as it is used in the sentence

31. He was such a brilliant footballer!

A. an inspired

B. an intelligent

C. a dazzling

D. a skilful

32. The politician is a fluent speaker

A. an eloquent

B. a superficial

C. an insightful

D. a persuasive

33. Everyone has the urge to succeed in life

A. compulsion

34. When he heard the gunshot, he ran into a thick forest

35. That was a timely intervention

A. suitable

B. accurate

36. David is not only hardworking but also scrupulous

A. painstaking

B. ambitious

C. pleasant

37. We really have to be careful because the situation is rather tricky

A. deceitful

C. unexpected

D. difficult

38. I think that his essay is impeccable

A. erroneous

C. satisfactory

D. faultless

39. There has been a marked change in her study habit

A. significant

D. complete

40. He was directed to write the letter.

B. instructed

C. persuaded

SECTION A (50 MARKS) Answer one question only from this section. All questions carry equal marks. Your answer should not be less than 450 words. You are advised to spend about 50 minutes on this section.

1. Your friend in another school has requested information about your school to enable him to decide on moving over to your school. Write a letter to him discussing at least three areas in which your school excels.

2. Write an article for publication in your school magazine, discussing the reasons why children in your area drop out of school and suggesting ways of minimizing it.

3. As the president of your youth club, write a letter to the chairman of your Local Government Association complaining about the increasing rate of child labour and suggesting ways of curbing it.

4. You are the chief speaker in a debate on the topic: Women should not be in paid employment while still bearing children. Write your contribution for or against the topic.

5. Write a story that ends with the words: That experience will linger on my mind for a long time.

SECTION B COMPREHENSION [20 marks] You are advised to spend about  30 minutes  on this section.

6.  Read the following passage  carefully  and answer the questions on it.

Our planet is at risk. Our environment is under threat. The air we breathe, the water we drink, the seas we fish in, and soils we farm, the forests, animals and plants which surround us are in danger.

New terms and words describe these problems: acid rain, the greenhouse effect, global warming, holes in the ozone layer, desertification and industrial pollution. We are changing our environment. More and more gases and waste escape from our factories.

Rubbish, oil silages and detergents damage our rivers and seas. Forests give us timber and paper, but their loss results in soil erosion and also endangers wildlife.

The richer countries of the world are mainly responsible for industrial pollution. This is where most of all the commercial energy is produced. In developing countries, poverty cause people to change their environment, to overgraze grassland, to cut down trees for new land and firewood, to farm poor soil for food.

The United Nations Environmental Protection Agency says that an area of forest the size of Sierra Leone disappears every year. Trees are cut down for timber which is used for building, furniture, paper and fuel.

They are also destroyed to provide land on which to graze animals and build new villages and towns. But trees have many other important uses. Trees protect the land from heavy downpour of rain and their roots help to hold the soil together.

Forests are also the home of many living things. The Amazon forest contains one fifth of all the species of birds in the world. In our forests, there may be plants and animals which could help in the discovery of new medicines of crops.

To rescue and conserve our beautiful world, we must act cooperatively. Individuals, communities, nations and international associations, all have the responsibility. By learning to protect the natural environment, we can manage the earth’s resources for generations to come.

(a)  The risk referred to in the passage is of what origin? (b)  From the passage, it can be deduced that the inhabitants of developing countries ______ (c)  According to the passage, the size of forest depleted ______ annually. (d)  The writer holds the richer countries responsible for industrial pollution because of their what? (e)  The message of the writer of the passage is the need for what?

SECTION C (SUMMARY) [30 MARKS] You are advised to spend about 50 minutes on this section.

Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions on it. You cannot expect to go through life without meeting problems. Difficulties, perplexities and frustrations are an inevitable part of human experience.

Accepting this idea of the inevitability of problems will help you to approach them in a robust frame of mind rather than thinking that you are a victim specially singled out by malignant fate.

When confronted with a problem, the first thing to do is gather all relevant data to get acquainted with the facts of the case.

Then write down exactly what the problem is, stating it simply in black and white. This gives you something definite with which to come to terms. The problem is assessed and you will now have something concrete to deal with. Next, give serious thought to the problem, making sure that such thought does not degenerate into worry as worry accomplishes nothing. Aim at clear, dispassionate thought, viewing the problem as if it were a friend’s and not your own. Look at it from all angles and from the point of view of all concerned.

You court disaster if you are entirely selfish in your outlook. The single important purpose of all this is to discover all possible solutions to the problem.

Having examined the problem broadly and impartially, carefully examine all the possible solutions or courses of action. The knowledge that you have done this will keep you from useless regrets later, when you can remind yourself that all courses of action were examined and you chose what appeared to be the best. Next, eliminate all proposed solutions which are seen on further thought to be impracticable.

You will now find that your list has been whittled down to two or three possibilities. At this stage it is often a good plan to get out into the open air. Go for a walk or a ride, preferably somewhere with wide horizons. There, out in the open, review the problem afresh. You will find it appears less formidable.

Ask yourself how the difficulty will appear in ten years’ time or even one! This fresh review will enable you to make a final choice as you turn to the remaining solutions and, before you return home, decide which one you are going to adopt. As you go to sleep that night, let your last thoughts be upon your decision. If, in the morning, you still feel it is the best one to take, go ahead.

If you have a friend who is capable of giving sound advice, consult him. Do this before your final decision, so that you will have the benefit of his views before you decide. Talking things over with another is always a great help.

It enables you to isolate the problem and to decide which on which factors are important. Even if the friend offers no advice, a sympathetic ear will help you. Furthermore, as you describe to your friend the courses open to you, you will see them in clearer light. Some will appear impossible even as you speak.

Alternatively, one will appear most attractive. In dealing with problems, remember the time factor. Although some problems solve themselves in time, and delaying tactics is therefore the best form of action for them, most other problems generally get more complicated the longer they are left. You should, therefore, get to grips with the problems immediately they occur.

All told, reasonable foresight and imagination can prevent many problems ever arising. Tact, thoughtfulness and responsible conduct can also keep life largely problem-free.

In six sentences, one for each, summarize the steps to be taken when faced with a problem and

Paper 3 (TEST 0F ORALS)

For candidates in Nigeria and Liberia only

SECTION 1 From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same vowel sound as the one represented by the letters underlined. 1.   wit A.  fright B.  wheat C.  tree D.  market 2.   look A.  glue B.  you C.  cup D.  curious

SECTION 2 From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same consonant sound(s) as the one represented by the letter(s) underlined. 3.   dance A.  handsome B.  sandwich C.  adjective D.  pounding 4.   plucked A.  smiled B.  slammed C.  luck D.  table

SECTION 3 From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that rhymes with the given word. 5.         carrier A.        area B.        barrier C.        serious D.        ravine 6.        drought A.        crowd B.        nought C.        shout D.        taught

SECTION 4 In each of the following questions, the main/primary stress is indicated by writing the syllable on which it occurs in capital letters. From the words lettered A to D, choose the one that has the correct stress. 7.         acrimony A.        A-cri-mo-ny B.        a-CRI-mo-ny C.        a-cri-MO-ny D.        a-cri-mo-NY

SECTION 5: In the following options lettered A to D, all the words except one have the same stress pattern. Identify the one with the different stress pattern. 8.         A.        sanctify B.        promising C.        notify D.        organic

SECTION 6 In each of the following sentences, the word that receives the emphatic stress is written in capital letters.   From the questions lettered A to D, choose the one to which the given sentence is the appropriate answer. 9.         The DOCTOR examined the patient with a stethoscope. A.        Did the teacher examine the patient with a stethoscope? B.        Did the doctor cure the patient with a stethoscope? C.        Did the doctor examine the nurse with a stethoscope? D.        Did the doctor examine the patient with a telescope?

SECTION 7 From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that contains the sound represented by the given phonetic symbol. 10.       / ǝ / A.        accurate B.        nephew C.        ageless D.        waddle

WAEC English Essay, Summary and Objective 2023 (EXPO)

The above questions are not exactly 2023 WAEC English questions and answers but likely WAEC English repeated questions and answers.

These questions are for practice. The 2023 WAEC English expo will be posted on this page on the day of the WAEC English examination. Keep checking and reloading this page for the answers.

WAEC English Questions and Answers 2023 Loading…

Answer one question only from this section. All questions carry equal marks. Your article should not be less than 450 words

You are advised to spend about 50 minutes on this section

1. Your brother who is in his third year in another school has written to confide in you that he is to stop schooling and go into business. Write a letter to him advising him against his decision

2. Write an article suitable for publication in a national newspaper on the topic: The Importance of Promoting Good Reading Habits in Students

3. As the Senior Prefect of your school, write a letter to the Principal pointing out at least two practices among students that should be discouraged and two habits that should be promoted among teachers,

4. New Principal has just been posted to your school. Write a speech you will deliver at the welcome party organized for him informing him about some problems faced by students.

5. Write a story that ends with the statement: I had never felt so embarrassed in my life

English OBJ Loading…

Tips to Help You Pass Your 2023 WAEC English Language Examination

Tip 1: study hard.

It is a known fact that academic success is directly proportional to hard work provided prayer is kept constant. Read your books as if it is the only thing you have to do while preparing for your WAEC examination.

Tip 2: Read Past Questions on WAEC English Language

You can attest to the fact that the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) always repeats its questions annually.

Reading the WAEC English past questions will expose you to the things you are expected to know as a WAEC candidate.

Sometimes, we read our textbooks and still don’t know which area to focus on. WAEC English past question will tell you the areas to concentrate on.

If you have any questions about WAEC English Questions and Answers 2023 , kindly drop your question in the comment box.

Last Updated on May 17, 2023 by Admin

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293 thoughts on “WAEC English Language Questions and Answers 2023/2024 (Essay and Objectives)”

I need questions and answers for gce second series

English is good

Am a past waec candidate ,I got a D7 in English after studying so hard for it .I don’t know why that happened.I wrote well like I could remember ,now am preparing for GCE because of English alone .I don’t want to have problems in that one .What can I do to make an excellent result in English

Am proud of you.

Please, I need this urgently

Please I need neco English question and answer for 2023/2024

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NECO English Language Questions and Answers 2023 Objective and Essay

Neco english language 2023 answers are now available. neco english language questions and answers 2023/2024 objective and essay and other exam details for neco 2023 are on this page. see the 2023 neco english language answers for both objective and theory below. get the neco english language objective and essay answers here. the 2023 english […].

NECO English Language 2023 answers are now available. NECO English Language questions and answers 2023/2024 objective and essay and other exam details for NECO 2023 are on this page. See the 2023 NECO English Language answers for both objective and theory below. Get the NECO English Language objective and essay answers here.

The 2023 English Language NECO OBJ and theory questions and answers are provided here for free. All you have to do is to go through the questions and take note of the NECO English Language answers 2023. Read on to find out.

Have you been searching on Google in order to get the NECO English Language questions and answers 2023? If so, we have got you covered!

We have the 2023 NECO English questions and our team of experts will soon upload the NECO English Language questions and their accurate answers to help you pass the 2023 NECO English Language examination.

The 2023 NECO English Language essay questions and OBJ will be uploaded any moment from now. So if you are searching for the NECO English Language answers 2023 for objective and theory, then you are on the right page. See NECO English Language objective and essay questions and answers below.

NECO English Language Answers 2023 Objective and Essay

The National Examination Council (NECO) is an examination body in Nigeria that conducts the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination and the General Certificate in Education in June/July and November/December respectively.

The 2023 NECO English Language questions are set from the SS1 to SS3 English Language syllabus. So all the questions you will encounter in this year’s examination are in the syllabus, and nearly 95% of the questions are repeated.

You don’t have to worry about the 2023 NECO English Language questions and answers PDF (essay and objective). The NECO English answers 2023 will be uploaded any moment from now. All you need to do is to keep refreshing this page so as not to miss out.

Once again, keep refreshing this page because we will upload the original NECO English Language questions and answers for this year’s exams on this page at any moment from now. Also, to download the past questions and answers, click on this link NECO English Language past questions .

If you have any questions about the NECO English Language questions 2023 and answers, feel free to use the comment box below or use the Chat With Us button and we will respond immediately.

The 2023 NECO English Language answers will be posted here. Be patient. Keep checking and reloading this page for the correct answers. NECO 2023 English Language answers loading…….

There is nothing like NECO English Language expo 2023 online. All students are advised to avoid all patronizing online fraudsters/vendors who claim to provide such services.

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