Tovah here - a qualified English teacher and this week I've been thinking about our effective critical thinking tutorials. I am quite proud of how I develop my students' critical opinion skills and how many of them have received excellence since joining me in our one-on-one NCEA English tutorials.
As I have said many times before, I really want to help more NZ students boost their confidence with NCEA, so I thought I'd share some tips for the NCEA English Unfamiliar Text exam.
What is the NCEA English Unfamiliar Text exam?
The NCEA English Unfamiliar Text exam requires you to analyse a text from a critic's perspective.
Now remember, Unfamiliar Text means a text you've never studied. So, my first thought would be start reading texts you are not used to viewing. Whether that be historical, credible, new or well known. The more you view text, the more you'll be used to the idea of reading something unknown to you.
Our expert tutors will take you through the requirements of the Unfamiliar Text exam.
Here are my tips for developing a critical opinion:
Step 1: Read and write out someone's opinion about a text they're analysing to prepare for the Unfamiliar Text exam
Locate and write out, word for word, someone's perspective on a text they are analysing. Make sure to use quotation marks and references. This will be of value for two reasons; to practice citing/quoting and also to be able to identify the structure and language used in a critical opinion. It's important to note that an informal opinion and a critical opinion are two different things. So, you really need to know what a critical opinion looks like.
...an informal opinion and a critical opinion are two different things. So, you really need to know what a critical opinion looks like.
Our expert tutors will show you how to cite and quote properly, ready for the Unfamiliar Text exam.
Step 2: Paraphrase a critical opinion to prepare for the Unfamiliar Text exam
Paraphrasing is another word for re-writing in your own words. Being able to master this skill will mean you will be familiar with expressing a clear opinion. When you choose a critical opinion from an academic piece of writing, you will notice the opinion has substance and is backed up with evidence. So, becoming familiar with how to share a critical opinion through an academic structure is an important part of developing an opinion.
Our expert tutors will show you how to paraphrase properly, ready for the Unfamiliar Text exam.
Step 3: Agree, disagree, compare and contrast to prepare for the Unfamiliar Text exam
Once you've discovered and re-written a sound critical opinion, you can now build on this opinion by agreeing, disagreeing, comparing and contrasting ideas with this critical opinion. When you do this, you can explore an idea purposefully and in depth. When you are able to look beyond and develop your ideas more insightfully, that's where you will find the higher grades.
Our expert tutors will show you how to agree, disagree, compare and contrast, ready for the Unfamiliar Text exam.
When you are able to look beyond and develop your ideas more insightfully, that's where you will find the higher grades.
Your next step after this would be looking through a writer's lens. As you start to explore your ideas, you can start looking into important aspects that influence writing such as history, society, beliefs and background. Look at writing quality, structure, language features, ideas, societal expectations etc.
Our expert tutors will show you how to write from the perspective of a critic, ready for the Unfamiliar Text exam.
To learn how to build an effective critical opinion, sign up to our NCEA English Unfamiliar Text tutorials today. Our expert tutors will boost your confidence with NCEA. We also have strategies to build study notes and help with exam anxiety. #tovahstutoring #confidence #ncea #unfamiliartext #nceaenglish #exam #studytips
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All the best,
Tovah
Tovah's Tutoring Company Ltd.
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