IN Australia, thousands of New
South Wales high-school graduating students took their first HSC exam in
English. Their results will determine their options for tertiary study.
It was all too easy for the semi-quality newspaper The
Sydney Morning Herald to come up with a story on a too-hard English exam.
Read the full story HERE http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/hsc-
The article quotes Babs Helleman, head of English at the
King's School, Parramatta. which is a wealthy Australian private school.
‘She said the questions were too tough for a typical student and
included: "Analyse how imagery is used to capture the author's intense
experience returning to his hometown"
Wow! That sounds pretty much a
meat-and-potatoes literary question to me and another teacher agrees with me.
‘Jennifer Taylor, head of English at
selective high school North Sydney Girls High, said she felt the exam was
challenging but fair.
"Every student could access
that paper," she said. "Its focus was very clearly in the
rubrik."
WTF does that mean? I looked up rubrik in the dictionary and was none the wiser. If was sitting an English exam, I would hope Ms Taylor did not set it as she fails to speak the same language as I. Ah well, they probably would not let me into selective North Sydney Girls' High, anyway.
There is imagery and
analogy in my forthcoming novel Iraqi Icicle but I am not sure whether it has a rubrik
. In an exam, I would probably write rubrik is Aussie rhyming slang for prick. I suspect that is a Fail.
Ah well, best stick
to writing stuff and only analyse when forced.
Good luck in the rest
of your exams, this week, NSW HSC students.
VERY sad tale on the
arrest of the Vines lead singer Craig Nicholls.
Two years ago, Alise225
wrote: This is the 1 song that makes me calm enough to go to sleep and get some
peace of mind during the exam period. (For that Alise, we are promoting you; from
now on, in our book, you are Alise77.)
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