Cambridge IGCSE English Language (May 3rd 2016) official thread

Question 1 is my strong point because I am a creative person in general so I like writing things and using impressive vocan and descriptive imagery etc.Dunno I actually enjoy english. Well I havent reallt like done anything to get good but I guess u culd do pastpapers which im going to do very soon. Also highlight things and translate words whilst ur reading the passage into ur own words to get ideas flowing. What r ur usual grades for this?

I got an A in the mock last year without trying that hard but this year question 1 has proved the most difficult for me. I got a B in a practise but would like an A* however even if I got a C, I would still get an A in language overall. How do you ensure you have covered 5 points for each of the 3 bullet points in sufficient detail ? As I feel my problem seems to be not making relevant points and developing them well enough. Thanks

You dont need to develop too much and you need to make sure your paragraphs are like 100-110 each (to stay safe). Well for me I will have a key phrase from the extract but change it to my words so thts one key point. Development would then be me being creative and expanding tht point but not too much. I feel like language is free so u either get markd or dont. Like u cant really revise it but just past papers. So ur coursrwork will save u?

Yeah I got 48/50 for coursework and 29/30 for speaking and listening so it deffo saves me regardless thanks for your advice, it was very helpful

Are our teachers allowed to tell us our speaking and listening mark before the exam?

Yes, they are allowed to tell your grades before the exam. My teacher actually told me my Speaking and Listening grade immediately after the recording had finished.

Ah OK, because we just had ours this week, and my teacher said he can't say how I did. Is this just because the speakings were ongoing, and he'll be able to tell us when he's marked them?

Hello guys! I have decided to create a thread dedicated to this examination as we are only 20 days away!

60% of this exam will be banked without even starting the exam- three pieces of coursework and speaking and listening. The other 40% is the exam.

There are three questions in this exam: Question 1(20 marks), Question 2(10 marks) and Question 3(20 marks).

How are you guys feeling? If anybody needs help, feel free to post. Discuss anything related to the exam and share ideas in this thread.

Here is a link to Past papers
https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0BzumkDfi9230Tl9iSl9JT1E5V0E&usp=drive_web

Advice on how to answer each question
https://sites.google.com/a/grange.cl...age-paper-tips
Credit goes to @metellaest for providing this resource.

If anybody has any useful websites, then feel free to message me and i will add them to the OP. Also it would be very appreciated if anybody has a link to the grade boundaries for each year.

Thanks and good luck!

I'm doing the same thing how many marks do you need for an A?

I don't really have access to the grade boundaries but what grade is your coursework and speaking and listening as that contributes to 60% of your grade.

I'd rather not say but this is what I need 28/50 for a C 32/50 for a B 44/50 for a A

Well in the most recent past papers- June 2015 and November 2015 you needed 31 out 50 in the June paper to get an A and 34 in the November paper to get an A.

I did my speaking and listening about a month ago now! And when I asked my teacher she said they're not allowed to tell us our marks/grades.... Apparently, we only find ours out on results day.

@ibte10 So are you sure we can definitely find out our marks?

I did my mock exam on this about 4 months ago and I scrapped an A*. However, in the past few days in class, I can't seem to focus on the past papers and I am struggling on Q1 and Q2 (haven't even bothered to attempt Q3). Like, in Q1, can you literally just take out obvious words from passage 1 and just put it into basic sentences or do you have to structure it well like an essay. And question 2 where it asks you to pick out 4 quotes or something, do you have to analyse it like you would in a poem? Any help would be appreciated!

In Q1 you shouldn't directly copy but use the details in the text and development them. If you structure your response well you will stand a higher chance of getting the 5 marks for Writing. Yes Q2 is quite similar to Poems. This question is language analysis so you need to pick 4 powerful words from each paragraph and analysis them. Make sure to use the meaning-effect structure in this question. Also to get the higher marks include a paragraph that summarizes the effect of the paragraph in general.Also BTW, what mark did you get to get that A*? It would help if you also stated which paper.