Can I get an A/A* grade in English in 3/4 months time?

Hey guys.

I'm currently a grade B student at English and I took the IGCSE English exam in year 10 and got a B. I retook the exam in November and got a B again. :frown:

Somehow, I was able to persuade my teacher to enter me for the exam for a third time - which willl be in June. Therefore, I intend to start my revison now but I want to know the number of ways I could revise/improve my English grade from a B to an A/A* grade. Hope anyone can help me out... :smile:

Reply 1

ianuam

6

Honestly, the best thing you could do would be to write more essays, and read, read, read. Everything you can get your hands on; literary criticism, classic novels, everything.

Writing is hard, but the more essays you write the more you get into the groove.

Reply 2

SL2310

OP

4

Original post by ianuam

Honestly, the best thing you could do would be to write more essays, and read, read, read. Everything you can get your hands on; literary criticism, classic novels, everything.

Writing is hard, but the more essays you write the more you get into the groove.

Thanks and what type of essays?

Reply 3

ianuam

6

Coursework. Critical stuff on novels. Read journal articles. Look at A level questions / past papers.

Reply 4

Gnomes&Knights

20

How do people even get A* for GCSE English. I struggle to get even a C.

Reply 5

Rudimentary

1

Original post by ianuam

Honestly, the best thing you could do would be to write more essays, and read, read, read. Everything you can get your hands on; literary criticism, classic novels, everything.

Writing is hard, but the more essays you write the more you get into the groove.

Would knowing just the texts inside out, suffice?
Also, how would you structure the paragraphs in order to achieve high marks?

Reply 6

ianuam

6

Original post by Rudimentary

Would knowing just the texts inside out, suffice?
Also, how would you structure the paragraphs in order to achieve high marks?

So it flows, logically. Look at how academic's essays are structured. Read more, write more.

Knowing the text inside and out doesn't necessarily mean you can interpret it.

Reply 7

User1686961

12

In all honesty GCSE English isn't that bad, i mean personally i did no revision and got full marks in controlled assessments(coursework) etc. I achieved an A* in English Lit/Lang at GCSE never really enjoyed it , reading poem and sh*t boring af. My forte was always science and maths. If i was to give advice then i would say read books that way you can increase your vocabulary. Then practice writing essays, practice on your exam ie do English exams from past years. The questions in your exam will be specific marks so practice with time limits ie for 30 Mark essay have a time limit of 30 minutes. I don't know what else to say really. Hope this helped!

Reply 8

SL2310

OP

4

Original post by ThatGuyRik

In all honesty GCSE English isn't that bad, i mean personally i did no revision and got full marks in controlled assessments(coursework) etc. I achieved an A* in English Lit/Lang at GCSE never really enjoyed it , reading poem and sh*t boring af. My forte was always science and maths. If i was to give advice then i would say read books that way you can increase your vocabulary. Then practice writing essays, practice on your exam ie do English exams from past years. The questions in your exam will be specific marks so practice with time limits ie for 30 Mark essay have a time limit of 30 minutes. I don't know what else to say really. Hope this helped!

Thanks

- This is really good advice
I'm exactly like you lool - I love Maths and Science but I hate writing. I got an A* in maths last year and A's in Core and Additional Science.

Reply 9

happysmile

18

Original post by SL2310

Hey guys.

I'm currently a grade B student at English and I took the IGCSE English exam in year 10 and got a B. I retook the exam in November and got a B again. :frown:

Somehow, I was able to persuade my teacher to enter me for the exam for a third time - which willl be in June. Therefore, I intend to start my revison now but I want to know the number of ways I could revise/improve my English grade from a B to an A/A* grade. Hope anyone can help me out... :smile:

which novels/poems are you studying?

Reply 10

SL2310

OP

4

Original post by happysmile

which novels/poems are you studying?

Well I'm also doing English Literature and I'm studying Of Mice and Men and Inspector calls and I'm doing conflict. For English Language, I'm doing the 0522 specification for IGCSE.

Reply 11

username1234032

14

Ask help from your teacher. I always say this to people but English is so subjective. Thats why some people may love one book and others hate it. You tend to not see that with movies and TV shows because they aren't as subjective.

So you really need to do need to get advice from tutor or anyone who has studied English at university..

Reply 12

User1686961

12

Original post by SL2310

Thanks

- This is really good advice
I'm exactly like you lool - I love Maths and Science but I hate writing. I got an A* in maths last year and A's in Core and Additional Science.

Then forget retaking English just stick with the B its more than enough.

Reply 13

happysmile

18

Original post by SL2310

Well I'm also doing English Literature and I'm studying Of Mice and Men and Inspector calls and I'm doing conflict. For English Language, I'm doing the 0522 specification for IGCSE.

which exam board is this? I did Of Mice and Men and Inspector Calls as well, if you need help I could try to answer if I have time between my studies - also you could try revision websites like BBC Bitesize, I know they have some stuff on Of Mice and Men and Inspector Calls - don't know if they're any good though if you're aiming for A/A*...

(edited 9 years ago)

Can I get an A/A* grade in English in 3/4 months time?

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