How can i improve my english essays??

Last Mock i got 7 in english language and 5 at lit but these grades dosen't satisfy me. What can i do to improve these grades???
despite the fact that i speak the 2nd hardest lang in the world, i still struggle in english language (AQA). Anyone can help???

Reply 1

rebeccawootliff

The biggest advice I can give you it to read more books!! I know this doesn't sound like much but as someone who's predicted 9's in both Lit and Lang this helped me so much as I managed to gain such an expansive vocabulary and ability to write well from (even reading 10-20 pages a day of a non fiction books which interests you are even a news article will be so useful) especially for language.

Also for lang learn the structure which you should use to answer the 8/15/20 mark questions as your more likely to gain marks if you follow the format.
Practice essays are also so useful for improving your grades, if you have time practice 1 every 1 - 2 weeks for lit and lang, get your teacher or chat GPT to mark them (chat GPT is slightly less reliable though lol) and then re write/ continue practicing based on feedback.

Good luck and I'm sure you'll do great!!

Reply 2

student21.

Original post by Omar Akabawy

For English language I suggest doing a lot of questions. These can be past papers or you can simply find random extracts/pictures online to analyse/write a story based on (since the questions are the same). Practising over and over is key for English language and focus on quality at first - forget your timings. Focus on identifying techniques and writing your answers. Once you’ve secured good quality, you can work on timing.

In terms of English literature, quotes and context are what are key. I used Mr Salles and Mr Bruff for my texts and for poetry I used PMT. Quote explode, and LEARN the quotes. Literature is (at the start) a memory game so remember quotes. However, you should be tactical in the quotes you choose. It’s better to choose quotes that have a variety of interpretations - some of which you can come up with yourself - as it shows you’re being critical and bumps you up to the top grades. Again, practice is key. For context, learn the basics of the society and audience at the time and how it links to the text. Then, make sure you know how it links to quotes. For top literature grades you need to be critical or present an ‘argument’ so choose quotes with multiple interpretations, perhaps bring in literary critics but ONLY if you’re confident and only to say “so and so agreed with this interpretation due to _” and that’s it. Including a short introduction with a few sentences just outlining what your essay will be about can help achieve this critical writing style.

All in all though, it’s the practise. Do exam questions, give them to your teachers and make them mark them and give you advice. Annoy them with it if you have to! Good luck :smile: