This discussion is now closed.

Check out other Related discussions

The Big TSA 2009 Thread

llacerta

My worry with the essay part of the TSA is length, really- I'm able to come up with some points for and against for each of the practice questions, but I always feel as if ultimately I'm not writing enough and not thinking outside of the box. I know we're allowed up to two sides, but I feel as though I'm not going to be able to write anywhere near that amount.

They say on the 'commentary' or whatever that they'd prefer a concise and well structured argument. Writing the full two pages is probably bad, as, due to the nature of the questions (assuming no-one has an abundance of knowledge on the subject), probably indicates that you've just written a lot of crap.

I'm gonna aim to just write one side :yep:

I do, however, share your concern for not 'thinking outside the box', and just writing a 'generic' essay.

Reply 681

llacerta

19

Kneechuh

They say on the 'commentary' or whatever that they'd prefer a concise and well structured argument. Writing the full two pages is probably bad, as, due to the nature of the questions (assuming no-one has an abundance of knowledge on the subject), probably indicates that you've just written a lot of crap.

I'm gonna aim to just write one side :yep:

I do, however, share your concern for not 'thinking outside the box', and just writing a 'generic' essay.

Ah, okay, that's a relief. I've got very small handwriting, so I'm thinking three quarters of a side should do it for me, haha.

Yeah...I might approach a question with a psychological point of view (was thinking about the eyesight question and the influence of conditioning and that sort of thing) to try and put a different twist on it, but with some of them that seems almost impossible. Well, impossible for me at least!

Reply 682

Kneechuh

12

llacerta

Ah, okay, that's a relief. I've got very small handwriting, so I'm thinking three quarters of a side should do it for me, haha.

Yeah...I might approach a question with a psychological point of view (was thinking about the eyesight question and the influence of conditioning and that sort of thing) to try and put a different twist on it, but with some of them that seems almost impossible. Well, impossible for me at least!

There's an 'eyesight' question? The only questions I know of are the ones on the two papers they have uploaded:

"Privacy is only good because people aren't good. In a perfect world we wouldn't need privacy." Is that right?

In order to be a successful leader, is it better to be loved or feared?

Is "ethical" consumerism a solution to poverty, or a dangerous distraction?

When, if ever, is forgiveness wrong?

Should parking fines be based on the driver's income

"The cause of gender inequality is in the hands of men, but the solution is in the hands of women." Do you agree?

Reply 683

llacerta

19

Kneechuh

There's an 'eyesight' question? The only questions I know of are the ones on the two papers they have uploaded:

Yeah, something to do with why humans value eyesight...I think the exact wording is, 'why is vision so important to human beings?' It's on this paper- http://www.admissionstests.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/adt/digitalAssets/113801_TSA_Oxford_Specimen_Section_2_2009v2.pdf

Reply 684

Graphix

OP

13

llacerta

Yeah, something to do with why humans value eyesight...I think the exact wording is, 'why is vision so important to human beings?' It's on this paper- http://www.admissionstests.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/adt/digitalAssets/113801_TSA_Oxford_Specimen_Section_2_2009v2.pdf

On my first reading of that question I didn't take vision to have anything to do with quality of eyesight at all - I thought of it more as the whole idea of looking ahead, and aiming towards a goal...hmm.... :confused:

Reply 685

Stashup

Well 30 minutes for an essay is just rediculous :biggrin:

I did Abitur in Germany this year and my German essay lasted 4,5 hours :-P
As you said, llacerta it's not the hardest thing to come up with a few arguments for and against but the time just doesn't allow it. I'm still waiting for someone to post their idea on the "As a leader is it better to be loved or feared?" question. Just can't imagine that you can go pro fear; con fear - pro love; con love...

Reply 686

Kneechuh

12

Graphix

On my first reading of that question I didn't take vision to have anything to do with quality of eyesight at all - I thought of it more as the whole idea of looking ahead, and aiming towards a goal...hmm.... :confused:

I just realised it can have two meanings. I originally thought it meant 'sight', like the sense - but you've opened my eyes, so to speak...

Reply 687

amy123123

I noticed that about the vision question, I'm planning on practising it tomorrow morning and im just going mention it depends on how you define vision, but concentrate on future goals and ambitions etc. ( because its easier than the vision in literal sense, I tried deciding which one of our senses is more important. If we don't have one of the senses, the others are accentuated. I then thought emotions were more important than any of the senses, for example 'love', random i know! ) Anyway, has anyone answered that question?? (would like to post it..)

Reply 688

amy123123

(*sorry to disturb everyone in essay mode but does anyone know HOW to reach the correct answer for the following questions*..)
Jonathan is planning to use a 10 acre field to supply winter silage for his cattle and hay
for his sheep. He reckons to get 100 bales of hay from each acre. Before cutting the hay
he will first cut an acre round the edge of the field as silage - this allows him to
manoeuvre his hay making machinery. After making his hay in June he will cut the whole
field as second cut silage in August and again as third cut silage in September. His farm
manual provides the following information.
As silage As hay
First cut 7 bales per acre 100 small bales per acre
Second cut 5 bales per acre Not applicable
Third cut 4 bales per acre Not applicable
How many bales of silage will Jonathan have at the end of his harvest?
A 16
B 90
C 97
D 157
E 160
(C)

12 Lenton Cars hire out cars at a cost of £50.00 per day if the number of miles travelled is
less than 80. There is an extra charge of £1.00 for every mile travelled over 80
miles. Dunford Hire charge £60.00 per day for taking the car out and then 50 p for every
mile travelled.
For how many miles travelled would the cost of hiring a car be the same for both hire
companies?
A 100
B 130
C 140
D 170
E 180
(e)

30 The table shows the numbers of male and female students studying a selection of
subjects at a college.
Subject Male Female
Biology 24 41
Geography 26 32
German 3 12
Mathematics 104 61
Music 6 10
Sociology 18 67
In which other subject was the balance of male and female students closest to that for
Music?
A Biology
B Geography
C German
D Mathematics
E Sociology
(why isit A and not B?)

48 Janet's mother has sent her to the greengrocer to buy oranges. Janet's mother knows
the oranges were 12p each yesterday and gave Janet the exact money to buy a certain
number. When Janet gets there she finds there is a special offer: if you buy 8 or more,
the price of all oranges bought is reduced by 2p each. She finds she can now buy 2 more
oranges than her mother thought with the money given.
How many can she buy?
A 8
B 10
C 12
D 18
E 20
(C- it took me a long time to work this out, whats the algebra behind it??)

Reply 689

Merk that Sike of a Mike

amy123123

(*sorry to disturb everyone in essay mode but does anyone know HOW to reach the correct answer for the following questions*..)
Jonathan is planning to use a 10 acre field to supply winter silage for his cattle and hay
for his sheep. He reckons to get 100 bales of hay from each acre. Before cutting the hay
he will first cut an acre round the edge of the field as silage - this allows him to
manoeuvre his hay making machinery. After making his hay in June he will cut the whole
field as second cut silage in August and again as third cut silage in September. His farm
manual provides the following information.
As silage As hay
First cut 7 bales per acre 100 small bales per acre
Second cut 5 bales per acre Not applicable
Third cut 4 bales per acre Not applicable
How many bales of silage will Jonathan have at the end of his harvest?
A 16
B 90
C 97
D 157
E 160
(C)

12 Lenton Cars hire out cars at a cost of £50.00 per day if the number of miles travelled is
less than 80. There is an extra charge of £1.00 for every mile travelled over 80
miles. Dunford Hire charge £60.00 per day for taking the car out and then 50 p for every
mile travelled.
For how many miles travelled would the cost of hiring a car be the same for both hire
companies?
A 100
B 130
C 140
D 170
E 180
(e)

30 The table shows the numbers of male and female students studying a selection of
subjects at a college.
Subject Male Female
Biology 24 41
Geography 26 32
German 3 12
Mathematics 104 61
Music 6 10
Sociology 18 67
In which other subject was the balance of male and female students closest to that for
Music?
A Biology
B Geography
C German
D Mathematics
E Sociology
(why isit A and not B?)

48 Janet's mother has sent her to the greengrocer to buy oranges. Janet's mother knows
the oranges were 12p each yesterday and gave Janet the exact money to buy a certain
number. When Janet gets there she finds there is a special offer: if you buy 8 or more,
the price of all oranges bought is reduced by 2p each. She finds she can now buy 2 more
oranges than her mother thought with the money given.
How many can she buy?
A 8
B 10
C 12
D 18
E 20
(C- it took me a long time to work this out, whats the algebra behind it??)

for 48), let x= number of oranges she was goign to buy.
12x= 10(x+2) because for the same price of 12p she can buy two more at the price reduced to 10p.
solve to make 10, which was the original amount, add the two to make 12.

For 12) 50 + (x-80) = 60 + 0.5x where x= number of miles
0.5x=90, x=180

do u get the algebra for those two now?

Reply 690

Merk that Sike of a Mike

amy123123

30 The table shows the numbers of male and female students studying a selection of
subjects at a college.
Subject Male Female
Biology 24 41
Geography 26 32
German 3 12
Mathematics 104 61
Music 6 10
Sociology 18 67
In which other subject was the balance of male and female students closest to that for
Music?
A Biology
B Geography
C German
D Mathematics
E Sociology
(why isit A and not B?)

music 6:10
you are trying to get the numbers closest to these by dividing;
biology 24:41, divide by 4= 6:10.25
geography 26:32 divide by 4= 6.5:8
biology is only 1/4 away whereas geog is 0.5 on one side a 2 whole on the other.
im explaining these really briefly but youo should be able to get what im saying lol

Reply 691

j1991

Is there an official mark scheme for the 2007 paper that someones posted here?
I've attempted the paper and have my answers.
But a couple of people have posted their answers, most of them are different, so I don't know which way to go? lol

Anyone recommending someones answers?

Reply 692

Buffyboy

Stashup

Again, what do you think? Thankful for any constructive criticism.

Btw take all of my opinions with a pinch of salt, I don't really know what iI'm doing! But its helpful for me too, to assess your essay, so heregoes;

"Freedom of speech doesn't mean that you can say anything you want"

The freedom of speech is a key part of any modern constitution. To be precise it is generally defined (I laughed geekily at this!! Cannot generally precisily define.) as the freedom of opinion rather than just the freedom to engage in the act of speaking which does not necessarily mean that opinions are stated. (I'd say this was good as you open with define the terms of the question. Personally I might briefly outline my line or argument - but perhaps not due to time constraints, I will however definatly have trigger sentences at the start of each paragraph to show what I am arguing - just makes things seem clearer)

This freedom is based on the concept that to begin with every opinion is as valid as any other and should initially always be allowed to be expressed. It is a fact that opinions on different issues often vary greatly. I would perhaps argue a bit more for the merits of free speech before showing cases it is limited, be careful to show that you haven't assumed free speech is desirable, and if you have assumed it, say you have assumed it. Whilst most differences in opinion on factual matters can usually be resolved by discussion there are certain cases in which there is a call for an opinion to be forbidden. When this claim is made the other parts of a constitution upon which the freedom of speech rests can be consulted.
As the freedom of speech is initially considered as an absolute, as described above, all other basic rights defined in the constitution must be as well. If a person using his freedom of speech to hurt another person's basic rights as defined in the constitution then the offender may be sanctioned on the basis of acting against what is defined as an absolute in the constitution. I like this, I'd say "rights" rather than "absolute rights", yes a lot of constitutions seem to embrace deontological rights but I'd still stick with "rights". Perhaps define which rights rank above freedom of speech, your essay is perhaps too vauge on this... Personally I'd take a Millian route, that freedom of speech is justified always unless it causes harm to others. Then I'd argue what circumstances constitute harm (Is offence harm? If I indirectly cause harm is that a problem?)

Cases such as the Mohammad caricatures which provoked a large part of the muslim world in 2007 illustrate how this definition can and should be applied. Really good example, I probably couldn't think of such a relevant one. The author of the caricatures claimed to be exercising his freedom of speech. One might suspect that he was hurting muslim believers' right to exercise their religion but upon closer consideration one must conclude that he was not trying to inhibit anyone's religious beliefs but was expressing his opinion on a certain matter. This is because there is a difference between trying to take direct influence on a matter and expressing one's opinion. This sentence is clumbsy, its not agaisnt freedom of speech (or your definition of it!) to take direct influnce on a matter, I may directly influnce you to do your homework but the state wouldn't declare my actions illegal. Would be better if it more clearly explained how freedom of speech isn't a violation of religious rights...

Freedom of speech consequently does not mean the right to say anything one wants. It can be marked by the condition that it may not be abused to infringe another fundamental right accepted in our society. Good clear conclusion/defintion (Again I'd have just prefered a more clear discussion of which fundamental rights are infringed, and which are unacceptable to infringe (unacceptable to infringe someones right to health, however perhaps acceptable to infringe someones right to practice religion unchallenged if rights to freedom of speech clash with it... (if that makes sense...)

This can be extended to define a way of dealing with laws that suppress free speech. From the standpoint that the fundamental rights in the constitution of the western world are correct, laws that go against such a right can not legitimately suppress it. Laws suppressing the freedom of speech such as exist many countries such as China are hence illigitimate.

I think it was a good essay. Very eloquent, which is something i never manage in timed conditions, had examples and definitions - *tick, tick*. Perhaps could be slightly more clear... Plan it a little better maybe...

But yeah seems good to me! Anyone else please criticise what I've said.

My essay plan for this would be;

Defintion of "freedom of speech"

Maybe a brief statement of why freedom of speech is important... (However I'm really unsure on this, someone please give opinions, Its not explicitly asked for in question - so probably not in fact...)

"Freedom of speech very important, as Mill argued for individuality, to challenge existing views, if the incorrect view is tolerated it forces the defendants of the correct view to evaluate their own positions, furthermore humanity is not infallible and cannot assume the truth of its arguments. (Example). However in some cases freedom of speech may other rights, most pertinetly in the case of harm. "

Assess harm principle. Show cases it is relevant etc...

Conclude.

My plans pretty much what you did anyway (only probably worse!)... One thing I would say is just focus on paragraph clarity and header sentences.

Reply 693

xbabyxchelseax

Where can you get solutions to the problem solving ? Anyone

Reply 694

matija_v

5 more days!! just want to get over it..
ok, first here are my answers to the 2007 paper

Spoiler

And, because Stashup asked for it, I wrote an essay to the leader-question a while ago...
Here

Spoiler

any feedback on that would be appreciated.
btw, @stashup: bist du aus deutschland, weil ich hab irgendwo gelesen dass du abitur gemacht hast?! was war dein durchschnitt, 1,0?

Reply 695

thenewromance1234

14

*shooting*star*

hi guys

! i have applied for E&M to hertford..and have just been reading throught this thread - good to know i'm not the only one kind of stressed about the TSA! anyone have any advise on how to go about the essay section?? and is it advisable to argue and weigh up two sides of a topic or better to just argue one side?? thanks :smile:

..

so you're my competition huh? :p:

Reply 696

thenewromance1234

14

I'm going to try not to stress too much. I have my accounting and assurance exams for deloitte on monday which is a pain to say the least. I was getting 90%+ last year on the Cambridge one when practicing so I dunno....It's the essay bit I'll probably mess up to be honest. I'm good at writing arguments in essays but my issue is if I don't know a thing about the topic, that I just won't know where to start.

Also, where is this 2007 paper everyone keeps going on about?

Reply 697

Buffyboy

Yeah I would like a link to the 2007 paper please, (or have it emailed - double please!!) :smile:

Reply 698

*shooting*star*

Clements-

so you're my competition huh? :p:

are you a hertford E&M applicant too?! i guess so then :p:

lol

Reply 699

*shooting*star*

can anyone help me with this question (question 5 from the CIE May/June 2008 paper):

"In a certain family, the father gives out pocket money to his children in the following way. Every month he chooses a number between 1 and 100, and then shares that amount of money equally between the seven children, giving then whole-number sums of money, and giving anything left over to charity.

For instance, if he chose the number 30, he would give $4 to each child ($4 x 7 = $28) and $2 to charity.

If the father realises after 100 months that every number between 1 and 100 (inclusive) has been used once, how much has he given to charity?

A $276
B $294
C $295
D $297
E $300"

the correct answer is D but i am not sure how they get that! thanks :smile:

The Big TSA 2009 Thread

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you