test-taking techniques for english-speaking countries today (1) – uk
DESCRIPTION
Presented by Ding Xiaohong [email protected]. Test-taking Techniques for English-Speaking Countries Today (1) – UK. Outline. I. Final Exam Focus II.Final Exam Structure III.Exam-taking Techniques for some Question Types IV.Prepare for the Exam V.Review. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Test-taking Techniques for
English-Speaking Countries Today (1) – UK
Presented by
Ding Xiaohong
Outline
I. Final Exam Focus II. Final Exam Structure III. Exam-taking Techniques for
some Question Types IV. Prepare for the ExamV. Review
I. Final Exam Focus
Final Exam ---- Introduction
Final Exam (80%):---- Form: written
---- Duration: 2 hours---- Content coverage: 50% from
textbook & 50% outside textbook
Final Exam --- Exam Focus
Content Points Time Exam focus
Discourse Manipulation 20%
30
Understanding of discourse rhetoric & ability of reordering sentences/paragraphs according to discourse markers & topic logic
Awareness
of course content
50%
40
Understanding of the key points in the textbooks & ability to recognize & answer Qs on facts and arguments as presented in the tutorial texts
Reading
30%
50
Comprehensive understanding judgment, and manipulation of prose from tutorial texts or related to the themes of tutorial texts
End of Part I
II. Final Exam Structure
Final Exam Structure (1)
Content Item Type Length Source
Discourse Manipulation (30%)
Sentence reordering
About 75-100 words totally Edited texts
from the textbooks
Rematching & reordering 4 jumbled paragraphs (without 1st line)
About 300 – 350 words
Final Exam Structure (2)
Content Item Type Length Source
Awareness of course content
(50%)
T/F About 20 words / sentence
Based on textbook
Blank-filling About 15words
Multi-choice
Composing questions
Definition matching
About 20 words / sentence
About 20 words / explanation
Final Exam Structure (3)
Content Item Type Length source
Reading (30%)
Text 1:
Multi-choice OR T/F/NM
400 - 500 words
Outside textbooks
Text 2: Short answer Qs.
400 - 500 words
textbooks
Text 3: Long answers to form guided summary
400 - 500 words
textbooks
End of Part II
III. Exam-taking Techniques for some Question Types
Exam-taking Techniques for some Question Types (1)
Some questions types: Reordering of jumbled sentences Rematching & reordering of jumbled paragraphs T/F Blank-filling Short answer questions Long answers to form guided summary
Techniques for Question Type 1
Reordering of jumbled sentences ---- Guide
Read through all the sentences first; Recognizing the first sentence is important; Recognize the logic relations between
sentences; If available, make use of the conjunctions; If available, make use of the story sequences; Make use of the key words in each sentence.
Example of Question Type 1---- Question
Example 1: “Reordering of jumbled sentences”
A. Their brother was a failed painter and alcoholic, and two Other sisters died in childhood.
B. As such, they were poor, but educated and respectable.C. Perhaps the most famous literary family in British history
are the Bront sisters, Charlotte, Emily and Ann.D. All four remaining children were tragically to die before
the father.E. They were the daughters of the vicar of a village church in
Harworth in Yorkshire.
Techniques for Question Type 1---Clues
Example 1 (continue)Clues for example 1: (C-E-B-A-D) Recognize that proper names (e.g. Charlotte etc.) appear first in
C --- 1st in order; ‘They’ in E --- 2nd in order, then refer to those names mentioned
first in C. ‘As such’, a logical connector, in B --- 3rd in order,, confirms the
logical connection between family background (E) & children’s education level (B).
Then, ‘their’ in A refer to 3 ‘sisters’ mentioned in C & ‘daughters’ in E.
‘all four children’ in D sums up the characters mentioned earlier, thus the last in order.
Techniques for Question Type 2Rematching & reordering of jumbled paragraph
s----Guide Understand the question requirements; Read through the paragraphs & 1st sentences; Match the 1st sentence with the paragraph; Make use of the 1st complete paragraph given to you; Recognize the logic relations between paragraphs; If available, make use of the conjunctions; If available, make use of the story sequences; Make use of the key words in each sentence.
Techniques for Question Type 2 ---clues
Example 2: ‘Rematching & reordering jumbled paragraphs’
(refer to sample test paper on e-platform for source)http://www.beiwaionline.com/remote/TESTPAPER/enbace1011.htm ‘Topic sentence function’ of 1st sentence in each para
gragh; A clear sequence is the origins of sports; Obvious sequence signals are also available:
the most popular- the next most popular; another influence – a third influence…
Techniques for Question Type 3
T/F ---- Guide Read through the statement; Understand fully the statement; Be familiar with the course content; Check the statement with facts of the tutorial
texts; Make decisions.
Example of Question Type 3
Example 3: T/FThe other mother-tongue languages in Britainare all dialects of English.
You need to ask:What are the mother-tongue languages besides English in Britain? ---- Welsh, Scottish Gaelic & IrishGaelicAre they dialects of English? ---- no, they’re 3indigenous languages
Techniques for Question Type 4
Blank-filling ---- Guide Read through the given choices; Be familiar with the course content; Make use of the context to determine the
type of words for the blank; Choose from the possible choices.
Example of Question Type 4
Example 4: Blank-filling
The post-war_____ to Britain were looking foropportunities for work and _____. Many of them came from the _____ sub-continent. Pakistanis often bought little corner-shops as ____ businesses, which explains ‘paki-shop’ as a new term for ‘corner-shop’, although this is a politically ____ term.
Techniques for Question Type 5
Short Answer Questions ---- Guide Understand fully the questions first; Locate the relevant places in the text; Organize your language ---- Be concise, but
to the point;
Example of Question Type 5
Example 5: ‘Short Answer Questions’ (refer to sample test paper for source passage)http://www.beiwaionline.com/remote/TESTPAPER/enbace1011.htm33. What can you have a literature without?Clues: Locate the place:1st paragraph;
Understand the difference between ‘literature’ & ‘literacy’;
Answer: Literacy
Techniques for Question Type 6
Long answers to form guided summary
---- Guide Understand the questions fully; Locate the relevant place in the text; Be concise, but to the point; Join the answers using the words given.
Example of Question Type 6
Example 6: ‘Long answers to form guided summary’ (refer to sample test paper for source text)
http://www.beiwaionline.com/remote/TESTPAPER/enbace1011.htm38. In the late 1800s, what did Britain’s economy dominate? (join
with next answer, using ‘and’)39. …what did her ships control? (join with next answer, using
‘which’)Clues: Understand the questions & requirements Locate the relevant place – 1st paragraph
Organize your languageAnswer:(38) In the late 1800’s, Britain’s economy dominated the
world (39) and her ships controlled the seas.
End of Part III
IV. Prepare for the Final Exam
Do you really need to prepare?
Do you really need to prepare?If you have learned by doing the tasks in the course and got actively involved in both online and offline study activities (eg tutorials, progress reports and assignments, chatrooms, etc.), you can achieve a satisfying result in your final exam without much pre-exam preparation. The learning process determines the learning product.
Why do you need to prepare?
Then why do you need to prepare?To reinforce what you have learnedTo identify weaknessesTo boost your confidenceTo get familiar with the final exam
Exam Preparation Resources (2)
Unit-based review Helps you focus Helps you review and reinforce what you’ve learned in the
unitUnit-based assessment Monitors your learning process Evaluates your learning result Finds problem if anySample Exam paper Gives you a chance to do a trial run Gives you the chance to study it in detail
Exam Preparation Resources (3)
Course Review ---- Tutorial 9 Helps you focus Helps you review and reinforce the major
themes and ideas Familiarizes you with final exam item types It’s a condensed version of the tutorials
Strongly Suggested!
Exam Preparation Resources (4)
Exercises resulting in a summary of the Core Text
Exercises leading to a review of the major ideas in Extension Texts
Question types you’re going to meet in the final exam
Feedback following the exercises
Then what do you find in Tutorial 9?
How to Review a Unit (1)
General steps in reviewing a unit:1. Check the unit objectives;2. Understand fully the core text & extension
texts;3. Check the e-platform unit review;4. Check your understanding of major
themes against unit self-assessment;5. Solve your problems if any.