French Continuers 2022 HSC exam pack

Students should:

• be prepared to communicate on a variety of topics relating to their personal world
• elaborate and provide relevant details to address the questions in a way that engages with the examiner
• express ideas and opinions that justify their point of view by providing depth and insight in their responses rather than only giving short, prepared responses
• elaborate using a variety of vocabulary, phrases and expressions suitable to the question asked
• use a range of tenses and be prepared to reflect on the past, present and future
• manipulate the language to fulfil the requirements of the question
• avoid the repetition of the same vocabulary, phrases, expressions and grammatical structures
• be prepared to be interrupted by the examiner
• use French to ask for repetition and/or clarification of the question.

In better responses, students were able to:

• provide opinions, justifications and comparisons effectively, without prompting
• answer unexpected questions with relative ease and develop them with some depth
• provide sophisticated vocabulary and use synonyms
• compare and contrast on a range of topics
• use the verb form provided in the question and then expand with opinions, reasons, comparisons and examples
• use sophisticated conjunctions and connecting words, for example, étant donné que, grâce à
• answer in full sentences with justifications and opinions and/or examples in the past or future
• agree adjective endings and use si clauses.

Areas for students to improve include:

• avoiding anglicisms, for example, mes sujets should be mes matières, des places should be des endroits, abilité should be la capacité
• revising the pronouns qui and que and their use in sentences
• ensuring the accuracy of verb endings, for example, je fais not je faire, je regarde not je regarder, je préfère not je préféré
• ensuring the correct positioning of direct and indirect object pronouns, for example, Il me conduit not il conduit moi, ils nous ont poussés not ils ont nous poussés
• revising the pronunciation of the words parents, temps, j’étudie, trop, jeunes, jaune, and gens, as well as words ending in -tion
• avoiding the use of two conjugated verbs in a row, for example, je peux sors, je peux parle should be je peux sortir, je peux parler
• revising the correct positioning of adverbs, for example, je beaucoup aime should be j’aime beaucoup
• ensuring the correct use of prepositions with faire and jouer, for example, je fais du sport but je joue au basket, je joue du piano and je fais de la natation.

Students should:

• make notes in the Candidate’s Notes column on the right-hand side of the page
• read the question carefully and respond to all parts of the question
• support their responses with relevant evidence from the text
• transcribe their response onto the lines, using the space allocated beneath the question
• use the number of lines as an indication of the required length of the response
• support their responses with reference to relevant content and language, using their own words
• avoid translating the text as part of their response.

In better responses, students were able to:

• provide relevant detail, for example, clearly identifying that the speaker was looking forward to spending time with his cousin and not just a wedding (Q1)
• capture the main ideas of the text as the possible extinction of marine life because of pollution and the need for action from humans (Q4)
• recognise that they needed to explicitly compare the speakers’ experiences rather than drawing grids and dot-points (Q5)
• explicitly refer to the extent to which Éric is ready for university and support this with positive and negative examples (Q6)
• answer the question from Laure’s point of view, not Éric’s (Q6).

Areas for students to improve include:

• providing evidence from the text to support their answers
• developing a broad vocabulary
• paraphrasing in English instead of French to demonstrate understanding of the texts
• writing down words in the Candidate’s Notes column that they do not understand and using a dictionary later instead of mistranslating by guesswork, for example, billet (ticket) was translated as ‘beer’ (Q4)
• understanding false cognates, for example, assister à (to attend) was mistranslated as ‘helping’ (Q1) and formidable (fantastic) is not the same as the English ‘formidable’, which insinuates intimidation and challenge (Q5)
• familiarising themselves with French names, for example, Laurent is a boy (Q7).

Students should:

• read the title, the questions and the whole text before responding
• use only the lines or space beneath the question for their response
• support their responses with reference to content and language, using their own words
• be succinct in their responses, addressing the relevant details required by the question and avoiding repetition
• focus on key words in the question, for example, ‘how’, ‘why’, ‘explain’, ‘justify’ – and respond in relation to the context of the text
• read the whole text to demonstrate understanding of relevant information and ideas
• identify the key issue(s) and provide examples to substantiate their response when asked to analyse or evaluate information
• draw a conclusion or justify a point of view using their own words
• provide a succinct response of main points or ideas when asked to summarise
• avoid providing a literal translation of text
• use the dictionary appropriately to find the correct meaning of the word(s) or expressions in context.

In better responses, students were able to:

• accurately translate, for example, recognising that tendances (trends) are not ‘tendances’ and dernière (latest) is not ‘previous’
• show perceptive understanding of translations, for example, moeurs (customs) instead of stating that party traditions have changed (Q8a), or fruits de mer (seafood) instead of fruits of the sea (Q9a)
• add depth by providing evidence from the text to explain how Alizée’s creative parties impressed the author by giving specific examples, such as the event in the history museum to appeal to fans of ancient Egypt (Q8c)
• name and quantify Alizée’s skills, for example, her inventiveness, supported with every party being different (Q8d).

Areas for students to improve include:

• providing English translations of French quotes in their answers
• answering implied questions, for example, clearly stating the nature of ‘services such as hers’ (Q8b)
• providing an example for language techniques, as well as an explanation of how the technique answers the question. For example, ‘the use of the metaphor “a pearl in the Iroise Sea” emphasises his love for the island’ (Q9c)
• providing an example for content ideas, such as ‘he is feeling nostalgic about the island as a result of his grandparents’ attachment to it’ (Q9c)
• referring to key words in the question when writing the response, such as ‘how likely is Léo to take up Yann’s suggestion’ and consequently justifying ‘how likely’ by providing examples from the text (Q9d).

Students should:

• read the whole text in order to respond fully to the question
• plan effectively to organise their thoughts, paying attention to context, purpose and audience, as well as the type of text required by the question
• respond to the question asked in relation to the text
• use the conventions of the type of text required by the question
• demonstrate understanding of the whole text in their response
• focus on all relevant information and key points raised in the text to respond to comments made, requests for advice, issues discussed, and observations made
• provide a creative and authentic response in relation to the text and the question
• use the appropriate register throughout the response
• use a variety of vocabulary and expressions and a range of grammatical structures
• edit their work to ensure clarity of the response.

In better responses, students were able to:

• address all aspects of the stimulus text, for example, referencing their shared past through invented anecdotes about their time at school and their teacher, Mme Leblanc
• respond creatively in declining Paul’s invitation to share the role, state why the offer received was not to be missed, and express excitement at this new adventure
• add depth by making concrete suggestions to either Paul or Mme Leblanc. For example, possible organisation of role-sharing in terms of timing and the number of classes.

Areas for students to improve include:

• avoiding simplistic reference to ideas contained in the stimulus
• taking on the persona of the writer and creating a relationship with the recipient (Paul)
• developing their ideas, for example, commenting that Paul was considering running conversation classes despite not being a model student
• recognising that they were meant to write the middle email and structuring their response accordingly
• manipulating language accurately and including a broad repertoire of vocabulary and grammatical structures
• carefully checking of verb conjugations and the use of tenses.

Question 11

Students should:

• address all parts of the question
• use the appropriate register and conventions of the type of text
• commence and conclude appropriately
• use the correct tense for the requirements of the question
• sequence their response logically for maximum effect
• use the dictionary effectively by selecting vocabulary to suit the context
• adhere to the suggested word length
• proofread and edit their work.

In better responses, students were able to:

• use precise vocabulary to acknowledge receipt of ‘an award’, for example, prix (price), réussite (success)
• create an authentic tone and use the correct register tu (informal address for writing to a friend)
• convey that the message is to their best friend
• include the idea of inviting the friend to celebrate.

Areas for students to improve include:

• ensuring agreement of adjectives with nouns, for example, je suis fier/je suis fière (I am proud)
• ensuring agreement of verbs with subjects, for example, dis-moi (tell me)
• knowing the gender of nouns
• avoiding anglicisms, for example, accomplissement instead of réussite (accomplishment), ‘prize’ instead of prix (price)
• improving the use of relative clauses, for example, je pense que (I think that) needs the word ‘que’ (that), whereas it can be omitted in English.

Question 12

Students should:

• read the question carefully and address all parts of the question
• plan their response to ensure a clear structure and sequence
• use the appropriate register and conventions of the type of text required
• commence and conclude appropriately
• manipulate the language to suit the requirements of the task
• use a variety of tenses, phrases and structures appropriate to the requirements of the question
• proofread and edit their work
• adhere to the suggested word length.

In better responses, students were able to:

• describe their volunteering experience with explicit detail, clearly evaluating their experience (Q12a)
• identify that it was a wellbeing committee and not just any committee (Q12b)
• demonstrate a good command of le passé compose and l’imparfait past tenses (Q12a)
• present a well-thought-out project with the aim of convincing the committee (and not just fellow students) to accept their idea and how it is going to be implemented (Q12b)
• use future tenses and conditional moods to describe the benefits of their project (Q12b).

Areas for students to improve include:

• planning and structuring their answer, for example, by using sequencing words avant de (before), après avoir (after having) and au lieu de (instead of)
• writing succinctly to get their point across and recognising that their text does not need to be (extremely) long to be good
• identifying the correct audience and consistently using the relevant register, in this case vous (formal version of ‘you’)
• avoiding the use of English words
• understanding the key terms ‘evaluate’ (Q12a) and ‘persuade’ (Q12b).