German Continuers 2017 HSC exam pack

Students should:

• speak at length on a variety of topics about their personal world
• demonstrate how they are able to manipulate language by responding competently to unrehearsed questions
• provide detailed responses to all questions asked by the examiner
• avoid relying on English syntax, using Anglicisms and pausing too often
• remember that neither the number of questions nor the number of topics are predetermined
• not dominate the conversation with long, pre-learned material. Students who memorise responses on topics and recite them, regardless of the actual questions being asked or the flow of the conversation, will disadvantage themselves
• attempt to answer all the examiner’s questions, whether expected or unexpected, and answer in depth.

In better responses, students were able to:

• communicate fluently and authentically
• speak with good pronunciation and intonation
• provide in-depth responses to a range of questions
• engage effectively with the examiner across a range of syllabus topics
• demonstrate a strong knowledge of vocabulary with a range of grammatical structures
• speak effectively about events which occurred in the past
• state their opinions and provide explanations.

Students should:

• read the question carefully and answer succinctly within the space provided on the examination paper
• use the Candidates’ Notes column to make notes and ensure all relevant information is incorporated into the final response
• avoid translating the whole script in the response
• use a consistent register when writing in German.

In better responses, students were able to:

• demonstrate understanding of Termin, Schwimmstunde, bezahlen, unerwartet (Q3)
• demonstrate understanding of immer, Gitarre, Erfolg, Umziehen, Unterstützen, Spainen as well as München. When asked about ‘change’, they talk about a period of time before and after so that the change is clearly understood in their response (Q4)
• demonstrate understanding of der Fall, freiwillig, eingewandert (not gewandert). They also understand that Geschichten means ‘stories’ in this context and not ‘history’ (Q5)
• demonstrate understanding of entdecke,bestellen, erledigen, Schlange-Stehen, Zeitverschwendung.They refer to language techniques with content to support their response and avoided making comments based on the voice or tone of the speakers (Q6)
• demonstrate understanding of günstiger (more favourable, not cheaper), wahrscheinlich, bestellen (to order, not buy) and realise that the question requires judgements about the two speakers and provide reasons supporting their judgements. They display skills in interpretation and analysis and didn’t simply recount facts from the conversation (Q7).

In better responses, students were able:

• demonstrate understanding of schliesst…an, Strom, Armut, fester Wohnsitz, fliessendes Wasser, kostengünstig, Straßennetz, Arbeitsplätze, freut sich, nach Hause. They express their meanings in good, understandable English and understood that Inge is really being naïve in pursuing her lifestyle as she is still dependent on the consumer society (Q8)
• demonstrate understanding of expressions such as Leib und Seele, gekündigt, aus der Nähe, Leidenschaft, Geistreich. They compare the suitability of the suggestions for a new hobby by noting similarities and differences and noted that @christoph32 was about to go back to work. They made inferences from the texts, showing skill beyond simple translation (Q9).

In better responses, students were able to:

• provide responses to and reflections on the following three major issues:
  • the planned history excursion
  • the issue of the last report in terms of Martina’s reflection on the positives and negatives expressed in Herr Meier’s letter to her parents
  • her response to the issue of her lateness to school and her reason for this.
• write a cohesive, well developed diary entry, showing an understanding of the context, purpose or audience: for example, writing a letter to the teacher or taking on the persona of the parents
• write to the required 200 words, displaying skill in elaboration and creativity when developing each issue within the response
• build in time to reflect and self-correct rather than write a text double the required length
• demonstrate ‘authentic manipulation of language’, showing control and accuracy of language; control of verb conjugation; reflexives … mich gefreut; prepositions governing Accusative and Dative cases, dass/das; the Perfect Tense – especially past participles – avoiding errors such as ...hat bekommt, hat … beschreibt/geschriebt
• take care to check genders of nouns, as the articles for simple obvious words such as Brief, Geld and Ausflug are often incorrectly written
• apply skill in dictionary use in regard to spelling, as for example, ‘waren‘ often became ‘wahren’
• avoid quoting directly from the text, instead, are engaged and creative, whilst remaining relevant and sustained in their responses.

Question 11

In better responses, students were able to:

• describe an act of kindness that they had witnessed on their way home
• describe their incident clearly and in the appropriate tense (Perfect Tense 3^rd person)
• use their dictionary prudently to assist with appropriate vocabulary choices.

Question 12

In better responses, students were able to:

• respond by writing in the appropriate text type (article for a school newsletter) with a sense of audience (informal 'ihr')
• effectively evaluate their recent work experience (or organising a multicultural day at their school) rather than just describing it
• structure their texts clearly in paragraphs (or under appropriate subheadings in an article).