German Continuers 2019 HSC exam pack

Students should:

• be prepared to talk on a variety of topics relating to their personal world
• answer the question asked rather than presenting pre-prepared responses
• express their ideas and opinions and justify their point of view
• 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.

In better responses, students were able to:

• express ideas and opinions about a range topics regarding their personal world
• provide relevant information to answer the questions and elaborate and extend their response
• respond with grammatical accuracy and apply correct word order
• use a range of vocabulary suitable to the context of the question
• respond using a range of tenses, such as past tense and conditional
• use comparative and subordinate clauses where appropriate
• maintain authentic pronunciation and intonation.

Areas for students to improve include:

• revising vocabulary regarding future study plans
• avoiding using English words, expressions and anglicisms
• revising the perfect tense auxiliaries and past participles
• making a distinction when speaking between werde and würde
• reviewing the correct use of gefallen, gern/lieber + verb
• avoiding the English ‘so’, and considering the use of deshalb, deswegen, trotzdem, jedoch to establish cause and effect
• using expressions, such as eigentlich nicht, eigentlich schon, bestimmt to move conversation and further elaborate.

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 all the necessary textual evidence to support their response
• respond succinctly within the allocated space while including all necessary details
• summarise succinctly (Q4)
• look for commonalities as well as differences in the opinions of the speakers in questions where the views of different people are expressed, for example, Both mothers are concerned about their children’s grades (Q6)
• interpret and analyse rather than simply retelling the story.

Areas for students to improve include:

• cross-checking their understanding of expressions in the dictionary
• proofreading their responses so that they are plausible and not contradictory.

Students should:

• read the title, questions and the whole text before responding
• use only the lines or space beneath the question for the 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 in order 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.
• not simply translate German expressions, but put them into good English as the response must make sense
• remember to give examples to back up statements and link the response directly to the question.

In better responses, students were able to:

• understand key words and expressions, for example, vermieten, negative Vorstellungen, sinnvoll, Aufsätzen (Q8)
• explain that pets were abandoned, not just “ on the street” or “lost” (Q9)
• read the question carefully, for example, in Q9(d), information from Udo’s blog was not required
• understand vocabulary like Tochter, Wohnung, Leine, Kleiderschrank, Hundekur (Q9)
• give details as evidence for their arguments.

Areas for students to improve include:

• avoid repeating information from earlier questions
• writing legibly
• being careful in using the dictionary and finding the correct meaning of the word in the list of meanings
• inferring meaning from context.

Students should:

• respond to the question asked in relation to the text
• read the entire text in order to respond fully to the question
• use the conventions of the type of text required by the question
• demonstrate understanding of the whole text in their response and not just respond to questions asked in the text
• focus on all relevant information and key points raised in the text in order to respond to comments made, requests for advice, issues discussed and observations made
• use the appropriate register throughout the response
• provide a creative and authentic response in relation to the text and question
• 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:

• identify the key points of the text and demonstrate an excellent understanding of the whole text by addressing all the key points in depth:
  • Erika P.’s frustrating experience upon arrival at the island ie: negating her criticisms by saying that it was not a Albtraum, because the customs officers were helpful and the bus was not too full
  • Erika’s criticisms of the accommodation ie: offering a different perspective by describing the accommodation as luxuriös und entspannend und das Geld wert, especially by mentioning that it would have been better for her to spend more to improve the experience
  • Erika’s disappointment with the beach ie: comparing with the beautiful landscape that one could experience whilst walking to the beach, and referring to the island as a Paradies
  • Erika’s complaint of the noise of children ie: negating her criticism by suggesting that she travel outside the school holidays to ensure that her holiday would be entspannend.

Areas for students to improve include:

• responding to an editor instead of addressing their response to Erika P
• mistaking the rhetorical questions to be true questions which led them to overlook some of the key elements required to respond at the highest level.

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
• proof read and edit work
• adhere to the suggested word length.

In better responses, students were able to

• clearly explain the reasons that led to the disagreement
• explain their desire to express their point of view
• restate and clarify their position
• express a sense of regret about the disagreement
• compose a text which was appropriate to purpose, context and audience (the friend)
• demonstrate control of a variety of language structures.

Areas for students to improve include:

• focusing on the actual question to clarify their point of view instead of apologizing for some specific behaviour
• writing at the level of language which they can control
• planning their response before starting to write
• avoiding irrelevant aspects/ideas
• avoiding reliance on dictionary which may result in poor wording and incorrect meaning.

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
• proof read and edit their work
• adhere to the suggested word length.

In better responses, students were able to:

• outline a number of ideas that showed the benefits and/or problematic aspects of working with a family member
• include a reflection in their response
• plan their response to ensure a clear structure and sequence
• exert very good command of language using a variety of structures and idioms.

Areas for students to improve include:

• including reflection in their responses instead of simply describing what they did at work
• planning their response before starting to write
• writing at the level of language which they can control
• avoiding irrelevant aspects/ideas or using irrelevant rote-learnt material
• avoiding reliance on dictionary which may result in poor wording and incorrect meaning.