AICE: General Paper



AICE: General Paper

AN OVERVIEW

Student Packet / PowerPoint Companion

Name: _________________________________

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PACKET HIGHLIGHTS:

• What is AICE? What is General Paper?

• Test Set-up and Expectations

• Identifying and Interpreting the Prompt

• Basic Brainstorm Considerations

BRAINSTORM #1

Pick ONE of the following prompts and brainstorm ideas using the space below. You have 10 minutes to complete this activity.

PROMPT OPTION _________

Brainstorm ideas here:

SECTION 1: Historical, social, economic, political

1. “Violence is the only effective weapon available to people who are oppressed.” To what extent do you agree?

2. “Politics have no appeal to the younger generation since it has no impact on their lives.” Discuss.

3. Violence in modern society is on the rise. Explain why.

4. “History repeats itself.” Do you agree?

5. “To be different is to be condemned by society.” How far do you agree?

SECTION 2: Science, philosophy, geography, math

6. What is the biggest threat to our world today and why?

7. Human beings should look forward to the next century with pessimism, not optimism. Discuss.

8. Should every country have the right to possess weapons of war?

9. Explain the impact of technology on the environment.

10. How important is numeracy to today’s society?

SECTION 3: Literature and language, arts and crafts

11. “A book has one purpose: to entertain.” Evaluate this statement.

12. What music appeals to you and why?

13. To what extent does art broaden our horizons?

14. “Libraries are not necessary in a modern world.” What is your view?

15. Assess the claim that an uncensored press is dangerous.

GENERAL PAPER OVERVIEW: Notes

3 Essay Styles:

|STYLE: |GOAL: |UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS: |SAMPLE GP PROMPT: |

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|Expository | | | |

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|Persuasive | | | |

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|Discursive | | | |

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PROMPT STYLE

3 Golden Rules for Determining the Prompt’s STYLE:

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2.

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PARTNER TASKS:

1. DETERMINING PROMPT STYLE

2. PROMPT INTERPRETATION…break down the words of the following prompt. What is it asking you to write about? Circle key words and jot notes on the side that consider the many possibilities for the broad/general terms used in this prompt.

DEFINING ESSAY PARAMETERS (Setting Limits to Essay Content)

INTERPRETING THE PROMT LANGUAGE

CLASS BRAINSTORM

Review the prompt above and consider the many possibilities that this prompt affords us as writers. Individually first then together as a class, let’s brainstorm ideas by trying to exhaust the list of questions below (what are the many directions in which you could take this prompt??)

← What could you mean by WAR in YOUR essay? List the many possibilities here:

← What could you mean by JUST vs. UNJUST? List the many possibilities here:

← What could you mean by CIRCUMSTANCES? List the many possibilities here:

3. DEFINING ESSAY PARAMETERS… First, identify what words would need to be clarified/made concrete if you chose this as your essay. Then, discuss with your partner the many possibilities that this prompt affords. Jot these ideas down.

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PROMPT RECYCLING…IT HAPPENS!!!!

Review the prompts below:

← Technology is more a curse than a blessing in the workplace. Do you agree?

← Discuss the view that the Internet can be more harmful than helpful.

← Are mobile phones more of a nuisance than a benefit?

Say you wrote essays with your teacher during the school year about the prompts above. How might experiences with and idea-sharing about these essay prompts ABOVE help you if you were presented with any of the prompts BELOW on the actual GP Exam?

← ‘The benefits of technology can only be enjoyed by the rich.’ Do you agree?

← In what ways can the use of modern technology improve learning?

← To what extent has technology affected your country’s development?

SCORING/GRADING (by both Cambridge and Mrs. Pavich!)

The AICE: General Paper exam grades you on two aspects of the final product essay:

← CONTENT (30 points)

← CONVENTIONS (20 points)……………………..2 ESSAYS = 100pts max

← So do your facts need to be accurate? YES!!!

← Do you need to cross all t’s and dot all i’s? YES!!!!

← BAND 1 = BEST

← BAND 5 = WORST

← View the RUBRICS for a quick understanding of the scoring process; annotate according to your teacher’s instructions.

CONVENTIONS

| |Marks | |

| | |Very few slips/errors |

|BAND 1 | |Highly fluent |

| |18-20 |Very effective use of expressions and idioms |

|“Excellent” | |Excellent use of vocabulary; (near) faultless grammar |

| | |Excellent sentence structure and organization of paragraphs |

|Fully operational command | |Excellent spelling/punctuation |

| | |Few slips/errors |

|BAND 2 | |Fluent |

| | |Effective use of expressions/idioms |

|“good-very good” |14-17 |Good use of vocabulary; sound grammar |

| | |Good sentence structure/well-organized paragraphs |

|Effective command | |Good spelling/punctuation |

| | |Some slips/basic errors but acceptable standard overall |

|BAND 3 | |Reasonably fluent/not difficult to read |

| |10-13 |Generally appropriate use of expressions/idioms |

|“average” | |Fair range and apt use of basic vocabulary |

| | |Acceptable grammar |

|Reasonable command | |Simple/unambitious sentence structure |

| | |Reasonable spelling/punctuation |

| | |Regular and frequent slips/errors |

|BAND 4 | |Hesitant fluency/not easy to follow at times |

| |6-9 |Some inappropriate expressions/idioms |

|“flawed but not weak” | |Limited range of vocabulary; faulty grammar |

| | |Some flawed sentence structure/paragraphing |

|Inconsistent command | |Regular spelling/punctuations errors |

| | |Almost every line contains (many) errors of all kinds |

|BAND 5 | |Little/(no) fluency/difficult (almost impossible) to follow |

| | |(very) poor use of expressions/idioms |

|“weak-very weak” |0-5 |(very) poor range of vocabulary; (very) poor grammar |

| | |(very) poor sentence structure |

|Little/(no) effective communication | |(very) poor spelling and punctuation |

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| | |(Bracketed descriptors denote 0-2 range of marks) |

CONTENT

| |Marks | |

|BAND 1 | |Comprehensive coverage, totally relevant material, interesting, perceptive, analytical |

|“Excellent” | |Thoughtful, enlightening illustration using local, national, and international examples where |

|Very good and comprehensive knowledge/ |26-30 |applicable |

|understanding of the topic | |Coherent and engaging discussion, displaying sensitivity, sophistication, awareness and maturity |

| | |(very) well structured; logical progression of ideas |

|BAND 2 | |Totally (near totally) relevant, well focused but less analytical and perceptive than Band 1 |

| | |Major points well developed/balanced |

|“good-very good” | |(very) good range of examples/illustration |

|Good knowledge/ understanding of the topic|20-25 |Logical and systematic discussion |

| | |Effectively structured |

|BAND 3 UPPER | |Competent; major points adequately developed |

|“average” | |Largely relevant and remains focused on the question throughout |

|Sound knowledge/ understanding of the |16-19 |Reasonable range of examples/illustration to support key points |

|topic | |Reasonably structured; ideas are sufficiently balanced |

|BAND 3 LOWER | |Obvious points mentioned but not adequately developed; some ideas go undefined in scope |

| | |Some digression, but generally sticks to the question |

|Fair knowledge/ understanding of the topic|13-15 |Does not always support major points with apt/well-suited illustration |

| | |Tendency to assert/generalize rather than argue/discuss in detail |

| | |May lack focus |

| | |Partially imbalanced in presentation; inconsistent organization |

|BAND 4 | |Restricted material/scope; rather pedestrian; lacks distinctive/imaginative ideas |

| | |Some relevance but may be implicit/hidden in translation |

|“flawed but not weak” |7-12 |May be subjective/tangential at times |

|Limited knowledge/ understanding of the | |Prone to unsubstantiated, sweeping statements; ideas vague and/or lacking sustained development; can |

|topic | |be digressive and wander off topic |

| | |Limited illustration and/or factual inaccuracy |

| | |May be incomplete in organization |

| | |Insufficient focus; essay offloads everything known about the particular topic without adequate |

| | |reference/connection to the prompt |

|BAND 5 | |(totally) inadequate with little/no substance; (very) vague and confused ideas |

|“weak-very weak” | |Question largely (completely) misinterpreted/misunderstood |

|Poor/very poor knowledge/ understanding of| |Very limited /(total) irrelevance |

|the topic |0-6 |Very limited/(no) appropriate illustration |

| | |(Bracketed descriptors denote 0-2 range of marks) |

JOURNAL REFLECTION ACTIVITY

Consider the AICE: General Paper Overview PowerPoint and class/partner activities experienced. Write a one-page response in your journal that reflects upon your GP experiences so far.

• Are you excited to begin writing? Worried? What, specifically excites or worries you?

• In what ways do you think you meet the expectations of the General Paper essays? In what ways will you be challenged?

• What prompts naturally interest you? Why? Which ones do not? Why? How do you plan to succeed, particularly with respect to essay tasks of low-interest?

• How, would you imagine, might be some of the best ways to prepare for this exam? What’s your game plan for success this year?

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1. “People always respond to crisis when it’s too late.” Do you agree?

2. How far is it possible for societies to provide equal opportunities for all their citizens??

← View the Sample Test (May/June 2009) on page 3 and carefully consider each prompt.

← Discussing your thoughts with a partner, determine whether the prompt is:

• EXPOSITORY,

• PERSUASIVE, or

• DISCURSIVE

← Underline key words; then write your answer in the left-hand margin of the test next to the prompt.

How far are minority groups treated fairly in your country?

Some people believe that all wars are unjust; or that war is justifiable under certain circumstances. Discuss your view.

BOTTOM LINE…IF CAMBRIDGE RECYCLES THE PROMPT,

YOU CAN RECYCLE SOME OF YOUR PREVIOUSLY WRITTEN CONTENT!!!!

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