I conducted Doubt Solving Session for Std 12 in the Subject of English. We had conducted test series of 4 papers providing model answers in our college. Students got ample practice to write different papers and their speed of writing also increased. As a final touch I wanted to talk with them about their experiences of writing papers and stitch the lapses.
So I arranged Doubt Solving Session for them. They put forward their doubts and queries. Mainly their doubts were regarding summary, figures of speech, poetic creativity, rapid reading composition, view and counter-view, news writing, some grammar sentences, some activities in the paper they attempted. They were worried about vocabulary activity and personal response type activity. Many students complained about finishing the paper in 3 hours.
One by one I sorted out their doubts.
First of all students who are doubtful about completing the paper within time should begin to write paper in order as Q7, Q6, Q 5,Q.1, Q. 2, Q. 3, Q. 4. This strategy will help them to complete writing skills which prove crucial to score better. I advocate Q. 4 Poetry Section to be dealt with lastly because this question is quite difficult for most of the students.
Summary
Read the extract and find out what is it about. Look for key points given in the activity sheet. Explain those points without examples. Avoid repetition. Write simple and short sentences. The weaker students may resort to short cut by selecting 5 or 6 important sentences and making some changes. Grammatical changes can be made i. e. instead of active voice use passive, negative to Affirmative and vice versa. Use alternative words you know. Write single paragraph. Give title.
Rapid Reading Composition
Rewrite the extract from the point of view of…..
In this activity you are expected to convert the extract as if the given character is narrating it. Along with change in pronouns necessary changes should be made. Use first person pronoun for the character from whoose point of view the extract is to be written. Use third person pronoun for the narrator. Do not cover each and every line.
View and Counter-view
The main hurdle here is expressing in English. Secondly thinking and imagination also is a problem. Lastly the understanding of question is also sometimes poses as hurdle.
This question is like a debate. View section is given in the point form and counter-view has to be written. Here many students commit mistake by explaining the given points. Students need to write against the points. They should write opposite of what is suggested through points. They should think other side of the given topic and explain. If the topic is ‘science is blessings’, students should prove ‘science as curse’, For the topic ‘Homework is essential’, students should prove how homework is burdensome and useless.
To be continued