Was I Destined To Score Badly For Lang Lit?
(The bottom of this article consists of tips from a student who scored 7 in HL Lang Lit)
The story below is a completely true one.
1.5hrs left.
I woke up 1.5 hours early for my exam. That gave me 30 minutes to wash up, change in to my school uniform and eat some breakfast. After which, I would head to school which usually took another 30 minutes, leaving me with another 30 minutes before we could enter the examination room. “Perhaps I could even rush a small study session before the exam”, I thought.
So I took my time to get ready and after eating my breakfast, I walked to the car (My mother had generously offered to send me to school that day). I was excited because this would be my first paper and I couldn’t wait for it to be over.
1 hour left.
I strapped my seatbelt and my mum pressed the button which was supposed to start the car’s engine.
Nothing happened.
She tried it again but yet again, nothing happened. I realised that the car was not working. She called the mechanic but he wasn’t able to diagnose the problem over the phone. 15–20 minutes had passed since we got in the car.
“It’s alright, I’m still early.” I thought. I told my mother that I should just get a taxi and so I opened my phone and requested for one.
Less than 30 minutes left.
After attempting multiple times, I was still not able to get a taxi. It was roughly peak hour at that time so I wasn’t surprised but I was definitely worried.
I remember only managing to get a taxi once the exam doors have already been opened. I got in the cab with my heart racing and palms sweating. My main hope at that point in time was that there would be no jam on the highway. If there was, I might be even barred from entering the exam room.
Fortunately, I arrived before the cutoff time. The exam had already begun so I quickly looked through the questions and started writing. I was sweating from running and was still breathing heavily. My mind wasn’t in the right place as it was still racing from the anxiety I felt earlier.
I completed the examination in time (I write pretty fast) but I knew that it wasn’t my best work. I was not even in the right state of mind and with all the “misfortunes” that occured, I was feeling annoyed and felt I was so unlucky.
I eventually only achieved a 5 in Lang Lit which was below my expectations of at least a 6.
But would it be fair to say that it wasn’t my fault? Would it be fair to say that I would have gotten a 6 if my ride to school was smooth? Would it be fair to say that I was destined to get a 5?
Not at all.
Yes, perhaps my frame of mind would have been better if I had a smoother journey to school. But it’s important not to fall in to the trap of pushing the blame.
Truth be told, I didn’t achieve my desired grade because of what happened months before the examination day. In sharing this story and the subsequent tips, I hope that you won’t make the same mistakes as I did.
#1 Preparing Too Late
If you have read my other article about Lang Lit, you might remember that I basically devoted very little effort in preparing for this subject. Yes, it was a calculated risk but beyond that, I also thought there was nothing much to study for this subject.
When I look back at Lang Lit, I believe two things play a big part in helping one score well.
#2 A Firm Grasp of the Texts.
This means that you have to pay close attention in class to how your teacher analyses the texts. Its more than just dumping quotes in your essays but more of how you analyse the text as a whole. This also means that you have to consistently practice essays as well. Be familiar in an all rounded sense. Understand the context of why the text was written as well as the intentions. Know the characters inside out. These all take loads of time, effort and maybe aptitude(?).
#3 Being Fluent In the Techniques & Essay Writing Skills.
The best way to achieve this is through constant practice. This will help you develop an analytical mind necessary to craft out the essay. You also need to learn how to write in a manner that the marker will believe that you have a good grasp of the English Language and writing. Again, this takes time and practice to learn which definitely cannot be achieved in a short period of time. You need to be on the ball from the start and get in to the psyche of really sharpening your skills from day one.
Unfortunately, I did not develop either of the above mentioned skills which I only now realise are necessary.
So How Does One Prepare for Lang Lit?
We managed to get Sheng Yuan, an IB graduate who scored 7 in HL Lang Lit to provide us with some tips on how you too can work towards a 7. Here is his advice:
#1 Consistent Work.
Langlit isn’t Chemistry or Math or physics — cramming in quotes the day before the exam only works to a certain extent. If you haven’t read the book before the exam: well, good luck then! Consistently reading and making notes for your literature books allows you to really understand your text deeply. Weekly practices for Paper 1 starting months before the big exam will be extremely helpful as it gives you the “muscle memory” of what to do on the day itself.
#2 Read. Like, seriously.
Of course, this definitely applies to your literature texts — maybe you don’t need to know it as well as the back of your hand, but a solid understanding of the big themes of the book and a smattering of quotes should be the bare minimum. But reading, just in general, is important too! Reading widely is important because it allows you to “familiarise yourself” with new vocabulary and different sentence structures, and most importantly, keeps you updated on current affairs and important historical contexts. (All of which will come in handy for your Paper 1 textual analysis!).
#3 Help Each Other!
As the saying goes — two heads are better than one. Everything I’ve said so far sounds like a lot of work — and it is. Weekly Paper 1 practices? Ain’t nobody got time for that! And your English teacher may not be able to get back to you on time with the marked scripts (teachers have lives too you know). And detailed notes for each of my literature books? No way!
I thought so too. But in the months leading up to the big I and B, my class, who I had never seen talk to one another outside class, came together and began making notes collaboratively. Whatever drop of precious literary analysis my teacher said during class was mopped up in those last few months, and quality points that were brought up in class were painstakingly taken down when they would have typically been lost and forgotten 5 minutes after class. We marked and commented on each other’s Paper 1 practices when we knew our teacher couldn’t mark all of them in time. We arranged and consulted our teacher in groups to maximise face time with her.
I don’t think I would have been able to do so well for Langlit without the help of my entire class. If you’re reading this right now, and have never spoken to your langlit classmates before, go do it ASAP. Help take down notes in class. Share the analysis you’ve done for your book. Trust me, two heads are definitely better than one.