-

iHow to Sct aa o@o trBng[f,sh Paper

of The first problem that faces any teacher setting a comprehension PaPer' course, work' but secondary is where to find the material. Fiction is quite suitable for lower to prefer factual accounts for 'O' Level, amd perhaps the Cambridge examiners seem work is concerned' a teacher is safer sticking to non-fiction as far as uPper secondary and length I have always The happiest huntiig ground for passages of suitable style found to iie in three main areas: t

. ravel writing . memoirs . biography and autobiograPhY'

for. I These types of writing rend ro have all of the qualities that we are looking suggest that'the Passages ihould contain the following qualities: ' The Passage should be a self-contained incident' or so (or which can be . The passage should be of around a thousand words easily edited to rhat length) ' . The passage should havi a central theme (for summary purposes) ' intrinsic interest' ' The Passage should be of an appropriate level of readability' . The p^rug. should be at type of work and Most of rhe passages in this book have been chosen from that rvirh those criteria in mind.

Tnres of Question

'O' Level PaPer II There are a number of types of questions u'hich apPear on examinations, and each has its advantages and disadvantages.
1. Simple Information Retrieval
cloes Hatch

Thistypeofquestionislikelytotaketheformofasimplequery'".1.1..\^4rere $'orlh iivel" fqu.stion 1 (a) on the example passage] and will general\'be 'O' Level is rather use at only one mark. g"i".lr. rhis type of question is so simple its perhaps as a confidence booster' restricted, and it usually upp.ui, onirjorrc. or t$'ice, It might appear a little moie often at lower secondary level'
but its disadvantases The advantage of this rype of question is that it is easy to mark, no scope for interpretation, outrveich rhis, as rJch a quesrion is necessarily closed, offering anci also encourages "lifting" from the passage'

U[Er_e] t t s

2. Inforrnation Processing

This type of question

assumes

in the student the abiiity

to:

' . . . .

infer interpret
evaluate

show a connection show cause and effect

leader allorved and is exemplified by a question such as "why do you think the expedition 3 (d) on the example his divers to keep the cracked pieces of porcelain?", fquestion passage] where

'

sort of question is widely used at'O'Level and should be introduced, even if only in a limited way, early in lower secondary school so Lhat students can gain experience in answering it. The advantage of ittis rype of question is that it works at a higher thinking level than the first rype of question. Its disadvanlage, for some people anyw^y, is that it can lead to a wide range of acceptable answers'

ih. urrr*",. is not given in the passage bul must be inferred'

ifrir

3. Vocabulalv

This rype of question takes two forms. The student is called upon either: a. to explain aword or phrase (either literal or figurative) taken from the Passage, such as 'Why is the word 'maP' in inverted commas?" lquestion 1 (b) (i) on the examPle Passage] or b. to select a meaning to fit a given word, such as question 2 (b) on the example
passage.

Form (a) is usually present on 'o' Level papers, while form (b) is always Present' With the questions which take form (b), teachers should note the wording used on the .O,.Level prp.r and reproduce ir on their own papers to get the students used to following that particular instruction.

4. Others
Reference questions, such as 'lMhat does the word 'this' in line 29 refer to?" This type of qrrestion is not used extensively, but it is not uncommon, and is . ,rr.irrl checl that students are following the gist .rf a passage. iWhat is a publicity stunt?", which de pends b. General knowledge questions, such as on knowledge galned'from outside the paper- These should be used sparingly, local student may not have the linguistic experience to deal as in many *.t "rarely appear on 'O' Level, although a number of years ago with them. Thev *hose correct answer depended on a prior knowledge of there was t a;ffi; the barter system of trading.

tto FllnPEl

c. Explaining idioms. Again, teachers should be wary in their use of this type of
question, such as "Explain the meaning of the expression 'If push carne to shove' in line 24". Although in general there will be some contexhral clue which wiil lead the student towards the correct answer, in some cases (Iike this one, perhaps), such a question might bafile him.

For culnrral reasons, therefore, perhaps it is better that questions of type (b) and (c) should be avoided whenever possible.

Phrasing of Inferential Questions In asking inferential questions of type 2, teachers should try to ensure that
information is processed rather tharfjust "lifted". This can be achieved by opening up questions through the use of phrases iike the following:

I
I

i:

l.i

.@..?
. ' . . . .
What evidence is there to suggest ...? Why is '.. an appropriate word to use here? What feeling is iuggested by the use of -..? What does the expression ... tell you about the author's feelings here? Suggest reasons why ... Explain why ...

l:'' lI I

I I I L

Note that in recent years the Cambridge examiners have begun to specify paragraphs from which information is to be retrieved, so that some answers which might otherwise be correct may have to be ruled out.

Setting Vocabulary Questions

Some points to remember:

. . . .

Don'tjust go for difficuit words someLimes a simpler word used in an unusual way is more testing. Do choose words whicli allow the use of contextual cluesDo choose a wide range of parts of speech. Do indicate clearly the key words to be explained rather than confuse the students by asking for the whole of a phrase. This can be achieved by using the following t'?e of phrase:

. ' . '

Which word suggests ...? Explain in your own words ... What is the difference benveen .,.? Paying particular attention to the highlighted words

...

lTtf,E-FE 11 7

Setting SummarY Questions

the rubric: Ntake sure student.s are given' in ..Usine e.g. . the pordon of their P^,,.'g. thar the information is to come from, BB "'" only the material from line 24 to linc *no longer than 160 rvords" . an upper *ora ii*i, should indicate senlence' ' an openit'g view and which i' Point of ii. rhe tense to be used rrip' I 'T;; rno'nt"t our father agreed to take rhe nts are ".'' look for: Lo ".g. . a clear indication of the particular"poinu the stude actions he ,.... the proti"*, and dificulties the author encountered and the took to deal with them "'" for your acfions "' "'.. what you saw and did and tire reasons yourself' to check: Always do the summary question the number of points available' and

^.

b. if it can in fact be done in 160 words'

Under(a),lSto22poinsisaboutright'Fewe.rthanthatmighrmakethesummary easy or moie than that might make it either t'oo too difficult for mosr r,rr!".ro, while looconfusing.Ithastobesaid,no,'"u..,that.o'levels=ummarieshavebeensetwith t'uu,.,0d::ili,l; rewer, perhaps "o t"il,T;-"r, can be done roo easilv in 120 words orSimilarly' if the key word' ad.di"g another then rephrase the quesrio", .ptJt'tp' bf a number of words given, change or remove in tire summary proves ro U"'i*possibie likely to u,rri.rr. Remember, however, that you are key word to lignten the siud.ntr' words than the average student' be able to do u ,,,t"*uty in far fewer

Finilly
AlwaYs check Your questions for:

. clarity I ' ambigrritr be awarded . correlation between Points to be made and marks topaPers and previous 'o' , wording of questions in ,et"tion to Past examination
to be related, i'e' 1 (a) (i) and (ii) ' related questions, which should be shown not 1 (a) and (b) . sequence of questions' whal you meant but which are justified by Do allow interpretations which are not the wording-of the questlon' rheY can onlY read Your PaPer' Don't exPect students to read Your mind

levels

118 $tlEPBl

And l{ow Not To Do

It

The passage which I have been referring to from time to [ime is something of a false friend. It was put together by a major educalional establishment in Singapore some years ago, and was in use in their 'O' Level courses for some time. I will spare their blushes by not naming rhe establishment concerned. I call it a false friend because on the surface it looks, and is meant to look, like an 'O' Level Paper II. The length is the same, the rubric is the same, and it was designed to help students get through their'O' Level. There, however, the similarity ends. Of course, it is possible forjust about anyone who is compiling an 'O' Level qpe paper to find mistakes creeping in, and I am not for a moment suggesting that all of the papers in this book are completelyfree of glitches. It is rare, however, for so many differqpt types of error to creeP into a single PaPer as have wormed their way into this one. Ler us examine it in some detail. Questions i (a) and 1 (b) (i) are fine. Question 1 (b) (ii), however, is far roo general. The question is not specific enough, as the work of the two men is interconnected in many different ways. Perhaps if the question had specified, for example, the work that the men do in paragraph one it would have been clearer. Question 1 (c) (i) is hopeless. A reading of the appropriate part of the Passage reveals that three interesting things happened, two to do with the sonar and one with the magnetometer. It is anyone's guess, therefore, which two the setter happens to be after. The related question 1 (c) (ii) only compounds the felony, as in order to ge! the answer right you need to have read the mind of the setter and guessed correctly rvhich points he wanted. In other words, to get part (ii) right you had ro have got Part (i) right. This interdependence is not recommended. Question 1 (d) gives no indication of how the marks are to be allocated for each part. Is it 2+2 , 3+1 or 1+3? In addition, the second part can be answered by "lifting". Question 1 (e) needs to be more specific. There are a number of possible answers the age of the u'all, the cannon, the anchor and the porcelain. Perhaps students could be directed to a particular paragraph and asked for two specific factors that might heip determine the age. 2 (a) is also non-specific. There are two marks available, and it is very likely that o1e of them is for an explanation of the word "reluctantly", but what is the other for? "They"? "Made for"? "Surface"? Again, it might have been an idea to use one of those phrases like "...paying particular aLlention to the highlighted words..." It is difficulr ro do roo much damage with a vocabulary question like 2 (b), but even here there is grossness. It is ridiculous to take a rt'ord like the first one, "nerve", and ask the students to explain it in isolation when clearly it is part of a noun phrase, "Nerve centre", and is thus unable to stand alone. Effectively, the students have been asked t-o answer an impossible question. with a litt]e Quesrion 2 (c) presents problems rvhich might have been avoided "lift" (line 66) and an "airlift" thought and some editing. The divers are using both a (line 63), apd srudenrs unfamiliar rvith deepsea salvage equipment (the majoriti', I

[lUepsi rrg

can in facl suspect), are certain to become confused. Ir does not help that the questioll (a) ancl b. ..l.q.tatelv answerecl by "lifting" from the passage' The sarne is Lrue of 3 3 (b). rhe The worst errors, horvever, are unfortunately in the qtteslion which is worth summary' the the one, therefore, where students have most to lose most marks - wording of the question, the specified length of the- answel and the Firstly, the is found at 'O' levei- The rvhole format of the rrriri" are totally differeni from what insuuctions are very vague' punctuation wirhin the question has.an error in it, and the work actually done by rvith students lefi ,lrr.rrr" as to whether to concentrate on the help of other divers' Dorian himself or the work thar he might have done rvith the No key words are given to guide To add to this confusion, no task is specified. student is unable to the student and there are no opening *otat given, so that the tense to use' define eirher the point of view he is to write from or the appropriate If teachers want a model of what not to do' I think this is it!

Sample

of a Poorly Conceived Engtish Paper II

questions' Answer all the Read the following passage carefully before you attemPt any set' Mistakes in spelling' questions. Yo.l ure-.ecominended to answer them in the order in any part of the paper' jrlncrrrution and grammar may be penalized

itwasjust anot,her day on the fustbss M,the converted trawlerwhich The sun shone down was Hatch's home and the nerve centre of the search.
So

pitilesslyasithaddonewithregularmontonyduringthelvholeexpedition.

a French Max de Rham was stretched out on Lhe promenade deck reading assistant, novel between survey lines. It was the turn of Biji, his iong-rime looking for any ro study the side-scan sonar, housed in a tiny cabin. Btji YT was propped unusual dark shapes emerging on the "map", One diver, Hals,

tlPonatowererected""tr'.Reef,directingthpSiweePoftheboat,whiie

diver, Dorian, was trying to concentratb at the long drop station which wouid where less and less frequently he was asked to release the buoy invesrigating' mark a spor which was worth

a'oth.r

10

holes' apparently Unaccountable images appeared and there were odd deep on rhe sea bed.. et itre sime time the magne[ometer started clicki'g away like crazy, suggesting that magnetic objects were scattered around in an an exciting design. area one hunJred u.ra tnirty feet in length

Sud^denly,justafternoon'thesonarbecameveryinteresting.

15

.Drop',shoutedMax,andDorianlergoofthebuoy.ThefustlzssM

made a slow semi-circle and stopped'

120 ElfETBl

Ti

Discussion started: should they tr-ail over t}e area again, or trust that the buoy was close enough to the "find"? Anyway it was promising enough to cail Hatch over from the Reef. Secretly Max was very excited but he did not want to raise Hatch's spirits too high: there had been enough disappointments. The two men' quickly kitred themselves up in their diving gear, got into the dinghy and sped over to where the buoywas bobbing around. Into the water theywent, Hatch first. By pulling themselves down on the line stretching from the marker buoy to its anchor they quickly reached the ocean bed, one hundred and twenty feet below. It was grey and featureless down there, and they needed to use their compass to swim iowards the first of those strange
depressions.

2A

I I

25

I
I

[:
t

l:I.
i
I

..

-'-:
-

30

I I I I I
I

in, noticed it

10

emerging from the cloud his prodding hands had'created in - a r*iil *hit. encrusted coffee cup. Max gathered it up and the cavity was swam towards Mike who had taken another direction. He had made towards well aware that such a snaPPers and grouPers a shoal of fish -fish is a good indication of awreck. As Max tried to attract concentration of Hatch's attention, both men swam slapbang into a brick wall. They eyed was it a modern wreck? Soon each other in wonder. What had they found - partially collapsed wall was a their questions were answered. Close to the massive anchor, Lhe tu'in of the one found on the Reef' The n^ro men had arrived at an underwater oasis, alive with fish and coral. They, had little time to admire the scenery Much more interesting ro them was the sight of cannon, lying in profusion at all angles. Hatch snrted to dig t.o,.t d the cannon and came across some jagged objecS. Rut by,now theii'dive time was almost exhausted. Reluctandy thel'made for the surface, Hatch clutching his odd shapes, Max his complete coffee cup' As the anxious divers gathered around them, Hatch rubbed away the accumulated marine gTowth and the broken objects came uP gleaming blue and white: it was porcelain. Hatch was back in business. No one had an,v idea of the idendry of the rgreck or the contents of the cargo. More to tfie point, itrvas odds-on that anv merchandise had been there smashe"d to pieces over the years. But, if there were no certainties' were plenq.' of fancies. \4rhen'Hatch had ied his flotilla out of Singapore harbour in early March Admiral he had high hopes of the "Big One". He had been salvaging on the StellingwJrf ReLf for years, mainh'bringing uP tin' Tl:." h" had found the junk, *Li.n hacl1,ieldecl chinese sevenreenrh-cerrrury lr{ing porcelain rt'hich "sold at Christie's Amsterdam auctior-r house for almost nvo million pounds' This rime, rhanks ro the decision to join him of Max de Rham, with his years Hatch as u,e li as his sophisticated dctectiot-t equipmerrt of experience - cleatr' rtas confidellt that tirel,rvould ,,u""p the Reef, alrcl tire adjacent ocean,

It turned out to be a hole, six feet wide and five feet deep' Max dived down to the bottom. A Morey eel scuttled out of his way but he hardly

I
I

i:..

i:.

35

!,
I

40

45

50

))

Mrpsi rzt

r
I

tl

Theirmaintoolwastheairlift,w}richblervawaytlresandandcorai andmarinedetrittrsandexposeclthecratesandtireiooseporcelain.One by the

carry the porcelain diver rvould operare this while the other would steel box' rvhich was lowered after the armful to the lift, a one-metre-square with drainage holes' The divers and which held six plastii rubbish baskets,

65

t2

findsrvereplacedinthesebucketsandwhentheywerefullthesignalrvas giventothesurfacetohaulupthebox.Totryandlivenupthisexhausring workthediverscompetedtoseewhichpaircouldpackupthemostporceiain baskets full of dinner plates' in one fifty-minute srint. T.ne record was tweive seven hundred Pieces in ail' Themiraclewastha[thecargohadremainedvirtuallyintact.Thiswas of the vessel. The tea held thanks ro rhe tea as much as to th; slow sinking theporcelainfirminitsglutinous.grip'Butifitensuredissurvival'italso up from the chests clouding made condi[ions v"f r,u.? for the d]u.^. Ir rose difficult' Il rvas rheir visibility; its rhick clogging smell made breathing
er,erwvhere, a dark, pungenriim.lit*"r like "r,o.*y and currenrs when the weathe , iru,

70

:',

l:,:

searching in a tea pot, especially whirled around the divers.

BO

13

Thereweremoreandmoredaysonwhichdivingwasimpossibleand rhewreckseemedtohaveyieldedupallitsexcessivebounryoncethedivers

learned to be very careful had turned over the cabin area. Eariy on, they had Out of mugs and 'iars could as they washed ttre porcelain on-the barge' agreed thar nothing should tumblejewels and r-'ull rtarrr.s and glasser. It*ur If a diver was fond of a be held nu.t, .u"rything was to 6e auctioned' it later. only the cracked particular object he had lound, he could bid for

85

14

.
15

piecescouldberetained.Intheeventmostofthediversnowhavesmall, tut select, collections from the wreck' WhileHatcharrangedthedeparturefromthesite,itwasagreedrhatA area outside the hull. there should be a *.dJrlo.., expiorarion of the trenchwasdugontheoff-chancerhatobjectsmighth.avefallenover|he sidesoftheshipduringitsdeaththroes.Soonrhecollapsedcookhouse, "Hutch and Max had found in that firsl exploratory the brick wall of which dive over a month previously, was reached'

90

Ma-x was setling Hatch *.s getting our of the decompression chamber; the bricks rvirh his awaiy ready to ,Jive. Ii*as boriun who-was sucking ?t speaking rube, airlift on rhe sea bed. suddenly he gasped through his trouble. The n he was in ..surface! suface!,, Both Ma-x and Hatih ihought

95

themagicwordswhichweretotransformHatch'sexpeditionin|othestuff "Gold. I found gold'" of dreams

100

122 FllEPEl

I
i

Answer the following questions.

1 (a) Where does Hatch live? (b) (i) \ ary is "map" in inverLed commas?
[1 mark]

[3 marks] (ii) \Arhat did Hans and Dorian's jobs have to do with Biji? (c) (i) what rwo rhings happened after noon that were interesting? [4 marks] (ii) What do you think these things indicated? (d) .,Itwas grey and featureless down there, and they needed to use their compass

to swirn towards the first of those strange depressions. (iines 28-30) (i) Explain "It was grey and featureless"' [4 marks] (ii) How did they overcome rhis? (e) How do you think Hatch and Max determined how old the wreck was? [2 marks]

(a) Explain in your own words what surface" (lines 4M7).

(b)

meant by "reluctantly they made for the [2 marks] choose five of the following words. For each of them give one word or short the phrase (of not more than seven words) which has the same meaning as word has in the Passage.
is

(i) nerve (line 2) (ii) pitilessly (line 3) (iii) trail (line 19)
(ir') scuttled (line 32) (r') prodding (line 33) (vi) profusion (line 44) (vii) odds-on (line 52) (viii) sophisticated (line 61) (c) What was the airlift and how did rhe divers use it?

[5 marks] [2 marks]

the porcelain had remained in good condition. [2 marks] [1 mark] (b) Why u'as Hatch thinking of leaving? a favourite piece (c) why do you rhink Hatch wouldn't allow any diver to retain t2 marksl of porceiain he might have found? marks] (d) why do you think Hatch aliowed them to keep cracked pieces? [2
(a) Explain why

he Dorian was one of fhe divers on the Rcstlzss M. Write a summary of the part his name is piayed. You'll find information throughout the'stor1" sometimes generally as diver's work' \bur mentioned and ar oti]er limes a -|ob is mentioned [20 marks] summary should be I'ro longer tlian 140 words'

F{UEPiil 123