Hi all, I'm preparing for my 4th sitting of SA3 now. I've had FAs on all previous attempts and am becoming increasingly frustrated with this exam. I've read examiners' reports and they seem to expect students to think of pretty much everything and cover all angles and possibilities, all within 3 hours. I'm trying to take heart from the fact I'm so close but I'm not sure where to go from here. My knowledge must be good enough so it must be an exam technique weakness. Every exam I've been writing furiously for 3 hours (with some planning time - probably not enough), which tells me I'm writing an awful lot of irrelevant points. My thinking is always "I struggle to generate enough breadth of ideas so I'll write down everything I think of so I don't miss anything". However the examiners are clear in their report that this is not looked upon favorably. So how is it possible to plan more and write less, but get a better mark? I think my weakness is planning - I will plan for 15 mins, then a few more mins once the exam starts, then start writing on the questions I've planned. When that's done, I'm in no mood to step back and start planning again halfway through the exam. Has anyone found an effectively way to plan? How do you know which headings are needed, any how do you think of enough of them? How long of the 3hr 15mins should be spent planning? 30 mins? 1 hour? Thanks for any advice anyone may have. Apologies for the ranting nature of this post, I've just read the April 2016 report and it seems the expectations on the students in such a tight time limit are unrealistic so I'm feeling frustrated
At this level they aren't looking for learning that's almost a given. It's about how you filter that learning to give answers that are well thought out, fluid and demonstrate reason and judgement. So you really do have to step back and think. The flow of your answer is important. And I don't just mean use of the English language. Group ideas, present only that which is relevant so you need to get scenarios well embedded in your brain. 15 mins per qn planning may be required and definitely keep revisiting the question as you write so you stay focussed.
Hi, I am exactly in your situation. 4th attempt coming and I have tried everything - X Series Marking, Mock Marking, ASET, Exam Counselling, GIRO papers - you name it. But somehow I am stuck with approx 55 marks in every practice. I really want to know what finally helped, because I feel stuck after trying out everything
