How to Get a Band 6 in Ancient History

[aoife98]

Hey Stephanie,
 For historiographical issues/source reliability/limitations, would you raise that point for Society questions? Also for the last society questions (worth maybe 8 or 10 marks) would you follow an essay structure or one big paragraph?
Cheers 

[stephanieazzopardi]

Hey Stephanie,
 For historiographical issues/source reliability/limitations, would you raise that point for Society questions? Also for the last society questions (worth maybe 8 or 10 marks) would you follow an essay structure or one big paragraph?
Cheers 

Hi aoife98! Ok so it totally depends on the question itself. If they're asking you to analyse a source then you do need to be mentioning the possible historiographical limitations related to that source.
For the 8/10 marker society questions, I would definitely be following an essay structure. You definitely shouldn't be writing a single paragraph. Treat it as a 'mini essay'. I remember getting an extra writing booklet for my Society essay, so make sure that you give the markers lots and lots of information to maximise your chances of getting full marks, and it's totally possible! In relation to historiographical issues here, I would totally recommend mentioning them.

Refer to this section of the above article for guidance on ALL responses to questions that are or more than 8 marks worth!

Introduction: Your introduction should immediately tell the marker your answer to the question. It should clearly include your academic opinion on the topic, what your body paragraphs will include, with a great emphasis on your use of sources and consideration of historiographical issues. The introduction of your essay is your first opportunity to tell the marker why they should read the rest of your essay, and most importantly, why they should give you 25/25 – make it good.

Body: The best way to structure your paragraphs is to remember the following acronym:
S: Source
E: Explain the source. What does it reveal/suggest?
W: What are the historiographical issues (context of historians, bias, purpose of writing etc)?

Conclusion: The final paragraph of your essay is your last chance to prove to the marker that you deserve a good mark for your essay, so make it count. Make sure you directly answer the question and restate the main argument of your essay. Your conclusion should be very similar to your introduction to ensure consistency from start to finish.


Good luck!

[vyca]

hey, if a questions been asked say last year and year before, then it shouldn't be asked in this year's exam right? So should I focus on the syllabus points that haven't been asked recently?

[jamonwindeyer]

hey, if a questions been asked say last year and year before, then it shouldn't be asked in this year's exam right? So should I focus on the syllabus points that haven't been asked recently?

In general I say to people that they shouldn't use prediction to not study stuff, they should use it to study particular things more.

So, yeah! If you notice a topic area that hasn't been asked in a little while, definitely put some extra time into it. However, don't use this as an excuse to not study everything else, you must be prepared for everything!

[Lauradf36]

What do you guys suggest for the length of 10/12/15 mark questions? They don't have a word count/guide so I'm never quite too sure... would 2 pages for 10 marks and 3-4 for 15 be enough?

[sudodds]

What do you guys suggest for the length of 10/12/15 mark questions? They don't have a word count/guide so I'm never quite too sure... would 2 pages for 10 marks and 3-4 for 15 be enough?

Hi! I don't really know about how many pages, but my teacher said that the amount of words/time spent should be approximately 1.8 minutes per mark, as each section should take you about 45 mins.

So for a 10 marker - 18 mins, 12 marker - 22 mins, 15 marker - 27 mins.

Also, you should be aiming to write 1100-1200 words per 45 mins. So lets say for the personality section where you will get a 10 marker and a 15 marker, you should write approximately 400 words for the 10 maker, and 700-800 for the 15 (according to my teacher).

Hope this helps

[arleee]

Hey, just a quick query - for the last section of the exam (the 25 mark essay), there are two questions. I do the Persian wars and they normally ask a question about the wars and then about the Delian league. My tutor recommended that I answer the question about the Delian league as they tend to allow greater depth of analysis etc. But, I feel quite unconfident about the Delian league...should I still try and answer the second question or just try to do the first one? I'm really unsure of this and any help would be great!
Thanks

[sudodds]

Hey, just a quick query - for the last section of the exam (the 25 mark essay), there are two questions. I do the Persian wars and they normally ask a question about the wars and then about the Delian league. My tutor recommended that I answer the question about the Delian league as they tend to allow greater depth of analysis etc. But, I feel quite unconfident about the Delian league...should I still try and answer the second question or just try to do the first one? I'm really unsure of this and any help would be great!
Thanks

My teacher always says to go with the one you are most comfortable with, so I'd probably go with the first one. You don't want to take too many risks in the HSC, plus if you don't feel confident with it, then how are you meant to demonstrate this greater depth of analysis? However, if your tutor is recommending you to do the second one then maybe its because they think you are capable from some of the stuff you have shown them maybe?

[bethjomay]

Would I possibly be able to post a delian league essay plan up here for someone to have a look at?

[arleee]

Would I possibly be able to post a delian league essay plan up here for someone to have a look at?

That would be awesome! I've got a really really good intro for a Delian League question, but I have no idea what to do for the bodies! I just really want to be prepared for tomorrow

[bethjomay]

Sorry I didn't get onto this! Did today go ok for you arleee?

[shamus.clarke]

Hello world,

I have just been given the date for my in-class essay on Augustus, which is due in 4 weeks. We won't been given the question for this essay , is there any way I can make a start? Any advice would be supremely helpful!

[sudodds]

Hello world,

I have just been given the date for my in-class essay on Augustus, which is due in 4 weeks. We won't been given the question for this essay , is there any way I can make a start? Any advice would be supremely helpful!

Practice essays practice essays practices essays (did I mention practice essays?). Definitely one of the BEST ways to prepare for Ancient history essays (and pretty much any essay in general). Go through past half yearly/trial/HSC questions related to what you have studied and have a go. Make sure to get them checked by a teacher (or here if you'd like! We don't have a thread for it yet, but if that is something people would be interested in I'd be happy to set one up) so that you know what areas you need to improve upon/what is working well that you need to continue. Doing practice essays not only exposes you to the types of questions that you could get asked, but also forces you to start considering your knowledge as not just content - but examples to back up your judgements.

Essay scaffolds also work super well, particularly right before the exam as they take less time

Hope this helps! Good luck with your assessment I'm sure you will smash it! Be sure to let us know how it goes/if you need anything 

[jadzia26]

thank you so much a guide is exactly what i need for ancient essays lol!
my marks are sometimes very good and other times not very good at all its so frustrating that i struggle to keep it consistent but this is extremely helpful!

[sudodds]

thank you so much a guide is exactly what i need for ancient essays lol!
my marks are sometimes very good and other times not very good at all its so frustrating that i struggle to keep it consistent but this is extremely helpful!

Steph is literally amazing right I know exactly how you feel in terms of marks seeming inconsistent - exactly me last year in english. The best way to rectify that is to do past papers, and get them marked by a teacher (or on here lol ) A lot of the time it has nothing to do with the content, but how you applied the content - i.e. structure. So getting a teacher to look over your work, and identifying the weak areas that you may not even realise exist will definitely help with consistency!