Hi again.
Hey everyone,
Unfortunately, this year (year 11) I did english (mainstream) instead of eng lang (was enjoying the world of persuasive x creative writing.. jks) so I'm far behind from what others are.
I wouldn't see that as an "unfortunately" sort of situation. Like, yeah, you've missed out on EngLang 3/4, but you can certainly catch up on that content, and I'm sure that you learnt some valuable skills in English 1/2.
I'm only starting to have a grasp on the basic metalanguage (lexicology & discourse etc.) however i have to admit, i'm still struggling.
As I said last night, this isn't at all unusual. Honestly, there's no end to the number of weird names and concepts and stuff (the most famous linguists in the world are still learning). Luckily, VCAA specifically lists those terms that you need to know. It's important to remember that you basically have the entire year to get your head around these concepts, and it will definitely, definitely get easier with time.
So, my holiday hw set by my teacher is to find articles and prep some prac essay questions, but the thing is can someone please explain to me why it's important to 'look around for articles and quotes' early on?
My take on it is this: it's important to include language examples (hence the articles) and quotes in your SACs (if applicable) and the end-of-year exam. Starting early just gives you more time to construct your pool of examples that you can use. Like, it'd be really difficult to try to remember a bunch of quotes the night before the exam; if you do it steadily throughout the year, it's so much easier. And so, I think collecting the articles and stuff is a great idea! It can be a pretty casual process, and
this thread might be a nice place to start.
If you find something useful, you can add it to that thread!
and what is an analytic commentary? (Sorry, I'm still used to the english syllabus)
Not a problem at all. An analytic commentary is essentially just a prolonged period of analysis of a particular text (or texts). And "text", here, can be written or spoken, so in theory you could be analysing a transcript of a speech or conversation. You typically rely on the five subsystems of language in these commentaries, pointing out relevant features (if any) from each:
- Phonetics and phonology
- Morpholoy and lexicology
- Syntax
- Semantics
- Discourse analysis
Have you come across these yet?
I'd recommend having a look at some of the
previous exams to get a better idea. The analytic commentary is Section B.
Also, can I hear any advice on how to prepare before going back to school? I really want to do well in the subject!
Thanks
Advice that I've previously given on these boards is simply to
be curious. Just take note of the way that language is used around you. The thing with language is that it can always be used in a different way; the same concept can be conveyed in different manners, and the speaker makes a choice to use specific linguistic elements (consciously or otherwise).
So like, if you're watching the news, notice the language they use, and try to link that to the
function of the text (so why they're using those words or whatever instead of alternatives). If you hear a new item of slang (say,
democracy sausage), think about what function that language is filling.
And this is further to trying to get a head around the metalanguage, of course.
If you have any questions, ask them on these boards!
I hope some of that was of use haha.
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