Most General Paper students will throw up their hands in despair over writing an 800-word essay for their exams.
I mean, 800 words.
Sounds daunting, doesn’t it?
I’m sure the first thought that hit you was ‘how on earth am I supposed to fill up an 800-word essay?
There are so many techniques you may wish to employ inGeneral Paper, and I will be discussing some traditional methods as well as some ‘smart learning’ methods which you may use to gain swift strides in your writing style.
The first rule of thumb is that for General Paper aka GP, you will need to be rather confident and stylish in your writing. Your work must reek of polish, sophistication, and finesse.
I will share some swift and effective ways for you to score an A easily in your General Paper.
Mind you, there has to be solid work involved. For any kind of gain, you will need the good old-fashioned work ethos of ‘no pain, no gain.’
So, if you really want to generate an impressive 800-word essay, you will need to make sure that you have the tools for it.
What I’m talking about is your Knowledge.
Yes. You will need to sound really knowledgeable when you write yourGeneral Paper.
And that means having all the news, reports, happenings, consequences, speeches of famous people at your fingertips.
You need not know every single bit but the main parts of the highlights only. That will be enough to get you through that door.
You cannot write an entire essay based on merely a narrative.
GP does not work that way. You will need to impress the examiner with your sheer volume of Knowledge.
Well, Knowledge is Power, isn’t it?
Having mentioned that, I would like to point out that having some sound tips will go a long way in gaining inroads in a tough paper likeGeneral Paper. They may be old-fashioned but still work like gold when it comes to scoring an A easily for your GP.
Tip #1 – In The News
One way is to simply Read, Read and Read.
The most important way is to get started on The NEWS. The news source does not matter.
Just get yourself plugged into the latest news.
Know what is going on in London today. Their Prime Minister Boris Johnson has to cope with the ever-increasing Covid count.
Which country is in lockdown over the Omicron? The Netherlands is in lockdown.
Do you know if there is going to be a new vaccine to counter the Omicron virus?
Do you know which pharmaceutical company is manufacturing the new vaccine?
If you do not know the answers to any of these, then you are in serious need of some…..Knowledge.
Start watching, reading and listening to the news now. Get ready to be engaged with the rest of the world.
Tip #2 – The Good Ol’ Books
The other way to gain knowledge is to read books.
Ok, ok. I know. You’re shaking your head.
Most people do not like to read….these days. I’ll offer you a shortcut.
Have you ever heard of ‘reading smart’?
There are ways to do this well.
Get hold of some short stories. Read the ones that you like. It is easy to manage. Just 10 – 20 pages. Easy peasy.
Or, watch a heavily recommended movie or docu-drama. There are so many of them available today.
They are quite enticing and resonate well with anyone as there is such a wide range to choose from.
Many are available on Netflix or other apps which you can watch from the comfort of your home.
When you Watch something, make sure that you write down the interesting words or phrases. That is one way to recall when you write an essay inGeneral Paper.
Tip #3 – Connecting The Dots
I really do not want to weigh you down with too many tips. I just want to make it clean and simple for you to follow up.
The art of writing forGeneral Paper should be seamless. The flow should be smooth and the information precise.
After all, that is what the examiners want.
The last tip is all about Connecting.
This sounds like a silly tip, I know.
Whoever heard of connecting? Connecting what?
Connecting is about making sure that your Point is connected to the Question.
And your Point should be connected to the Evidence.
And above all, the point which is connected to the question and evidence should be relevant to what is going on in the world.
It should have relevance and importance.
You will need to use your judgment to ensure that the Point is really well connected.
Without this vital connection, your essay will be off-balance.
You need to synchronise and focus on these links in theGeneral Paper.
These are the tips that I will leave you to chew on for today. I think that will be enough to get you started.
You may choose only one of the tips to get started on if you wish. That will be quite enough.
Do not be too ambitious. Go slow and easy and your effort will pay off very soon.
Good luck dear students and I will share more tips with you soon!