Revise
AQA: Paper 1 Question 3
AQA: Paper 1 Question 3 Revision
AQA: Paper 1 Question 3
This page will provide some hints and tips to ensure that you score highly for Question 3!
Here you will find out:
- The format of the question
- How to approach answering the question
- The Assessment Objective (AO) of the question
There is also an extract from a model answer to give you an idea of how to answer the question!
Question Format
For Question 3, you have to analyse the reasons why a writer has formatted their text in a particular way.
You will not be given line numbers to refer to in this question – meaning you can use the whole source!
On the right is an example question in the same format as what you will encounter in your exam.
Looking at past and practice questions such as this, although it may seem simple, is very important.
Becoming familiar with the way in which your exam question will be presented will help you to know where to look for the information you need.
Key Words in the Question
The words in bold are the key words that you need to focus on when answering the question.
Whole source:
Spotting features from different places in the source will show the examiner that you have thorough understanding of the text and how it is structured throughout the source.
How:
The ways in which the writer has structured the text – what features have they used which interest the reader?
Structured:
Be careful here! The question asks for content relating to the structure – try not to analyse language features.
Interest:
What are the effects of the structural features – does the structure entice you to keep on reading?
Timings
As it states on the front of the question paper, you are advised to spend 15 minutes in total reading the sources and the questions.
As the question is only worth 8 marks, you are only expected to spend approximately 10 minutes writing your answer to this question!
Do not spend more time than this on this question as this means you will have less time to answer the higher mark questions at the end of the paper!
However, this does not mean that you can completely ignore this question! If you split your time up efficiently, you can still gain these 8 marks!
Next up, how to ace this question…
How to Approach
First, you should scan the source for any structural features…
Think about whether the writer has used paragraphs, a varied sentence length, punctuation for effect?
This will help to ensure that your answer is focused on the question.
Once you have identified some structural features, think about their effect and how they pique the interest of the reader.
For example, does the reader become more emotionally involved with the characters because of a specific structural feature?
PEEL Paragraphs
To get high marks for this question, your answer needs to be structured!
PEEL paragraphs show the examiner that you are answering the question analytically.
Well, what are PEEL paragraphs?
PEEL = Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link
Let’s have a closer look…
Point – Make your Point – what effect has the writer aimed to create through a structural feature?
Evidence – Support your answer with Evidence (quotes) from the text/source.
Explanation – Explain how the quote you have chosen supports the point you have made.
Link – Summarise why the paragraph is relevant to the question.
Example: Extract From a Model Answer
Please note: the following is just a small extract from an answer – this is not the length of the answer you should write in the exam!
Your answer will have to include more points than this!
Why is this a good answer?
- The answer identifies relevant techniques, relating to the structure of the text
- The answer includes a Point, Evidence from the text, an Explanation of the Point and a Link back to the question.
- The quotes selected are short and concise, which allow them to be integrated well into the text.
- The answer includes sophisticated subject terminology.
- The writer has identified an effect of the structure of the source.
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