Exam Update #7

New week - new chance!

Exam today: English and American Literature

Yippy, I can do it! Even though right before the exam I thought that my mind had gone blank. But the questions were alright and and I was able to answer them - or at least I think the answers were not too far off from the mark. It is strange, however, to know that in 3 months time I will have the same exam again (for my Master), but that time it will last an hour and not just 30 min.

But now it's didactics and the next exam will be on the 5th. Now I am looking forward to the jubliee-concert of my choir on Saturday and will utterly enjoy it!

Exam Update #6

Right, yesterday my oral exams started with "Language Acquisition". It went alright, but still I am disappointed because I knew the answers, but I just did not understand what he was getting at. I knew the vocabulary, I read well and then got stuck with the grammar. We are always told that you have to explain the grammar so that a student is able to understand it. I did and when he went on and on and on, he in the end told me that he wanted to hear the technical terms that are used in the Quirk/Greenbaum grammar, which is used in linguistics and NOT in the classroom. I know that terminology, it became my second nature during my study for the written exams, so I am really disappointed. I could have done better.

Anyway, next week, next chance.

One week to go...

I intended to write this post already last night, but somehow I got stuck with "The Great Gatsby" and in the end I switched off the light at half past one. Anyway, next week the oral exams start and I am not sure what to think about them. I find it quite hard to work for them, I seem to lack motivation.

I spent the Easter holidays at my parent's and at my brother's house, as I wanted to see Natalie. Unfortunately I also spent a week and a half in bed with a bad cold. No wonder that after the whole written exams affair my body longed for a "decent" break. Shanie (my car) was also ill - he lost his exhaust pipe. But I had a good time nevertheless.

Now I try to prepare for my oral exams. I come to the conclusion that I hate "Mrs Dalloway" and "The Scarlett Letter", I also hate "Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads"! I just hope I am not asked any questions on these three books - out of 15 on my general reading list. For my literature exam I also have two main topics: "Master Detectives - Master Criminals: Poe, Doyle, Chesterton and Christie" and "Alternative History Plays: Howard Brenton, Caryl Churchill, Edward Bond and T.S. Eliot"

But my first exam next week is "Language Accquisition", which means I have to read out loud a few lines of an unknown text, then they will definitely ask me the 5 vocabulary items I have no clue about what they mean and then they will ask me grammar questions, like: Okay, this is taken from a student's exam paper. Where is the mistake and how do you explain the student what is wrong and how to improve next time.

I will let you know how things go. At the moment I try to get through Macbeth, which is nice enough, but I HATE SHAKESPEARE!