Writing Essays In Exam Conditions
Workshop Workbook
Louise Livesey
This workshop will:
Introduce you to common examination formats
Offer strategies for managing the time allocated for the exam
on the day
Consider techniques to use whilst writing essays when in an
exam.
Teaching points:
Assessing your exam skills
Different exam formats
Reading the instructions
Reading the questions
Answering the questions
Techniques to employ in exams
Tips for exams
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Apart from essay questions, what are the different formats you could come across in
an exam?
Multiple-choice: usually require you to choose one answer from a selection.
Don’t forget to….
1. Use the method of highlighting your answer that is in the instructions.
2. Answer the questions you are sure of first
3. If you are unsure of the answer, dismiss those you know are incorrect and
see what you are left with.
4. Do not leave any question unanswered – a guess might just get you a mark.
Technical: require you to apply set procedures or formulae to resolve given
problems. Unlike essay-based answers, there is little opportunity for personalised
approaches: there is usually a set, or correct, answer.
Don’t forget to….
1. Pay attention to the details, e.g. units of measurement required and make
sure these are clearly identified in your own answer and in all diagrams
2. If you are required to include diagrams, use sharp pencil and proper
measuring tools.
3. Make it clear for the marker, e.g. write ‘solution’ and ‘differentiate’ where
appropriate
4. Show and highlight the method you are using
Short answer: tend to require actual or descriptive responses as opposed to essaybased exams which tend to be more analytical and creative.
You could be asked to…
 List items e.g. key aspects of a piece of equipment
 Main aspects of a theory
 Reasons for the significance of a particular quote
 Details of a simple experiment
 Details of specific procedures, e.g. how to manipulate a limb
 Main similarities and differences between two items/groups/theories/etc.
Don’t forget to…
1. State your points clearly
2. Avoid waffle – no padding out
3. Be succinct – not unnecessary material
Activity
Before we look in detail about writing essays effectively in exams, complete the selfaudit on one of the handouts.
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Lots of people are nervous before an exam, including some people who say they
aren’t. You will’ve attended lectures, completed coursework, revised and practised
on past papers (if possible). You will not be in a rush, will’ve eaten, have all
necessary equipment (pens, pencils, etc), and be fairly calm. It will all be over very
soon - as King Solomon (allegedly said):
‘This too shall pass’
So you’re in, sorted out your desk and ready to read the questions. You don’t need
luck, you will be fine.
You have been given the nod to start, so what do you do first?
Reading the instructions to check how many questions you need to answer for
each section (if appropriate). This is so you can start to think about how much time
to allocate to each question’s answer.
Activity Answers are in the back of the booklet
You must answer three essay questions and you have three hours to answer them.
With a neighbour, consider how would you allocate your time? What do you have to
do with your time?
It’s not quite as simple as it seems.
What if you have an exam which asks you to do 20 multiple-choice questions; 4
short answer questions; and 1 essay? How do you split the time?
You will be told the number of marks or the % of overall marks allocated to each
section. You need to allocate the appropriate time to gain the maximum marks
available for each section.
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Activity Answers are in the back of the booklet
You are in an exam. You are asked to complete 20 multiple-choice questions = 20
marks; 4 short answer questions = 10 marks each; and 1 essay = 60 marks. You
have 2 1/2 hours.
How much time should you allocate to each section?
MCQ’s
Short answer
Essay
Reading the questions:
My dad always said
‘Don’t pick your pen up before you have read all the questions.’
This will stop the urge to start writing before making an informed choice about
which question to answer, so you won’t waste time repeatedly starting answers and
abandoning them. Read the questions twice as you may too nervous to remember
the first ones.
Would you answer these?

Metaphysics: Describe in detail the nature of life after death. Test your
hypothesis.

Write a full piano concerto. Orchestrate and perform it with a clarinet and
drum. You will find a piano under your seat.

You will be provided with a rusty razor blade, a piece of gauze, and a full
bottle of Scotch. Remove your appendix. Don't suture until your work has
been inspected. You have 15 minutes.
Choosing your questions:
Mark all questions that seem possible and reread them, checking carefully how many
parts there are to each question and whether you can answer all of these.
Check the exact wording of each question – what is it asking you to do? Key words
and especially ‘command’ words will give you clues. Command words tell you what
the marker wants you to do and how they want you to do it.
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Activity Answers are in the back of the booklet
Have a look at the definition of a descriptive or analytical question. Which terms
would you find in a descriptive or analytical question? Write D or A next to them…
Descriptive
Descriptive questions test your
knowledge of a subject and your ability
to present ideas in a clear and organised
way. You are expected to identify the
component parts, main elements and
distinguishing features of any topic under
discussion.
Account for
Analyse
Identify
Evaluate
Demonstrate
Discuss
Comment on
State
Analytical
Analytical questions test your
knowledge of a subject – but they are
more concerned with your ability to get
below the surface of a subject. You are
expected to examine it from different
perspectives, points of view and (if
applicable) to propose alternative ideas,
models, and practices.
Demonstrate
Consider
Summarise
Classify
Justify
Distinguish between
Illustrate
Show how
Define
Compare and contrast
Interpret
Explain
Trace
Criticise
Describe
Outline
Examine
If it helps, scribble down quick notes of relevant material you know you could
include for each answer. If you have learnt mnemonics or other memory techniques,
jot them down on the exam paper, spare paper or the back of your exam book if
you have one. This especially helps if you have a number of possibilities and no
‘favourites’ to immediately choose from.
Don’t start writing your answers until you are sure you are going to complete them,
but do start writing as quickly as you can, even if your plans are not complete (are
you putting off starting to write your answer?).
Answering the questions:
 Do a plan ensuring it covers all aspects of the question. Try writing headings
with key words, references and examples beneath it. You can then add to
these if you remember other points during the exam, and cross points off as
you write about them. Jot down alphabetically or numerically the order of the
points you are going to make. Neatness isn’t necessary, unless your plan is
being marked.
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Activity Answers are in the back of the booklet
Working backwards, read the short text below and jot down what your plan would
be for the question:
Provide a brief overview of Mary Seacole’ life making particular mention of her work
in the Crimea.
Mary Seacole was born in 1805 in Kingston, Jamaica. Her mother practised as a
‘doctress’, using medical knowledge which women had brought from Africa and
developed in the Tropics. From her mother, Mary inherited her medical skills as well
as her ability to run a boarding house. From her father a Scottish military man, she
inherited her fascination with army life.
Mary’s own medical reputation was established during a series of cholera and yellow
fever epidemics. She made her own medicines and emphasised high standards of
hygiene as well as enforcing strict quarantine on victims. By these methods she
saved many lives.
On the outbreak of the Crimean War, Mary volunteered her services to the British
Army. Although she had worked for the army before, at its own request, this time
she was turned down. Undaunted, Mary made her own way to the war zone. Once
in the Crimea, she not only nursed the soldiers, but also ran a hotel and sold food,
wine and medicines.
After the war, Mary was treated as a celebrity. She was decorated by the
governments of four countries. In England, a poem in her honour was published in
Punch and even the Royal Family requested her company and medical expertise.
Your plan:
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 Keep an eye on the clock to ensure you stay on track for all questions.
 Make sure you are answering the question as you write.
 Keep checking your plan to stay focused so don’t repeat yourself or waffle.
 Write your answer as if you were writing any essay. It should have:



An introduction
A main body with the points you wish to make supported by evidence
A conclusion drawing together your reasoning
 Don’t try to be clever and include jokes, or over-long quotations, or lists of
questions, or anything else ‘bizarre’ or ‘new’ (unless specifically asked to do
so)
 Don’t ‘save time by just writing down ‘everything you know’ when marks are
given for critical analysis, argument, evaluation and selection.
 Include references in the text. You do not need to write a list of references or
to give the titles of works as your markers will usually know the works to
which you refer.
 Read through your answers to edit and proofread – is it legible and does it
make sense?
Techniques to use whilst writing essays when in an exam.
Use your first page as your ‘plans’ page and remember to put a line through them at
the end (unless you are told any plans are marked)
Write on every other line for editing and proofreading purposes
Write on every second page to indicate where extra information you have just
remembered should be inserted when you are editing
(Demonstration)
Take in coloured pens to show markers where additional information is inserted
Tips
Take a bottle of water in with you. Sip it slowly throughout. It’s a good way of
remaining calm. Also, you can get through a lot of nervous sweat during a hard
exam. Your body will work better if you replace it. There is research that suggests
this can make a significant difference to your grades.
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Check the back of the paper to see if there are further questions - many people
forget to do this.
If there are four marks available for the description of XXX, then the marking
scheme will probably have four key points. Mention them all, and you get the
marks. Often, tutors will have a list of five or six points, and give one mark for each
of them, up to a maximum of four. One thing you can be (reasonably) certain of: if
you haven’t made four key points, you’ve missed something.
If you go blank, brainstorm words and ideas onto a sheet of rough paper or onto the
back page. These will eventually begin to stimulate your ideas. Leave a space and
go onto something you can do rather than sitting with the same problem. The
information will probably come back to you later- and if it doesn’t, it may not be
critical. Find a point of calm. Breathe slowly.
What do you do if you're running out of time?
 You've time left to do one question, but two questions left to do. Which one
do you choose? The way to maximise your marks is to do the first half of
both of them. You gain marks faster at the start of a question than at the
end.
 If you don't have time to write sentences, but you do know what to include,
then just write bullet points.
 If you don't have time to do the calculations, write and explain what
calculations you would do. You may get marks for method
Never leave an exam early. There is always something you can do to improve your
paper. Check, and check again. When you’ve finished, start back at the beginning,
and try to do the questions in different ways, and check they agree. Add more
explanations.
What are your tips for other students?
References
Cottrell, S. (2007) The Exam Skills Handbook. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan
Palgrave Study Skills
http://www.palgrave.com/skills4study/studyskills/exams/techniques.asp Accessed
18.3.14
University of York
http://www-users.york.ac.uk/~dajp1/Exam_Hints/Exams.html Accessed 18.3.14
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Answers
Time allocation – 180 minutes
Time to read instructions and complete student details: 5 mins – 175 mins
Time to read questions: 10 mins – 165 mins
Time to choose questions: 10 mins – 145 mins
Time to plan an answer: 10 x 3 = 30 mins = 115 mins
*take away 15 mins proofreading time leaves 100 mins ÷ 3 = 35 mins approx
Time to write an answer: 35 x 3 = 105 minutes EACH
Time to proofread answers: 15 minutes
I have slightly over-estimated how long to do all the stages APART FROM THE
WRITING STAGE, but if you use this as a guide, you will only ever have MORE time
to write your answer.
Time allocation – different formats
2 1/2 hours = 150 minutes
 20 multiple-choice questions = 20 marks so 1/6 of marks so 1/6 of time = 25
minutes
 4 short answer questions = 10 marks each, so 40 marks so 1/3 of marks so
1/3 time = 50 minutes
 1 essay = 60 marks so ½ of marks so half of time = 75 minutes
Total marks = 120
Descriptive and analytical question terms
Descriptive
Analytical
Descriptive assignment questions or tasks test
your knowledge of a subject and your ability to
present ideas in a clear and organised way. You
are expected to identify the component parts,
main elements, and distinguishing features of any
topic under discussion. Descriptive command
words usually include:
Analytical questions or tasks test your
knowledge of a subject – but they are more
concerned with your ability to get below the
surface of a subject. You are expected to
examine it from different perspectives and points
of view, and (if applicable) to propose alternative
ideas, models and practices. The command
words for analytical questions typically include:













Account for
Classify
Define
Demonstrate
Describe
Explain
Illustrate
Identify
Outline
Show how
State
Summarise
Trace












Analyse
Comment on
Compare and contrast
Consider
Criticise
Discuss
Distinguish between
Evaluate
Examine
Explore
Interpret
Justify
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Command word
Descriptive terms
 Define

Describe

State

Classify

Identify

Demonstrate

Illustrate

Show how

Outline


Summarise
Trace

Account for
Action expected
You are expected to locate, identify, and present the main
features, elements, or components of the topic under
discussion and, if applicable, the underpinning theoretical
knowledge of the subject.
As above, plus you would be expected to present and
explain examples to show that you understand how
something works, e.g. how a theory, model, idea, or
practice can be applied to a given situation.
You are expected to identify and summarise the main
points of the topic under discussion.
This means that you identify and outline the stages of
development of the topic under discussion.
You would clarify why something is as it is, or what
happened in any given situation.
 Explain
Analytical terms
 Discuss
 Examine
 Explore
 Evaluate
 Consider
 Interpret
 Comment on
 Analyse

Criticise

Justify

Compare and contrast

Distinguish between
Action expected
If you see any of these command terms you are expected
to identify and explain the main features of the subject
under discussion, including the main theories, ideas,
models, or practices underpinning the topic.
If applicable, you would be expected to know of and
weigh up any counter-arguments and to make
connections between different ideas, models, or practices.
This involves a detailed scrutiny of the topic in question.
This could include explaining the origins, structure,
organisation, or development of the topic in question, the
positive and negative features of it, and the connections
between theories, ideas, models, and practices. You would
also demonstrate your awareness of any flaws in
particular points of view, and your knowledge of
alternative viewpoints.
This involves making out a case and giving reasons to
support a particular viewpoint, position, judgement, or
decision against other possibilities.
This involves a close study of the differences between one
idea, phenomena, or situation, and another. You would
need to identify the structure or features of one and make
comparisons with another. You may be required to make a
judgement on which is more applicable or relevant for the
situation in question.
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Plan/template – use whatever format you prefer. Extra activity – fill in gaps.
Arguments
Main Information
Supporting Detail
Ideas, theories, opinions
Main examples and types
Lesser details, facts,
and line of reasoning that
of evidence that support
names, statistics, dates
you want to include in
your line of reasoning.
and examples that support
your assignment. These
your main argument.
don’t have to be in the
final order you will use in
your writing.
Mary Seacole example: try to fill in the gaps below
General background
Born in Kingston, Jamaica
information
Early medical reputation
Made own medicines:
newspapers from the time,
eye witness accounts, later
text books
The Crimean War
After the war
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