2021 Selective Exam – Writing Task Analysis

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I will be going through the 2021 Selective Test writing exam that was completed in March 2021. Let’s get into it.

For context, I will not be going through the exact writing task used for the NSW Selective exam as I do not have access to the word for word exam. However, I was able to get the overall gist of it as I talked to my students right after they completed the exam. Many parents often ask me to do more writing breakdowns, so I’ll be going into this one. Understanding the question, knowing the conventions of the text type and what ideas I will be telling my students to write if they were given this question again. Before I start, I want to start off with saying that it is important to compare what you learn today with other sources. Is there someone else out there who has even better advice? Potentially but make sure you make an informed decision. The last time I made a similar video was on the sample paper question and that was hugely popular so let’s jump right in.

Understanding the question

Let’s look at the heading. It states, ‘chaos at the beach’.

That gives the reader a bit of an inclination on what to expect and write about where you know there is going to be a lot of events and situations happening at once. We know the general location at the beach so in your mind already you should be thinking about some events and potential ideas that can be discussed at the beach. Don’t go into too much detail as this is just the heading however you already know that the location or the ‘where’ in this text will be at the beach.

In the next sentence, it states, “a shipping container filled with party merchandise spilled over and washed up onshore”.

This is important to note as it lets the writer know the situation at hand. The focus point of discussion is a shipping container. If you are not too sure what this is, it is essentially a box that is used to carry many items to transport it across land, air or in this case, sea. It was filled with materials and goods commonly found at a party. The verb here is ‘spilled’ so you already know that there is going to be a large mess and it is disorderly. The words that I will likely use in my writing will reflect this setting. I will use medium to high modality words like must and should as these words portray a strong sense of urgency. In order to create the feeling of confusion, words and synonyms of chaos will be fantastic such as pandemonium, which is a fantastic word, havoc, disorder, commotion etc. It is a big reason why I get my students to improve their vocabulary and be able to use it effectively when they are learning English with us.

The next line has “plastic wrappers, streamers and balloons are just some of the items on the beach”.

This is significant as it tells us directly what spilled from the container was popular party goods. Plastic wrappers are likely used for packaging and storing items during transportation whereas streamers and balloons are used for decorations. This plays a bigger role later on in the question as it can have a profound negative impact on the environment, specifically the beach and sea. It also suggests to the reader that this is only a portion of the items so I would have to expand on additional items that were not mentioned. This can be confetti, pinatas, snacks, lollies and more. If you only state these items and do not include any additional items, you will likely lose marks as your comprehension of the question is considered basic and shallow.

The last line of this question is ‘There was a large party, and it became really chaotic’.

This line just adds to the setting where we know that a party was also occurring. It also gives us more questions – was this party on the beach while this container spilled or did the party start because it spilled and there was ‘free’ merchandise available? For either one, we know it was chaotic so explain why. This is the only relevance for this line where you as the writer will have to dictate the specifics. 

The next part is the image. For this image, in particular, you will just have to refer to it where you can. I asked my students if there was a picture of a container or anything in particular, but they said that it was just a simple picture of the beach. In this instance, you can talk about waves, sand and the mountains on the horizon.

Furthermore, the question also provides some points that can be used in your writing task to help stimulate your ideas. “How did the spillage affect the sea? This could be things like: What is the impact of party merchandise going into the sea and how will it affect our sealife? Maybe a turtle will swallow a balloon and suffocate, it is really up to you. What did the lifeguards do? Did they help out at all or did they join the party? What happened next?”

Although they said that these points can be used, they are basically making you address them. However, in your writing. Please make sure to write about points beyond what they discussed otherwise it will also display minimal creativity where you are only answering the points that were suggested. Ideas that I may include would be bystanders, their opinions and what the plan was to solve the crisis.

The last and most important line is “write a newspaper article about what happened at the beach”.

This shows specifically what the text type is which is to write about a newspaper article and to accordingly follow the conventions of one. It is not a narrative, not an article, it is a newspaper article. If you do not follow this, you will not be answering the question properly and will lose marks.

So just like the sample paper, I would first pause and think about who the audience is. This is important because depending on the newspaper type and who you are writing it for, it will also dictate how you will be writing. For instance, K-Zone Magazine is for kids who want to learn about games but for the Australian Financial Review, it is adults looking to learn about business and money. What is this newspaper article going to be about and what type of newspaper will it be in? If you don’t know who you are talking to, you won’t know what you are talking about.  
 

Following this, you will then have to know what is usually in a newspaper article. I have created a list in no particular order and this is not a completely exhaustive list.

The conventions of a newspaper article will include:

1. 5w’s and H – who, what, when, where, why and how?

2. Quotes including a description of who is speaking (this can be from the party members, lifeguards, bystanders, police officers, or even the shipping company’s boss)

3. Facts/figures (it does not have to be real but it can be realistic about the impact it can have on the community or local fish life)

4. A catchy headline

5. Paragraphs (do not need to write in columns or draw your own pictures)

6. Subheading or headings for certain newspaper articles but I do not think it will apply for this topic

7. The date it was published

8. Name of the magazine it was published by

9. Byline or author and their title (optional)

10. The sequential order of events from start to finish
    

In conclusion, that is my personal take of how you should write the 2021 Writing exam in the NSW Selective test. If you completed the exam recently as I mentioned at the beginning, I know it is not the exact same question, but it is close enough and does the job of being great practice.

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