French: The teacher's view

Most importantly familiarise yourself with the verb tenses. Design your own grid, showing the following key tenses: présent, imparfait, passé composé, futur, conditionnel and subjonctif. Insert the verbs, regular and irregular, that you use most.

THE LAST TWO WEEKS

■ Work on exam papers within the exam time.

■ Divide your notes into 3 categories:

- opinion pieces with thematic vocabulary (these are the abstract themes you covered during the year and prepared for your interview.)

- informal style to cover diary, letters and fax/message (remember that only letters have a particular lay out which will be graded separately.)

- formal style to cover letters and fax/message (this is the VOUS form, in case of a formal letter, you will be provided with the addresses.)

■ On a single page, set out the sentences you have chosen for both the opinion pieces and the informal texts. Practice different ways of enquiring in the formal style.

THE NIGHT BEFORE

■ Scan the list of key words you have made for comprehension texts questions. Scan the list of key sentences you have decided on for reaction / informal writing / formal writing.

■ Listen to a French tape you are already familiar with.

DO’S AND DON’T

■ DO read each question twice and highlight the key words. Answer in the spaces provided, if given line A and line B, make sure to use both. Check that you are working in the right section of the text and read over your quotes for possible spelling errors.

■ DO clarify the tenses you need for each of the written exercises and whether the style is formal or informal.

■ DO make a simple plan, consisting of an introduction, a development and a conclusion before you start writing.

■ DO familiarise yourself with the questions first in the aural test and avoid writing during the first listening. The second listening provides the necessary breaks for accurate answers and the third will allow you to re-check. Always re-read your answer and ask yourself: Am I clear? Does this make sense?

■ DON’T learn chunks of text by heart. You will be tempted to use them and, in doing so, you will not answer the specific question.

■ DON’T copy any part of the comprehension texts to use in your reaction pieces.

■ DON’T keep writing without frequently checking the time. Writing too much may mean that you are repeating yourself or drifting off the point.

DON’T FORGET

■ As with the oral, examiners are looking for relevance, spontaneity and natural flow in your writing. It is crucial, therefore, that you carefully read each of the questions and give your personal opinion.

■ On the day, avoid writing in pencil and using tippex. Remember also that re-writing of answers is time-wasting. Reading over what you have written is essential. Re-read in three stages:

1) Check the verbs, their tense and whether they agree;

2) Check the nouns and adjectives, their forms, and whether they agree;

3) Check the general coherence, keeping in mind that it is better to write simply.

Corinne Gavenda has been teaching French in the Institute of Education since 1984 and is a regular contributor to the Exambrief supplement. She graduated fromTrinity College and was editor of the magazine Authentik in the mid-80’s.

- CORINNE GAVENDA