What is EVALUATION? 🌟 A* Directed Writing 🌟 IGCSE First Language English Paper 2 0500🌟

Summary

Highlights

• Understanding the role of evaluation in IGCSE directed writing. 📝
• Importance of reading between the lines for implicit ideas. 🔍
• Using counterarguments effectively to challenge text assertions. 🤔
• Extending text ideas into new contexts for deeper analysis. 🌍
• Finding a compromise between opposing text viewpoints. 🕊️

Key Takeaways

• Evaluate, don't summarize. Challenge ideas and extend them into new contexts for better marks! ✍️
• Critical thinking is key! Use your skills to explore implicit ideas in texts. 🧠
• Balance is beautiful! Learn to find middle ground between differing perspectives. ⚖️
• One successful evaluation point can earn you 10 out of 15. Aim for clarity over quantity! 🎯
• Remember, not all points require balance; some questions might ask for one-sided arguments. Be adaptable! 🔄

Overview

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction to Evaluation The chapter introduces the concept of 'Evaluation' as a key component of first language English Paper 2, focusing on directed writing. It emphasizes understanding what evaluation entails and invites learners to explore further resources such as free online lessons, one-on-one tutoring, and group classes available on the provided website. Additionally, an upcoming First Language English Revision Master Class in March is mentioned.
• 00:30 - 01:00: Understanding Evaluation Marks In the chapter titled 'Understanding Evaluation Marks,' the importance of evaluation in courses is discussed, particularly in the context of directed writing. There are two types of marks given: a reading mark and a writing mark. If a student demonstrates at least one evaluation point, they are guaranteed a minimum score of 10 out of 15 for the reading mark, which indicates a successful evaluation. The exception to this rule occurs only if the student fails to achieve certain unstated standards, potentially compromising their marks.
• 01:00 - 02:00: Explicit vs Implicit Details This chapter discusses the concepts of explicit and implicit details in texts. It explains that explicit details refer to clear and straightforward information mentioned in the text, often summarizing the key ideas. The chapter emphasizes the importance of explicit details for evaluation purposes in assessments, noting that having even a single explicit detail can significantly improve an evaluation score. It outlines a scoring system based on evaluation points, explaining that without explicit details, scores are likely to fall in the lower range (7 to 9 or below).
• 02:00 - 03:30: What is Evaluation? This chapter delves into the concept of 'Evaluation' in the context of reading and marking. It highlights the importance of evaluation in generating a high reading mark, especially between scores 7 to 9, where providing explicit ideas and personal opinions is crucial. It contrasts this with scores 5 to 6, where there are fewer explicit ideas, and opinions may not be relevant to the text. The chapter emphasizes the role of evaluation in understanding and interpreting texts effectively, making it a frequent topic of inquiry among readers seeking clarity in their reading strategies.
• 03:30 - 04:30: Examples of Evaluation The chapter titled 'Examples of Evaluation' focuses on the concept of critically analyzing texts by identifying implicit ideas. It emphasizes the importance of not just agreeing with the text but actively questioning and evaluating its arguments. The goal is to understand the strength or weakness of the arguments presented and to form counterarguments, rather than passively accepting the information provided.
• 04:30 - 05:30: Non-Evaluation Examples This chapter discusses the concept of non-evaluation examples, focusing on how ideas from one context can be extended into a new context. It uses the example of a text about demolishing buildings and modern healthy workspaces and how these ideas could be further applied to a school magazine article, adapting the concepts to why they might be beneficial in an educational setting. This highlights the implicit nature of applying existing ideas to fresh contexts.
• 05:30 - 06:00: Cambridge's Explanation of Evaluation In the chapter titled 'Cambridge's Explanation of Evaluation,' the concept of evaluation is explored as more than just a simple analysis of texts. It involves finding a middle ground between two texts that often have opposing perspectives on a topic. Evaluation requires critical thinking and curiosity, where the evaluator actively questions and examines the texts to discern a possible compromise or balance. This process isn't about finding one definitive answer but about understanding and bridging different viewpoints.
• 06:00 - 08:00: Podcast Evaluation Example The chapter titled 'Podcast Evaluation Example' discusses the nuances of evaluation, specifically in the context of assessing ideas and their applicability across different domains. It emphasizes the importance of looking beyond surface-level judgments (black and white) and explores the potential for more nuanced perspectives, possibly finding a middle ground or compromise. The chapter advises that summarizing or simply agreeing with a text does not constitute genuine evaluation and encourages deeper engagement and critical thinking.
• 08:00 - 10:00: Small Change, Big Difference Evaluation Example The chapter titled 'Small Change, Big Difference Evaluation Example' emphasizes the importance of true evaluation versus summarization in writing. It criticizes the practice of summarizing arguments and falsely creating statistics as a method of evaluation. The text underscores that stating a random statistic, like '60% of people agree that podcasts should be allowed at work', is not effective evaluation. The key focus should be on directly engaging with and responding to the ideas presented in the texts being analyzed, rather than relying on external or fabricated opinions.
• 10:00 - 12:00: Communication in First Jobs Evaluation Example The chapter 'Communication in First Jobs Evaluation Example' discusses the importance of sticking to relevant points when evaluating communication, particularly in a professional context. It cautions against making unfounded claims or expressing general opinions that are unrelated to the specific materials being evaluated. As an example, it points to evaluating a podcast-related paper, suggesting that personal opinions like finding happiness in listening to podcasts should be avoided if they are not directly addressed in the source texts. The chapter emphasizes the need for relevance and accuracy in communication assessments and warns against vague calls to action that may not be pertinent.
• 12:00 - 15:00: Demolishing an Old Building Evaluation Example The chapter discusses the concept of evaluation, specifically in the context of demolishing old buildings. It highlights the importance of evaluative thinking, as opposed to simply rallying support for a cause without critical assessment. The example from Cambridge's examiner report is used to illustrate the point that more effective evaluations not only consider various perspectives but also challenge existing ideas. The aim is to balance the interests of tourists, the population, and the environment.
• 15:00 - 20:00: Evaluation Summary and Key Takeaways The chapter discusses the need for critical evaluation in exams, emphasizing the importance of challenging ideas rather than simply reproducing or copying them. It highlights finding a balance between texts for effective analysis. The chapter includes examples from past papers to illustrate the evaluation process. The speaker mentions providing detailed examples and announces an upcoming video for further elaboration.
• 20:00 - 23:00: Conclusion and Additional Resources The chapter emphasizes the importance of crafting a persuasive argument, particularly in the context of convincing a business to allow employees to listen to podcasts at work. It suggests focusing on one point of view and presenting a strong case in favor of podcasts, as expected in certain academic exercises like those from Cambridge.

What is EVALUATION? 🌟 A* Directed Writing 🌟 IGCSE First Language English Paper 2 0500🌟 Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 hi guys coming at you with a highly requested video Lesson for evaluation the big question then of this video Lesson is what is evaluation um and this is of course all directed towards first language English paper 2 directed writing don't forget that I've got more free video lessons like this on my website that's totally. co.uk where I also offer onetoone tutoring group classes a first language English revision Master Class coming up in March
• 00:30 - 01:00 and April courses that you can do and teaching resources now why is evaluation important so for directed writing you get two different marks you get a reading Mark and you get a writing Mark for the reading Mark if you get one evaluation point then you have got some successful evaluation and the examiner has to give you at least 10 out of 15 because you've got some successful evaluation The Only Exception where you wouldn't get 10 is if you just don't
• 01:00 - 01:30 have any explicit details or you've got very very few explicit details from the two texts and by explicit details I mean like summary of the ideas at the text mention but the bar is not that high all you need is one evaluation point and you're on 10 and then it roughly kind of goes like two evaluation Points 11 three evaluation points 12 Etc if you don't get any evaluation then you cannot get 10 or above you'll have to be in 7 to9 or even lower
• 01:30 - 02:00 for 7 to9 you'll be having lots of explicit ideas and giving your own opinion on the topic but not evaluating and for 5 to six you will be having some explicit ideas not very many and no opinion and some of your ideas are even relevant to the two texts therefore we know that evaluation is super important for that reading Mark and that's probably why I get so many comments asking me to clarify what is evaluation so evaluation it's basically you reading the texts and from the text
• 02:00 - 02:30 you picking out implicit ideas things that are not clearly said and evaluating those implicit ideas so generally evaluation can be being critical of the texts and making an effective counter argument so you're not reading the text and just going ahuh yeah great great Point you're actually reading them and thinking is this correct or is this false is this a strong argument or is this a weak argument so this would be
• 02:30 - 03:00 evaluation it can also be taking ideas in the texts and extending it into a new context so for example it might be that you've got a text all about demolishing buildings and how like healthy modern buildings could be really really good for the workplace and workers and then you have to write a a school magazine article about it and so therefore you're taking those ideas that are about workers and applying them to a new context of well why could those same ideas be useful for schools and that's implicit right it's not something that's
• 03:00 - 03:30 said and that's why it is evaluative evaluation could also be finding a middle ground between the two texts so you've got your text there and your text B and they usually have got like the complete opposite perspective on a particular topic or issue so you're trying to think well what is the middle point of these two texts is there a compromise that they can reach so evaluation isn't one single thing it's basically you looking at these texts with a critical mind and being curious you have probing at them poking and
• 03:30 - 04:00 thinking is it a good idea is it a bad idea could we extend this idea to another area is this issue simply black and white or is there a middle ground in a compromise that we can reach so anything that is unsaid in these three areas tends to be evaluation in general you want to avoid that summarizing an agreen with the texts if you just summarize and say h yes good point that's never evaluation to to carry on with that point then what isn't valuation so as we've said just
• 04:00 - 04:30 summarizing the writer's arguments and agreeing with them is not evaluation I really hate it when students do this so when they make up external research or statistics they're like 60% of people agree that podcast should be allowed at work uhhuh great um that's not evaluation that's just a random statistic that you've made up so everything that you say should be focused specifically on what you've read not on what other people might say You're supposed to be responding to the the ideas and those two texts not just
• 04:30 - 05:00 making up random stuff that neither of them said giving your general opinion if it's unrelated to the two texts so for example if it was the podcast P paper which I've got another video coming out on shortly then that would you just be saying like oh I think the listening to podcast is really great it really helps me to feel happier but that's not actually like a specific point that either of the two text make or a call for arms where you just generally say let's fight for our right to listen to podcasts let's fight against school
• 05:00 - 05:30 uniforms let's fight to protect our buildings and you're just trying to like get everyone to be like yeah let's fight and let's do it but you're not really being evaluative you're just making a very vague and general point in cambridge's own words from their examiner report they explain evaluation as more effective evaluation tended to challenge some of the ideas rather than reproducing them and to suggest an understanding of the need for the interests of the tourists the population and the environment to be better balanced so this idea that for this
• 05:30 - 06:00 particular past paper the evaluation needed you to challenge the idea not just reproduce and copy them and finding a better balance a middle ground between the two texts all right so now what we're going to do is I'm going to show you guys four example past papers and I'm going to show you examples of evaluation for each of them so first we'll look at the question and then you'll see the examples so here's the podcast one again I've got a video coming out about this very very soon
• 06:00 - 06:30 um so the question says imagine you are an employee of a business in which listening to podcasts is not allowed write a letter to persuade your boss that staff should be allowed to listen to podcasts in their workplace so for this one you have to have one point of view and you know that because it says that you are writing to persuade your boss that staff should be allowed to listen to podcasts so in other words Cambridge want you to fully argue in favor of podcasts so Cambridge we're expecting you to argue
• 06:30 - 07:00 not a balanced argument but a one-sided argument and so for this one all of the evaluation points were counterarguments right so you didn't get any marks for agreeing obviously because the question is asking you specifically to disagree here are the Clues here are some evaluation examples then so in the text in one of the texts it says we're not allowed to listen to podcasts during the day at work as our boss thinks it might be distracting and stop us and stop us from connecting as team my
• 07:00 - 07:30 evaluation of this idea podcasts are distracting they stop connections are podcasts can be a catalyst for further team bonding team members can listen to podcasts and a wide array of topics from marketing to improving sales which can then be discussed together during break Times building stronger relationships so this one here is a counterargument evaluation this text says it's distracting stops us from building relationships well then you need to stop and think well actually why could that be wrong why could listening to podcast actually help the team to form better
• 07:30 - 08:00 relationships well it gives you something to talk about you're not with your friends you're not with people that you've chosen to hang around with necessarily and so sometimes it can be hard to think of things to say for some for some people um and so therefore if you've got something in common to talk about then that will actually help you to become friends and become closer with the people that you're working with so that is evaluation because it is an effective counterargument now from likewise from
• 08:00 - 08:30 the same paper so the original text says whether you want to learn a new skill for work keep up with the news or need to be inspired there's a podcast for you I don't listen to music as much anymore as there's so much out there to learn about podcasts offer a range of topics and for the most part they're free now this comes from the other text so this was a text that was arguing in favor of podcasts so for this one obviously I don't need to counter argue it because it's making the point that I'm making but what I need do is I need to take the
• 08:30 - 09:00 idea that they're saying I need to extend it and apply it to a new situation so in my new situation it's about the workplace I'm writing to my boss so I need to think how could this be a benefit for my boss and for the workplace so they help you learn a new skill and they're free well why would that appeal to my boss my evaluation was since there are many free educational podcasts this can also be used as a method of completely free professional development
• 09:00 - 09:30 upskilling employees without costing the business any money so here right it would appeal to my boss because it improves our skills at work and doesn't cost the business any money I'm appealing to my audience there too cuz what the boss is like free stuff profit right so I've taken this same idea but I've extended it to the workplace and appealing to my boss and therefore it is a valuation so notice on the first one counter arguing the second one this implicit idea that I'm extending to a new situation here is the second pass
• 09:30 - 10:00 paper write an article for your school or college Magazine with the title Small Change big difference in your article you should evaluate the views given in both texts about saving the planet give your own views based on what you have read about whether your school or college can make a difference and how so in this one it's trying to think well what side exactly does Cambridge want us to argue so for this one it's not quite so clear um it does have some more Middle Ground arguments that it wants you to to make um but the title is given
• 10:00 - 10:30 us a clue that perhaps it wants us to say that a small change can cause a big difference now often the mark schemes aren't completely balanced there are some that are completely balanced but usually Cambridge do have like one particular perspective that's got more evaluation points than the other one so anything that's like more in favor of the environment for example is usually um an an evaluation point so some of these like more like liberal ideas I suppose um and also the phrase whether
• 10:30 - 11:00 your school or college can make a difference in how well I doubt that Cambridge are going to want you to say schools and colleges can make absolutely no difference whatsoever so we should all give up and have plastic bottles and just wait for the end of the world to come right so they want you to have like this more like hopeful optimistic perspective here's some evaluation examples for that past paper so text a says compared with the scale of the disaster changing individual behavior is pathetically inadequate so the idea that actually climate change is so big that one individual can't do enough it's
• 11:00 - 11:30 pathetic to even try it has to come on a big scale otherwise it won't really work whereas text B says every individual every school or college every Community makes a difference every day so you can see they've got two very very different ideas one is individual effort is pathetically useless and the other one is every single individual and every single school can make a difference so they are completely different ends of the spectrum so the uation was actually
• 11:30 - 12:00 finding a middle ground between the two texts trying to find a compromise so my evaluation was now is the time to understand that saving the planet will require both individual and Collective effort it's not either or it's not simply down to individuals and it's not simply down to governments both we need to do both if the scale of the problem is so big then I need to stop using plastic bottles and my government needs to have laws put in place as well so I found that middle ground and that kind of compromise in between the two texts
• 12:00 - 12:30 and that's what got me my evaluation I also got an evaluation for an effective counter argument so as I said this like past paper did really want you to argue that young people in schools and colleges can do something to improve the environment so one of the text said however every example of major environmental progress reducing acid rain improving air quality restoring the ozone layer has been the result of national legislation or a global treaty so this idea that actually the only time that we really made a difference has
• 12:30 - 13:00 been when it's been a national law or like a many many countries coming together to create a treaty so now I'm trying to come up with an effective counterargument of actually like why this information might still mean that young people in schools can make a difference it's not hopeless so my evaluation was yet we must realize that governments and corporations are also formed of people and it could be us as leaders of the future not only that but we have the power to influence these entities by lobbying the government or
• 13:00 - 13:30 choosing which party we vote for at elections we shouldn't act helpless as though these institutions are entirely out of our influence so okay yeah all of these big changes have come from governments cool who do you think the government is it's people who do you think the people that go to school are they're people right so it's it's not like oh the government is kind of like this like strange organization of which we have no influence over actually we could become politicians as students
• 13:30 - 14:00 becoming politicians as leaders of the future that we can influence our government by lobbying them sending letters complaints protests and so on and ultimately we also choose who we elect so we can elect people who will put these legislations in place for the environment so an effective counterargument this one trying to say individual action hopeless because it's only governments that can do anything my counterargument yeah but governments can be influenced so evaluation example number three so this past paper says write an article for your school or
• 14:00 - 14:30 college newspaper about how young people should communicate in their first jobs in your article you should evaluate the ideas attitudes and opinions in both texts advise young people and the factors they should consider when communicating with their work colleagues so for this one I doubt that Cambridge are going to say to you like oh we should all be very very rude in our first jobs right but it is implying that there are factors that we should consider as young people entering the workplace now I did this one recently with a chew te and her mistake was she
• 14:30 - 15:00 took the ideas in the text and took them as fact right so this is how young people communicate and this is why it's bad and actually what you needed to do for this past paper was be a bit more critical of the ideas like if these texts are criticizing young people are their criticisms Fair are they true you know um so don't just take the text as absolute truth cuz for this one Cambridge wanted you to poke at it and say actually this isn't a very strong argument and it's not representative of reality some evaluation examples for
• 15:00 - 15:30 that past paper um so from the text it said newer employees can be encouraged to maintain decorum and formality and maybe go easy on the Emojis and emails so here we needed to be a bit critical like why do we have to have decorum why must we be like fancily mannered in the workplace why must we remain formal in the workplace why not put emojis in emails like so you can't just take these ideas of oh yeah clearly that's right why is it right is it fair I put smiley
• 15:30 - 16:00 faces in emails I think it's lovely so that Cambridge wanted you here to be critical and to counter argue it a little bit so my evaluation was breaking down boundaries between co-workers might not be a bad thing after all why should the boss automatically strike fear and deference into an employees heart oh I put two after alls ah never mind um after all closer relationships might actually benefit the business and make the workplace a more pleasant place to be so why do we have to have these boundaries why should I automatically
• 16:00 - 16:30 respect my boss and see them as a better and Superior person to me and actually like do these skills of being polite and formal in the workplace do they actually create good results for businesses can be more close friendly like normal make the workplace a better place to be in therefore get better results so my evaluation here is being critical of those ideas and not accepting them as fact the next example is when I'm trying to
• 16:30 - 17:00 find the middle ground so these two texts were basically arguing that young people are too informal in the workpl and then the other one was arguing actually it can be quite nice sometimes to be a bit informal so one of the texts said a generation used to informal near Constant Contact rejects the accepted ways of doing things spurning the prim email in favor of a quick message emojis included but that can be tough for older Generations who are used to defining the professional rules of communication it's this idea of like a a generation gap
• 17:00 - 17:30 older people expect us to communicate one way and younger people expect to communicate another way and I feel like the text is trying to they're trying to get you to say one way is right but is one way right like can't we just have like a mixture of being formal but putting a smiley face as well so my evaluation here is finding that middle ground between the two texts a compromise so I say ultimately we must realize there is no right or wrong way to communicate the most effective communication is clear friendly and build relationship why not compromise between the older and younger
• 17:30 - 18:00 Generations after all what would make a formal and respectful email all the better a smiley emoji at the end everyone is a winner so this idea of I'm looking at the two text there's no right or wrong way to communicate what even is good communication good communication is clear friendly and build a relationship so as long as you're doing this why does it matter if you put an emoji can't we find some compromise between the two different styles of communication and our final example is example four and the past paper says imagine that you are a student which is considering whether
• 18:00 - 18:30 or not to demolish an old building on its site write the speech you give to a meeting of local people expressing your views in your speech you should evaluate the ideas attitudes and opinions about building given in both texts based on what you've read justify your views on whether or not the school's old building should be replaced or reused so here there's Arguments for and against right so it's whether or not whether or not to demolish the old building and whether it should be replaced or reused so keep emphasizing these two different
• 18:30 - 19:00 perspectives makes me think Cambridge is going to want a more balanced perspective but they do ultimately want you to make a decision should it be replaced or reused you're going to get some evaluation points surely here by saying that it shouldn't be demolished like in general Cambridge are a little bit more environmentally friendly um so you simply saying like destroy it and replace it with something else um I mean there are some evaluation points in there for that In fairness but there are slightly more for the more environmentally friendly options so
• 19:00 - 19:30 let's get into some examples from the original text it said numerous studies show how a healthy building can reduce illness and absenteeism amongst workers increasing worker productivity raising test scores amongst students and lead to Greater satisfaction in the workplace now for this one I am applying these ideas into a new context so most of these are about workers but here we're applying it instead to students and schools so notice it's talking about illness and absenteeism in workers and
• 19:30 - 20:00 increasing worker productivity so how might these things apply to school students modern clean and creative school buildings can encourage more peoples to attend school reducing sick days and therefore increasing student progress happy students and higher grades what more can you want so this is evaluation because I've taken these ideas and I've applied it to a new context extending that idea the next example is another example of finding that middle ground that compromise between the two texts so in text 8 says even when still in use the enormous cost
• 20:00 - 20:30 of repairing some very old buildings can be prohibitive put you off so they become shabby and unsightly and in tby some buildings must entirely be restored and repaired sensitively at considerable expense before upgrading for contemporary use is possible so they've both got this idea of cost of it being expensive um it's expensive to repair the buildings basically is what they're arguing now I'm trying to find some sort of Middle Ground here of how we can
• 20:30 - 21:00 balance the issue of cost without totally destroying the building um so Middle Ground compromise and my evaluation would be completely rebuilding from scratch is considerably more expensive than adapting and reinvesting in existing buildings if we can update rather than rebuild we can have the best of both worlds historic buildings with environmentally friendly Interiors at a lower cost both financially and to our planet so this idea do we need to completely destroy or completely keep the building can we find
• 21:00 - 21:30 a middle ground how about we keep the outside of the building and change the inside right so that we've got the old and the new together therefore Best of Both Worlds and it benefits us not only financially but also to our environment so here Middle Ground between the two texts therefore evaluation wrapping up then with a revision card of reminders of everything that you need to know for evaluation here are my key takeaways remain critical of what you've read don't accept the texts as truth do try to find a middle ground between the two
• 21:30 - 22:00 texts if they've got very very differing opinions extend ideas to apply to new contexts often to students or young people comes up quite a lot analyze the question that you've been given does it seem like you should be more balanced or more argumentative obviously if it directly says to persuade your boss in favor of blah blah blah then it's completely unbalanced and argumentative for directive writing always use your own words and don't copy directly from the text do remember to include explicit ideas from both texts that is you
• 22:00 - 22:30 summarizing the main arguments that each of them make in your own words um and a good structure for that will be to go explicit idea that the text says followed by your evaluation and keep repeating that structure and remember that you only need one successful evaluation so if this seems hard to you you only need one and most students do eventually find one so don't panic if you find one you've already got 10 out of 15 for reading which is a very good Mark and won't stop you from getting your a star as long as every everything else is good I hope that this lesson was
• 22:30 - 23:00 useful to you don't forget to like And subscribe to my YouTube channel and that you can find more like this on my website totally. co.uk free video lessons and courses um and teaching resources if you are a teacher um if you would like to study with me and have some tutoring I offer onetoone tutoring self-formed small group classes and I've got my revision Master Class coming up for first language English that starts in May and it runs until the end of April two live lessons a week so 8 lessons in total and I will also Mark
• 23:00 - 23:30 one of your exam practices every single week um so if you want to get a directed writing marks by me come and join my master class the links to everything are in the description thank you so much for watching this video Lesson and I hope to see you in my next one bye [Music]