When I was an examiner we would spend over two hours at an examiners meeting discussing one word in a question. Tempers would get frayed but we would eventually all agree on that word. The exam would be sat and I as an examiner would sit and mark papers in my study at home.
Do you know the one thing that really got to me?
You would sit and look at a script. The candidate obviously had attended classes, revision, question based day, bought the podcast and probably even the t-shirt, knew the subject inside out, could quote every theory going. But guess what? They didn’t read that one word we argued over – the verb!!
The verb – the ‘doing’ word. What the examiner is asking you to do! Ignore it and you will fail. Understand it and success is in sight.
Different levels in your studies you will get different verbs. Lower levels you will get things like List, State, Define then as you move up you get verbs like Identify, Illustrate Apply. At the highest level you will get Evaluate, Advise, Recommend. My favourite verb and the one students find hardest is – Explain.
When examiners ask candidates to explain something more often than not they would get a description instead. Put it this way, if I asked you do describe a cat, it’s easy: Furry, cute and goes meow. Now explain a cat. Not so easy is it? You can’t explain what a cat is, but you can explain why people keep cats as pets, or how to litter train one. So in the exam if you asked to explain something, use a paragraph. Write a sentence that makes your point and then write another one to explain why the first sentence is so, or the consequences of the first sentence. To make your point even clearer, write a third sentence.
So play ‘Spot the Verb’
Ok guys?
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