How Ashim Started to Think Like an Exam Marker and Improved by 34% in HSC English
🔥 From Band 1 to Band 4 Results
After a year of hard work with tutor Hannah, Ashim saw incredible improvement from a 40% result to a final 74% HSC mark.
📅 Stayed Accountable with Effective Study Plan
Ashim discovered ways to improve his productivity by attending weekly tutoring sessions, group classes, and scheduling independent study.
🎓 Increased Options for University
By putting in the effort for English, Ashim made sure that his ATAR was on track and was able to open up his options for university!
The Challenge
Ashim had run out of steam at the start of Year 12 and ended up failing his first weighted English assessment with a mark of 8/20. He wasn’t enjoying the subject because he didn’t know how to do well. Ashim thought English was too subjective and struggled to understand what to include in his written responses that would earn him points from exam markers.
As a result, Ashim wasn’t putting any time into studying English outside of class and was doing his work last minute. But when he failed the first English assessment that counted towards his ATAR, Ashim realised that if he didn’t reach out for help, his marks would only get worse. He got in touch with Art of Smart for guidance on where to start!
It was just too subjective for me. Most of the answers are in the grey area, it’s not black and white like Maths. You just don’t know where something is right or wrong and then you find out in the end that you’ve been wrong the entire time.
Key Problems
😵💫 Ashim wasn’t putting in any effort because he thought that English was too subjective and he didn’t know how to get high marks
⏰ Ashim didn’t have a study schedule that could keep him accountable to deadlines
📚 Ashim wasn’t doing regular practise with essay writing and often crammed the week before an assessment
Our Approach
After Ashim realised that English was going to negatively impact his ATAR, he first sat down with his school teacher for verbal feedback. Then, Ashim started meeting with Art of Smart tutor Hannah once a week and also attended our English Tutoring Program Classes each week to keep himself accountable to regular writing practise. Hannah helped Ashim to become more proactive with his English study by scheduling study blocks and practise essay deadlines. Ashim had a feedback loop with Hannah, which meant that he was always aware of where to improve his writing.
Ashim saw immediate improvement for his Module A essay, scoring 14/20 compared to the 8/20 he received the term before. In the lead up to his HSC exams, he prepared by making sure he knew his analysis and by memorising a flexible essay response.
Focus
- Becoming proactive with study
- Improving quality of essay arguments
- Identifying weak areas
- Preparing for unseen questions
Strategies
- 1-on-1 sessions and skills classes
- Revising texts and adding depth to analysis
- Feedback loop with tutor
- Mastering a flexible essay response
1-on-1 Sessions and Skills Classes
Revising Texts and Adding Depth to Analysis
Feedback Loop with Tutor
Mastering a Flexible Essay Response
The Result
At the end of his HSC journey, Ashim’s one-on-one work with Art of Smart tutor Hannah and his time spent in the Art of Smart English Program classes earned him a massive 34% mark improvement.
After failing his first Year 12 assessment, Ashim saw immediate results once he started getting guidance from a tutor. He was able to score 74% in his HSC exam, which allowed him to have more options for university!
34%
Increase in English marks
74%
Final HSC English result
98%
Of customers agree their tutor is well prepared for tutoring sessions
9/10
Student rating on tutors’ knowledge and subject expertise
With Art of Smart, Ashim saw a 34% improvement in HSC English Standard
She was very supportive. She was available all the time so you could just message her and be like, Hannah could you please help me with this, and she always got back to you. She would always be there so you could rely on her.
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Helping high school students thrive since 2009
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