GCSE – To read or not to read: summer reading tips

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To read or not to read!? Summer reading tips

It’s hard to overestimate the importance of reading while learning a foreign language. Russia is famous for its quality literature, such as “War and Peace” by Leo Tolstoy, “Idiot”  by Dostoevsky, just to name a few. 

However, the challenge is not only to understand the complex concept and to follow a magnificent story, but also understanding the complex language. 

Thanks why easy-readers have been invented. Easy-readers are in essence world masterpieces re-told in a leaner-friendly way. You can read Checkov or Nabokov and, most importantly ENJOY the process, if the story is told in simple words.

These kind of books will encourage you to read and learn! 

Далее следуют ссылки на примерные сайты, где можно найти адаптированную литературу (на момент выпуска видео ссылки работали)

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A level Russian – conducting speaking exam

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How to Conduct A level Russian speaking exam

 

This is a video recording of a live online Webinar about “How to conduct A level Russian oral exam”. It’s appropriate for both experienced teacher-examiners and for novice teachers. 

There’s more information on Pearson Edexcel website. You can find detailed exam description on the official website of the exam board. 

COVID update: if a candidate has tested positive and is self-isolating, the speaking exam can be moved to a different date within the exam window. If the candidate is not well during other parts of the exam, please, contact the exam board directly for the alternative arrangements.

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GCSE Russian – conducting speaking exam

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How to Conduct GCSE Russian exam

 

This is a video recording of a live online Webinar about “How to conduct Russian GCSE”. It’s appropriate for both experienced teacher-examiners and for novice teachers. 

There’s more information on Pearson Edexcel website. You can find detailed exam description on the official website of the exam board. 

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GCSE Questions. School

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GCSE Questions. Theme – School

The activity below contains some questions you may consider using with your students/your child the conversation task (task 3). The list is neither prescriptive not exhaustive. The conversation must be conducted entirely in Russian. 

The conversation should be spontaneous. Try to five as full answers as possible using a variety of structures and vocabulary. 



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A level : Literary Texts and Films

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A level: Literary texts and films

 

For A level Russian students are required to study two works from the list below. This can be either two literary texts or one literary text and one film. All the texts and films are available online for free. The best time to start reading/watching is summer BEFORE the A level course begins. 

You can find Exam specifications on Pearson Edexcel website.

 

Literary texts

● Пиковая дама, Александр Пушкин, 1834 (shortstory)

● Ревизор, Николай Гоголь, 1836 (play)

● Вишнёвый сад, Антон Чехов, 1904( play)

● Один день Ивана Денисовича, Александр Солженицын, 1962 (novella)

● Неделя как неделя, Наталья Баранская, 1968 (novella)

● Сонечка, Людмила Улицкая, 1992 (novella)

Films

● Крылья, dir. ЛарисаШепитько (1966)

● Утомлённые солнцем, dir. Никита Михалков (1994)

● Кавказский пленник, dir. Сергей Бодров (1996)

● Левиафан, dir. Андрей Звягинцев (2014)

 

 

You can find the texts in free online libraries. eg. Библиотека Мошкова или Флибуста.

Films are mainly available on YouTube. 

 

If you can’t find what you’re looking for, your tutor will be able to help you.

 

 

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GCSE/A level Exam results and next steps

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GCSE/A level exam results & next steps

 

In 2021 exam series they have dropped the controversial algorithm. Teachers could choose the method(s) of assessment but had to provide relevant evidence. This year, exam boards approved schools’ internal moderation processes and also undertook random ‘spot’ checks on results.
 

A level results will be known earlier than usual this year, on Tuesday 10th August. The reason behind this move is that students will have more time to appeal their grades if they are not happy with the results. GCSE results will follow hot on A Levels’ heels later that same week, on Thursday 12th August.

Your school will most likely publish information online so that you can log in and check your own results from 8am. You can also see your results in the ‘Track’ section of the UCAS website. We advise that you have a look at this page in advance of results day. If things don’t go quite as predicted, then it’s good to be prepared and ready to take action.

Alternatively, you can go directly to the Pearson website page to find your grade. It’s a free online service that gives you a detailed breakdown of your performance in Edexcel Russian exams. Results are released to students on ResultsPlus Direct from 9am on results days.

And finally, you can still collect your results from your school or college in the normal way.

What to do if your grades are lower than expected?

If your grades are lower then you expected or hoped for, don’t panic! Don’t forget that a great deal depends on other people’s results and choices too, and you could still be offered a place at either your first or insurance choice of university. Or your chosen university/ies might offer you an alternative option (known as a ‘changed course offer’). If so, you’ll need to accept or decline.

Clearing

Of course there’s also the ‘Clearing’ process. This is where, once universities know all applicants’ results and choices, they can release all the remaining places available on any courses. This means you could still find your perfect course and location. A new feature, added last year, makes it easier to strike gold! Clearing Plus suggests up to 50 matches that might be of interest to you, based on what UCAS knows about your studies and course choices. Read more here.

 
What to do over the summer?
 
Summer is a perfect time to relax, breath out and forget it all for a while. It’s been a hard year with all these restrictions and uncertainties. But do think ahead too. Whether you’re university-bound, about to start A Levels or at any other point in your education – the summer is a great time to reflect on your learning, read, watch and listen more widely than term time allows, and get ready to hit the next stage running!
 
Tutoring
 
After a second year with prolonged periods of disrupted learning, it could be worth considering tuition. The summer holidays is the ideal time to start looking as teachers are mainly free. August is the time when tutors start filling up their diaries for the next academic year. If you want the first pick of the times/dates of your tuition, then start enquiring now.  Get in Touch for a no-obligation chat to see if we can help. We offer tutors who can teach online or in person to all ages and academic qualifications.
 

University next year?

If you’re starting uni next year, you really need to start preparing your personal statement this summer! It’s worth spending some time thinking about what you can do to make your personal statement really stand out. Think about your studies and your wider interests, for example, sports, music, languages or other hobbies. Think about how you can link these to your chosen courses and to your longer-term career aspirations.

In terms of Russian language practice, there are plenty of platforms that allow you to continue learning at no cost. Think of travelling to Russian-speaking countries, going to Russian-speaking camps, start writing a blog in Russian. These are good ways to get across your personality whilst developing your ideas and drawing on others’ inspiration. It will also give you an element of structure and discipline that can be really useful during a prolonged break from studies, as well as a way to marshal your thoughts at busier times.

Wishing you and you family a happy, healthy summer. 

 

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GCSE Questions. Local area, holidays and travel

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GCSE Questions. Theme – Local area, holidays and travel

The activity below contains some questions you may consider using with your students/your child the conversation task (task 3). The list is neither prescriptive not exhaustive. The conversation must be conducted entirely in Russian. 

The conversation should be spontaneous. Try to five as full answers as possible using a variety of structures and vocabulary. 



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GCSE Questions. Identity and Culture

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GCSE Questions. Theme – Identity and Culture

The activity below contains some questions you may consider using with your students/your child the conversation task (task 3). The list is neither prescriptive not exhaustive. The conversation must be conducted entirely in Russian. 

The conversation should be spontaneous. Try to five as full answers as possible using a variety of structures and vocabulary. 



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GCSE/A level Russian latest update 2021

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GCSE/A level Russian latest update 2021

Just a quick update to keep you in the loop with the latest round up of information that we have on GCSE/A level Russian exams in 2021 Summer series. This has been posted on our social media sites. Find us on Facebook and Instagram. 
 

It’s been another extraordinary week for Summer 2021 Exams Updates! We have seen the cancellation  of Pearson Edexcel exams, plus Ofqual stating that they are looking at alternative arrangements to exams in the UK.
 
Are there anymore Summer 2021 Exams Updates? Yes there are. Ofqual have announced via Twitter that the outcomes of the joint DfE/Ofqual Consultation  will be released week commencing 22nd February 2021.
 
What does this mean for us? It means that we have to wait up to three weeks before we can give you any sort of detail around grading and the exam process for GCSE/A level Russian Candidates.
 
We do appreciate that this can add to already heightened emotions. You will all no doubt be asking why the consultation outcome is due to be announced post Awarding Body Deadline dates? Well, the response is quite straightforward. The consultation received over 100,000 responses. The DfE and Ofqual want to ensure that everyone’s voice is heard and will be looking in depth to the responses. They have asked all the Awarding Bodies to “be flexible” with their entry deadline dates. Pearson Edexcel have confirmed that their deadline for Private Candidate entries has been extended.
 
We are pleased to confirm that GCSE/A level exam entry deadline has been extended to the 1st March 2021 to give the opportunity to make an informed decision. However, we must make it clear that if you don’t have an entry with an exam centre or school, you will not be able to get any kind of grade.
 
Our examining partners “Tutors and Exams” are actively engaged with the Awarding Bodies, DfE and Ofqual to ensure that a robust and fair process is available to our Private Candidates. We will have further Summer 2021 Exams updates very soon.
 
Please continue to follow our social media feeds @RussianLanguageCentre and your learner portals to get the very latest information.
 
To ensure you are in the best possible position for the release of the consultation outcomes; do not stop learning Russian!!! Please continue with your studies as if exams were continuing.
 
We look forward to giving you more Summer 2021 Exams updates soon!
Check out our GCSE/A-level Russian prep courses in the menu bar. For more information, please, do not hesitate to get in touch.
 

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Score Top Marks in Writing – GCSE Russian

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Score Top Marks in Writing GCSE

Writing an excellent response to questions in Paper 4 of the GCSE Russian is not a difficult task if you know the nuance of this activity. In this article you will learn how you can improve your performance to score TOP marks in the exam. First thing’s first, let’s take a look at what exactly Question Two is.

Question Two
 
The whole GCSE Paper 4 (writing paper) consist of three tasks. In this article will only focus on the second task as it’s the longest and the most challenging.
 
Bullet Points
 
Question Two contains four bullet points that form part of the task. Failure to cover all four bullet points will impact on the marks that can be awarded against the requirements of the two mark grids for this question. There is no requirement for even coverage of the bullet points in any band. However, in order to access marks in the TOP band, you must refer to all bullet points.
 
Writing Style
 
The task requires you to write in a formal register. It means that you need, for example, to avoid using slang, over-familiar language, exaggeration, ‘text-speak’, inappropriate colloquialisms or writing in a conversational style. Formal register and style require the use of the formal structure when using verbs, personal pronouns and possessive adjectives.
 
Usually if you use one point in one paragraph approach, your answer will fetch more marks. However, the content and language are determined by the type of the writing. For example, for narrations use story telling words like “однажды”, “затем”, “в то время как”, “наконец”. In informative types of texts you may want to use factual information, specific examples, connective words like “например”, “поэтому” to make еру text clear and coherent. You need to adapt your language consistently to narrate, inform, interest/convince.
 
Number of Words
 
You should write 90–110 words for this GCSE Russian task. Should you compose more or less doesn’t make much difference,  it is approximate and no-one will penalise you for writing more or fewer words than recommended in the word count. Everything that you write will be marked.
 
Uncommon Words
 
You need to use the language creatively to prove your point. Make your reader interested. Your thoughts, ideas and opinions should be original and go beyond the minimum response. In order to achieve this, you need to be able to operate a wide range of vocabulary and expression, including many examples of uncommon language. What is uncommon language? “побывал” instead of “был” “занимательный” instead of “интересный” “прекрасный” instead of “хороший” “прогулялся” instead of “гулял”.
 
Grammar
Yes, it is important to get the fine grammatical details right. However, the subject of grammar is so huge!!! Certain things you should definitely keep in mind.
 
First of all, you must use Past, Present and Future tenses appropriately and correctly. 
 
Secondly, you should use so called complex sentences. They’re long sentences consisting of two or more simple sentences joined by a conjunction.
 
Thirdly, please, NO “красивый девочка” “Он живет в город”! Word endings have to be spot on!
 
 
Summary
 
Let’s recap! Here’s what you need to do in order to score TOP marks:
  • Refer to all the four bullet points 
  • Use formal language
  • Use complex sentences with conjunctions
  • Use past, present and future tenses 
  • Use uncommon words
  • Use variety of words (incl. adjectives, adverbs, verbs, etc)
  • Be original, coherent, express opinions
  • Proofread

For those of you who need professional help preparing for GCSE Russian, please, get in touch or check out our “GCSE/A Level” group course page.

 

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