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English courses prior to Grade 12 tend to focus on character and theme, with the literature usually being narrated linearly. Essay assignments usually are questions about characters' choices and consequences.
Grade 12 English tends to focus on character and theme also, with the added expectation that students will begin to understand and appreciate the craft of writing, both the author's and their own. The literature is often circular and existentialist, with a focus on the nature of the individual and humanity. Essay assignments frequently mimic Exit Exams and their Literary Questions by stating a command rather than asking a question.
In this slight change, which looks so easy when I state it as I have above, kids can become incredibly confused, some to the point of saying "I don't know what I am being asked to do!"
It has been my experience that most students need to write three practice Exams before the command makes sense. Only when they are no longer challenged in this way by it can they start to focus on polishing their response.
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