ANSWER WRITING

IMPORTANT POINTS:


need is-simple english-small sentences-preferrably one point of view and its analysis in one paragraph-interlinking various point of view as balanced view in end-try include max points from different angles and dimensions-conclusion optimistic and potraying hope.



-key words to keep in mind while writing answers-ANALYSIS,INTERLINKING,BALANCED VIEW.



-dont bluff in facts and analysis as examiner is experinced enough to make out..be genuine.



-one's own opinion can be included towards end.



-facts should not be forced into answers but should be inserted to strengthen a point of view.



-YOJANA and KURUKSHETRA gives rationale of govts policies and analysis from govts mouth and are dependable and economical study material.



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STRATEGY IN EXAM/ANXIETY MANAGEMENT/WHICH QUESTION TO ANSWER WHEN:

-changing and unexpected pattern demands on the spot decisions in exam.first thing is to keep initial five minutes for reading question paper and stricking out ques u hav no idea at all. selecting the questions best prepared and write them first.at this moment one will be anxious,no doubt,but this is when u have to keep moving,without wasting time in repenting or seeing around.



-when i opened gs 1,i too had no idea of history questions and was sure that most others will also not know them,thus i planned to write it last.i started with polity which i knew well and this helped me gain momentum in paper without getting struck on the tough question.



-psycho also had tough unpredictable research based questions.i simply struck them off in my initial five minutes and attempted rest of questions which i had idea about. i mean that let not tough questions disturb u n shake ur confidence,simply ignore them and move on to one u know.



-another impotant aspect is to keep ur energies till second optional paper2.this paper also checks ones stamina.since,i had socio and psycho back to back,i was very worried about my energy levels in psycho paper2.i went home directly after socio 2,without discussing with anyone and took gods name and slept. next day morning i was fresh after sound night sleep.when i entered to write paper2 of psycho,my mind was focussed to write best answers and fight the tiredness which was accumulating. the reward was 182 in psycho paper2,highest among all my optional marks.

TIME MANAGEMENT:

see, target is 180 marks in 3 hours,i.e. 180 marks in 180 minutes.so,one minute means one mark. this calculation comes handy when subtle changes happen in marking scheme as happened in paper2 gs last time.if new ques comes for 4 marks,u know that max time for it is 4 minutes only.



-with practice,try writing 30 marks ques in 25-30 minutes,15 marks in 12-15 minuts and 2 marker in one minute each.initally it seems tough but later it becomes a habit almost.



-i wrote 15 marks first,as they r scoring and mind is fresh in starting.after 1 hour i started with 2 markers ,all of them together(around 30 r there in gs paper each) in 30 minutes.i preferred pointwise writing in them with a bit analytical touch than stuffing bare facts.thereafter long ques with 30 minutes alloted to each.



-exam means managing three things- TIME ,WORDS AND MARKS.from marks i mean,if u are not scoring in a particular question,move on to another question in which u may score better,hence best utilising time.i had practice on upsc like answer booklet in test series and had a mental idea that 1 page of that means 120 words in my writing with my kind of spacing. start new answer from new page only.

BREAK UP OF QUESTIONS/CONTENT:

most of my answer followed this psttern :-



20% answer having basics,very expected part of answer that almost everyone will be writing. the direct demand of question.eg. in optional,the basic thinkers n their arguments



20% value addition from notes,a bit more richer part.



20% multiple dimensions,egs n case studies.



20% from magzines,hindu n interlinking of gs n optional



20% can be something new,innovative and different that will not be found in other candidates paper.this something extra gives that 2-3 extra marks. a bit by bit addition of these marks,give u extra 20-50 marks,this makes all the difference while determining ur rank,service n cadre.



-this propotion may vary acc to demand of question,eg paper2 being applied may demand more interlinking,egs n case studies,indian n contemporary touch.



-all throughout the answer the FOCUS and FLOW should be maintained.by that i mean,the question has a particular focus,something specific that has been asked,that needs to be answered throughout the answer.infact,even while writing different dimensions,link it well to focus of question.



-by FLOW,it means different paragraphs should be in a flow ie:interlinked ,when someone reads the answer the different parts should not look disconnected.like an argument may follow with a fact to strengthen,then counter argument, then other dimensions being balanced towards end.



-personal views ,if included can be preferrably towards end;the conclusion should be optimistic n balanced.

ANSWER WRITING PRACTICE;

-the booklet is unruled with right and left side margins...right side margins we can write the question number n left margin is meant to b left empty by students..(this type of booklet is usually available in book stores before mains exam,so hav a look...if u want write a paper in these for practice...infact,testseries exam r usually conduced in similar booklets...) ..so we hav to manage the spacing on our own..



as for improving handwriting,try writing a bit bigger in size as examiner may b old with poor eyesight..proper spacing between words,lines n paragraphs..this may b troublesome in starting but soon becomes habit.try writing in straight lines...



u can use blue or black pens...can keep one for headings n other for writing answers(but time may b limited to use two pens)...so i preferred underlining mostly to highlight...u can use capital letters or double underlining for something very important in answer,but dont do it often...say,at max once in an answer u go for capitals or double underlining...



start new answer in new page only...as gives a neater look n also UPSC demands it that way as in ending we hav to fill an index(on front page) where against every question number we hav to mention the page in answer booklet...



pointwise answers should b avoided in gs ,essay or humanities based optionals....instead try putting points as one in one para n para starting with words like firstly,secondly,thirdly,lastly,also etc....in long questions,we may put points in a part of answer,but never whole answer should b in points....



the practice is important,the aim is to develop capacity high quality answer consistently in limited time,with limited words. also to decide which question to write first,then which n which last. another important focus has to b time management in exam,not to spend too much time on one question at the cost of another.







-answer writing is most useful when done in exam simulated situations ie with time limit n similar difficulty level of questions.

TREND IN LAST YEAR /MY EXPERIENCES:

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