6 Steps to Planning an Effective Essay Response

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Argumentative or persuasive essay writing is not just a useful writing skill but a necessary part of both the IGCSE and IB MYP curricula. For those not confident in essay-writing, it is important to have a clear approach to writing and organising your thoughts before you begin. Read on...

Text by Text or Theme by Theme

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What’s the best structure for the IOA and Paper 2? Both the IOA and Paper 2 assessment components share the same choices when it comes to structure, the text by text approach and the theme by theme approach. What’s the best structure for your style? Let’s take a look!

How (and Why) Should I Read Poetry?

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Poetic analysis is a good way to hone our reading and writing skills. We can share the poet’s emotional experience by identifying key aspects in the poem. About The Edge The Edge Learning Center is Hong Kong’s premier Test Preparation, Academic Tutoring, and Admissions Consulting services provider. Founded in 2008, The Edge has helped thousands of students […]

All About Alliteration!

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By Sonali Khemka (Published on 23 July 2018) Alliteration is a literary device that repeats the same sound, usually a consonant, at the start of a series of words or sentences. Though it is frequently used in poetry, it can also be found in prose such as novels or plays. Depending on how alliteration is used […]

How to Argue: An Introduction to the “Toulmin Method”

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 By Jonathan Wilson (AP/IB History, English Literature and English Language tutor at The Edge Learning Center) Hi everyone. This is Jon again here at The Edge. When I sat down to write my latest blog, I asked myself: “What would be the one topic I could write about that would benefit the most number of students?” It […]

FOA & IOP: The Burden of Creativity

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By Janka Steenkamp (English Literature, Edge Writing, Public Speaking, Drama (IB) tutor at The Edge Learning Center) As an IBDP English student, 30% of your final grade is orally assessed. 15% of that is the dreaded IOC, and the other 15% is your FOA if you are Lang/Lit and your IOP if you are Lit. Now, a […]

Summarizing vs Analyzing in English Literature

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By Sonali Khemka (English Literature, English Language, LNAT tutor at The Edge Learning Center) Throughout your tenure as an English literature student, you will often be faced with the task of “analyzing” a particular text. While most students believe they at least have an idea of what this means, the task is often misinterpreted and students end […]

New IB English Curricula 2019

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By Karin Chun Taite (Head of Academics and English Literature tutor at The Edge Learning Center) The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) has announced that it will be launching a new set of curricula for IB English A Literature and IB English A Language & Literature in 2019. The details have not all been settled, but here is […]

On Not Being A Torturer of Poems: 4 Tips for Engaging with Poetry

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By Janka Steenkamp (English Literature, Edge Writing, Public Speaking, Drama (IB) tutor at The Edge Learning Center) In literature, as in life, first impressions can be deceiving: just as that cute puppy in the window can potentially bite your finger off, that poem that you think is about an onion is about a long-term relationship. This is […]

Avoid These Common Mistakes to Stay Ahead of IB English

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By Karin Chun Taite (Head of Academics and English Literature tutor at The Edge Learning Center) The 2017 academic year is right around the corner, and it’s best to start off on the right foot. Stay on target by avoiding the following common mistakes that IB English students often fall into: 1. PREPARATION FAIL It’s all too […]

IB/AP/IGCSE Free Trial Lesson

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Are you ready for the new school year? Getting help early for the upcoming school year can be the difference between average grades and stellar grades. Whether you need a general subject review or want to learn a few subject-specific strategies for your exams, we are here to help! Currently, we are offering a FREE […]

The Arts as an Area of Knowledge: Interrogating Lunch atop a Skyscraper

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By Louis Cheng (Test Preparation (ACT/SAT/SSAT/ISEE/IELTS/TOEFL) , IB ToK (Theory of Knowledge), Economics tutor at The Edge Learning Center) Every IB student needs to take Theory of Knowledge, a course that aims to provoke critical examination into the ways through which we know what we claim to know. The arts, in particular, are designated as one of the “Areas […]

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