BSEH Secondary English common mistakes
BSEH Secondary English · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Answering an unseen-passage question from general knowledge instead of the passage, e.g. writing about pollution in general when the passage discusses a plastic ban.
The candidate recognises the topic after a quick skim and imports familiar opinions, assuming the passage says what they already believe.
What to do instead
Underline the exact line that answers each question and quote two or three words from it in the answer. Every response must be traceable to a numbered paragraph; discard any point that cannot be located in the text.
Ignoring word limits and question stems, writing a 90-word answer where the instruction says 'in not more than 30 words', or answering 'why' with only a 'what'.
Candidates fear losing marks and try to include every remembered detail; under exam pressure they also misread the task word.
What to do instead
Circle the command word and the word limit before writing. Draft keyword notes, count words, then delete examples rather than main points. Practise rewriting one long answer into 25–30 words until the limit feels normal.
Writing a notice or formal letter as a continuous paragraph without the required heading, date, salutation, subject line, closing or sender's designation.
Attention goes to content and vocabulary, while format is learned as a vague visual memory rather than a fixed checklist.
What to do instead
Memorise a five-point format checklist for each writing type and spend twenty seconds auditing it before and after writing. For a notice: name of institution, NOTICE heading, date, body with what/when/where/whom, and issuer's name and designation.
Using the wrong register for the task: contractions, slang and 'I think' in a report; first-person narration and dialogue in a news report; an article that reads like a personal diary.
Candidates write all compositions in one familiar voice and do not distinguish purpose, audience and format conventions.
What to do instead
Before writing, state the purpose and audience in one line. Reports use third person, past tense and passive voice; articles use formal but lively prose with a clear stand; letters match the relationship. Check for contractions and remove them from formal pieces.
Failing to backshift tense and adjust pronouns and time/place words in reported speech, producing sentences such as 'He said that he will come tomorrow' when the reporting verb is past.
Candidates translate the direct sentence word by word and forget that the reporting verb controls the tense and viewpoint of the whole sentence.
What to do instead
Apply a four-step routine: choose the reporting verb, change pronouns, backshift the tense, then shift time and place words. Drill one direct sentence through all four steps aloud before writing the final answer.
Building passive sentences by moving the wrong element, e.g. 'The work has been done by him' is correct but 'He has been done the work' is produced for a perfect tense.
The candidate remembers 'be + past participle' but cannot reliably identify subject, verb and object in the active sentence first.
What to do instead
Label S, V and O before transforming. Move the object to the subject position, keep the original tense in the form of 'be', use the past participle, and add 'by + agent' only when it matters. Verify by converting back to active.
In prose answers, retelling the plot from the beginning instead of answering the specific question about motive, character or theme.
Candidates revise chapter summaries and reproduce them under pressure because a summary feels safer than an analysis.
What to do instead
Open with a one-sentence direct answer, then give one textual detail as evidence, then one sentence of comment. If a sentence does not help answer the question, cut it. Practise turning each chapter summary into five question-specific answers.
Naming a poetic device without explaining its effect, e.g. writing 'The poet uses a simile' and stopping, or misidentifying metaphor as personification.
Devices are memorised as a list of labels, and candidates have not practised linking a quotation to meaning and feeling.
What to do instead
Use a three-part response: device, quotation, effect. State what is compared, what image it creates, and how it shapes tone or theme. If the effect cannot be explained, choose a different device or quotation.
Mixing up characters and events across supplementary-reader chapters, attributing one character's action or dialogue to another.
Chapters are revised as isolated summaries late in preparation, so names, motives and turning points blur together.
What to do instead
Maintain a one-page character–action map after each chapter: character, key decision, consequence, and one short quotation. Before the exam, test yourself by covering the actions and naming the character from memory.
Writing very short or empty answers for literature questions, giving a moral such as 'we should be honest' with no reference to the text.
Candidates treat value-based questions as general-morality prompts and do not realise that textual support carries the marks.
What to do instead
Anchor every value answer in a named character and a specific moment, then state the lesson in one sentence. Use the pattern: character, action, consequence, lesson. Aim for three to four sentences with at least one direct textual detail.