MATSEC AM Latin study guide
MATSEC AM Latin · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The MATSEC Advanced Level Latin is a secondary-school leaving and university-matriculation qualification awarded under the MATSEC Examinations Board of L-Università ta' Malta. It is aimed at post-16 students in Malta who have already completed the Secondary Education Certificate in Latin and who intend to use Latin towards university admission or a humanities degree, and at mature or self-taught candidates who need a recognised Advanced Level certificate. The syllabus is administered centrally by the MATSEC Board, which publishes the syllabus, regulations, past papers and marking schemes and exemplars on its own section of the University of Malta website; candidates should treat those documents, not third-party summaries, as the authoritative statement of set texts and assessment. In broad terms the examination tests two things: the ability to read and translate unfamiliar Latin accurately, and the ability to analyse prescribed prose and verse authors in their literary and historical context. Topics on this exam: Latin language and comprehension (unseen translation and reading) and Latin literature (prescribed texts: prose and verse). The MATSEC AM Latin study guide has 2 sections and about 799 words.
01Latin Language and Comprehension: Unseen Translation and Reading
The Latin language and comprehension domain tests your ability to read an unseen Latin passage accurately and to answer questions on its meaning, grammar and syntax. You must translate into clear English and explain how forms work, not merely guess from context. Marks depend on precise construal: case, tense, clause type and connective meaning all matter. Find the sentence backbone first: finite verb, nominative subject, accusative object, and any dative or ablative complement.
419 words, about 2 min02Latin Literature: Prescribed Texts, Prose and Verse
The Latin literature domain tests close reading of prescribed prose and verse. You need to know the set text, its author and context, and to analyse how Latin wording, structure, figures and metre create meaning. A strong answer combines accurate reference to the Latin with literary judgement about effect and purpose. Know the text: speaker, addressee, situation, argument or narrative sequence, and where the extract sits in the whole work.
380 words, about 2 min