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In a pure multiple choice exam, checking means going back and reconsidering your chosen options. That is useful, but limited. In the FSCE, checking is far more powerful because many of your answers are written. This means you can:
These small fixes can add up to several extra marks — and in a competitive exam like the 11+, every mark counts. Many students think checking is boring or unnecessary. They finish the paper, put their pen down, and wait. This is a wasted opportunity.
When you reach the checking phase, go through the following steps in order:
Step 1: Scan for Blanks (30 seconds) Flip through the entire paper quickly. Have you answered every question? Are there any blank spaces where you meant to come back? If you find a blank, write SOMETHING — even a brief answer is better than nothing.
Step 2: Check Your Maths (1-2 minutes) Go back to any maths or numerical questions. Check:
Step 3: Re-read Comprehension Answers (1-2 minutes) For any comprehension or text-based questions:
Step 4: Polish Your Creative Writing (1-2 minutes) Read through your creative writing and check:
Step 5: Final Scan (30 seconds) One last look through the paper. Check that your name is on every page (if required). Make sure your answers are clearly written in the right spaces.
flowchart TD
A["Finish the Paper"] --> B["Step 1: Scan for Blanks"]
B --> C["Fill in any missed questions"]
C --> D["Step 2: Check Maths"]
D --> E["Re-do key calculations"]
E --> F["Check units and reasonableness"]
F --> G["Step 3: Re-read Comprehension"]
G --> H["Does it answer the question?"]
H --> I["Is evidence included?"]
I --> J["Step 4: Polish Creative Writing"]
J --> K["Fix spelling and punctuation"]
K --> L["Ensure piece has an ending"]
L --> M["Step 5: Final Scan"]
M --> N["Name on paper? All answers visible?"]
During the exam: A student completes the paper but during the 3-pass strategy, she marked question 14 with a dot to come back to. In the rush, she forgot.
During checking: She flips through the paper and spots the blank space at question 14. She has 2 minutes left — enough to write a brief answer that earns 2 out of 3 marks.
Without checking: She would have received 0 marks for question 14.
During the exam: A student calculates 15% of 240. "10% of 240 = 24. 5% of 240 = 10. So 15% = 34."
Wait — 5% of 240 is not 10. Let us check:
During checking: The student re-does the calculation and catches the error, changing 34 to 36.
Without checking: The student would have lost the marks despite knowing the correct method.
During the exam: The student writes, "The whether was beautiful." She meant "weather" but wrote "whether" — a different word entirely that a spell-check would not catch.
During checking: She reads her creative writing carefully and spots the error. She neatly crosses out "whether" and writes "weather" above it.
Without checking: The examiner might be confused or the student might lose marks for technical accuracy.
During the exam: A comprehension question asks, "How does the writer show that the character is nervous? Use evidence from the text."
The student writes: "The writer shows the character is nervous by describing how she fidgets and cannot sit still."
During checking: The student re-reads her answer and realises she has not included a specific quotation. She adds: "— for example, 'her fingers drummed on the table like rain on a windowpane.'"
Without checking: She would have lost marks for not including the required evidence.
During the exam: The student is writing a story. With 3 minutes left before the checking phase, her story is in the middle of a scene. She has not written an ending.
During checking: She writes two quick sentences to wrap up the story: "Maya closed the letter and placed it in her pocket. She did not know what would happen next, but for the first time in months, she felt ready." Not the most elaborate ending, but it gives the piece closure.
Without checking: The story would have no ending — a significant penalty.
During the exam: The student accidentally writes the answer to question 7 in the space for question 8 on the answer sheet.
During checking: During the final scan, she notices that the answer for question 7 is blank and question 8's space has an answer that does not match. She draws an arrow and writes "This is my answer to Q7" with a note to the examiner.
Without checking: Two questions would be marked as wrong.
Without checking:
With 5 minutes of checking:
In a competitive 11+ exam, 6 marks can be the difference between passing and not passing.
In a multiple choice-only exam, checking means re-considering your options. That is useful but limited because you might just second-guess yourself.
In the FSCE, checking is far more powerful because:
| Feature | Multiple Choice Only | FSCE (Mixed Format) |
|---|---|---|
| Can fix spelling errors? | No | Yes |
| Can add missing evidence? | No | Yes |
| Can improve descriptions? | No | Yes |
| Can add an ending? | No | Yes |
| Can show extra working? | No | Yes |
| Can catch missed questions? | Yes | Yes |
In other words, the FSCE format gives you MORE opportunities to gain marks through checking. Not checking is throwing away marks.
At home, when you do practice papers, follow this process:
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