Ridiculous writing prompts.

[Claire]

[FONT=Arial]I'm pretty sure that every state's schools issue a writing exam every year, in every grade level. I love writing, but the topics are absolutely inane. Just today, I had to do a practice timed writing, and the given prompt was exactly this:

"Everyone has a favorite food--" STOP. What makes the person who wrote this so sure that [i]everyone[/i] has a favorite food? To show my distaste, I very deftly wrote in "NOT" before the prompt (my English teacher is very awesome and wholeheartedly agrees with me on this). I suppose it's to be expected that we'd have very generic topics to write about for school, such as "What is your favorite holiday?" or "Who would you most like to spend a day with, whether they are living, dead, famous, or unknown?"

But I am so sick of the broadly generalizing "EVERYONE has a favorite (insert something that [i]surely everyone[/i] has a favorite of). Write about why it is your favorite."

Last year, I had to write about my favorite season. I managed to get a six on it, but I hated the prompt with a lot of my being fibers. Even as an eighth grader, I felt that I should've gotten a much more thought provoking prompt (even though a lot of the people taking the test couldn't even write a grammatically correct sentence if they were copying it out of a textbook).

So, if I am correct in thinking that a lot of people around the country have to deal with these kindergarten prompts, then what are your least favorite?[/FONT]

[Retribution]

[size=1]I've never really had to deal with an incompetent 'prompt,' although I have had overly complex and detailed ones. I remember looking at it, wondering "So how am I supposed to pass when all I have is 42 minutes?" Some ask me to analyze Federalist v. Democratic Republican (Jeffersonian) philosophies and support such analyzation with documents that I've never read before (they provide them for you). Very challenging. I managed an A-.

Others are rather vague but enjoyable, "The first step to change is discontent. Is this statement true? Provide examples, etc," but I end up getting lower grades on those.[/size]

[SunfallE]

[COLOR=DarkOliveGreen]I?ve run into the type of prompts you are talking about. I always argued with my teachers over them since I don?t have a favorite season, as there are things about each one that I like. Some were understanding and others just told me to pick one and just ?write? about it.

The one that annoys me the most I have yet to see on a written exam, but it always seems to pop up in questionnaires designed for getting to know one another. ?What is your favorite ice cream?? I always laugh at that one since I?m allergic to milk and have never liked ice cream. [/COLOR] :p

[visualkei]

Even though you hate or have nothing to really say about it-- you can always lie. =D

I'm saying this because the grader is probably looking for flow and content in the paper, instead of personal opinion. Yeah, I say this, but I still get hung over stupid prompts because I have a problem bullsh----- on papers. :animesigh

[Claire]

[FONT=Arial]My problem with lying is that I'm not good at it. Maybe I'm just afraid that my oh so Ameliaish paper will turn into those overly annoying "My favorite food is ice cream for these three reasons...first...second...third...in conclusion, that is why ice cream is my favorite food." I never use transition words, which my mother claims is very important to getting a high grade on a paper, but I've always gotten the highest grade (6) even when I don't follow the rules. xP.

When I got a six last year, I felt like I had cheated. I got the grade school favorite season prompt, while most of my friends got one having to do with whether kids should have cell phones or not. It seemed like a topic that would've been much harder to get a six on, because there wouldn't be much room for embellishing boring paragraphs with sensory vocabulary, and probably more personal anecdotes (depending on how boring your life has been). My very-capable friends who got this prompt got sixes, too, so maybe my initial impression was wrong.[/FONT]

[Raiyuu]

[color=DarkGreen][font=Trebuchet MS][quote name='visualkei][/font][/color]Even though you hate or have nothing to really say about it-- you can always lie. =D[color=DarkGreen'][font=Trebuchet MS][/quote] It's so true, and it's the reason a lot of exams don't actually examine your knowledge of the subject. I don't know about other countries, but I have issues with the English examination system. It's getting to the point where classes teach you how to pass the exam, rather than teaching you Biology or English Literature.

Luckily it gets better once you're outside compulsory education - I'm actually allowed to argue my own opinion in university papers, instead of regurgitating what the exam board wants me to say.
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[Sage Kaley]

[QUOTE=Raiyuu][color=DarkGreen][font=Trebuchet MS] It's so true, and it's the reason a lot of exams don't actually examine your knowledge of the subject. I don't know about other countries, but I have issues with the English examination system. It's getting to the point where classes teach you how to pass the exam, rather than teaching you Biology or English Literature.

Luckily it gets better once you're outside compulsory education - I'm actually allowed to argue my own opinion in university papers, instead of regurgitating what the exam board wants me to say.
[/font][/color][/QUOTE]

I think it's like that in a lot of places. Most teachers will teach you so you can pass the state test or the ACT or whatever. A lot of times I get frustrated in a class when I finally find something interesting and we barely cover it, because the testers won't have it on the final or whatever. Lots of problems with the education system but that's another thread all together.

But as for strange writing prompts, I do hate a lot of the ones I was given. Usually I just would BS my way through them and get my A. Although, I don't like that system. I think one time we had one on "what was your favorite pet?" or something.

I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't want to sit there and ponder the meaning of life. I just don't want to discuss my dog for a page and a half, even if she is very cute.

[Sayuri-sama]

[COLOR=DarkGreen]well the stupidest wrinting prompt i always get for FCAT (i live in florida) which i truly HATE! :mad: is everyone has a favorite day of the week, think about your favorite day of the week, and yatta yatta! :sleep: gawd i hate that prompt. it does not even check your writing knowledge! i swear its more like busy work on test day :animesigh [/COLOR]

[Pumpkin]

[SIZE=1]Honestly, I haven't really run into any really bad writing promts like "What is your favorite ___?". Infact, I have a bit of a problem like Retribution where they give me something that I have no knowledge about or that requires a bit more research and I'm expected to do it in class and wing it. Really, it sucks.

The last essay I'd had to ******** my way through which I really hate doing that. But if your in HS, Raiyuu is right when he says going to college will change that. Honestly, I'd like something a bit easier and stupid for once. But then again, I am an [b]english[/b] major to be exact and technically its expected to be a bit harder on me ;/ especially since I have to take so many literature classes to get into Sac State. How fun.

BTW, atleast your teachers tell you what your going to do on your exam. My astronomy teacher keeps telling us that if we're under the age of 20 we're not going to pass. He pretty much just handed us the book and told us to figure it out. Yes, it pretty much sucks. [/SIZE]