2023 NYJC_EOY_P2_Ans Scheme

JC1 END-OF-YEAR EXAMINATION 2023 Answer Scheme From Paragraph 1 1) What are the purposes of the author’s opening statement? (2m) From Passage Suggested Answer Most of us have never competed in the Olympic Games, but we know what it is like to work under pressure. a) The author wants to introduce the topic of the passage about stress/ provoke the reader to think about the topic of stress / include the reader [function] by/in conveying his point that everyone is aware of the difficulty / familiar with the feeling of working under stress. [context] b) The author wants to engage/grab the reader’s attention [function] by referring to a well- known/major/familiar competition, the Olympic Games, a high-pressure situation. [context] OR The author wants to engage the reader/grab the attention of the reader [function] by introducing the topic on stress with the example of the stressful international/well-known competition – the Olympic Games.[context] c) The author uses the inclusive pronoun ‘we’ to emphasise [function] that the reader will agree that the difficulty of working under stress is a common experience/is an experience that everyone is aware of. [context] Any two of the above for 2m

2) Why did Simone Biles’ decision at the 2021 Olympic Games result in the changing of the conversation on prioritising our mental health? (lines 9-10) (2m) From Passage Suggested Answer Prioritising our mental health is unfortunately not normalised, especially at the highest levels. However, that conversation is changing. When four-time gold medal gymnast, Simone Biles, dropped out of the competition at the 2021 Olympic Games after experiencing immense stress, her actions showed the world what it looks like to speak up, take action and take care of your mental and physical health. Perhaps most of all, Biles showed what it looks like to know yourself and to really understand how your own performance works. When a top athlete who was expected to perform under high pressure* refused to compete for the sake of her mental well-being [significance of Biles as the example] [1], *BOD if students do not mention the aspect of ‘expectations’ it (her decision) allowed everyone else to start (change) talking about (conversation) how they should take care of their mental health too/the importance of mental health. [context of the change*] [1] *answer must reflect understanding of the ‘change’ involved, i.e. to use words like ‘start’ **Reason (first part) is crucial to the answering of this Qn. 3) In paragraph 3, what three differences does the author point out between what we are often told and what we should be told? [3m] From Passage Suggested Answer We tell people that in order to excel in their careers, they have to learn to deal with pressure. — and that the way they handle it would make or break their career. We never talk about whether the pressure would make or break