emily88 said:
i have also heard that they may tell us which stimulus text we have to write about and that we should know ALL of the texts.
the Stimulus Booklet
It is expected that you will use one stimulus piece in your AOS essay in paper 1. Many teachers recommend that you study more than one as it may aid you in your understanding of what the Board of Studies means by Journeys however it is generally not expected you use more than one in the final HSC exam. Here is a statement from the
Board of Studies Stimulus Booklet to exemplify this:
This booklet is a prescribed text. In the HSC examination students may be asked to refer to at
least one text that they have selected from the stimulus booklet.
This would be taken to mean that at least one text of your 'own choosing' from the stimulus booklet is to be included in the HSC essay. This however does not place any parameters on what may be examined in your trials and assessments as these are written by your teacher, not the Board of Studies.
In summary: they
could specify which text from the stimulus, but its against their own guidelines to do so, therefore its likely they will not.
Also..:
Supplementary Material
Students should study at least one text[preferably two] of their own choosing that links to your chosen focus and prescribed text. It is preferred that these text(s) be from differing mediums to your prescribed texts. While you may also take for related material the texts that are on the prescribed list for the english course, it is in general not recommended as you must analyse them in a way that is separate from what is taught on them which generally creates more work for the student. Also in essays, many teachers have stated that
if you have trouble with two pieces of related material then focus on the one as it is better to have one solid piece than two weak ones.