The Fuzzy Duck Application Game

I recently made my debut as a speaker at Tutor2U’s revision conferences. I really enjoyed doing them, not least because I learn a great deal from some fantastic colleagues. Listening to Graham Prior (aka Lord Sutch), an experienced examiner, speak about application in exam answers really helped me crystallise my understanding and thoughts about this issue and on a woefully delayed train journey home from Leeds I devised an idea….

This definitely will work best with smaller classes. I give students, either individually but as a team of two, or in pairs as a team of four, a past exam case study, a question from the case study and a blank piece of lined paper. They must then write just one paragraph on one point that they think they would put together as part of a full answer. They must not tell their team mate(s) the case study or question they are tackling.

After a given period of time, I collect the answers in. I then read each pair/team ‘s answers but where there is merely a reference to the name of the business owner or business name or an undeveloped reference to the business e.g.“because this would help his hair salon” I replace it with the word “Fuzzy Duck” (but you can choose another if you prefer!). The other person/pair on each team must successfully guess the nature of the case study business as quickly as possible.

Some students were soon able to guess their team mate(s) business but I had one example of a very lengthy paragraph in which the whole class were none the wiser. Where this happens we talk as a class about how the application could be improved.

For example rather than talk about “unpredictable variable costs” talk about “volatile prices for raw materials such as spray paints and neon lighting strips”. Now who can guess which recent AQA BUSS1 Case Study that relates to? Answers on a postcard….!!!!