How I Teach
(Although the below is geared towards the O-Level English paper, it is the same approach for General Paper, just minus the Listening Comprehension and Oral.)
I cycle through Papers 1, 2 and 4. I don’t usually touch on Paper 3 because this is something that can be done on your own. I do, however, provide some guidance on how to approach Paper 3.
By ‘cycling’, I mean we will look at Paper 1, then Paper 2, then Paper 4. Every Paper is important as they are a synergistic approach to learning and mastering the language. I always tell my students that once they know the language well, they can handle any paper given to them. I can say this with full confidence because I have also taught IELTS, iGCSE English, and other English language examinations. This is why I don’t talk about ‘tackling a syllabus’, as some other tutors like to claim. For example, a summary is a summary, whether it is 150 words (previous syllabus) or 80 words (current syllabus). If you have the skills, it doesn’t matter how much you need to write.
I approach each Paper in a formulaic and systematic way. Every section has a specific formula, or steps, to be used to answer them. There’s a keynote for Editing, Four Steps to Situational Writing, Seven Steps to Composition Writing, Three Steps to Comprehension, Four Steps to Summary, AEFP for Oral etc. It may sound confusing, but they are very simple to apply once you get the hang of it. I have checked the Ten-Year Series from 1998 (for O-Level English) and 2002 (A-Level General Paper) and my structured method works for every single final paper thus far.
In short, I teach skills to handle the entire English Paper.
However, there is one thing I cannot do, and that is increasing your Prior Knowledge (also known as general knowledge or background knowledge). This has to come from your own reading of newspapers etc. A weak PK means you will not have the knowledge to write the composition / essay, will not be able to understand the comprehension passage to answer the questions, and will not know what to talk about in Spoken Interaction.
I often show my GP students how, just by PK alone, I can answer at least 70% of any comprehension paper without looking at the passage first. I just need to look at the passage to confirm my answer and to answer those questions that make specific references to the passage e.g. summary and AQ. I also show how, just by PK alone, I can answer at least eight out of the 12 essay questions in the GP Paper 1, when most students are lucky if they are confident in only two or three (out of 12!).
Gaining the PK is your responsibility while teaching the skills is mine. Finally, as I have mentioned elsewhere on this website, you need to do your homework as I tell you to. The once-a-week tuition is not enough. You still have to do your part in doing the homework as instructed.
I cycle through Papers 1, 2 and 4. I don’t usually touch on Paper 3 because this is something that can be done on your own. I do, however, provide some guidance on how to approach Paper 3.
By ‘cycling’, I mean we will look at Paper 1, then Paper 2, then Paper 4. Every Paper is important as they are a synergistic approach to learning and mastering the language. I always tell my students that once they know the language well, they can handle any paper given to them. I can say this with full confidence because I have also taught IELTS, iGCSE English, and other English language examinations. This is why I don’t talk about ‘tackling a syllabus’, as some other tutors like to claim. For example, a summary is a summary, whether it is 150 words (previous syllabus) or 80 words (current syllabus). If you have the skills, it doesn’t matter how much you need to write.
I approach each Paper in a formulaic and systematic way. Every section has a specific formula, or steps, to be used to answer them. There’s a keynote for Editing, Four Steps to Situational Writing, Seven Steps to Composition Writing, Three Steps to Comprehension, Four Steps to Summary, AEFP for Oral etc. It may sound confusing, but they are very simple to apply once you get the hang of it. I have checked the Ten-Year Series from 1998 (for O-Level English) and 2002 (A-Level General Paper) and my structured method works for every single final paper thus far.
In short, I teach skills to handle the entire English Paper.
However, there is one thing I cannot do, and that is increasing your Prior Knowledge (also known as general knowledge or background knowledge). This has to come from your own reading of newspapers etc. A weak PK means you will not have the knowledge to write the composition / essay, will not be able to understand the comprehension passage to answer the questions, and will not know what to talk about in Spoken Interaction.
I often show my GP students how, just by PK alone, I can answer at least 70% of any comprehension paper without looking at the passage first. I just need to look at the passage to confirm my answer and to answer those questions that make specific references to the passage e.g. summary and AQ. I also show how, just by PK alone, I can answer at least eight out of the 12 essay questions in the GP Paper 1, when most students are lucky if they are confident in only two or three (out of 12!).
Gaining the PK is your responsibility while teaching the skills is mine. Finally, as I have mentioned elsewhere on this website, you need to do your homework as I tell you to. The once-a-week tuition is not enough. You still have to do your part in doing the homework as instructed.