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Top 4 Reasons to Hire a Secondary English Tutor
According to a common research, the people of Singapore have been spending large amounts of money on private home tuitions. A recent study taken from the website todayonline.com showed that Singaporean parents went from investing $1.1 billion in 2013 to $1.4 billion in 2018 solely for the purpose of acquiring private home tuitions in Singapore for their children. But what caused this sudden change? Why the need for private home tuitions and why does this need suddenly seem so critical and mandatory? We at FamilyTutor home tutoring agency believe that this need, and urgency is due to one request in particular, the hiring of private 1-to-1 home tutors to teach Secondary English home tuition. But why? Why is English the most important subject out of the whole course that they are studying?
The answer to this is simple, the need for English in Singapore is due to its direct impact on life. Since speaking is an essential skill that every citizen must have, so to convey your thoughts and effectively communicate with other people is very important. Thus, with English being the most widely used language in both Singapore and the world, being able to speak fluently and efficiently in the language is very important and thus an integral part of a student’s education. However, students are not only encouraged to learn English for their academic needs but as a preparation for their future, where they will constantly make use of the language when communicating with fellow citizens and coworkers in order to build stronger relations.
Mastering English is a Process
Learning a language is not an act you can achieve overnight; its attainment is far lengthier and complex. Thus, the same rule applied to English as well. Like many other languages, English has its own aspects being, grammar, spelling, vocabulary, pronunciation, composition, communication, and many others. However, these take time to perfect, it is not an overnight task. Nevertheless, a vital learning technique for students is to observe the language through a practical point of view with both speaking and writing. This is due to the fact that with observing and practicing, students can pick out more of the language and successfully apply their leaned skills when they are ready to implement.
Moreover, we can see that mastering a language is not easy and definitely not something one can achieve alone. Due to this fact, students need a lot of guidance and expert-help in order to learn the language as efficiently as possible. Hence, to acquire the best guidance and the right help, parents start to look for secondary English home tutors as soon as possible so as to not delay the process and jeopardize the grades of their children.
Guidance in Perfecting the 4 Components of English
As previously discussed, acquiring a language takes time and effort, learning its expansive aspects and mastering several answering techniques requires a lot of guidance preferably from an expert. Furthermore, the students not only have to perfect their writing skills in English but also their spoken ones in order to ace various parts of their examination. But when should a student start preparing for the lengthy procedure? What is the best time to hire a private home tutor in Singapore for your children? We at FamilyTutor home tuition agency urge parents to start seeking for private tutors as soon as possible so the child has enough time to practice and learn the language before he takes his / her O & N Levels. For this particular exam i.e. Secondary English, students need to master four essential components which are as follows:
1. Writing Skills
Within this component, examiners aim to test the students writing skills. The paper itself is very lengthy containing three sections; A, B, and C which total up to 70 marks, each section having its own criteria of judgment. To review, students must finish the paper in 1 hour 50 minutes attempting all three sections. The first section is of 10 marks and judges on a student’s editing skills. To pass this section, students need to highlight grammatical errors in the piece of text they are given. Section B judges how well the student can compose on the basis of a given situation, better known as situational writing. On this note, the section is worth 30 marks and students must write 250 – 300 words on a provided situation. Lastly, for the last section students will be judged on their writing skills, this is called continuous writing. The section itself is worth 30 marks where students have to write 300 – 500 words on one of the four given topics.
In order to ace the writing paper in the Secondary English examination, students need to have a great vocabulary and an unfailing command in the grammatical portion. However, if a student faces any difficulty in school, they must seek alternative forms of help as soon as they possibly can. Private tutors can aid students in their worries, as with the one-to-one studying sessions private tutors can provide their undivided attention to the student and analyze the areas, they are weak in. Furthermore, home tutors have several resources which both challenge and expand a student’s grammar and vocabulary.
Possibly the most important aid in writing comes from private tutors. They help students achieve a smooth flow in their writing, one appeased and accepted by the examiners. Furthermore, private tutors also teach students several phrases, words, and sentence structures, through which students can achieve fluency in their writing components. Last but not least, private tutors help students in creating an effective framework for their writing, so they are aware of which aspects they need to check in order to create the most fluent piece.
2. Reading Comprehension
This second paper deals with how well the student can locate answers within a piece of given text and word them so they effectively provide what the question demands. The composition paper consists of three sections: A, B, and C adding up to a total of 50 marks. Each section contains a different criterion on which the students will be marked. In section A, the answers found are from a visual text for which students can be awarded a maximum of 5 marks. For section B, students have to find answers from a given text, the marks of which total up to 20. Lastly, for section C, students have to answer questions as well as composing an 80-word summary on the given text. The maximum marks a student can attain from section C is 25.
To ace these sections, students need to be confident in their ability to read and understand the given pieces of text. However, it is a common problem amongst students that they cannot understand what the text is really about and hence they lack the confidence of answering the several questions given. A student should be able to break down large passages into understandable units through which they can locate proper answers. An essential skill that students must adapt to is locating specific keywords within the passage which effectively relate and answer the question.
Secondary English home tutors, with their experience, are well aware of the common mistakes a student makes when working on comprehension as well as multiple methods which can be used to tackle them. The tutors not only help students avoid their previous mistakes but also help identify various techniques which provide the same output. Additionally, a common mistake that students make is copying a paragraph from the text in order to answer the question, this shows examiners that the students did not fully understand the text. However, that is not the case, the students did understand the text but only failed to use their own words to provide a fluent answer. And so, Secondary English 1-to-1 tutors help students to carefully understand the piece of text, locate points which answer the question and effectively paraphrase them into their own words.
3. Understanding Through Listening
Paper 3 deals with how well students can listen and understand a given recording and judged on the basis of two sections, A and B, both totaling up to 30 marks. The first section examines students on how well they can answer the given questions by listening to a series of recordings, it consists of 24 marks. The second section, however, examines students on their notes which would be taken after listening to the recordings, it is consisted of 6 marks. In the listening component of the secondary English examination, students are tested and marked on how well they can listen and highlight the most important information given in the recordings. Furthermore, the recordings can either be repeated or played only once, through this the student’s concentration can also be marked.
4. Speaking and Communication
The last paper for the secondary English exam tests a student’s spoken skills. The paper itself comprises of two sections which add up to 30 marks. Section A is the reading aloud section, it judges the fluency of students through a piece of text and how well they can read. This section is worth 10 marks. After that, the second section which is worth 20 marks, deals with a student’s ability to interact with an examiner on the basis of a given visual object.
Within this component, students are marked on their fluency and accuracy when speaking English. With the given text, they must read the text as accurately and fluently as possible ensuring that all the words are correctly pronounced. While in the second section, students must discuss with the appointed examiner according to a given object keeping in mind that their discussion should relate to the stimulus given.
However, many students face difficulties in this area, due to their lack of practice in their oral skills. Since schoolteachers have lots of components to cover throughout the school and hence, cannot spend much time on practicing the students oral speaking skills. But, private tutors with their one-to-one sessions can focus their undivided attention on the students and their speaking skills. By practicing, students can get used to different and accurate pronunciations as well as discussing on various subjects to ease their explanation skills. Furthermore, home tutors can give students tips of how to fluently speak as well as use different emotions to express their feelings about a particular subject.
To conclude, the secondary English exam contains multiple components, each of which judges a student according to different criteria’s and skills, as a result students require a lot of time to perfect all aspects and skills which they will be marked upon in the official paper. Furthermore, the format of the paper changes immensely when a student graduates to secondary school and so adapting to this sudden change takes time and help. Nonetheless, teachers in schools cannot give each child extra time to adapt to the new format but private tutors can. Private tuitions can ensure that the student does not fall behind and constantly try to improve any weaknesses they may have. Moreover, since private tutors focus solely on perfecting the child’s weak spots, it helps them build confidence in turn paving a brighter path which enables them to ace their Secondary English examinations. If you feel as if you are a victim to the same problems, then enroll yourself for Secondary English home tuition in Singapore.
For more information about the syllabus and procedures, click the link here.
Assistance in Achieving and Qualifying in the O/N Levels
After a student has finished all of his secondary education, he must qualify in the O & N levels in order to proceed to any form of higher education. However, to ace the O & N levels, students need to first and foremost pass the secondary English exam. But why is that so? Why is the English exam the most critical subject for a student to qualify for higher education? It is due to the very reason that the result of the secondary English exam dictates the child’s eligibility for further education.
To proceed to junior college, technical universities and other higher education options, students are required to have a minimum C6 in their secondary English exam. As we can see, English is very important in dictating if a child can proceed to higher studies or not. Nevertheless, if a child does fail to achieve the minimum requirement, the only option he has is to retake the exam until the student earns his credibility. It is to be noted that the O & N national exams occur every 6 months, so if a student does fail in his previous attempt, he must take the next exams after the given period, and this wastes important and critical time in a student’s education.
Furthermore, English is also of critical importance in the L1R4 or L1R5 exams in order to enter tertiary institutes. It is part of the language section where a student is given a choice between their mother tongue and English. So, if a student considers themselves weak in their mother tongue, it is of grave importance that they must have strong command over the English language to ensure a passing grade.
To study more about the grading systems, you can visit Chung Cheng’s high school website here for a clearer explanation.
English is Used in Other Subjects As Well
The common language in Singapore is Malay, there is no secret to that. However, due to the British education system, students are consistently commanded to make use of the English language in order to perform well in their examinations. Furthermore, it is not only the English subject that requires the proper use of the language but multiple other subjects which use its foundation to test students on certain skills that the language provides. Subjects such as social studies, history, and many more rely heavily on the English language. The mentioned subjects require students to read certain pieces of texts and compose long essays on what they understood from them. These subjects require students to have a strong command over the English vocabulary and the concept of its grammatical rules.
In addition to that, other subjects require students to be able to understand and provide answers. Such as in Biology, Physics, and Chemistry, students need to be able to understand what the question demands, and to be able to explain their learned concepts in their own words as accurately as possible. Nonetheless, if a student is not able to read and understand what a question is asking, it can affect their ability to properly answer it, and so compromising their marks. Therefore, students facing difficulties in the English component should seek help from their teachers or private tutors as soon as possible.
Here at FamilyTutor, a Singapore tuition agency, we provide the best of the best Secondary English tutors. These experienced tutors have the ability to structure their methods according to a student’s weaknesses and strengths as well as providing tips and tricks which will help them to tackle their official examinations. Our English tutors also have multiple resources which can help the student in practicing for their national examination. Furthermore, our tutors have various other qualifications, for instance, TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) and CELTA (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) to ensure that their teaching is experienced and nothing short of that of an expert.
Conclusion
In reference to the above information, we can see that acquiring the ability to converse and write in English is not easy. It requires a lot of time and effort as well as consistent guidance and support. If you feel as if you cannot properly pronounce words or have trouble understanding what questions mean, then you need to seek urgent help. Luckily for you, we at FamilyTutor home tutoring agency provide the most experienced English tutors, who have multiple techniques which will help you master the English language in no time. Furthermore, the personal and undivided attention that our tutors provide will help you clear any misconceptions you may have as well as help in tackling your O & N level national examinations.
To conclude, we would advise you to start before it is too late since it takes lots of time to perfect the English language as well. To hire a private home tutor, contact us at this link and get in touch with our hospitable staff today!
Wish to know more about English Tuition? Explore our English Tuition blog today!
Zoe
Zoe is an undergraduate student in Singapore who loves thinking deeply and translating them into writing. She hopes her reflective opinions and sound advice weaved into relevant articles will be useful for you in one way or another!
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About FamilyTutor!
FamilyTutor is an established home tuition agency in Singapore! We match suitable home tutors for our clients not just to improve the students' academic grades, but also to build a strong rapport and meaningful relationship with the students and even the their whole family. FamilyTutor put every student in good hands!
If you need an excellent home tutor, feel free to call/WhatsApp us at +65 8777-2168! Our matching service is free!
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FamilyTutor is an established and the people’s favourite home tuition agency in Singapore! We match a suitable tutor for you not just to improve the student’s grade, but also to build a good rapport and meaningful relationship with the student and even with the student’s whole family! With FamilyTutor, every Singaporean son & daughter is in good hands.
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