Malaysia Students Blog

STPM and SPM-leavers: Your Questions Answered

2010-03-02T10:33:00.015+08:00

Posted by Chong (Last updated: 6 March 2010)

Since STPM 2009 results released last Thursday, some of popular education forums and websites are currently down due to high server load. So, Malaysia Students Blog will be answering all your questions regarding tertiary education (what to do after SPM and STPM). ~~We believe SPM 2009 results will be released in next week~~.

Director general of education announced that SPM 2009 result will be released on 11 March 2010 (Thursday).

A total of 165,853 sat for the SPM written examination at 3,569 centres in the country between Nov 18 and Dec 16 last year while 6,920 candidates took the STAM examination at 98 centres between Oct 19 and 27, the statement said. - Bernama

Post your questions on this post and we will try to answer them on a daily basis. Do check back often. If you're undergraduates or are knowledgeable in post SPM and STPM, please help us to help our fellow juniors. Do post your answer to the question if you're able to answer any of the questions posted. We appreciate your help. Very much ;-)

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In the coming weeks, we will be posting articles on tertiary education, JPA scholarships, local public universities etc. Enter your email address to subscribe if you want all these articles to be delivered to your email as soon as they are posted here. Convenient and free-of charge!

Ask us any questions regarding tertiary education, from application of colleges, universities, scholarships to specific courses!

Recommended reading: Form Six, STPM, MUET

MUET Made Easy

2010-01-25T12:42:00.004+08:00

Editor's note: Malaysia Students blog is currently undergoing redesign and change. We will now focus on tertiary education besides covering SPM, STPM and education news. Want to get your opinion/tips read by 10,000++ readers? Guest posting by sending your post to student at malaysia-students dot com.

Posted by Nurly

People have been telling me that MUET is JUST MUET. Contaminated by the thought that MUET is EASY, I didn’t put much effort when I sat for the end of 2009 MUET. I perceived MUET as just another English test to sit. I simply thought that as long as I pass the minimum band requirement for my college, it is good enough. I only spent a few hours the night before the test by going through several essay questions to kick-start my brain and that was it. Despite my little effort and much to my astonishment, I scored a Band 6 in MUET. J I am very grateful that Lady Luck was on my side. However, some of my friends weren’t very lucky. They had the same mindset as I did – no need to do preparations, just achieve the minimum band and rejoice. Sadly, quite a number of them had to re-sit the test as they scored below the required band for our college. Hey, MUET IS A HIGHER LEVEL ENGLISH TEST. If you screw it once, you’ll have to pay and re-sit for another. And because I don’t want others to face what my friends faced, I wish to help everyone out there who is eager to perform well in their upcoming MUET. So here are some brief introduction and tips on how to ace MUET based entirely on my experience.

Firstly, there are 4 papers to sit for MUET: Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. The Speaking test is conducted on one day, while the Listening, Reading and Writing tests are held altogether on a different day.

Speaking Test

What to expect: You’ll be placed into groups of 4 according to your candidate number. 2 sessions will be conducted beginning with Individual Presentation and ensued with Group Discussion. A main topic will be given, for example, ‘There are many ways of obtaining information today’. Each candidate will then receive one suggestion to elaborate on. For instance, ‘the Internet’ for candidate A, ‘the mobile phone’, ‘newspapers’ and ‘radio and television’ for candidates B, C and D respectively. Candidates will be given 2 minutes to prepare their points and another 2 minutes to present their views individually. Once the Individual Presentation session is done, the second session begins. 2 minutes will be given for all candidates to discuss and decide as to which of the four suggestions is the best.

My experience: I was very lucky as I was the fourth candidate and the last to present my points. I had more time to jot down my ideas while other candidates were presenting theirs. I am fluent in English thus I had no problem elaborating my points. As for the Group Discussion session, everyone in my group voiced out different views and hence made the session a lot more interesting. We didn’t fight or debate, we simply said what we believe was right. We also helped each other throughout the session. We were tolerant to one another in which each person had almost equal time to speak. Everyone had their say and none of us conquered the discussion.

Tips: If you are competent in English, there is nothing for you to worry. However, if you are not fluent in this language, I suggest that you practise speaking English with your friends beforehand. It helps if you warm-up your brain before the test by having a discussion with your friends. Use simple words and speak at a normal pace. Speak clearly. Don’t rush your words or mumble. Also, if possible, try to give out-of-the-box views. This test does not only assess your fluency in English. The invigilators will give extra marks for mature, wise and sensible ideas. Furthermore, make full use of the 2 minutes duration time by elaborating in details or giving more suggestions. 2 minutes sounds short, but when you’re out of words it can be very long. Most importantly, avoid saying ‘uhm’, ‘err’, ‘well’ repetitively as this clearly shows how nervous you are.

Reading Test

What to expect: A total of 45 objective questions; 10 are True/False questions. The questions are based on several passages. Duration of 90 minutes.

My experience: Honestly, this paper was the most difficult for me. The passages were difficult to understand as a broad range of vocabulary was in use. The MCQ choices were very tricky and time constraint made it even worse. I didn’t even have the time to recheck my answers.

Tips: Truth be told, you need to practise answering some MUET sample questions as preparation. I didn’t try any questions and oh my, I was so stumped that it took me a long time to understand the passages! The passages are very difficult to comprehend but I suppose that if you’re used to reading newspapers it wouldn’t be a problem. When answering the paper, read the excerpt first (understand the main idea), then go through the questions briefly and finally read the excerpt again. Underline or highlight sentences that are related to the questions. Most importantly, FOCUS! Don’t bother looking at other candidates or build castles in the air. Trust me, the 90 minutes is not enough!

Writing Test

What to expect: 1 summary (comparison) question based on a graphic. The graphic can be tables, graphs, short excerpts or even bar/pie charts. You are required to make comparison based on the graphic provided. Also, 1 essay question; usually argumentative. 90 minutes.

My experience: The night before my MUET, I sat with my roommate and we brainstormed on points for the essay, new words, idioms, quotes and the like. I’ve always loved writing so I wasn’t very worried for this section.

Tips: For the summary question, familiar yourself with comparison words. Use words like ‘better than’, ‘higher’, ‘rise’, ‘elevate’, ‘levelled out’, ‘equal’, ‘reduce’ and ‘lessen’ to give your essay a boost. Concentrate only on the main points as you are to write a very short 200 words summary. You should first compare on the statistics/graphs/etc given, then add 1 or two points based on your understanding of the graphic. Or in other words, write a few lines on your inference on the graphic. As for the argumentative essay, try to memorise a number of bombastic words and idioms to beautify your essay. You shouldn’t simply memorise them but you ought to know how and when to use them. Also, check out a thesaurus to find synonyms for useful words that you may want to use repetitively. For instance, alternatives to ‘thus’ are ‘therefore’, ‘hence’, ‘consequently’ and ‘as a result’. In addition, to defend your stand, use words like ‘justify’, ‘strongly belief’, ‘affirm’, ‘emphasize’ and et cetera. If you are weak in writing, avoid composing a lengthy essay. The longer you write, the more grammatical errors you’ll make. Try to write a short but compact essay.

Listening Test

What to expect: 20 questions consisting of both MCQ and subjective questions. The tape will be repeated twice and extra time will be given for you to answer all the questions.

My experience: I have to say that I am very lucky for MUET. I was seated in the first row and the radio was right in front of my desk. Unlike my friends who sat far behind and could only hear whispers of voices, I could hear loudly and clearly – word by word. Very lucky, weren’t I? *grins*

Tips: Frankly speaking, the questions for listening test are pretty easy and straightforward. You just have to listen attentively and take your time in answering the questions. I have to warn you that the questions are not in sequence with the dialogue so you should first brief through the questions before the session starts. Don’t panic if you missed a point as the tape will be repeated for a second time.

Well, I hope that I’ve made MUET easy for you. May you have a great MUET experience and score one of the high bands. MUET is rather tough if your English isn’t strong but fret not because practice makes perfect. JBuy a MUET exercise/sample papers/past year compilation book to have a better grasp of this test. If I can score a band 6, why can’t you? I am neither a debater nor a public speaker. I speak in my mother tongue (which is not English!) 24/7 at home. So if I can ace a band 6, I’m pretty sure you can too.

Have faith in yourself and all the best, folks! xD

Updates

2009-11-26T05:58:00.002+08:00

Posted by Chong

Hi all, just a short note to let you know that this blog will soon be heading in the new direction. Do check back later for new updates.

By the way,

Visit the new Taylor's Lakeside Campus Open Day from 10am till 5pm, December 11 till 13, 2009. There will be lots of interesting talks and events going on.
What should I do after SPM? Find out at doctorjob.com.my for undergrad courses, advice & scholarship resources! Click here now! Sign up as a doctorjobber today for unlimited undergrad advice & resources!

Do leave your comment if you have any suggestion on how to improve Malaysia Students Blog.

10 Simple Ways to Improve Your English

2009-08-01T02:05:00.003+08:00

Posted by Josette

I’ve just thought up of some simple ways for anyone who is interested in improving their English. I myself am trying to improve in this language each day. There’s always so much to learn and it can be really fun! You just need to have the passion and enthusiasm to better yourself.

This is what most people would advise: read. Read anything and everything in English. You can read story books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, comics, English textbooks, instructions and ingredients on food packages, advertisements, etc. For story books, don’t force yourself to read something too difficult or something you know you won’t enjoy. Make reading fun! Read books that you ENJOY reading. I hate to read books that bore me too.
Watch English movies with subtitles. This would be my favourite way of learning English. Not only do I get to have a fun time watching the movie, I’d be learning new words at the same time and knowing how to pronounce them! Usually, you can get movies with English subtitles on DVDs.
Listen to English songs. Read the lyrics as you listen to the songs. Listen to your favourite songs and sing along to them.
Start a blog in English. This is one way for you to practice your writing. Blog on something that you love. If you are a fan of movies, start a blog and write about your favourite movies, your favourite characters, what you think could be improved in the movie, what new movies to expect next year, etc. Besides blogging, try joining online forums, engage in online chatting and more.
If you don’t want to maintain a blog, why not write to a pen pal? It’d be even more fun to have a pen pal from a different country! I used to write to other people from the US, Germany, Mexico, and even Yugoslavia. I remember feeling excited when I see letters with foreign stamps on it in my mailbox. If you don’t want to spend too much money on stamps, then get a local pen pal.
Write in your diary/journal in English. This is where you can write anything in it. But if you do write something you wouldn’t want others to read, make sure you hide it somewhere safe! Or try not to write anything offensive at all in case someone does find it. You can also write about neutral stuff like the places you went that day, what you ate, who you met, what you did, etc.
Be best friends with a good English dictionary. You can use Oxford, Collins, Cambridge, etc. Buy a dictionary that you’re comfortable with and USE it at all times. Keep it next to you when you’re reading. I always put my favourite Oxford dictionary by my side when I’m reading. So when I stumble upon a word I don’t know, I don’t have to get up and look around for it. It’s right there by my side. Thus, I have no excuse for not looking the word up!
Speak the language whenever you can. Speak it with friends and family. You can also sing along to English songs! Try karaoke! Don’t be shy to try speaking the language. Don’t be afraid that others will tease you. In fact, they’ll admire you for your courage and confidence.
Learn a new word a day. Keep your own vocabulary notebook and write a new word and its meaning in it every day. Refer to it as often as possible so that the new words will stick in your head.
You can also learn new phrases, idioms or proverbs a day. A kick in the teeth, sit on the fence, make a clean sweep, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, a man’s home is his castle, etc. When you come across a saying that you like, write it down and its meaning in your notebook!

Actually, there are many more ways for you to improve your English. If you have extra money to spend, you can even sign up for English courses, English camps and so on. But why throw away your money when you can learn the language in cheaper ways?

Learn at your own pace. There’s no need to hurry when learning something especially a language. Make learning English fun. Don’t give up too soon or get discouraged. Don’t get stressed out when it becomes a little difficult.

If you have your own wacky or unique way of learning the language, please share it with me and the other readers. The more, the merrier! Before I go, I’d like to wish you all the best in learning English!