Leave that aside, how's your MUET preparation going? After numerous times of practicing in class, I've realised that one of my weaknesses in MUET is my scarcity of coming up with new and fresh ideas when doing essays. While I noticed that I'm trying to come up with complex structure and low-frequency words when writing an essay, I'm committing lots of mistakes at the same time too. I think I'm quite alright for the speaking component though.

As for both the reading and listening component, my ability to garner higher marks in these sections depends on my capabilities to fathom on the nature of the question(sometimes it is tricky and can be a tough nut to crack, but it can also be downright straight forward and easy). Occasionally, I scored full marks for both listening and speaking component, but there were times too where I could hardly even gain a maximum of 2 marks for the said components.

Just a little thing to share with you and you might know that what I'm telling is true to some extent. Last Thursday, my MUET teacher let me have a look on a very old Singaporean English revision book for secondary students(it's under the publication of Preston Corporation in 1988). When I skimmed through a few pages of the book, I was quite amazed by the countless impressive words that discombobulated me as well as certain components that posed questions that requires higher level of proficiency in English, which is on roughly on the same level as MUET(or even the likes of TOEFL/IELTS), if not easier. But that's not it, what made me throw in the towel was that after I returned it back to my MUET teacher, she told me that the book was intended ''specifically for students of secondary 1 in Singapore...''. My mouth agape with incredulity, I knew it from the start that our academic levels is a joke compared to Singapore in the first place to begin with, but I never know that was beast on that level!!

This post has been edited by RED-HAIR-SHANKS: Aug 24 2014, 04:04 AM

physchology is not a good course to study either

if go oversea need TOEFL too

This post has been edited by bloodchow2: Aug 24 2014, 07:47 AM

Naw man, he be 'trolling'
I believe that the Reading component is flawed, especially the true/false/not stated part. If you want to see how it should be done, contrast it with IELTS. The quality of the questions are much higher, and they actually test your observation and critical thinking unlike MUET.

As for Listening, you might have probably heard from other seniors that the sound system on the exam day itself is far from perfect, and they're absolutely right. If the test is going to be done in your school compound, you better nudge your teachers and whoever is in charge to make sure everything is alright. Make sure the words the narrator might say are clear enough. Test on some old MUET examination CDs if you can get your hands on those.
Malaysia's standard was probably not far off at that time. It's just that after a few decades, things might just have regressed a bit

EDIT: Still feel kinda bad that I couldn't find my MUET notes...

This post has been edited by 300thecat: Aug 24 2014, 08:18 AM

totally agreed with you.

Wow that is great! I supposed that you are able to do/ solve problems at STPM standard now.

So, for english qualification exam,
which one is better?
IELTS or TOEFL?

Duhh , I know that already!! Anyway, the point is that you can't just waltz in the universities like in US, UK or other international countries by showing them your MUET qualification, as it's specifically meant for those who want to pursue undergraduate course in universities in Malaysia.

I don't think we can say which is better if we compare the two, but, TOEFL is administered by US-based organisation and it is conducted in American English. So, if you're more familiar with the American accent and language, it will better suit you as it reflects American English. On the other hand, take the IELTS if you had been seasoned with the vocabulary and language style of British/Australian English.

But, do note that both IELTS and TOEFL are accepted by British, Canada, Australia, New Zealand United States and many other English-speaking countries.

This post has been edited by RED-HAIR-SHANKS: Aug 24 2014, 12:35 PM

Umm.....I think there's a conflict regarding TOEFL that makes British universities stop recognising them.

I am not quite sure what the issue is, I just know almost all British universities cease recognising TOEFL.

You might want to check it out. It's a very recent news, occurred only around June or July this year.

Sometimes I suck at speaking part and sometimes I don't. My mileage varies wildly depending on how knowledgeable/familiar I am with the topic given. Reading and listening is relatively easier for me since I sat for IELTS before.

Singapore's English standard must have dropped a lot in recent years, as their current standard is: their Secondary 4 equivalent to our Form 6 (MUET).

Source : Studied at English tuition centre that uses Singapore's school textbook as teaching syllabus.

This post has been edited by sagethesausage: Aug 24 2014, 01:55 PM

Please bear in mind that English can now be considered as the de facto first language of most Singaporeans.

They learn English as the first language, while Malaysians learn it as second-language.

So of course the standard of English in Singapore is much higher than that in Malaysia.

Personally, as long as one can write and communicate in English flawlessly, and the intended message is delivered right, I don't think the level of proficiency matters. So what if a Malaysian's English is not as good as a Singaporean's? If I can speak, I can talk, I could survive. I don't need the maximum proficiency.

I'm doing CIE A-Levels and I dare say that STPM Mathematics [T] is definitely more difficult than CIE A-Level Mathematics. STPM's covers more content, and certain exam questions, although sometimes are quite direct, require motivation in persevering with the algebraic manipulations. Under time pressure, I'd imagine that one would tend to make simple algebraic errors...

Not to mention the fact that you guys have only a few months to get used to the workload, pace and also the upcoming first-semester STPM exams.



This post has been edited by maximR: Aug 24 2014, 04:26 PM

But, as a person who has a passion for English and is extremely good with it, don't you think that you would want to at least do more than speaking, eating and talking with the mastery over your English?

I have a friend of mine who scored A+ in Chinese subject for his SPM last year, and another one who was able to secure a solid A+ with 1A in her 1119. From what I can see, these students including the likes of you seemed to have the innate mastery over a specific language and can utilize it flawlessly in anywhere, anytime, be it in writing or even in communicating. For me, mastering a language is not like learning Maths, they don't have chapters or topics for me to follow, thus making the job harder for me.

Well, if one truly has a passion for English and wishes to do more, nothing, not even the low quality education, can hinder them from doing so because they'll find ways to pursue their interest.

Let's just say that all languages are tools and your messages are sculptures. You don't need good tools (great language proficiency) to make a good sculptures, you just need to be good at how you use your tools (how you write), and that some times require some passion and talent. There's no point having good tools, but unable to utilise it.

There's nothing 'innate' in mastering a language. Same goes to Maths, Science and the Humanities. Mastery requires hardwork.

The key to achieving an acceptable proficiency in English is to read, read a lot. Reading non-academic books helps. Some people take great pain in memorising huge words, and beat themselves up to create very complex sentences which are unreadable. There is no need for that. Realistically, nobody in daily life, even native speakers of English, uses big words, even in writing. All the good books out there are very easy to read; sentences, simple and straight to the point. Words used; powerful but not uncommon. Writing complex sentences with plenty of connectors confuse the reader and the message won't be conveyed, not to mention that they might sound very contrived. Errors like dangling modifiers crop up, and this might end up in the audience scratching their heads.

Getting your message across as succinctly as possible is the way to go. This takes time. But if you endeavor in this journey, good things will happen.

All the best Shanks!

sidenote: Plenty of A+ English scorers with 1A in 1119 can't even construct meaningful sentences.

Thanks for your thoughtful advice. Previously in my PMR, I had aims of getting straight A's in that public exam. But, I failed to achieve my dreams and I had a plan to compensate it by achieving at least straight A's in my SPM 2 years later. History repeats itself after I got a mediocre result in it.

Both of these 2 failures really did mark a huge scar beneath me and leave a big blow to my pride. So that was why I am now striving to only do my best and to not have anymore expectations or aims for my results.

For those of you out there who're taking 5 subjects in STPM, I'd say you are incredible.

Last week, we were instructed to conduct 2 experiments(Physics/Biology and Chemistry) for 2 days in a row. There has never been a week like that before, due to the scarcity of time of comprehending and preparing the procedure for the experiments, let alone the inordinate amount of homework that has been piled up. Everyone was in a rush and time just flies. Anyway, I'm not in here just to rant about my daily basis. Instead, I'm totally amazed of how a handful of you out there that are able to cope with the harsh pressure of STPM and blazed though it with resilient willpower.

For those of you who don't know, I have already stop reading those Further Maths T materials nearly 2 months ago due to the constraint of time, other than my focus and main priority towards the 4 main subjects that I'm taking in STPM. But, I might pick up where I left off in FMT once I regained my free time again. I'm utterly overwhelmed with the broad and in-depth content of 4 subjects alone in STPM, and I dare not imagine adding another one into the list.

Last Thursday, we were rushing to complete the Chemistry experiment that we were instructed to conduct and it was exhausting, and nearly a whole 3 periods of Chemistry has been burned off due to the experiment. After that, a complete report was needed to hand in to teacher, and the same concept applies to both Physics and Biology experiment, which was on Friday. I saw one of my classmates, conducted the Physics experiment, failed to get a certain readings that he expected to, and he retried again. After trying it for the 3rd time, he did what needs to be done and immediately dashed to the Biology lab and conduct a Biology experiment. And sometimes, he needs to stay in school and conduct either the Physic or Biology experiment on his own if he's extremely occupied for that day.

I'm in awe with his mettle in coping with the workload of 5 subjects. And for those of you who are still taking 5 subjects in STPM, don't give up. No matter what kind of results that you get in the end, your efforts will truly get what you deserved and all of you deserve full respect from me. Kudos, especially for the ones who are still undertaking FMT as their 5th subjects.

This post has been edited by RED-HAIR-SHANKS: Sep 1 2014, 03:13 AM

Blessings sagethesausage, scgoh123 and BlueMuffin.

I would like to post some MUET essays that are above Band 4. My MUET teacher was one of the markers for MUET(essay sections) for the past 15 years or so. So, she did marked some of the essays that are very well written by some students and decided to hand them over to us. They are not much, but, hope those helps.

Question:
“People are becoming more materialistic. They are concerned with making more money and what money can buy.” What is your opinion on being materialistic? You should write at least 350 words. [60 marks]


Band 4 Essay



Band 5 Essay




P/S: Note that for the above Band 5 essay, the format and type of writing is a journalist-style, unlike both of the Band 4 and Band 6 essays in this post which applies the academic-style writing format.

Band 6 Essay




Oh, and pardon me for the blurry images in the above.

This post has been edited by RED-HAIR-SHANKS: Sep 1 2014, 04:16 AM

Dear sagethesausage, scgoh123 and BlueMuffin.

Here is a compilations of Pengajian Am Notes from the terminal system. Yes, although it's from the old syllabus, I don't really think that lots of changes that has been done that will hinder us from utilizing these notes. In fact, I've used some of the points(isi) and even elaboration(huraian) from the notes given and plug them into my essay. I approached my teacher and he even told me that there was nothing wrong using or rehashing some of the points/facts from the content in old syllabus and put it into the essay section.

By the way, this PA notes formerly belongs to kingkingyyk, one of the seniors in this forum that scored a 4.00 CGPA in the terminal system. All the credits for the PA notes go to the 'Legendary King'.

Walau, I went to Popular bookstore yesterday and found revision books for STPM Perakaunan sem 1. ACCOUNTS!

Did you find something very intriguing from the revision books? I don't take any accounting subjects, but I personally would like to hear something from a senior that knows a lot about accounts .