In this article, Vanessa Scully, Senior Curriculum Specialist and teacher, shares 5 ways English is going to be different for your child at the Secondary 1 level.
In this article, Vanessa Scully, Senior Curriculum Specialist and teacher, shares 5 ways English is going to be different for your child at the Secondary 1 level.
Now that the PSLE results are about to be released, parents of Primary 6 pupils nationwide are getting anxious. As a parent of a post-PSLE pupil, you must be wondering:
This major transition from Primary 6 to Secondary 1 is daunting for parents and children alike. First of all, there is a huge increase in number of subjects (Hello, Literature, Geography and History!). Additionally, students will end up having to spend more time on co-curricular activities (CCAs), as well as other non-academic commitments.
Of course, the English subject is going to be rather different as well. To better help you and your child navigate these changes, here are the 5 main differences your child will encounter when taking English in Secondary 1:
Back in Primary 6, Booklet A used to be the section in which your child might have been able to secure more marks through the 28 multiple choice questions. However, this no longer exists in Secondary English. With the exception of Editing, most of the questions are open-ended and need to be answered in complete sentences.
There are 4 main papers for English at the Secondary level:
Components | ||
Paper 1: | - Section A: Editing (grammatical errors) | |
Paper 2: Comprehension | - Section A: Visual Text Comprehension (open-ended) | |
Paper 3: Listening Comprehension | - Section A: Various question types | |
Paper 4: Oral | - Section A: Reading Aloud |
Within the various stages in your child’s primary school life, there were some large jumps in the difficulty level for English. However, this jump from Primary 6 to Secondary 1 will be the greatest. Not only does the difficulty level increase, but the format will also change significantly.
Editing | Primary 6 Worth 12 marks Pupils fix spelling or grammatical errors. Errors have been identified for pupils. | Secondary (O Levels) Worth 10 marks O Levels Students identify and fix the grammatical errors in 8 out of 10 lines. | Secondary (N Levels) Worth 10 marks N Levels Students identify and fix the grammatical errors in the 10 given lines. |
Situational Writing | Primary 6 Content: 6 marks Language: 9 marks Text is written in an appropriate tone using information from the prompt. | Secondary (O Levels) Content: 15 marks Language: 15 marks The written text expresses the student's ideas clearly and provides elaboration and personal opinions. | Secondary (N Levels) Content: 15 marks Language: 15 marks Students draft a text, expressing their ideas clearly and providing elaboration and personal opinions |
Continuous Writing | Primary 6 Content: 20 marks Language: 20 marks Pupils write an essay on a given topic, using at least one of the three given pictures. | Secondary (O Levels) Content: 15 marks Language: 15 marks Students choose 1 out of 4 given questions (Narrative, Expository, Argumentative or Descriptive) | Secondary (N Levels) Content: 15 marks Language: 15 marks Students choose 1 out of 4 given questions (Narrative, Expository, Argumentative or Descriptive) |
Visual Text Comprehension | Primary 6 Worth 8 marks Pupils analyse a 2-page visual text prompt and answer 8 multiple choice questions. | Secondary (O Levels) Worth 5 marks Students analyse a 1-page visual text stimulus and answer open-ended questions with regards to details and the effectiveness of the language used. | Secondary (N Levels) Worth 5 marks Students analyse a 1-page visual text stimulus and answer open-ended questions with regards to details and the effectiveness of the language used. |
Comprehension | Primary 6 Worth 20 marks Pupils answer 10 open-ended questions based on one given passage which test comprehension and vocabulary in context. | Secondary (O Levels) Section B: Worth 20 marks A narrative text is given. Students answer questions which test comprehension, vocabulary in context and the use of language for impact. Section C: Worth 25 marks A non-narrative text is given. Students respond to questions which test comprehension, vocabulary in context and the use of language for impact. Students also need to write an 80-word summary. | Secondary (N Levels) Section B: Worth 20 marks A narrative text is given. Students answer questions which test comprehension, vocabulary in context and the use of language for impact. Section C: Worth 25 marks A non-narrative text is given. Students respond to questions which test comprehension, vocabulary in context and the use of language for impact. Students also need to write an 80-word summary. |
In Secondary English, rote learning is no longer possible. If your child was busy memorising model compositions and phrases for English at the PSLE, he or she will not be able to do this anymore. In fact, the simple techniques learnt in Primary School will not be sufficient. Secondary English prioritises critical thinking skills.
At the Secondary level, the expectation is that your child should be able to assess the effectiveness of the language used in a text and have his or her own thoughts on current events and topics. This will come in handy in not only their continuous writing task for English, but also for other subjects, such as Social Studies, History and Literature.
When you come across controversial issues in the news or when reading about large-scale world events, ask your child for his or her opinion on these.
Instead of giving your child the answer, use questions to help him or her reflect on the matter and form a response independently.
Among all the differences in English, this is probably the biggest change. For a start, this question alone is worth 15 marks in Section C (with 8 marks for content and 7 marks for language). It is also different in terms of testing your child’s vocabulary skills.
A sample question might look like this:
In this section, students must identify key points within the stated paragraphs and summarise them using their own words. The crux here is identifying what information is relevant, and how students can best express this with as few words as possible such that they do not change the meaning.
With a word limit of 80 words, this section will test your child’s ability to be concise.
This applies not just to English, but to all other subjects as well. In secondary school, the subjects build upon what was taught in primary school. While your child may be taking a backseat now—recuperating from intense PSLE studying sessions for the first nine months of the year, it is vital that he or she does not throw everything that was learnt out the window.
Armed with these two basics, your child will be able to settle into Secondary 1 and the new structure of learning English comfortably.
To give your P6 child the head start he or she needs to enter Secondary 1 with confidence, look no further. Join LiteracyPlus’ end-of-year holiday programme today!
LiteracyPlus offers secondary English classes. Our skills-based curriculum is structured to equip your child with the essential skills needed to excel in English at the Secondary level.
If you have any questions about our programmes, contact us by filling up our contact form or using one of the contact points below and we will be happy to assist you.
Email: enquiries@literacyplus.com.sg
Phone: 6777 2468
Whatsapp: 9612 8696