How fast time has flown! The PSLE oral exams are happening tomorrow!
Every student will definitely be currently busy preparing for their PSLE oral exam, which constitutes a vital part of their academic scores. So, let’s do the best we can to prepare for this important paper.
The oral exam consists of 2 sections- Reading aloud and stimulus-based conversation. The reading component carries 10 marks, while the conversation carries 20. The reading section requires students to read aloud from a simple passage. The focus points the examiners look at are pronunciation, articulation, fluency, rhythm, and expression.
Pronunciation and Articulation
The only way to master them is through practice. English has some tricky words that sound different from how they are written. A simple example is how ‘Wednesday’ is spelt so but spoken as ‘Wensday’.
Fluency and Rhythm
It indicates the proficiency of the student in the language. The pace and rhythm at which a student reads will play a huge factor in their score. No one will be pleased when students rush through reading the passages or read too slowly or in a monotonous tone, without any conscious effort or thought in their reading.
Expression
Expressions while reading were a vital part of the scoring criteria. It showed how much the students understood the meaning of the passage they were reading. But this year, due to covid protocols requiring students to wear masks during the exam, expressions will not be a scoring criterion.
Another detail that can also factor in the scoring is the volume. Different sections might require to be spoken in varying volumes, depending on the situation and meaning of the passage.
Let us look at how your children can prepare well while taking into consideration these factors.
Practice, practice, practice
While practising, give attention to each point separately and pay attention to the details.
- Pause the appropriate amount after each punctuation and wherever it is required.
- Identify and learn the pronunciation of tricky words that might appear in the exam. Refer to previous years’ passages for this.
- Doing mouth and tongue exercises can sometimes help students in bettering their pronunciation of words.
- When reading aloud, try to identify the speaker’s emotion and match your tone to it.
- Understanding the passage’s meaning can help you identify which words to stress and which details to focus on.
- Don’t read word by word. Break the sentence into meaningful phrases and read. Your children might not be able to do it on their own at first. So show them how to do it and make them practice. Soon they will understand how to do it on their own.
- Another issue faced by many students is not pronouncing the end consonants of words. Make sure your children practice speaking out such words and correct their mistakes.
- Practice pronouncing long and short vowels.
- Practice breathing while reading. Teach your children to use the right pauses in the passage to breathe.
Read books
Reading books introduces you to a wide range of new words and their usage. When you see one and you are not sure how to pronounce it, look it up online. Make it a habit to look up words you are not familiar with, and learn them on the spot.
Record yourself practising and listen to it
While practising, record yourself and listen to it. Identify where you are faltering and take steps to correct your mistakes.
Audiobooks
There are many audiobooks available that you can listen to online or after downloading. Choose a book or content you are interested in and listen to it once. Carefully listen to the details- the pronunciation, how sentences are spoken, the pace, where stress is applied, varying volume, and so on. After listening to it once, get a physical or e-copy of the book text and read it along with the audiobook. Practice until you get the hang of it. It is a great way to master reading.
When choosing a book, make sure it is at your reading level or higher.
Keep a cool head
A stressed student cannot pay attention and will make mistakes. So, practice stress-reducing techniques. Try breathing exercises and meditation. Try to make sure that your children don’t miss out on sleep and have meals regularly.
On the exam day, each student has 5 minutes to prepare. Use this time to become familiar with the passage.
- Read through it once.
- Identify difficult words and try speaking them aloud.
- Identify where you need to give stress, where to pause, and the pace.
- At the last minute, breathe in for a few seconds and hold it for a few seconds. Breathe out for a few seconds and repeat it. It will help you calm down and clear your mind.
Show by example
Another way you can help your children prepare is by showing them how you do it. Practice along with them and read out passages for them. Show them how to break down the sentences to read with varying pace and tone. Make them read out sentences and correct them when they make mistakes. Reward them when they do well. But, not with ice creams, that can wait till the exams get over!
Wishing all students taking the PSLE oral paper all the best for tomorrow’s exam! 🙂
Exam Smart Tips
Exam Smart Tip #1 – How to Encourage Our Kids to Speak Better?
Exam Smart Tip #2 – How to avoid carelessness?
Exam Smart Tip #3 – Establishing Routines!
Exam Smart Tip #4 – Let’s Read Carefully!
Exam Smart Tip #5 – Beating the Exam Fever!
Exam Smart Tip #6 – How to Eat Right for the Exams?
Exam Smart Tip #7 – How to Avoid a Meltdown?
Exam Smart Tip #8 – Taking Stress out of Tests
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