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Friday 22^nd February 2013

Hola people ! We should have a grammar presentation today from Syahira’s and Haziq’s group , but Miss Zu explained to us about speaking test . Oh my god, speaking test always make my nerve wrecked ! Truthfully, I don’t have high confident to speak English . Pity me huhu.

Okay let me tell you some information about speaking test. Miss Zu separated us into several groups and i was group with Syaziella, Hasyimah and Saifuddin. Thank god I got group members that always help me if I don’t  have any idea to talk about when speaking.

The speaking test is divided into two sections: Task A & Task B, groups of 4 usually. Here is the time frame breakdown:

Sit down clockwise, A to D. There will be two examiners for each exam. Once seated, they will check your exam slips and ICs. Handphones, notes, stationery etc not allowed as a pencil, a piece of paper and the question will be placed on the table for each student.

1st minute - just read the question and make a mental note of the words you would like to ask the examiner about. (you should ask the examiner EVEN IF YOU UNDERSTAND the terms to get the right pronunciation and 'borrow' ideas from the examiners. most examiners are very helpful and will give you some ideas if you ask nicely) (say: Excuse me but what is the meaning of ... DO NOT SAY: What means of...? which is horrendous grammar!)

2nd minute - examiners ask all candidates (A-D) one by one if they understand the question or not. (again, make sure you ask about any word/phrases during this time)

2 minutes to write your notes on the blank A4 paper given (tip: divide the paper into 4 sections, label A, B, C and D, then write only in your section. think of three points and for every point give reasons and examples, make sure it's in note form only to avoid reading)

2 minutes for each candidate to present Task A - MUST AGREE WITH POINT GIVEN (advantage for candidate D because she/he will have 8 minutes to prepare but the point is generally harder to elaborate than candidate A's point, so there are always pros and cons. MAKE SURE YOU SPEAK FOR THE FULL 2 MINS, and it is ok to just elaborate 1 or 2 points well instead of 3 points but not well explained.)

Speak according to this format:
1. Greetings (Good morning to the examiners and my fellow candidates, etc.)
2. Repeat situation (Today we are talking about...etc.)
3. Main Point (The point I would like to discuss is... etc.)
4. 1st point (Firstly,.. , This is because,.., Moreover,..., For example,.. , Therefore,... )
5. 2nd point (Secondly,... , This means that,... , Furthermore,... , For instance,... , Thus,...)
6. 3rd point (Finally,... , This is due to the fact that... , In addition, Take for example..., Hence,... )
7. Conclusion (In a nutshell, etc.)

2 minutes to prepare notes for Task B (now you can write notes for all candidate's points, have a ranking system 1,2,3 and 4, 1 is for best choice and 4 for the least favourite, this will help you with your discussion)

10 minutes to discuss. In the quarantine room, pre-decide who will do the introduction, and someone to do the conclusion (this person MUST PAY ATTENTION TO THE TIME, as some examiners will NOT ALLOW you to do a conclusion if you go beyond the 10 min timeframe.)

TEST ENDS

That’s all from me . Goodbye :D