Explore the PSLE Companion microsite for more insights and tips.
There are just two to three months to the PSLE and I have taken leave from June. Are there revision tools and exam strategies that can help my son learn better and pull up his grades? Any advice on drawing up a revision timetable?
Yes, it is 10 more weeks to the start of the PSLE, with the English and mother tongue oral exams to be held on Aug 12 and 13.
As promised, the PSLE Companion team will focus on offering help on revising the four PSLE subjects.
As we get closer to the exams, it is important to focus on the strategies and tools that will make a difference.
We have been offering several resources – articles containing expert advice, as well as revision tools – since the start of the year. And since May, we have stepped them up.
For the oral exams, I encourage parents to read the articles on preparing for the English and mother tongue exams.
A must-read is the article on how artificial intelligence (AI) tools can help level up your child’s English oral skills.
Also, take advantage of the free trial offered by cher.ai, one of several AI platforms that have emerged to help pupils prepare for the PSLE English oral exam.
The tool developed by Mind Stretcher, which offers tuition and enrichment programmes, allows students to practise independently and receive detailed feedback as part of the education group’s suite of PSLE preparation tools.
The free trial gives students access to three reading exercises and a parent coaching kit (www.cher.ai/sbc-kit), which comprises a bank of 60 conversation topics with varying levels of difficulty.
A screenshot of cher.ai oral reading page. The platform allows students to practise independently and receive detailed feedback as part of the education group’s suite of PSLE preparation tools.
PHOTO: MIND STRETCHER
PSLE Companion subscribers who want to continue using the tools will receive a 30 per cent discount off cher.ai’s monthly price of $25.
For parents looking for advice on readying their kids for mother tongue oral, read this article headlined “Build small habits for PSLE mother tongue fluency”, which we published in May.
Experts we spoke to say simple steps can be taken at home to improve fluency in mother tongue languages such as Chinese, Malay and Tamil.
Now, about our offerings in June. Parents can expect more tools and strategies for the various subjects, with the listening comprehension on Sept 15, and written papers from Sept 24 to 30.
Next week, there will be an article on the dos and don’ts when revising for the exams, and the advice is for parents as well. For example, experts recommend that whatever the results were in the May assessment tests, parents should not harp on them, but focus on building a child’s confidence.
Parents have asked for advice on how their children can avoid making careless mistakes during the exams. Look out for our in-depth article on what can be done.
Others requested help with science revision. Keep your eyes peeled for the article on how to prepare for the science paper with BlueTree Education co-founder Jolene Ang.
The former Gifted Education Programme teacher will be one of the speakers at the PSLE Companion forum on July 11 on how to answer PSLE science questions.
Our article in March – “PSLE science exam: How to help your child remember the concepts” – is also useful.
Meanwhile, many parents have started buying past-year PSLE exam papers and exam papers from top schools for their children to work on.
There will be an article on how to benefit from past-year exam papers. While tapping them for regular practice is fine, your child will get more out of them if he or she uses the papers to study the examination format, the marks awarded for each question and how the questions have been set up.
If your child knows a topic well, but gets the answers wrong due to carelessness, it is important to understand how it happened, such as whether he misread the question or made a calculation error.
Look out for more of such tips from the experts on how to use past-year exam papers effectively.
I also want to highlight the articles and two videos on revision methods – such as spaced repetition and metacognition – that have been proven to boost memory and recall during exams.
This is important, as research shows that simply putting in more hours revising does not guarantee better results. Instead, your child should be using neuroscience-backed learning methods that maximise learning efficiency.
To learn more about how to use methods such as spaced repetition and retrieval practice, watch the video podcast where I spoke to Mark Png.
Several parents have also asked for help in drawing up a revision calendar.
Png and his PSLE Ninja team have come up with an easy-to-use tool for parents who subscribe to the PSLE Companion. The tool allows parents to input the start dates for revising different topics in PSLE science and maths. Depending on whether there is good or bad recall of each topic, the tool will schedule the next revision session.
An example of how to revise maths topics using the spaced repetition method to increase recall.
PHOTO: PSLE NINJA
For maths revision, besides the article, “Learn to solve tough PSLE maths questions with Dr Yeap”, we have a two-part video where he uses PSLE maths questions from past years’ examinations to show parents how they can help their children tackle complex problems.
To access the articles and revision tools, subscribe to the ST PSLE Companion package ($29.90 per month, over 24 months). Exclusive bonus: Get extra $180 Scoot vouchers with a 24-month package purchased.
