Ok, I guess many of you might cast a skeptical look and go, “Yeah riiiight…” when you first read the title of this blog post.

But it is possible, trust me. Here, let me explain.

Having taught in JCs and given private tuition for nearly 10 years, I know many GP departments often get their students to purchase thick stacks of reading materials that contain topical news articles and sample essays. This is done with the good intention of getting students to read widely.

However, for those who are short of time and/or hate reading lengthy articles with crammed fonts, these so-called content packs are merely additional paper weights that will collect dust in the corner of their rooms. Worse still, many are further turned off by GP when they look at the content packs and think, “You mean I have to read all that? Who has the time?!”

Fret not.  While I’m not asking you to hurl all your content packs out of the window, I am telling you that there are other ways you can try to make your GP revision not only fun, but also fruitful.

#1 Make use of Social Media

Facebook and Twitter can be pretty good sources of news if you know who to follow. This is especially helpful if you just want a quick update on breaking news around the world. 

Some free ones include:

1.     The Guardian https://www.facebook.com/pg/theguardian/posts/

2.     NPR https://www.facebook.com/pg/NPR/posts/

3.     BBC https://www.facebook.com/pg/bbcnews/posts/

4.     Business Insider https://www.facebook.com/pg/businessinsider/posts/

5.     Reuters https://twitter.com/Reuters

6.     Breaking News https://twitter.com/BreakingNews

Also, try Grammarly for helpful and tongue-in-cheek language tips: https://www.facebook.com/grammarly/

Even Instagram can be used as well! Do you know that our Prime Minister (and a few other ministers) has an Instagram account (@leehsienloong)? Follow him to get a sense of what he does and start your journey in becoming a little less politically apathetic.

And YouTube could be your best friend. When I was a student, my only way of learning GP content was just The Straits Times and TIME magazine. Now, you lucky kids can follow the YouTube channels of American comedians like John Oliver, Stephen Colbert, Trevor Noah and Hassan Minhaj as they regularly cover social and political issues in a fun way (just be warned that they do use vulgarities).

1.     Stephen Colbert poking fun at Trump’s Border Wall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EL40lQNIVNc

2.     Trevor Noah on Australia wildfires: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0qXt3mAlcY

3.     Hassan Minhaj shedding light on global obesity: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmo6lZcdkO0

Other useful channels:

1.     History Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/historychannel

2.     TED talks: https://www.youtube.com/user/TEDtalksDirector

3.     Real Stories: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCu4XcDBdnZkV6-5z2f16M0g

4.     VICE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZaT_X_mc0BI-djXOlfhqWQ

5.     Crash Course series: https://www.youtube.com/user/crashcourse

#2 Build up your general knowledge

Go have a life. Have fun. Watch movies, listen to music, play computer games and travel (watch travel vlogs if you can’t). Some students I have taught before gave me quizzical looks when I asked them if they have heard of the movie “Silence of the Lambs”.

“Then do you watch movies?”

 

“Not really…”

 

“Listen to music?”

 

“Seldom.”

 

“Then what do you do during your free time?”

 

“Sleep. Study…”

 

*Facepalm* Honestly, if you don’t even have much of an opinion on pop culture, you most probably wouldn’t have a clue when it comes to denser topics like Politics and Human Rights.

 

And then those who are into pop culture tend to be fixated on their favourite Kpop and/or Cpop idols. Well, you know for sure that Cambridge wouldn’t be asking you to list the filmography/discography of your idol, so whatever specific juicy details that you know about him or her would be useless when it comes to the exams.

However, having that interest is a good first step. So why not take another step forward and read up on how the entertainment industry is linked to social issues?

Here are some examples:

·      Fan BingBing and her tax evasion scandal in China: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-12/fan-bingbing-s-100-million-tax-bill-stuns-china-s-movie-industry

·      Kpop industry and mental health issues: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/dec/02/deaths-of-k-pop-stars-put-focus-on-mental-health-taboos-in-south-korea

·      Ed Sheeran and his copyright lawsuits: https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/ed-sheeran-lady-gaga-and-the-blurred-lines-of-plagiarism-suits/news-story/eb617559ea49b04d7f60c1c934ad67cf

The key here is to gain more breadth and insight based on what you already know and like. If issues related to the entertainment industry intrigue you, go read up more on it. And the world doesn’t just comprise the Kpop, Cpop and Hollywood industries. Do you know that India has a burgeoning music industry? And have you heard of Nollywood? It’s apparently the world’s third largest movie industry right after Hollywood and Bollywood.

The same principle applies to other topics like Sports and Environment as well.

Building your general knowledge will certainly reap you far-reaching benefits that go beyond just scoring for your GP exams. You also wouldn’t want to be that proverbial frog in the well with limited general knowledge, am I right? :)

#3 Journal

 

Keep an informal GP journal where you can jot down any interesting information or observations. You can also try writing down questions that you may have and ask your peers, parents and teachers for their opinions! Note down these responses and form your opinion from there if you can.

For example, you could start with a simple question, “Do you like living in Singapore? Why or why not?”  

Many students that I have encountered are passive learners. They are just waiting for teachers to throw information their way so that they can gobble it up without thoughtful

processing.

However, Cambridge examiners have stated clearly that they are looking for essays that display “originality of thought” and “personal insight”. So, while reading content packs and memorising good essays may help a little, you will not get that coveted A grade if you only do that.

In short, it is important to remain curious and consistent. Consistency will help you to take in bitesize information daily, and you would have time to digest the information in meaningful ways. You don’t learn anything meaningful when you simply memorise chunks of information days before your big GP exam.

I am fully aware that this blog post might not appeal to those of you who are more pragmatic, especially those who are looking for strategies and techniques to score for exams. There are plenty of blogs out there addressing that. But what I want to stress on in this post, is that learning can be fun — that GP revision can be fun. :)

Want more tips on how to ace your GP exam? Check out my other article for 2 simple ways to improve your Application Question response!

Yvonne helms AfterSkool’s English and GP programme. A former MOE teacher, she has 7 years of experience teaching GP at two junior colleges. To register for AfterSkool’s GP programme, head over to our enquiry form.