Extra classes

The amount of things teachers need to cover in a syllabus each year is a lot, and more often than not, teachers find themselves either rushing to finish the syllabus by the end of the year, or having to conduct extra classes during school holidays.

Teaching exam classes is a whole different issue altogether. Besides having to worry about the syllabus, teachers constantly worry that students are not given enough exercises and lessons to prepare them for the public exams. The pressure is intensified with the knowledge that teachers need to answer to the school administration if their students fail to achieve the target set by the school early on in the year. Thus, many teachers, whether they like it or not, resort to holding extra classes in the hope of helping their students as much as they can. It is a race against time.

I teach in a below-average school. I can safely say that 85% of the students here have poor academic achievements, and have little or no intention of improving the grades in their report cards. However, the school still needs to achieve the target it has set each year, as the district education office will monitor all schools in the area. If we ever fall below the intended target (which we always do), official visits from education officers of all levels can be expected at our school. So far, we have had officials as high-up as the Education Ministry come down from Putrajaya to inspect and "guide" us, although I'm sure if they ever volunteer to teach our students for even a month, they will face the same problems as the teachers do.

Despite this, policies are still policies, and teachers are still required to achieve the intended target. Therefore, the need for extra classes. The school has made it compulsory for the best students of Form Three and Five to attend extra classes which start from 7am to 7.30am before school from Tuesday to Thursday. Then, after school from 3pm to 4pm, all Form Three and Five students are required to attend extra classes as well. Not to forget the co-curricular activities they need to stay back for when there is no extra class! The poor students can't even have a decent lunch as the canteen is closed. I wonder how much their tired minds can absorb during that hour. Of course, the teachers themselves are exhausted too... Surely, this does them more harm than good!

Almost every day, these students are in school from 7am to 4pm. That's as long as an average person spends in an office! No wonder they can't wait for the school holidays. And when that time comes, all they want to do is to forget about studies. Hence the poor attendance in holiday extra classes. For the past few years, I have travelled for one hour from my hometown to school to teach holiday classes, but the poor attendance was always a disappointment. Sometimes, I do not have the heart to blame these students as this is the only time they can take a break from their stressful routines during school days.

That's why this year, I've decided not to have extra classes so my students can have the rest they deserve. Hopefully when they return to school next week, they will be eager to start their lessons again with fresh minds and renewed enthusiasm. And hopefully, I can see a better passing rate in English this year!

Will My Students Make It?

I teach exam classes every year. This year, I'm not just teaching SPM students, but PMR students as well. You can imagine my stress level now. PMR trial exams are coming soon in September, followed by the actual exam in October. Then it's the SPM trial exams in October, and the actual exams in November and December. I find myself constantly counting down to those dates, getting stressed up realising that I've not taught them certain topics in the syllabus, or wondering if I have given them enough exercises to help them master certain language or writing skills.

Recently, my SPM students sat their English mid-year exam. Looking at their answers, I could sense all my worries coming back. I thought I had given them enough practice all this while, and I was confident that the majority of them could score well. On the contrary, it seems that they had a lot of wrong answers. Usually, I would start marking their papers first, but now, I'm a bit apprehensive. Looks like I need to double my efforts if I want them to improve further. Well, on the bright side, this is a timely feedback for me which helps me to evaluate my teaching strategies.

My PMR students will start their mid-year exam next week. If they are nervous about it, they surely don't show it at all. In fact, their English teacher (that would be me) seems to be more worried about it. How ironic! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they will fare well. I've taught them all I could, but I don't know if it will be enough. Let's hope that it is...

Well, one thing is for sure. Teaching exam classes is a tough job! I just hope that all this effort will be worth it in the end...