Speak Up! Programme
SMK Taman Megah Ria
By Yeong Sue Ann
Background
- Population of 782 students: 57.5% from B40 families; ~47% Mandarin-educated and speak mostly in their mother tongue.
- 52 of 145 Form 5 students (35.8%) failed English (Grade G) in the year-end exam (PASA 2024).
- All scored below 14 marks in Speaking Tests.
- 66% have low speaking confidence; 38% struggle with Part 2, 55% with Part 3.
The Challenge
- Weak performance in Speaking Test Parts 2 and 3.
- 66% rated their confidence at score 3 out of 5.
- Teacher scored 1.6 for Social Emotional Learning (SEL) — to give students more real-world reflection time.
The Solution: Speak Up! Programme
- 5 extra one-hour classes with 85% attendance target.
- At least 2 full practice sessions for Parts 2 and 3.
- Use sentence stem handouts and 5W1H for explanations and examples.
- Goal: Raise 48% of failing students to at least 15 marks by Mid-Term Exam (May 2025); Improve confidence by 1 level for at least 50% of students; and raise Teacher’s SEL score by 1 level.
Impact So Far
- 29% improved speaking marks by 1–7 points.
- Passing English rose from 0% to 15% (7/48 students).
- 31% improved speaking confidence by at least 1 level.
- Teacher’s SEL improved by 1 level.
- Target of 15 marks not yet reached; 56% still struggle to understand questions.
Sustainability & Next Steps
- Split classes into beginner and intermediate groups (June–Nov).
- Beginner: Replicate programme with new questions from trial sets.
- Intermediate: Add student mentors, gamification, and a Speaking App.
- Explore running the programme in other schools or joint workshops.
Contact:
Yeong Sue Ann: yeongsueann@gmail.com
Let’s help every student speak confidently in English.