How to Score MUET (Malaysian University English Test ... - Blog Muet

Posted: 17 May 2014 08:21 PM PDT

Ranking: 5 Students

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Written by Suzanne Ong

Panduan MUET

Before I get to the point of this article, you should know that Malaysian University English Test (MUET) is basically an English proficiency test which means you have to work on being good at the language altogether to actually get good results. In my own experience, I've come to realize that usually English speakers—as in those who speak English at home or with friends—are the ones who obtain a Band 4 or Band 5. MUET Band 6 is near impossible to obtain and the rest fall under Band 3 or less. Circumstances may vary according to the questions given, but note that having a good hold of the language should be your main focus, the questions come in later.

The first thing you need to know about English is that it's not a memorizing subject, rather it's more of a skill that you acquire through lots of practice. It's like learning Math or taking up a new instrument, you cannot be good at it right away; you need to practice before getting it right, unless if you're naturally gifted which I think most of us aren't.

1. MUET Writing
If you're the type of person who thinks that reading the dictionary could help hone your English, then that's where you've got it wrong. Read these 2 sentences:

I am not mind you nitpicking of my grammar mistakes.
I wouldn't mind if you nitpicked on my grammar mistakes.

See, even if you understand a bombastic word and fairly know how to use it, it still doesn't equate into having a good grasp of English if your grammar is all over the place. Grammar always comes first and once you've mastered that, then you could go ahead and memorize all those fancy schmancy words to make yourself look smarter. Simple grammar rules like tenses and when to put an S after a word and when not to, all those require practice. I suggest you pick up an exercise workbook on grammar and practice on it, but don't stop there. You will also need to start reading more English materials, any English materials really, as long as they're grammatically correct. The main thing is to read how the article is written as opposed to what it is written. The more you take notice on how they write, you'll slowly get used to the grammar being used.

You cannot just read without writing though, because like I said, English is a skill and you need to practice. Therefore, you should always write and have someone with better English to have a look at it and tell you where you went wrong. Only then you could really improve on your Writing. It takes time, so be patient.

2. MUET Speaking
When you converse in English, sometimes it's different from written English, because written form could be a little formal sometimes. To improve on Speaking, you have to watch more English shows, be it dramas or movies, it really doesn't matter as long as it captures your attention. Having subtitles in your preferred language would be good as it gives you a better understanding as to what the show is talking about. Similar to what I've mentioned earlier, you should notice the words people use when they speak, more so than what they're actually saying. After a while, you would notice a similar pattern from the way they talk and it's totally different from the way we speak our "rojak" English here in Malaysia. Obviously you shouldn't use words like lah, mah, wah, ah, etc in your Speaking.

If you don't usually speak English with your friends, pick out one friend that is good at English and ask him to speak the language with you. It would be awkward at first for the both of you, but if you're determined and if your friend is really willing to help, you will get through the awkwardness and after a while you could really see the improvement. My friend did that and at first she couldn't really speak a proper sentence, but she wasn't embarrassed to ask and learn even if she might've embarrassed herself through the process. She worked hard and after a few months, she really did improve compared to the first time she started speaking English.

3. MUET Reading
Even though it is a multiple choice paper, Reading is tough regardless. If you've tried out questions from exercise books and past year MUET papers, then you would have noticed the difference between the two. For Reading, I suggest you try out lots of different exercises—the tougher the better—and try to learn from your mistakes. See where you've analyzed wrongly and learn from that.

For the first ever Reading paper I did, I think I got less than half correct because I was looking at the questions the wrong way. After learning my mistake, I've improved to getting more than half correct almost every time. Of course you need to read more to familiarize yourself with the type of formal writing (from my experience, they mostly give data questions so most of them are written formally) as it is different from informal or narrative writing, which I find easier to understand.

4. MUET Listening
Listening to me, I find to be the easiest among all 4 papers, though I think those who aren't familiar with English would find it to be a challenge. Watching movies or TV shows could help in Listening too (and not just for Speaking), so does listening to the radio or watching videos online that is English. You need to train your ear to differentiate certain words that might sound similar to the other, like soap and soup, hard work and hardwood. You have to pay close attention to the whole sentence rather than just that word that you think might be the answer. I think the only way to differentiate words is to know what the person is talking about and if it makes sense.

The audio can be a jerk sometimes (which happened to me during my actual exams) so you really have to train yourself to listen carefully. They play the audio twice so what I normally do is to write down the answer with a pencil first, sometimes I even write down 2 or 3 answers when I'm not sure, then when they play it the second time, I write it down with my pen.

Another thing I think you should know about MUET is that the questions sometimes test your general knowledge. Not like what is currently happening in the news, more like stuff about One Malaysia, One Sport, the education blueprint, things like that. So getting a high band sometimes depends on luck too.

I guess that's about it. Remember it takes a lot of time, patience and hard work to get it right. People who speak English at home have an advantage because they read, watch and listen to English stuff all the time, so if you're not one of them then you'll have to put in extra work compared to them. Even after your MUET exams are over, don't stop improving your English, it would give you a better chance of getting a job in the future. Oh and if you're interested in reading about my MUET experience, you can check out my blog. There's stuff about my form 6 life there too if you are interested in reading :)

Alright, all the best!

Written by Suzanne Ong, an aspiring writer who had just finished STPM and is in the midst of pursuing her dream of becoming an author. She blogs about random daily things that people don't voice out at http://xsuzannex.wordpress.com and writes fiction at http://www.wattpad.com/user/raind33r.

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malaysian university english test (muet)!! - Blog ...

Posted: 19 May 2014 08:31 PM PDT

Ranking: 5 Students

Other 2014 Calendars:
School Calendar 2014 (Kalendar Persekolahan, Tarikh Cuti Sekolah, Takwim Sekolah 2014)
Malaysia Public Holidays 2014 (Cuti Umum Hari Kelepasan Am Malaysia 2014)

2014 Exam Calendar / Examination Dates (Kalendar Tarikh Peperiksaan Awam 2014)

Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (Ulangan) (SPMU)
Bertulis: 9 - 12 June 2014 (Monday - Thursday)

Jadual Waktu Peperiksaan Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (Ulangan) (SPMU) 2014

(Click to Enlarge)

Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) 2014
Bertulis: 9 - 11 September 2014 (Tuesday - Thursday)

Sijil Tinggi Agama Malaysia (STAM)
Lisan: 7 - 17 July 2014
Bertulis: 13, 15 October 2014 (Monday & Wednesday) 20 - 21 October 2014 (Monday - Tuesday)

Pentaksiran Berasaskan Sekolah Menengah Rendah (PBSMR)
Tarikh Pentaksiran Pusat PBSMR 2014 Date: October 2014
Ujian Bertulis Dan Lisan, Ujian Bertulis, Pelbagai Instrumen (Tugasan Bertulis / Ujian Amali / Projek / Kajian Lapangan / Kajian Kes / Persembahan / Demonstrasi, dll)

Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 2014
Bertulis: 3 November - 2 December 2014

SPM 2014 Exam Calendar (Draft 1) / Jadual Waktu Peperiksaan Bertulis SPM 2014

Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) 2014
Penggal 1 (2013) Ujian Bertulis: 19, 20, 21 & 25 November 2013
Penggal 2 (2014) Ujian Bertulis: 19 – 22 May 2014
Penggal 3 (2014) Ujian Lisan: 17, 18, 22, 23, 24, 25 September 2014
Penggal 3 (2014) Ujian Bertulis: 3, 4, 5, 6 & 10 November 2014

Kalendar Peperiksaan STPM 2014 Exam Calendar

Malaysian University English Test (MUET) 2014
March Session
Speaking Test: 18 – 20 February 2014, 24 – 26 February 2014
Reading, Listening & Writing Tests: 8 March 2014

July Session
Speaking Test: 17 – 19 June 2014, 23 – 25 June 2014
Reading, Listening & Writing Tests: 5 July 2014

November Session
Speaking Test: 14 – 16 October 2014, 20 – 22 October 2014
Reading, Listening & Writing Tests: 8 November 2014

Recommended Reading: Free MUET Tips & Essential MUET Guide.

Kalendar MUET 2014 Calendar

Pentaksiran Kolej Vokasional (KV)

Pentaksiran Pusat Pendidikan Asas Vokasional (PAV)

Takwim Peperiksaan Luar Negeri dan Professional 2014

The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM)
24 March 2014 : Teori (A)
March - April 2014 : Amali (1) dan Diploma (1)
June - August 2014 : Amali (2) dan Diploma (2)
16 August 2014 : Teori (B)

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
2 - 11 June 2014
1 - 10 December 2014

University of London (UoL)
2 May - 23 June 2014
18 September - 28 October 2014
27 - 31 October 2014 (Ulangan)

The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA)
3 - 6 June 2014
2 - 5 December 2014

The Association of Business Executives (ABE)
2 - 6 June 2014
1 - 5 December 2014

The Association of International Accountants (AIA)
19 - 22 May 2014
24 - 27 November 2014

Peperiksaan Bahasa Perancis – Diplôme d'Études en Langue Française (DELF)
Peperiksaan Lisan: 8 - 11 September 2014
Peperiksaan Bertulis: 23 September 2014

Note: Dates are subjected to changes (Tarikh-tarikh yang dinyatakan adalah tertakluk kepada pindaan)

Source: Lembaga Peperiksaan, Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia

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