You’re probably here because you want to just get an A* for your English exam and then be done with it.

You’re looking for tips and tricks to be able to do well in the exams and then be able to go home and then just be done with it.

Well, I think that you should absolutely get what you want because that’s just one of the numerous things that a person should do along the way.

After all, once you master those English skills, it will surely be easy for you to do reading comprehension or, for example, write essays with no problems whatsoever.

After all, that’s what this training is meant for and why you’re even spending an evening looking at this website right now.

But is that really all? Is that all there is? Will you just take the A* and then go away?

If so, I think that that would be a crying shame.

English is a language that you’re going to use for the rest of your entire life. Right now, you’re reading everything here in English. You’ll probably go out there and speak to your friends in English, listen to an English-language TV show, and end up interacting with others in English as well.

Now, it’s absolutely true that from reading this site, you’ll learn the exam techniques and all the different things that you need to be able to excel at the IGCSE First Language English exam, but life at the end of the day is not just that exam.

In fact, a much wider world lies outside the things that you’re doing just for the purpose of doing well for this curriculum. Here are some suggestions for what you’ll get.

Professional benefits

English is, first and foremost, a means of communication, and even writing an exam paper is an act of creating a communication that tells your examiner that you are a qualified person, somebody who has the ability to deliver quality work that is able to be recognized on an international level as operationalizing key skills in the English language – an act of persuasion that will be important throughout the entire course of your adult and professional life.

Persuading others is not simply just a way of creating an exam response that manages to pass the expectations of some examiners, and then net you a nice-looking grade on a slip of paper that you’ll use for college applications but then forget about – It is also a means of learning to convince other people to do what you want, whether that’s to buy a product or to do something in a way that you advocate, leading in turn to professional success as you take on further responsibilities and refine the things that you are able to do; heck, even finding a boyfriend or girlfriend requires you to persuade people and to do so in a convincing way!

Whether you’re trying to find a job or a girlfriend/boyfriend, you will be involved in this game of communication that takes place between all human beings at all times, and that requires us to make use of our minds in order to discover the exact words that we should say in order to persuade people that your way is the right way to proceed, and to accomplish your goals in the right way!

Benefits of understanding.

English is not simply just a means of producing communications that can persuade other people – it is a means of developing understanding and coming to terms with what your goals are.

By reading the right works, you set yourself up to develop advanced understanding and a medium of pursuing knowledge that comprises far more than almost any other linguistic corpus in the world. Moreover, learning English, particularly with respect to developing critical thinking and skills of understanding, will help you to be able to access that corpus in increasingly better ways as you progress forward and develop the ability to comprehend on a greater scale as you move forward in your journey.

By committing to learning English well, you will learn how to read effectively, critically, with insight. English is not simply just a means of producing communications that can persuade other people. It is a means of developing advanced understanding and a medium of pursuing knowledge that comprises far more than almost any other linguistic corpus in the world. Moreover, learning English, particularly with respect to developing critical thinking and skills of understanding, will help you to be able to access that corpus in increasingly better ways as you progress forward and develop the ability to comprehend on a greater scale as you move forward in your journey.Whatever it is that you see and process, you’ll be able to better understand, as you develop better and better habits of critical thinking that will help you move forward, pushing into a realm of new understanding that in turn will inform the interests that you pursue and all the things that you choose to do with your life itself.

And with that in mind, English also allows you to obtain…

Benefits of connectivity

Let’s be totally real here. English, at the end of the day, is a language, and it is the lingua franca of the entire universe. Are you really going to just abandon it and forget completely about what you’ve learned just because you’re not taking an exam? Because it’s really impossible to do so.

Wherever it is that you go and whatever it is that you do, whatever you communicate, read, or speak to other people, you are going to be using the English language.

Therefore, why would you not learn to bring to bear the different types of nuance that you’ve come to be able to understand as a result of learning the English language?

It doesn’t matter where it is that you go, you will find English speakers around the world because there are just so many of us.

Learning how to speak the English language effectively helps give you exposure to so many different types of cultures and ideals that you essentially would be losing out if you were not to understand how to refine your skill, to catch shades in meaning, the variations in the ways that people use words, and the things that you choose to communicate as well.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, these are all things that you can access by developing a great understanding of the English language, and that would be a shame for you to simply just abandon and leave behind.

Learning how to master the English language helps you develop that kind of mastery, not just over the short term, but over the long term, resulting in large amounts of knowledge and understanding that will end up compounding over the course of your entire life.

Are you really going to just let that go after you’ve taken the exam? Simply let it become a single grade in the hallways of your high school memory when you could make it so much more?

I’d encourage you to not let it become like that. English has so many different long-term advantages that you would be remiss in just dismissing them offhand and just throwing them away because you think that there are other more important things to do. By mastering English, you will gain access to an entire world of different possibilities that lie beyond your IGCSE exams, so don’t let those advantages go. Rather, seize them and take them into your life, and you will find yourself with a much richer and much more exciting existence in the days to come, if only you will let that happen.

Imagine, it’s a great day to start writing.

You pick up the pen that is right next to you in a little cup. As you sit down, get comfortable, and gaze upon the blank paper, ready to create a work of art, a communication of deep significance, an exam response that will wow everyone who reads it and be remembered in the halls of history. But as 5 minutes pass, 10 minutes pass, you continually gaze down. The paper is still blank. How do you start? This question is one that I have dealt with continually, and perhaps is a question that you’ve been contemplating every single time you’ve tried to write a brand new piece. Well, you’re definitely not alone.

Introducing arguments or essays effectively is crucial in capturing the reader’s interest and setting the tone for your writing. Here are several techniques to consider:

1. Anecdote or Personal Story: Start with a brief, engaging story or personal experience related to your topic. This approach can make your essay relatable and capture the reader’s interest from the beginning.
2. Startling Statistic or Fact: Presenting a surprising or little-known fact or statistic can immediately grab the reader’s attention and highlight the importance of your topic.
3. Quotation: Use a relevant quote from a well-known figure, which can provide an authoritative start to your essay and introduce the reader to your topic’s context.
4. Question: Open with a thought-provoking question. This can engage readers by prompting them to think about the answer and how it relates to the broader topic.
5. Contrast and Comparison: Begin by comparing and contrasting two ideas, situations, or phenomena. This technique is effective in highlighting the differences or similarities that you will explore in your essay.
6. Historical Context: Provide historical background relevant to your topic. This approach is particularly useful in setting the stage for your argument and showing its evolution over time.
7. Current Events: Link your topic to a current event or a recent development. This makes your essay timely and shows the relevance of your argument in the contemporary world.
8. Rhetorical Question: Pose a rhetorical question that doesn’t necessarily require an answer but serves to introduce the main theme or provoke thought about the topic.
9. Vivid Description or Scene Setting: Create a vivid picture or set the scene for your topic. This can be particularly effective for narrative or descriptive essays.
10. Thesis Statement: Sometimes, starting directly with a clear, concise thesis statement can be powerful, especially in shorter essays or when your argument is particularly compelling or controversial.
11. Analogies and Metaphors: Use an analogy or metaphor to explain a complex topic in simpler terms or to draw a parallel that guides the reader’s understanding of your subject.
12. Addressing the Reader: Directly addressing the reader can create a conversational tone and immediately engage them in the topic.
13. Provocative or Controversial Statement: Start with a statement that challenges conventional wisdom. This can be a great way to engage readers who might have strong opinions on the topic.
14. Foreshadowing: Hint at the main points or conclusions of your essay in the introduction. This gives readers a glimpse of what to expect.
15. Expert Opinion or Testimony: Cite an expert or use testimony to provide a credible start to your essay, particularly for argumentative essays on scientific or technical subjects.

Remember, the best technique depends on your essay’s topic, purpose, and audience. It’s often effective to combine several of these techniques to create a compelling introduction.