Ng Ray Man was a Head Prefect, a national-level debater and a straight-A scorer all his life. He reveals the secrets of excelling in academic and extracurricular activities in this guest post for Peekabook.

Achieving straight A’s, holding various positions at school and being active in extracurricular activities and competitions are indeed not easy for the students. This is, however, what most of the Government, teachers, parents and students themselves hope the younger generation to achieve. According to the National Philosophy of Education of Malaysia, the Malaysian education system emphasizes to produce individuals who are holistic and well-equipped intellectually, spiritually and emotionally in order to contribute to the betterment and development of the country. To this, there are several questions that I am sure the parents and students frequently ask, “How to achieve straight A’s?”, “How to ensure that one can excel in both academic and extracurricular?” and of course “What are the study tips?”. Hence, allow me to share some of my personal opinions and experiences that I have gone through so far.

Despite the fact that I have been actively involved in extracurricular activities in school, I am considered very lucky to obtain straight A’s in public examinations such as UPSR (Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah), PMR (Penilaian Menengah Rendah) and the SPM (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia). Teachers and friends always ask me, as the Head Prefect of the school, do you still have time to study when you are given various tasks to complete everyday? Another one would be, as the Tokoh NILAM of the Perak state and a student who always participate in Public Speaking competitions, debate in Zone level, district level, state level and even national level in both Malay and English languages, why are you still able to manage your study despite the fact that you have spent ample time in preparing for the competitions? The only answer is, ‘Why Not?’ With that, here are some of the keys that I personally would love to share with everyone.

First of all, we must really have the proper ways to study when we are not only taking a particular subject in examinations. A very simple example, I took 7 subjects in UPSR, 8 subjects in PMR and 9 subjects in SPM, I can never apply the same way to study in all subjects. I took Bahasa Melayu, English, History, Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Moral Education, Biology, Physics and Chemistry in SPM. Let’s say for History, we ought to understand and memorise the facts in textbooks. However, we could not do the same thing for Mathematics. In fact, we have to do more practices instead of memorizing any of the questions, facts nor answers. When it comes to languages, we must read and use as much as possible so that we can familiarize the appropriate structure for essay-writing, learn new words and enhance our vocabulary besides keeping ourselves updated with any news in every part of the world. To this, reading several types of books, newspapers and watching news will help because on the whole, what had been written are grammatically correct in general. Very importantly, never skip any words that we do not now, just flip the dictionary to find out the meaning and how to use it. Next, for History and Biology subjects, memorizing skill plays a little more important role. We should enjoy reading history and biology like what we do with favourite storybooks. After getting a clear picture of what we are reading, try to memorise the important facts and incidents. Whereas for mathematics, physics and chemistry subjects which involve calculations and several facts, we shall make short and effective notes on our own after ‘digesting’ what we learn from reference books and textbooks. This will help to save time when we are doing our final revision before sitting for exams. Of course, more practices of past year papers and model test papers will provide us with a clearer image of the styles and format of the questions like. Thus, there is no doubt to say that one must adapt and adopt the suitable ways to do well in each subject.

On the other hand, we must study whenever we can and maximize the function of the electronic gadgets. From my personal experience, when we are actively involved in extracurricular activities, we could hardly find time to study. In my opinion, one need not have a fixed timetable. In fact, one should have a flexible one. We should do our revision whenever we are free and find out what are the learning outcomes of each revision. Furthermore, we ought to set how many chapters that will be completed by the end of each month. For instance, there are 9 chapters in Form 5 history subject. So, to ensure that we have finished studying the textbook and have the time to do model questions before the trial examination, we have to complete at least one chapter a month. At the same time, students shall also make good use of the electronic gadgets. Smart phones, tablets, desktops and laptops are example of electronic gadgets which can be used to help us in our studies. We should not only use it to text others and play games. In fact, we should make it as an effective tool to help us in study. For example, as an active student, I could hardly find time to sit in the class and listen to what teachers teach in class. I used to be away from school very often, sometimes it could be a few days or even weeks. The question here is, how am I supposed to bring the thick and heavy textbooks or reference books along when I am travelling to other places during competitions, camps or other activities? Here is where my tablet played its role. Many thanks to my parents for buying me the Samsung Galaxy Tab2 10.1 a few years ago. The tablet has helped me a lot in my revision. I stored notes and mind maps I made myself or downloaded from the internet in my tablet PC and thus, I can read it anytime when I was free even when I was not in school. For example, when I was in the bus on the way to Selangor for National NILAM Award, I managed to complete a number of chapters of Biology and History subjects. Therefore, one of the best ways to study is to study whenever there is time and make good use of the technology.

On top of that, what do we actually mean by study effectively? From my point of view, it is not the hours nor the duration that matter most, it is what we have learnt after every session of revision that matter. To this, there is no use if we sit on the study desk with loads of books on it for hours but our mind is dreaming of something else. We should minimize or get rid of anything that may distract us such as handphones and televisions when we are studying. At the same time, here comes another question, are tuition classes necessary? It really depends. To me, it is a ‘No’ answer, but I believe it will be a ‘Yes’ for some who really need the others to accompany and guide them in their study. To be honest, I have never gone for any tuition classes since I started schooling because I do have faith in self-study method. With the advancement of the technology, I believe there are various ways and places that one can obtain information from. I do not mean to blame any tuition teachers nor centres, but I just believe that there are lots of websites and videos that can help us in our study. According to Shaaron Ainsworth, a psychologist from University of Nottingham, United Kingdom, she claimed that students absorb much easily through animation. For instance, biology students understand faster about the blood transport system when video clips of how deoxygenated blood from body cells are transported to the right atrium via vena cava and how oxygenated blood is transported to our body cells. Furthermore, according to Ahmad Rizal and Mohd Noor, researchers from Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, they have proven that multimedia does not only make learning process more effective, it promotes cognitive skills through ‘Active Learning’ process with the aid of teaching coursewares. Next, application of technology provides better learning environment for students. ‘1BestariNet’ project in which the Ministry of Education of Malaysia cooperates with FrogAsia, YTL has launced Frog VLE, Virtual Learning Environment as a new learning platform. It leverages on FrogTrade’s, United Kingdom which has 13-year track record and expertise in integrating technology into schools. It is proven to be effective in handling assignments as assignments can be sent and marked on-the-go, even during school holiday. At the same time, this platform promotes paper-free learning process. In short, effective study methods should be applied in our study.

Besides, the choice of reference books does play an essential role in study. We should really explore the bookshops and find out which reference books suit us vary from each subject. Apart from purchasing books which are just informative, we should consult teachers or friends to find the books which are reader-friendly, easy to understand and in par with the latest syllabus and format of the education system. Sometime, we may have to purchase reference books from more than one publisher too. Here, allow me to share some of my personal recommendations of books according to the subjects. To be clear, I do not mean to say that the others are not good enough, it is just that these are what I found that suit me the most. For languages like Bahasa Melayu and English, I would recommend Longman Essential whereas for science-related subjects such as Biology, Chemistry and Physics, I would say textbooks and Pelangi reference books are somehow more user-friendly. For the other subjects like history or mathematics, textbooks and past year papers are more than enough. There is one important tip that I would love to highlight here. Students always take the textbooks for granted. In fact, we should pay attention to the ‘Learning Outcome’ of each chapter and sub-chapter in textbooks and ensure that we have fully understood what we are supposed to know after each chapter. At most of the time, this is where questions usually come out to test the understanding of the candidates for each subject during examinations. With the aid of websites, appropriate reference books and textbooks, I am sure that students are able to score well in exams.

In conclusion, one should make good use of whatever resources that is available to help in one’s study. Have an effective timetable, have a proper choice of books and study methods are some of the keys towards achieving excellence in curricular and co curricular. All the best to everyone!