Famous Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey said: “A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.” This quote shows the importance of learning about one's history in the context of family, culture, society and even at a national or international level.
For Malaysians, History (more commonly known as Sejarah) is a core subject throughout secondary school education and it is one of the compulsory subjects (besides the Malay language) to pass in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination.
Myths about learning Sejarah during Form 4 and Form 5
Before advancing to the higher secondary level (Form 4 and Form 5), students have also been taught and tested on the Sejarah subject during their Form 3 for their Pentaksiran Tingkatan 3 (PT3). However, there are some differences in the examination format, marking scheme and even learning methods for these two examinations.
At present, the SPM Sejarah paper consists of 2 papers and is fully taught in the Malay language. The subject syllabus consists of 20 chapters (10 chapters from Form 4 and Form 5).
Students might have heard of various myths and misconceptions (regular changes to the examination structure, format, revision method) about the paper, so we are here to debunk them and provide you with the right facts and information for your SPM Sejarah examination.
Myth 1: You need to memorize the dates and years of the historical events
Remember that you will NEVER EVER be tested on the dates but on the SIGNIFICANCE of the events. For instance, Malaysians know that our nation's Independence Day (Hari Merdeka) is on the 31st of August 1957. What will be taught during your lessons and asked in your ACTUAL SPM paper are the implications, causes and lessons that revolved around the event.
What are the efforts made by the country's forefathers to achieve independence? What was the agreement that the country's leaders signed with the British prior to the independence? At present, what can we learn as a nation from achieving independence?
Myth 2: You still have to sit for 3 papers and not 2 papers
Based on the latest SPM Sejarah paper format, SPM candidates no longer need to sit for 3 papers for the Sejarah subject starting from 2021. Previously, the SPM Sejarah Kertas 3 required students to sit for an open book test and answer essay questions based on themes that were set by the Ministry of Education.
Currently, SPM Sejarah Kertas 1 consists of 40 objective questions, while SPM Sejarah Kertas 2 consists of 4 structured questions and 3 essay questions to be answered.
Myth 3: You can just focus on Form 5 chapters for your SPM Sejarah Paper 2
You will be tested on any chapters of Form 4 and Form 5 syllabus in your Paper 2. For Bahagian A, 2 short structured questions will be derived from Form 4 chapters while another 2 will be taken from Form 5 chapters. For Bahagian B (essay component), the 5 essay questions will also be a combination of Form 4 and Form 5 syllabus.
Myth 4: You can score well with an intense last-minute revision
Think you can start memorizing the night before? Nope. It does not work this way. An effective "last-minute revision" can only take place when you have previously compiled systematic and concise NOTA SEJARAH (History notes) with clear keywords. That also means you must have completed back to back reading, reviewed your textbooks and ample exercises of past year papers and model questions.
Source: Astro Awani
What should be included in your Nota Sejarah?
Having said that a good note-taking habit is an essential source for your revision, here are some elements that you should take note of while preparing for your Nota Sejarah.
a) Common themes
One way to organize people and events in the context of history is to group them according to few main branches. Firstly, all power struggles, royalty positions, responsibilities, leadership roles can be grouped under POLITICS. Secondly, everything about money transfer, the role of banks, the act of selling and buying can be put under ECONOMY. Thirdly, anything that talks about national identity in terms of language, attire, cuisine, musical instrument can be included under TRADITION.
b) WH questions
WH questions are not just for language subjects. The purpose of WH questions when learning Sejarah is to allow you to list down the main points to pay attention to. It provides you a BIGGER picture when you are looking at the historical event. It also helps you to connect the dots so that you will not miss out on the facts, elaboration and examples that will mostly be tested in your SPM Sejarah Paper 2.
For instance, in the context of World War II:
-Where and when did it start?
-How did it start?
-Why did it affect other countries including Malaysia?
-Who were the key figures involved and what did they gain from the war?
c) Fun illustrations, pictures and diagrams
A picture paints a thousand words. Most people remember things better through visuals. It creates a long-lasting impression. What you can do to make your notes special is to utilize mind maps by placing a historical figure in the middle and write clear and colourful points near the branches. You can also include diagrams, tables and maps when you are illustrating your points. This could be a bonus to you because illustrations are also used in the actual SPM subject for certain questions.
Finding other sources to use for revision in SPM Sejarah paper
a) Latest KSSM textbooks
Before you buy any Sejarah textbook (online and offline), be sure to check that it follows the Kurikulum Standard Sekolah Menengah(KSSM) syllabus instead of the Kurikulum Bersepadu Sekolah Menengah (KBSM) syllabus. Since 2017, there has been a change in syllabus and textbooks for most of the SPM subjects.
If you are currently a Form 4 or a Form 5 student, make sure to keep your Form 4 textbook so that you can continue to refer to it for your revision. If you find that it is better to have a digital copy of the textbook, you can head to the website: Bumi Gemilang.com to download the textbook for free. Apart from reading and memorizing the facts in the textbooks, be sure to also check and complete the model exercises after every chapter of the book.
b) Past year papers and trial papers across Malaysia
Many Sejarah teachers and previous SPM candidates have sworn by the effectiveness of practising with past year papers to score well for Sejarah. Why is this so? Students can easily study the latest SPM Sejarah marking scheme through the sample questions and answers that are given.
For trial papers, they are generally set to be more difficult than the actual SPM paper. Hence, students can be exposed to a diverse range of questions that were tested across Malaysia. Another reason why you should do past year and trial papers is they improve your productivity during revision, playing the role of an ACTIVE output activity. You are being tested many times before the real test. This repeated exercise will increase your confidence and competence in the long run. You can access trial papers from different years via the MalaysiaTercinta.com website.
c) Youtube channels
Youtube is a common educational tool across all generations. Apart from finding the usual lessons and explanations by educators on Sejarah chapters, there are also many creative videos about various chapters of the Sejarah subject. For instance, storytelling methods through animation and cartoon characters. The application of immersive audiovisuals can help students to remember better.
Some of the few Youtube channels that you can refer to are:
-Shifu Sejarah (comic and anime)
-Sejarah Specialists (storytelling visuals)
Source: New Strait Times
Learning Sejarah with Superprof = Preparation + Direction
As a student who is preparing for SPM, it is absolutely normal to feel overwhelmed with the preparation for multiple subjects and also the uncertainty about the pandemic in our country.
As you are reading this, you will realise that what you need now besides your self-studying methods is another point of view of learning Sejarah, as well as a clear guide on how to master the SPM Sejarah Paper. Look no further as we present to you the answer- SUPERPROF!
Superprof acts as a reliable online learning platform that connects you (the student) to a huge database of experienced teachers from various parts of Malaysia. The sky is the limit when it comes to distance learning with Superprof.
By just keying in Sejarah as your preferred subject and your current location at the Superprof website, you will be lead to the profiles of all the Sejarah tutors who are ready to offer their service to you within the location. At a glance, you would be able to check the tutor's teaching methodology, teaching experience, hourly rate, response time, as well as previous students' reviews.
Source: New Strait Times
After you have contacted your chosen Sejarah tutor and decided on the lesson time or mode of learning, the preparation process begins. Your Sejarah tutor can certainly design a suitable lesson plan for you according to your requests and analysis of previous results for various sections.
Besides regular lessons, your Sejarah tutor will also provide you with suitable exercises that you can practice in between lessons so that you can apply what you have learnt immediately.
Don't forget that private tutoring means that you get to ask as many questions as you like without minding about the time limit when you are in a big classroom setting. Hence, your concentration and motivation level will also increase during your lessons.
You can certainly count on your Sejarah tutor to prepare you to score well for your SPM Sejarah Paper.
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