Cultivate 21st Century Skills at This GEP Preparation Class

We get asked a lot about what we do in our GEP preparation class. Does your child even need GEP preparation? Read on as we answer those questions down below!

The short answer to the above question is: No, your child does not need a GEP preparation class. However, it can be useful in exposing your child to similar GEP-style questions and help them show off their true potential, instead of being handicapped by strange-looking questions that they don’t even know how to approach.

In our GEP preparation classes, we basically seek to increase your child’s chances of success at the screening and selection tests. Some of the things we do include:

• Familiarising them with GEP-style questions through mock papers and practice questions
• Letting them practise higher order thinking skills such as analytical and critical thinking, problem-solving, pattern recognition, and creativity
• Teaching them techniques to save time and how to tackle novel problems

While we cannot guarantee success for every student that attends our programme, the GEP preparation class is also a great enrichment programme for students to build up their thinking skills. These are skills that will serve them well, beyond the scope of GEP and school!

Let’s dive more into those skills that our GEP preparation class can help your child level up!

Analytical thinking

Analytical thinking is about breaking down complex problems into smaller, more manageable parts. It involves examining the details of a problem, considering different perspectives, and making informed decisions using logic and reasoning.

During the GEP preparation classes, students will be taught how to approach complex and novel problems using heuristics and other problem-solving techniques. The goal is for the student to be able to develop approaches to solve problems even in never-seen-before questions.

As a transferable skill, analytical thinking is useful beyond the classroom, and important for careers that requires one to make sense of data, address multifaceted issues, and drawing links between various topics.

Critical thinking

Critical thinking is a big buzzword in the 21^st Century skills. Especially in this information-laden age, critical thinking is important as it enables us to evaluate information, question assumptions, and making logical inferences.

While both analytical thinking and critical thinking are vital for problem-solving, critical thinking is more focused on questioning information instead of taking it at face value. In fact, this is the skill that is essential for doing well in argumentative essays whether in secondary school or JC level – teachers want to see students demonstrate the ability to consider the nuances and multiple perspectives of an issue, judging and commenting on its validity.

The English component of our GEP prep classes will go through comprehension questions that train up students’ ability for deductive and inferential reasoning. Being equipped with critical thinking skills is crucial for one to be engaged with global and societal issues. It will especially be important for professions that deal with ambiguous information and major decision-making processes, such as law, business, and scientific research.

Creative problem-solving

In encountering new problems, sometimes you need a little creativity to tackle the issue. When old ways don’t work, you need to try a new way. Creative problem-solving is all about that – thinking outside the box, using divergent thinking, and testing the solutions until one works.

Most people believe that creativity is a talent, but in actual fact, it can be cultivated with practice. Through the variety of questions we go through in the GEP preparation class, students would develop a framework for generating ideas, finding connections, and solving problems.

Creative problem-solving is the backbone of innovation, and is highly essential in solutions-oriented fields like product design, engineering, and computer science.

Spatial reasoning

While not strictly a 21^st Century skill, spatial reasoning is one of the core intelligences that is frequently tested in IQ tests. Spatial reasoning is the ability to understand and manipulate objects and shapes in space. It involves visualising, manipulating, and mentally transforming objects and shapes in order to solve problems or complete tasks.

For example, spatial skills are needed to envision rotating an image in your mind, or mentally folding up a piece of origami paper. As you can imagine, this type of skill is important for a range of activities, including navigation, design, and engineering.

Spatial reasoning can be developed through practice, which is what we do at Future Academy’s GEP preparation classes! They can also be very fun to do, akin to solving puzzles in a game.

Verbal reasoning

Verbal reasoning is specific to one’s ability to use language, including written and spoken language. On a granular level, it can be about knowing the meaning of words and related words (e.g. synonyms and antonyms). On a higher order level, it can also involve drawing inference and evaluating arguments.

Verbal reasoning is often tested in the General Ability Test and English portion of the GEP tests. Some look more like word puzzles, while some will look more like comprehension passage and questions. Future Academy’s GEP preparation class helps students get familiar with the range of verbal reasoning problems and formulate ways to tackle them.

However, verbal reasoning is not easy to practice as it requires a good foundation of language built up over many years. Some ways to develop stronger verbal reasoning skills is through reading widely and engaging in discussions with others, as well as building up a strong vocabulary and grammar skills.

Conclusion

Our GEP class is not just about the GEP exam, and we hope all students will take home these skills regardless of whether they pass the screening test. If you are looking for a way to tap into your child’s potential and cultivate these intelligences, here’s your cue to sign up today!

We are committed in our mission to provide tutoring for students who are seeking to achieve excellence. For secondary level students, we also provide math tuition for IP students and IP English tuition, amongst other classes. Check out our timetables for more class timings at our tuition centre in Braddell, Bukit Timah, and Bugis!