QET Adversity

It pains me deeply to write this essay, just as it has pained me seeing that the result of my qualifying English test has such poor affirmation of my English standard. I am definitely not blaming anyone but myself. Living a “hard life” as a student, by giving myself unnecessary pain, guilt and misery by unrealistic goals and lofty dreams have brought about a self-blaming process. After I was done blaming myself on what happened, I set a higher goal for myself. However, the vicious cycle continue. I personally think that self blaming and self criticism are the greatest virtue that one could possibly cultivate in order to do better next time. I grew up always believing that everything that went wrong was my fault. I guess this belief utterly wrong.

Knowing about QET long before entering NUS, I tried to improve myself in terms of writing skills. However the result is truly demoralizing. As someone who is very determined and strong willed in getting what I wanted after a prolong period of suffering. I know how it feels to want something so badly and get nothing out of it. What happened to poetic justice or even the tortoise and hare’s story? This incident began to change me holistically and comes to term that sometimes the very things I wanted most in life end up being the things that I just might never get. Hopefully this module helps me for the better.

The result begins to make me reflect on my past. I am in the 1st year of the 2nd semester (sophomore) of my university life. At the end of the third year or probably the fourth year, I am going to graduate. Whatever it is, I have to admit that I am on the brink of working life and soon I will have to make my own way through life. The question now is has the past years I spent in school been worthwhile? How has QET helped me prepare or rather open me to new opportunity to unlearn and relearn English once again? In Singapore, English is perceived as the language of business and administration. In the world., it is seen as the lingua franca probably due to the economic, cultural and political power of the most developed western countries in the world like the USA and United Kingdom.

My past years in school made me unwittingly think that I had improved on the grasp of the English language since the O level; perhaps my judgement has clouded me. Undeniably school taught me the basic skills of writing, reading and arithmetic, however that wasn’t enough to survive in NUS. The qualifying English test makes me realized that I have far more to learn and unlearn. In pursuit of greater achievements, I guess its time for me to empower myself, grit my teeth and come to terms with my weakness and really comprehend English at the best of my ability.

Summing up, I would say that my education had been quite worthwhile and enriching, there is a lot to remember and a lot worth forgetting. I may not be the ideal student that would any educationist happy and proud but I know I am not a failure either. In my heart, I know that the experiences I gained from any education institutions are priceless. What I am today is the direct result of what I achieved of my past education. Into the bargain, the very fact that I am able to pen down my views as I am doing now and accepting the fact that something needs to be done should vouch for the worth of my educational tour. In conclusion, I hope to compensate for the above mentioned Achilles heels with believe, hard work and discipline,