How can MP and UP courses help my child at school?
Our communicative approach means that children are given lots of opportunity to express themselves in English in a positive and supportive atmosphere.  This helps to develop their confidence and their fluency. Your child will also develop critical thinking and analytical skills through a variety of tasks. Our self-assessment system will help your child to become a more independent learner.

Can the MP and UP courses help my child prepare for interviews for Secondary school entrance?
Yes, they can. Our emphasis on communication skills should provide your child with greater confidence going into interviews. We encourage our students to give presentations in front of the class, and try to expose them to a variety of English accents to develop their listening comprehension.

How can our courses help children taking the Cambridge YLE examinations?
Each MP and UP level is aligned to a Cambridge exam.  This means that at the end of the academic year your child will have developed his or her English skills sufficiently to take this exam.

Can Cambridge YLE certificates be used instead of the Primary placement test to indicate my child’s level?
We are unable to do this because the grading system that YLE uses (1-3 shields) doesn’t relate to our placement test levels.

How can students in different school years be grouped together when they are learning different things at school?
The content of our courses relate to your child’s language proficiency rather than their knowledge of subjects studied at school. P3 and P4 students work well together, as do P5 and P6 because their cognitive skills are similar.

Can students 'skip' a level (e.g. jump from UP1 to UP3)?
No. The courses have been carefully developed so that the children are able to consolidate and build on the language learnt in previous semesters to ensure smooth progress.

Is there a minimum level of English ability that my child needs to enter an MP or UP course?
Yes. Children need to obtain a minimum score in the placement test in order to be eligible for MP1 and UP1. They need to have a basic grasp of English – to be able to read and write at an elementary level and to contribute to a conversation with some support.

If my child has finished your current P3 course and then goes into MP1 or MP2, will he/she be repeating the same material?
No, he/she won’t. We are using different course texts.

If my child, who is entering P5 / P3, is placement tested as UP3 / MP3, what will she do the following year?
UP3 and MP3 are two-stage courses that can be run over one or two years. In this case, your child will complete both UP3 / MP3 stages over two years before moving up.

My child is entering P6 and has been placed at UP3. If he/she only does one year of UP3, will he/she be using only half of the book?
The first year of UP3 does use the first half of the course text, but it should be remembered that at this, our highest, level only part of the course is based on the course text. The other half of the course is based on UK national curriculum literacy materials.

Will the new features of the Middle and Upper Primary courses be applied to lower primary courses?
We plan to restructure Primary 1 and Primary 2 courses in 2010 by introducing new materials and a new structure to courses.  Primary 1 and 2 will not be merged however because at these ages cognitive skills are too diverse.