Candidates’ weaknesses were revealed in the three sections of the paper:

In the essay section, most candidates lacked the expression to carry through their ideas. Some of them could not clearly demonstrate a clear understanding of the questions.

In the Comprehension and Summary questions, many of the candidates who did not understand the passages resorted to lifting portions of the passages mindlessly as answers.

Also evident were the usual weaknesses reported on every year:
 They include:

1. Ignorance of the difference between ‘singular’ and ‘plural’;
2. Ignorance of the difference between ‘present’ and ‘past tense’.
3. Inability to construct meaningful sentences;
4. Providing answers that have no relationship to the questions;
5. Inability to re-state in the candidate’s own words, ideas contained in a passage;
6. Ignorance of common literary terms;
7. Ignorance of functions of clauses.

1. SUGGESTED REMEDIES

1.  Candidates should learn the basic grammatical structures of English Language.
2. Candidates should acquaint themselves with the techniques for answering questions.
3. Candidates should inculcate the habit of reading widely with a view to improving their vocabulary.
4. Candidates should practise essay writing regularly.
5. Candidates should understand the demands of questions before answering them.