Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education

0539 Urdu as a Second Language June 2021

URDU AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

Paper 0539/01
Reading and Writing

Key messages

In Reading, candidates are expected not only to understand the information provided in the passage/text but
also to be able to extract certain information, distinguish facts and recognise ideas and opinions. They are
required to demonstrate the ability to extract relevant information from the source texts and scan for
particular information, then organise and present it in the required format.

In Writing, candidates need to ensure that answers fulfil the requirements of tasks as well as development
of ideas by using appropriate register/format. Candidates should demonstrate the ability to employ a variety
of grammatical structures and vocabulary. Here, writing conventions such as paragraphing and accurate
punctuation should be adhered to.

General comments

The first paper of the new specification was well balanced for all abilities and accessible to all candidates.
The majority of candidates appeared to understand what was required for each exercise and they attempted
all the tasks in the paper. The overall performance on this component was high. Most candidates did well in
the reading exercises, showing good general understanding of the passages. In the writing exercises, many
candidates were able to write fluently and express their ideas. Many of the written compositions were
subjective, distinctive and interesting to read.

Comments on specific questions

Exercise 1

Questions 1 – 6

The stimulus text for these questions was taken from a magazine article. The short answer questions were
designed to test skimming and gist-reading skills. Most candidates answered the questions successfully,
providing the precise information required.

Exercise 2

Questions 7 – 15

The source text for the testing of multiple matching statements was about human development. Candidates
were required to match statements/sentences to the paragraph in which the idea appeared.

Nearly all candidates found this exercise accessible and achieved good marks. Some found Question 7
challenging.

© 2021
 Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education
0539 Urdu as a Second Language June 2021
Principal Examiner Report for Teachers

Exercise 3

Questions 16 – 19

In this exercise, candidates needed to read a long text about book reading and to make brief notes under
supplied headings by identifying/selecting appropriate details. The majority of candidates did well in
answering these questions. A few, who did not provide a complete or precise answer, lost marks, mainly in
response to questions 18 and 19.

Question 18

One of the required answers was ‘These children’s interest in reading is far greater than in other children’.
Some candidates just wrote ‘The increased interest in reading,’ which was incomplete and could not receive
credit.

Question 19

One of the required answers was ‘books are expensive’. Candidates who just wrote ‘due to inflation’ could
not gain the mark.

Exercise 4

Question 20

In this exercise, candidates are asked to write a summary on two key aspects of the text in Exercise 3 and
to present them in a 100-word summary, using an appropriate format and structure. For this summary, up to
4 marks are available for content and up to 6 marks for language.

The topic of the passage was book reading and candidates were required to write a summary on the current
situation of book reading in Pakistan and what steps can be taken to develop interest in reading. In order to
score full marks for content, both aspects of the question needed to be addressed.

Only some candidates provided precise details on both aspects of the question. The majority of candidates
kept their summary within the specified word limit. Nearly all candidates managed to get 3 or 4 marks for
content. A small minority gained no mark or 1 mark as they simply copied text from the original passage. In
terms of language, many candidates managed to get 4 or 5 marks out of 6.

It was obvious from some responses that a few candidates had little or no knowledge of summary writing and
they just wrote unnecessary and lengthy information without paying attention to the question itself.

Candidates should be reminded that if they rely heavily on lifting/copying the text for their summary, it is not
possible for them to achieve full marks for language. In addition, accuracy in spelling and correct use of a
wide range of vocabulary and grammatical structures can help candidates achieve top marks.

Exercise 5

Question 21

In this exercise, candidates write a short piece of functional prose. In this series, they were asked to write an
email to their grandfather about a visit to a village. They had to include the detail provided in three short
prompts in the question. For this exercise, up to 3 marks are available for content and up to 5 marks for
language.

To get the top band mark of 5 for language, candidates need to demonstrate effective use of wide range of
language, organised into sequenced and linked paragraphs.

Most candidates performed well in this new task, using an appropriate register and form of address for an
email communication.

© 2021
 Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education
0539 Urdu as a Second Language June 2021
Principal Examiner Report for Teachers

Exercise 6

Question 22

In this exercise, candidates were required to write an argumentative/discursive essay of about 200 words on
the value of mother tongue. The stimulus was provided in the form of for and against statements which could
be used as part of the discussion. It was interesting to observe that the majority of candidates found this
topic accessible, perhaps because it related to both their learning and their social life. In this exercise, up to 8
marks are available for content and up to 8 marks for language.

The task was handled well by the majority of candidates, and they wrote well-presented written pieces. Many
candidates used the suggested prompts/statements to organise their ideas and reasoning, whereas a few
handled the discussion in their own way. Discursive and argumentative approaches were equally credited.

The majority of written responses met the assessment criteria and scored good marks for both content and
language. Nearly all candidates fulfilled the task consistently with appropriate register and provided excellent
ideas and justifications. In most pieces, the language used was of good quality with successful use of a
range of vocabulary and language structures. Most candidates used paragraphs, as is required to achieve
top band marks for content.

Those candidates who took advantage of using the suggested prompts for their planning provided excellent
written pieces and gained good marks.

Candidates are reminded that the key to achieving top marks for content is clear relevance to the given title
and to ensure that ideas are fully developed, opinions are expressed and justified with reasons; the written
account should sustain the reader’s interest. Candidates should avoid using English transliterated words,
though transcribed words for certain names and places are permissible.

© 2021
 Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education
0539 Urdu as a Second Language June 2021
Principal Examiner Report for Teachers

URDU AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

Paper 0539/02
Listening

Key messages

In order to do well in this examination, candidates should:

General comments

The overall performance of the candidates was good. Candidates appeared to be well prepared for this
examination and responded adequately to the questions; there were also some high-quality scripts where
candidates demonstrated good understanding through accurate and focused responses. It was the very first
examination after the application of the new syllabus; but due to the postponement of exams in many
locations, there was a relatively small candidate entry this year.

This paper assesses ‘listening for understanding’ and therefore most feasible and legible phonetic attempts
at answers are accepted as long as the meaning is clear. However, candidates must ensure that their
responses are comprehensible and unambiguous. If the answer is spelled in a way to make another word
that changes the meaning (e.g. ‫ �ب‬instead of ‫ �ب‬or �� instead of ��), a mark is not awarded.

Comments on specific questions

Exercise I – Question 1–8

These questions were based on eight different brief scenarios. Candidates had to respond to questions,
selecting the key information they gathered from them. Candidates understood this task well and Questions
3, 4 and 8 were accurately answered by all ability levels. Questions 1 and 7 were mostly well understood,
whereas, some candidates found Questions 2, 5 and 6 a bit challenging. However, the majority of
candidates managed to achieve good marks for this exercise.

Candidates should be able to differentiate between the key information and more detailed information when
answering these questions, so that they can respond accurately to the precise question asked.

Exercise II – Question 9

For this exercise, candidates had to fill in the blanks from Question 9(a) to Question 9(h) with correct
information from the recording which was about the establishment of schools. There were many responses
that showed a very good understanding of the recording and the questions. All feasible phonetic attempts at
answers were accepted as long as the meaning was not changed. Question 9(e) proved challenging for
many candidates and they confused the school leaving age of children in 1880 (10 years) with other
numbers mentioned in the recording.

Exercise III – Question 10

This multiple-matching exercise required candidates to listen to six people’s opinions about fashion and then
match the opinions in one column with the correct person in the other column. Generally, most of the
candidates scored well on this task.

Exercise IV – Questions 11–18

© 2021
 Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education
0539 Urdu as a Second Language June 2021
Principal Examiner Report for Teachers

Exercise IV consisted of eight multiple-choice questions based on the recording of an interview with students
at foreign universities for an Urdu newspaper. Candidates had to select and mark the correct answer out of
four given options. Generally, this part was well attempted, and many candidates successfully scored high
marks. Questions 12, 13, 14, 17 and 18 were accurately answered by all candidates. However, a few
candidates were unsuccessful with answers to Questions 11, 15 and 16

Candidates should be advised to listen carefully to all parts of the recording and carefully select their
answers from the given options.

© 2021
 Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education
0539 Urdu as a Second Language June 2021
Principal Examiner Report for Teachers

URDU AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

Paper 0539/05
Speaking

Key messages

In order to do well in this examination candidates should:

• Choose a particular aspect of a topic for their presentation prior to the examination.
• Focus on this selected aspect of a topic rather than deal superficially with a wide area.
• Be prepared for spontaneous conversation in the topic conversation.

General comments

This year there were a limited number of centres which sent recordings for moderation.

Some candidates seemed to be unprepared for the examination and demonstrated a lack of awareness or
understanding of syllabus requirements. In some cases, the examiner showed a lack of understanding of the
procedure for conducting the speaking examination.

Comments on specific part of the examination

Part 1: Presentation

Candidates are expected to select a specific aspect of a topic prior to the examination, which should be an
area in which they have a personal interest or in which they have some personal experience so that they are
able to share their opinions and ideas. To allow for the development of ideas and conversation, it is better if
candidates focus on one particular aspect of a wider topic, for example, talking about a hobby, or a holiday.
The presentation should last for two to three minutes in total. In general, candidates should provide an
overview of their chosen topic. This will help then to stay within the 2–3-minute timeframe and prevent them
from rushing in order to fit in a great deal of content.

Most candidates did not appear to be sufficiently prepared for the examination and some did not present
their topic for the required length of time. This resulted in the test starting as a conversation, which had an
impact on the candidates’ performance.

Nonetheless, some candidates and examiners were well-prepared, and these tests were conducted well.
Here, the candidate presented in a confident and a fluent manner for the required length of time and was
aware of the need to focus their presentation and demonstrate their knowledge of contemporary society.

Part 2: Topic Conversation

This part of the examination is linked to Part 1, and it should last for 3–4 minutes. The examiner should ask
open-ended questions to explore the information given during the presentation in more detail. Some
candidates could not perform this task as the presentation was missing. Consequently, candidates could not
be awarded marks for this part of the test as the two parts are interlinked. Instead, the examiner asked
questions on various unrelated topics and the candidates had a general conversation with the examiner.

Some candidates were prepared well for this part and performed well. It was evident that they had prepared
well. Centres must make sure that they have provided examiners with necessary documents, such as the
syllabus and guidelines on how to conduct the speaking test well before the examination is due to take
place. They must also ensure that candidates understand and are familiar with the format of the speaking
examination.

© 2021
 Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education
0539 Urdu as a Second Language June 2021
Principal Examiner Report for Teachers

Part 3: General Conversation

In this section, the examiner and candidate should engage in a conversation which lasts between 3–4
minutes. At least two topics must be covered from the general topic areas listed in the syllabus. The
examiner should ensure that at least one topic from topic areas A–B is covered as well as one from areas C–
E. It is vital that candidates prepare for all topics as they do not know in advance which topics will be covered
by the teacher/examiner.

Most candidates managed to respond well to the examiner’s questions and score reasonable marks. Some
candidates demonstrated a wide vocabulary and complex sentence structures in a fluent manner. A variety
of topics were covered in this section, for example, holidays, visiting different places, differing lifestyles and
education systems.

The teachers/examiners and candidates must read the speaking test guidelines and syllabus requirements
well before the examination day. It is also advisable for candidates to have practised the test format in class,
so they are suitably prepared and fully understand what is expected of them in the examination.

© 2021