AEIS Secondary English: Components, Challenges and Preparation Strategies
- AEIS, Secondary School English
Ms Sara Feng
Specialist English Teacher
I’m Sara Feng, an English educator with a Master’s in TESOL from the University of Pennsylvania and CELTA training. I’m fluent in English and Mandarin (with conversational Cantonese and basic Japanese), and I enjoy building clear, structured learning routines that help students make steady progress.
Ms Sara's Introductory Video
Ms Sara's Profile
My teaching experience spans a wide range of age groups and goals. I’ve taught English in Singapore, the US, and China—working with primary, secondary, and adult learners. In Singapore, I support exam pathways such as Cambridge Flyers, PSLE, AEIS, and IELTS; in the US, I taught adult ESL and ran a parent-child reading programme for children aged 5–11.
Beyond teaching, I’ve also taken on mentoring and student-support roles through peer advising and pastoral care. I believe a good teacher is also a role model—someone students can trust, feel safe with, and rely on.
Overall, I value strong fundamentals, clear explanations, and consistent practice. I aim to make my classes engaging and interactive, so students learn happily with strong motivation.
Ms Sara's Teacher Spotlight
What inspires you to teach?
I am inspired to teach because it is a meaningful profession that can genuinely change a student’s trajectory. Growing up, I disliked mathematics and often felt defeated by it. In my second year of junior college, I encountered a remarkable mathematics teacher who transformed my learning experience. He consistently broke down complex concepts into clear, manageable steps and, importantly, never lost faith in me. With his guidance, my progress accelerated, and I began to see mathematics not as something frightening, but as something learnable and even enjoyable. That turning point made me realise the power of excellent teaching. I admire educators who combine strong subject expertise with patience and belief in their students, and I am motivated to develop into that kind of teacher—someone who equips learners with both skills and confidence, and helps them experience real progress.
Why do you love teaching English?
I love teaching English because I’ve always been drawn to languages. To me, language is incredibly rich. It’s not only a tool for communication, but also a way of expressing identity. Behind the same words, you can see culture, history, values, and even a person’s personality and life experience. That’s what makes English so fascinating to teach.
I also enjoy observing how different groups use the same language differently, across cultures, age groups, and social settings. In class, I like to bring in these real-life language patterns to help students see English from a wider perspective, so it feels meaningful rather than just “grammar and vocabulary.” For example, my teenage niece can send ten messages with no punctuation to express something that could be said in one clear sentence, and it drives my aunt crazy every time. Moments like this make language feel alive: small choices in how we write can signal the era we grew up in, the community we belong to, and the tone we want to project.
Ultimately, I love helping students notice these nuances and apply them in exam tasks so they can read more accurately and write with clearer structure, stronger vocabulary choices, and better control of tone.
What do you do in your free time?
Outside work, I’m a homebody with a soft spot for good food. I cook, read, keep plants alive (most of the time), and watch anime to recharge. Fun fact: I started cooking when I was about six. My mum wasn’t a fan of cooking, but I loved delicious food too much to leave it to chance, so I took matters into my own hands. I still love cooking for friends; when I was in the US, homemade Chinese food was the ultimate comfort, and it never failed to make people feel looked after. I’m not big on going out, but I do work out at home regularly, about three to four times a week, so I can happily eat more (that’s my very practical motivation!).
Tips and Strategies shared by Ms Sara
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