NSSCO Portuguese Foreign Language 6113 common mistakes
NSSCO Portuguese Foreign Language 6113 · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
In the listening section, the candidate writes the first number, time or price heard and moves on, without waiting for the speaker to correct or restate it ("às três... não, às três e meia").
Namibian candidates often hear only one pass of the recording and treat the first lexical match as the answer, rather than tracking discourse markers such as 'não', 'aliás', 'quer dizer' or 'afinal' that signal self-correction.
What to do instead
Practise shadow-listening to short dialogues where speakers correct themselves; train the habit of noting both figures and deciding only after the second pass. Learn the repair markers (aliás, ou melhor, desculpe, enganei-me) as listening cues.
The candidate transcribes what the speaker says word-for-word but cannot answer an inference item such as 'O que sugere a atitude do falante?' or 'Porque é que ele recusou?'.
School preparation often drills dictation and literal comprehension, so candidates never practise linking tone, intonation and indirect statements ("Não sei se vai dar...") to implied meaning.
What to do instead
Work through question types systematically: for each listening text, write one literal question and one inferential question. Focus on intonation cues (rising tone for doubt, hesitation markers 'bem', 'é que') and on functional language for refusing, suggesting and complaining.
In reading, the candidate lifts a whole sentence from the text as the answer to an open question, so the response does not fit the question's grammar or does not answer what was asked.
Candidates equate 'finding the information' with 'copying the sentence'; they do not check whether the question asks for a cause, a purpose or a contrast that needs reformulation.
What to do instead
Teach answer-shaping: underline the key word in the question (porquê, para quê, quando, quem), find the relevant line, then rewrite it so the subject and tense match the question. Practise converting 'porque...' clauses into direct answers and vice versa.
The candidate confuses similar-looking or false-friend vocabulary in context, e.g. reading 'pais' as 'parents' when it means 'countries', 'oficina' as 'office', or 'propina' as 'bribe' rather than 'tuition fee'.
Portuguese shares Latin roots with English but has shifted meanings; candidates rely on English guesses instead of context, and Namibian classrooms may not systematically teach these contrasts.
What to do instead
Build a personal false-friend list (pais, oficina, propina, realizar, assistir, compromisso, polvo) and learn each with a Portuguese sentence, not an English gloss. In exam practice, always confirm a guess against the surrounding sentence before committing.
In controlled writing, the candidate produces the required content but leaves out the structural markers the task demands, such as a formal opening and closing in a letter or the correct connector for a required contrast.
Candidates focus on vocabulary and grammar and treat format as decoration; they also over-rely on 'e' and 'mas' because they lack a repertoire of connectors for the register.
What to do instead
Memorise short templates for the task types in the syllabus (carta formal, e-mail, postal, convite, texto de opinião): opening (Exmos. Senhores / Caro(a) ...), closing (Com os melhores cumprimentos / Atentamente) and a bank of connectors (no entanto, além disso, por conseguinte, uma vez que).
In free writing, the candidate writes long, ambitious sentences with English word order or direct translation, producing errors such as 'Eu tenho 17 anos de idade e eu gosto muito de jogar futebol com os meus amigos todos os dias' with repeated subject pronouns and misplaced adverbs.
Translation from English (or from Oshiwambo/Afrikaans first-language patterns) drives pronoun insertion and adverb placement; candidates have not internalised Portuguese's preference for dropping subject pronouns and for sentence-final or auxiliary-adjacent adverbs.
What to do instead
Practise sentence-combining and reduction: rewrite drafts removing redundant subject pronouns, placing 'sempre/nunca/já' correctly (before the verb, after an auxiliary), and splitting sentences over 20 words. Keep a checklist of the five most frequent personal errors and apply it to every draft.
The candidate answers oral questions with one- or two-word replies ('Sim', 'Não gosto') and never initiates or extends, so the examiner cannot award marks for range or interaction.
Candidates fear making mistakes aloud, and classroom practice may have been teacher-led question-answer with little peer interaction, so they have no strategies for sustaining a turn.
What to do instead
Rehearse the 'answer plus two' rule: every answer adds a reason and an example or a return question ('Gosto, porque... Por exemplo... E tu?'). Prepare three ready-made extended answers on predictable topics (família, escola, tempo livre, planos) and record yourself to check length and fluency.
The candidate's speech is dominated by hesitation and self-repair in English or the first language, or by reading aloud from prepared notes, so pronunciation and fluency marks collapse.
Lack of spoken rehearsal means the candidate has not automatised high-frequency chunks and resorts to translation mid-sentence; reading notes also flattens intonation and prevents interaction.
What to do instead
Drill high-frequency chunks (na minha opinião, por um lado, o que eu queria dizer é) until automatic, and practise speaking from keyword cards rather than scripts. Do timed 60-second monologues recorded and replayed to track fillers and pacing.
The candidate chooses the wrong tense or mood in context, e.g. using the present indicative after 'se' in a hypothetical ('se eu tenho tempo') or confusing pretérito perfeito with imperfeito when narrating ('Ontem eu ia à escola').
Tense choice is taught as a list of forms rather than as meaning; candidates do not connect perfect/imperfect to completed versus habitual or background events, and the subjunctive is often avoided entirely.
What to do instead
Practise meaning-based contrasts with timelines: perfect for single completed events, imperfect for habits and description, subjunctive after 'se', 'espero que', 'é importante que'. Do gap-fill sets where only the discourse context, not the verb form, determines the answer.
The candidate writes about Portuguese-speaking communities using vague generalities ('A cultura é muito rica e as pessoas são simpáticas') or mixes up countries, capitals and facts, such as placing the Amazon in Angola or calling moeda the currency of Mozambique.
Topical knowledge is often revised as isolated facts without a geographical or historical frame, and candidates lack the specific vocabulary (PALOP, CPLP, lusofonia, guerra colonial, independência) to be precise.
What to do instead
Build a one-page grid: country, capital, independence date, official language status, one cultural feature and one economic fact for Portugal, Brasil, Angola, Moçambique, Cabo Verde, Guiné-Bissau, São Tomé e Príncipe and Timor-Leste. Rehearse sentences that use the precise terms rather than evaluative adjectives.