A Letter from ST Forum

[corneyAmber]

Mods, my apologies if you have to do the extra work of moving this post to the relevant thread. I comtemplated putting it in the Maris Stella thread, but feel that it is not exactly related to the school itself, so decided to post in Chit Chat. Please feel free to move it to anywhere you deem fit. Thanks in advance.


My thoughts after reading this article is that this particular parent is being ridiculous. :x As if he/she didn't know from the very beginning that Maris Stella is a SAP school and does he/she expect ALL the Chinese teachers from the school from P1 to P6 to teach Chinese using English just because his/her son is a non-Chinese? :?

To me, if one is a non-Chinese and you know that your child would have problem coping with Chinese as a second language in a normal school, what more about a SAP school which uses Higher Chinese from P1? Why send your child to a SAP school in the first place and and expect the school to bend backwards just to accommodate your child?

The online comments are so appropriate!

http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_506220.html

Mar 25, 2010 The Straits Times
How Chinese minus English spoilt it all

MY SON, eight, is in Primary 2 in Maris Stella High. Primary 1 was a breeze for him. Not only was he among the top three pupils in English and Mathematics, but he was among the best third in Chinese in a mother tongue class of 36.

He is one of the few non-Chinese, if not the only one in his class, to study the language.

It changed when he started Primary 2. From a cheerful and bubbly boy eager to go to school, he became gloomy and sad. The reason was Chinese.

A few weeks ago, he came home crying because his new Chinese teacher refused to speak in English. It was made worse by the fact that my son had enjoyed learning Chinese in Primary 1.

Who will suffer? No one but my son because he will not understand 90 per cent of what his teacher is saying.

Amit Nagpal

[keroppi]

Same thoughts as you. Why send the child to a SAP school in the first place? If she has been reading the papers, she would have read about how local Chinese kids are already struggling with the Chinese language in schools.


I think she only has herself to blame. She should have started off the child off in a normal school, taking normal Chinese first and if herchild is really good, then let him take HMT in P5/6.

It’s like parents who send their children to mission schools and then complain about their kids being indocrinated with Christian teachings, having to pray, sing hymns and listen to devotion. What do they expect?

[corneyAmber]

Yeah this parent is really interesting to embark on such a bold journey without the relevant support at home not to mention at school.


I think this parent is deluded to think that schools are platforms to learn additional languages at the primary level. Kudos to MOE for Jnaming the learning of this additional language as mother tongue. It simply means that there is already some form of learning of the language based on birth origin or environment and hence it cannot be expected to be learned like a foreign language using another language.

This parent needs a little shakeup.

[Blobbi]

This sort of people also got??? :shock:


First he puts his son in a SAP school with hopes it will do wonders for his Chinese.

Now that his son is not thriving, he wants to the school to bring the standard down so that his son will continue to thrive. But what about the other kids in the standard??

So the school should switch to being non-SAP, just for one kid?

[keroppi]

lovekidsverymuch:

Well its been always taught to us that if its English class speak in English hence it makes total sense if its Chinese Class the class teacher will speak in chinese and is expected by all students to follow it...

If in Chinese class still don't speak Chinese, then my kids have no chance to practice their Orals anymore ...

[corneyAmber]

That’s my exact sentiments. Felt so angry :x after reading the letter in the ST this morning, that’s why decided to post it here for discussion.


Some people are simply beyond understanding and ridiculous in their demands when he/she was the one in the wrong in the first place. :x

[tankee]

they shouldn't be asking for the school to change, afterall, it is higher chinese and a SAP school.


the parent should either seek after school chinese enrichment / support or seek to transfer to a normal primary school.

the angmoh investment guru who sent his DD to NYPS, hired a china chinese as a housekeeper and tutor to his DD. I wonder how is Happy coping in NYPS. :?

[corneyAmber]

It take sorts to make the world and it is good to know where they exist.


I read a report on Japanese parents demands getting very unreasonable too......expects cc to provide the parents with breakfast when they drop off their kids... :lol:

[qms]

I think the author's issue is more on the fact that her son no longer is the top in the class, rather than whether her son enjoys Chinese lessons or not.


Look at the way she put it. She sounded so proud that her son was top in English and Maths, and Top 3 for Chinese.

More of a pride issue for her than anything else, in my opinion.

[KSP]

I feel there are some contradiction in this report. First it say the child was among the best third in Chinese in a mother tongue class of 36 in P1 but then in P2 he will not understand 90 per cent of what his teacher is saying.


Can the change be so drastic from P1 to P2?