PSLE science question is tough for kids
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geylang:
the ability to answer open-ended questions in the 'scientific' form of English is not easy. it is a technique which our students have to be taught. the so-called keywords is insufficient to get the full marks...because the answer would have to be arranged systematically to get the mark, something which is not taught in school.
I think English ability is one major problem. Many students may not be able to understand the lengthy question, don't mention about answering it.
Secondly the requirement for the answer by SEAB is not predictable. Students need to have a certain strategy to explain to ensure the full coverage of the question.
Do not let the PSLE candidates use their own words to answer the \"explain\" type questions. Unlikely to get full marks for every question. Kids with good understanding of science concept may just get 1/2 mark out of a 1 mark question. -
geylang:
Do not let the PSLE candidates use their own words to answer the \"explain\" type questions. Unlikely to get full marks for every question. Kids with good understanding of science concept may just get 1/2 mark out of a 1 mark question.
This has been the issue for many many years already but MOE is still a blockhead n refused to make changes.
I find it so ironical. Education Ministers wants Singapore students to be creative, 'think out of the box' n not regurgitate what they learn from books BUT why is it at the end of the day, PSLE candidates don't score high if they don't reproduce scientific answers (only acceptable answers by SEAB). They cant use their own words although they understand scientific concepts.
:slapshead: -
firstly, those dumb textbooks which we have to buy are useless.
schools don't teach students how to answer PSLE type of questions, but set those questions for exams...this explains why tuition is needed. the worst thing is marking the students' scripts as though they are sitting for psle. MOE should release the kind of answers they are expecting...what's the point of releasing past years PSLE exams but not the answers expected...ridiculous. -
Primary science education in Singapore has a very basic problem. The primary school teachers are normally not science students when they were studying in school. Many avoided science subjects then. The degree they hold are mainly art and commerce.
It is difficult to produce good science students when the teachers dislike science or not confident in science.
The qualified science trained teachers are normally sent to the secondary schools. Ans in the past, these experts are not allowed to transfer from secondary schools to primary schools for some weird reasons. Heard recently there is a door for it. Hopefully is true. -
are our primary school teachers equipped to teach the students to face PSLE science? I see the answers copied by daughter for tests and they are very PSLE standard…but I wonder how are the kids taught to handle questions and answer with that kind of standard?
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janet88:
are our primary school teachers equipped to teach the students to face PSLE science? I see the answers copied by daughter for tests and they are very PSLE standard...but I wonder how are the kids taught to handle questions and answer with that kind of standard?
For section b, can anyone share if the school teach how to arrive at the key words to be used in the answer? How does this method work? Thanks. -
hi FantasyLandDreams,
I would like to know how the teacher teaches them to piece the answer too. -
I have to say that there is really no proper teaching of science in the school. This problem not only occur in her present school but also in her previous school. Throughout P3 to P6, there is no one teacher that can really teach Science well. In her previous school, her teacher who was in the science committee, can teach science concept wrongly, till the students pointed to her. I wonder how does this teacher survived her years of being a science teacher. :mad: My child is now in P6, I really hardly see any materials given by the school and to prepare for SA1, only 1 set of practise paper was given. My child told me that all the topics in P6 were taught in a \"touch and go\" manner. And worst of all the recent SA1 paper, the questions were set so tough, above PSLE standard, more difficult than the usual top school papers questions (my child's school is one of the top school). I do not understand why so little was taught, 1 week 5 lessons for science, with text books that cannot rely on, with no extra materials given and yet expect so much from the students. :faint: I have to get a tutor to give her intensive lessons recently,
I have given up hope to the school science teachers. :stupid: -
Sunflower mummy:
And worst of all the recent SA1 paper, the questions were set so tough, above PSLE standard, more difficult than the usual top school papers questions (my child's school is one of the top school).
the recent SA1 paper was not easy and the answers were PSLE standard.
not that I have given up hope on the teacher, but I really wonder if the class is taught to piece such answers. by teaching them to do so, it would mean 'spotting questions' but psle questions are quite standard in the sense that same kind of diagrams are tested.
can our science teachers be sent for a course to teach students how to piece answers expected of them for psle?
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