Cedar VS St Nicholas
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Hey,
I’m a student from Cedar, and to be honest, I don’t find it very healthy here. The teachers in Cedar are also rather exam-based. They don’t really care about the student’s well-being. Also, they don’t support freedom of speech, and don’t encourage debates. If you are considering on sending your daughter/son here, I suggest you to think twice. It is really stressful here. It may seem that it is a good school, in terms of COP, but the environment isn’t very healthy. Also, the school places heavy emphasis on sports, and also forces the students to jog every week under the hot sun. (Or twice, for upper sec) -
Hmm yes, it’s true that they place a lot of focus on academic excellence, but it’s strange that you say the teachers don’t encourage debates and freedom of speech, or care about the well being of students. My teachers were very very supportive during my sec 4 year, especially approaching O levels. As I’m quite prone to stress, my teachers would find all kinds of ways to calm me down. A teacher gave me a chocolate each day before my papers during the O levels, so that I would be calm.
I actually learned to speak up in my times in Cedar. I was quite shy at first, but gradually became braver, and I even dared to approach the senior administration to highlight a certain issue, something I never thought I was brave enough to do, and it was rectified the next week.
During my time, which is last year actually, we have this reading & presentation periods. Not sure if the school still has it. Anyway, during these periods, the teachers will ask us to present our opinions on an article which we had read before hand. This was sometimes done in debate style, of which all of us had immense fun. In sec 3, my term 3 english timed assignment was debate. We also had debates in higher chinese class. I’m not sure if all these have changed in a year, or maybe I was fortunate to have teachers who supported our personal growth and learning.
I think it’s fine that the school places a heavy emphasis on sports, as most people who enter the school would be quite high achievers in the academic area, so the emphasis on sports will then help students to grow holistically. I’m not going to mention anything about performing arts since it’s always debated. Anyway, I thought jogging would be quite agonising at first, but during every jogging session, we would cheer as a class, and support each other, the faster ones waiting for the slower ones and cheering them on to keep jogging. All the support from friends really made it possible for me to go through all the jogging sessions. Of course, when it rained or jogging was cancelled, we still felt happy. It is usually quite hot and sunny during jogging, so most of us put sunblock. My PE now however is really during mid day, so I’m not complaining about jogging at 10am (if my memory serves me correctly).
Of course, all these are my personal experiences, so it may remain unique to me and me only, and it is possible that everyone else has a bad experience with Cedar. I really don’t know. -
Perhaps it was only because it was the crucial ‘O’ level year. But on a daily basis, you wouldn’t see teachers encouraging you along the way. What I feel is that the teachers in Cedar are not caring. Granted, there are perhaps a few that are caring, and perhaps encouraging. But the majority are not. There are still R&P periods, but many teachers just abandon the entire idea. In fact, I haven’t had actual R&P periods for about almost a term. Some teachers do encourage debates. But many, more than often, the younger teachers, would always discourage debates, and would prefer if it was a ‘discussion’. I’m not saying this just for the sake of saying this. In fact, I have experienced it countless times. Whenever a debate sparks off, the teacher would always say that I was too aggressive, or I was too condescending, or I was too rude. They seem to always twist it into another altogether. Also, I even had teachers who rejected my ideas in CCA repeatedly, and instead, insisted on their ideas, even though they claimed that ‘they would let the students come up with their own ideas’. When I defended myself, they brought me out, and called me defiant and rude, and insulted my character. The worst was, the teacher said that ‘it is better if you leave the CCA if you’re going to be like that all the time’. I don’t think it’s right for a teacher to act like that. To be honest, I feel like I don’t belong here.
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I agree, I was a cedarian too, our teachers in cedar are very helpful and approchable
it's actually a teacher's duty to make things exam based to prepare us for the o levels:) the whole cedar spirit is so strong in cedar that it helped me survive cedar pretty easily! -
WeiHan:
Not true. SNGS's cop is around 252-253. If you are going to talk about the recent drop, let's not forget that 1. Last year everyone scored much lower, 2. SNGS raised their affiliation COP, thus freeing more space for outsiders, 3. Very little people below 250 would try SNGS as the chances used to be so low for them, thus I suspect many people in that 245-250 range wanted to apply for SNGS but felt they had no hope and didn't even try, though this is totally what I think.It was indeed true that SNGS and Cedar Girls were in a different league. But it was the past.
Cedar girls COP used to be 242-243, but it is 249-250 today. SNGS's COP used to be 255-257 but it is 249-250 today. Still good school but popularity has changed due to other factors. -
StillThinking:
Not true. SNGS's cop is around 252-253. If you are going to talk about the recent drop, let's not forget that 1. Last year everyone scored much lower, 2. SNGS raised their affiliation COP, thus freeing more space for outsiders, 3. Very little people below 250 would try SNGS as the chances used to be so low for them, thus I suspect many people in that 245-250 range wanted to apply for SNGS but felt they had no hope and didn't even try, though this is totally what I think.WeiHan:
It was indeed true that SNGS and Cedar Girls were in a different league. But it was the past.
Cedar girls COP used to be 242-243, but it is 249-250 today. SNGS's COP used to be 255-257 but it is 249-250 today. Still good school but popularity has changed due to other factors.
Yes. I heard that there were many who appeal to SNGS after posting because their results could have got them into the school but did not apply because they will afraid they could not make the previous year's high cut off.
The raising of the affliation COP was once of the reason but few people knew that there were more vacancies available because of that. -
In my opinion, both are great schools. Few points different doesnt really matter. its all about your child's preference which schools she likes the most.
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StillThinking:
I was saying that Cedar Girls has catched up quite alot with SNGS. As you can see from the school ranking data in 1996, Cedar's COP used to be around 240 in the 90s or even 2000s and SNGS's COP used to be in the 250s for the non-affiliated S1 posting.
Not true. SNGS's cop is around 252-253. If you are going to talk about the recent drop, let's not forget that 1. Last year everyone scored much lower, 2. SNGS raised their affiliation COP, thus freeing more space for outsiders, 3. Very little people below 250 would try SNGS as the chances used to be so low for them, thus I suspect many people in that 245-250 range wanted to apply for SNGS but felt they had no hope and didn't even try, though this is totally what I think.WeiHan:
It was indeed true that SNGS and Cedar Girls were in a different league. But it was the past.
Cedar girls COP used to be 242-243, but it is 249-250 today. SNGS's COP used to be 255-257 but it is 249-250 today. Still good school but popularity has changed due to other factors.
http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/press/1996/pr02596.htm#Table1
Today, Cedar's COP is usually in the high 240s or low 250s while SNGS's COP is in the mid 240s for its non-affiliates.
2002 data is even clearer.
http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/press/2002/pr15082002.htm
SNGS's COP for non-affiliates was 256 while CGS's COP was 236. -
WeiHan:
Today, Cedar's COP is usually in the high 240s or low 250s while SNGS's COP is in the mid 240s for its non-affiliates.
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Aiyoh, please go check your facts lah.
As of yesterday, COP
Cedar Girls' Sec Sch (254/250)
CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls' Sch (258/253)
Where got mid 240s ???
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St Nicks COP always higher than Cedar all these years…
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