Any Updates As To When PSLE T-Scores Will Be Scrapped?
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Technospaz:
I like how many people out there have assumed that just because of the lower scores for AL1, that there'll be hundreds of 4s fighting for the top Sec Schools.
I think it's going to be quite the opposite. Expect many students in the 10-25 range with just a handful in the sub-10 range, and even less in the sub-5 range.
If you can find out the equivalent of T-score for 4-pointers, you will be able to guess what will be the pool size of 4 pointers. -
I felt that this new scoring system is better as it moderate the top score range to a wider band rather than the current system which so precisely define for example above 260 is top 3% of the cohort. In the new system, if you achieved 4 points, you know that you are on par with the smartest although under existing system, the different in T-score might be 10pints and might affect whether you will go RI or RV. With the new scoring system and posting criteria, it will spread more top scorer to other school rather than concentrating in RI/HCI/RGS/HYGH which I hope more 2nd tier schools (TJC, DHS, CHS, VS) will able to close the gap with these big 4.
During the old system where there is no IP and all students are posted through JAE to JC, you see a better spread of top student to probably the top 5 JCs and I felt the gap between the top 5 JCs is not as great as now. With the IP system and the big 4 getting on the top students, RI/HCI is practically running their own race, leaving others far behind. This will in turn create the image of elite school and more parents will want to squeeze their children in at all cost.
I don’t believe all schools are good schools but I believe more schools can be top schools with better distribution of top talents. It is always good to give others under existing system not able to enter the big 4 to have the opportunity to do so and benefit from it. With the intention to change DSA further, I guess MOE is trying to moderate the elitism in the system and to create a fairer system for all, meritocracy is good but not absolute meritocracy. All in all, I guess we are in the right direction. -
phtthp:
This is within a particular school. MOE has to think for the entire population and there is a much greater diversity out there.If we refer to the level mean / cohort ,mean, reported in our report card for (P3 to P6) SA1 /SA2 exam results, many students' per subject score for English, Maths, Science, tend to fall into Band 2 (ie. 80 to 84 range)
This is very common
...
For GEP schools, the level mean may be higher, falling into sometimes low Band 1 range (ie. 85 to 89 range). Students from here, it is common to see them achieving AL2 -
rains:
Hi rains, I share the exact sentiments of the highlighted. Hence I would probably push my kid to work harder to avoid the 'mediocre' which I was previously satisfied with, i.e. an A. So is the new system really able to reduce pressure for kids with a parent like me?
Haha, don't mind me but to me, hoping to get an A to get 75-85 is like 自己骗自己. 75 raw score gives you a very different T-score compared to getting 85 as a raw score. But seeing 'A' gives you the comfort of 'for all you know, he's at the 85-mark range'. The new system tells you exactly where he stands and that could be potentially frightening as instead of A (a highly acceptable grade), we now see '3' or '4' (look and sound mediocre) when actually they are essentially the same thing.
On one hand, I think it's stressful bcos now there are specific, narrow ranges of marks to aim for, after we are used to the up-in-the-air and non-transparent grades for the T-score system; on the other, if you see it positively, your child can now truly works on his weak areas to better his own scores rather than worrying if the unknown cohort's average is going to be lower, much lower, higher or much higher than his own scores.
Anyway, I rejoice that I don't have any young kid now.
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25HMOM:
like spartanmum,
So is the new system really able to reduce pressure for kids with a parent like me?
Anyway, I rejoice that I don't have any young kid now.
i do feel a sense of anxiety for the kids and their parents who would have to face the new banding system. it is worrying.
i am fortunate i do not have any young kids facing the new banding system. -
Actually, isn’t the new measurement more granular? Previously, achieving Band 1 is easy… just score 80 and above. Now, 80 to 85 will only put you in AL3, or band 3. Knowing parents, you know they are going to be driving kids to get to 1.
Maybe instead of numbers, they should use the credit rating system. A, AA, AAA. That at least gives the connotation that A is good enough, and AAA is just a bit better than A. Ha. -
UBKmom:
I agree.
During the old system where there is no IP and all students are posted through JAE to JC, you see a better spread of top student to probably the top 5 JCs and I felt the gap between the top 5 JCs is not as great as now. With the IP system and the big 4 getting on the top students, RI/HCI is practically running their own race, leaving others far behind. This will in turn create the image of elite school and more parents will want to squeeze their children in at all cost.
I don’t believe all schools are good schools but I believe more schools can be top schools with better distribution of top talents. It is always good to give others under existing system not able to enter the big 4 to have the opportunity to do so and benefit from it. With the intention to change DSA further, I guess MOE is trying to moderate the elitism in the system and to create a fairer system for all, meritocracy is good but not absolute meritocracy. All in all, I guess we are in the right direction.
Although it's true that having more educated parents have a part to play in creating the increasingly competitive environment for the kids, I feel that the T-score system has perpetuated this competitive streak from students to parents to schools and is responsible for the creation of 'elite schools' and elitism.
I think that T-score is an unhealthy system but we are very used to it and so it's become our comfort zone. The unknown and untested is always daunting but I think the new system is worth a try for the good of most children. -
ChiefKiasu:
Mr Ng CM has just increased the anxiety level.Actually, isn't the new measurement more granular? Previously, achieving Band 1 is easy... just score 80 and above. Now, 80 to 85 will only put you in AL3, or band 3. Knowing parents, you know they are going to be driving kids to get to 1.
Maybe instead of numbers, they should use the credit rating system. A, AA, AAA. That at least gives the connotation that A is good enough, and AAA is just a bit better than A. Ha. -
Looking at the new scoring system, all I feel is "Heng ah, all my kids are done with PSLE already!"
Why? Take my youngest’s case for example, even though she scored 1A (for Chinese) and 3A*, her T-score was high enough to get her into any school of her choice.
However, under the new system, depending on the raw score for her Chinese paper, she could have gotten 2 points (85-89), 3 points (80-84), or even 4 points (75-79) for Chinese, which would then yield a PSLE score of 5, and up to 7 points.
With a score of up to 7 points, would she still be able to get into her dream school, one of the highly sought-after schools, then? And even if she qualifies, she may still be subjected to balloting to get in!
I feel that before MOE implement any major change to the existing system, it should carry out surveys to see if most parents prefer the propose system, or stick to the existing one. I, obviously, prefer the existing t-score system. -
ChiefKiasu:
Actually, isn't the new measurement more granular? Previously, achieving Band 1 is easy... just score 80 and above. Now, 80 to 85 will only put you in AL3, or band 3. Knowing parents, you know they are going to be driving kids to get to 1.
Maybe instead of numbers, they should use the credit rating system. A, AA, AAA. That at least gives the connotation that A is good enough, and AAA is just a bit better than A. Ha.
That's why it's all called A (rather than band) now.
AL1, AL2, AL3...
Everyone is a A student
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