Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) Updates

[Zappy]

mummyof3angels\" post_id=\"2038400\" time=\"1631860430\" user_id=\"194437:

For those parents with kids in primary school. I heard that we must be prepared for some announcement later.

Please don't be HBL. Please don't be HBL. Please don't be HBL. :scared:

So prophetic...

[lee_yl]

SG_KP1\" post_id=\"2038522\" time=\"1631928940\" user_id=\"188234:

P1-P5 HBL from 27 Sept - 6 Oct.

https://www.moe.gov.sg/news/press-releases/20210918-additional-precautionary-measures-for-primary-schools-in-the-lead-up-to-psle

Is there any evidence that P1-P5 children will fall severely ill if they contracted Covid?

There is a price to pay for HBL. It is not as painless as one imagines, especially the less privileged families with no access to other teaching resources will suffer.

Maybe MOE gave in due to pressure from parents?

I am very sure many of the parents go out (to shop, to dine in). Yesterday the shopping malls were so crowded! DH called a few restaurants to book for a dinner and all are fully booked!

Maybe it is easier to ask the Govt to give in instead of giving up their own voluntary action of going out.

[mummyof3angels]

Zappy\" post_id=\"2038526\" time=\"1631930207\" user_id=\"134817:

mummyof3angels\" post_id=\"2038400\" time=\"1631860430\" user_id=\"194437:

For those parents with kids in primary school. I heard that we must be prepared for some announcement later.

Please don't be HBL. Please don't be HBL. Please don't be HBL. :scared:

So prophetic...

Was hoping against hope that it won't be HBL.

[zac's mum]

lee_yl\" post_id=\"2038528\" time=\"1631930733\" user_id=\"17023:

SG_KP1\" post_id=\"2038522\" time=\"1631928940\" user_id=\"188234:

P1-P5 HBL from 27 Sept - 6 Oct.

https://www.moe.gov.sg/news/press-releases/20210918-additional-precautionary-measures-for-primary-schools-in-the-lead-up-to-psle

Is there any evidence that P1-P5 children will fall severely ill if they contracted Covid?

There is a price to pay for HBL. It is not as painless as one imagines, especially the less privileged families with no access to other teaching resources will suffer.

Maybe MOE gave in due to pressure from parents?

I am very sure many of the parents go out (to shop, to dine in). Yesterday the shopping malls were so crowded! DH called a few restaurants to book for a dinner and all are fully booked!

Maybe it is easier to ask the Govt to give in instead of giving up their own voluntary action of going out.

I have the same sentiments. WTF and all that.

At least I will be able to use the at-home time to help DS revise for his SA2 exams. That period so happens to be after his Compo/作文 papers and before his Oral and subsequent papers. Or his teachers may be planning full-on revision via Zoom/mock papers with recorded explanations, I don’t know.

For sure it is not easy for the P5 teachers to be slapped with this sudden move. I know they are very responsible. How will they implement their final important revision lap with the kids before SA2? Sigh…

[SG_KP1]

lee_yl\" post_id=\"2038528\" time=\"1631930733\" user_id=\"17023:

SG_KP1\" post_id=\"2038522\" time=\"1631928940\" user_id=\"188234:

P1-P5 HBL from 27 Sept - 6 Oct.

https://www.moe.gov.sg/news/press-releases/20210918-additional-precautionary-measures-for-primary-schools-in-the-lead-up-to-psle

Is there any evidence that P1-P5 children will fall severely ill if they contracted Covid?

There is a price to pay for HBL. It is not as painless as one imagines, especially the less privileged families with no access to other teaching resources will suffer.

Maybe MOE gave in due to pressure from parents?

I am very sure many of the parents go out (to shop, to dine in). Yesterday the shopping malls were so crowded! DH called a few restaurants to book for a dinner and all are fully booked!

Maybe it is easier to ask the Govt to give in instead of giving up their own voluntary action of going out.

I don't know the answer to your question in bold. I do agree with the underlined part; HBL is not easy for most and unfortunately (for society) COVID (everywhere around the world) has been hugely regressive.

At first I was wondering why P1-P5 don't go to school during 27 Sept - 29 Sept (P6s are at home). But for households with siblings there is still the risk younger child bring back and infect. However, as you point out unless the entire household is both willing and able (some simply can't) to shut themselves off from outside world that risk still exists. To clear the testing / stay home period, P6s and households would basically need to stay at home from now through PSLE. There, the obvious trade-off is no in-person instruction / help from teachers next week (20 Sept - 24 Sept).

So at the end of the day it is hard to say what is best (probably depends on exactly where you are coming from and what is best for one may not be best for all). Regardless, all I can do is follow the rules put forth...

[WE2012]

lee_yl\" post_id=\"2038528\" time=\"1631930733\" user_id=\"17023:

There is a price to pay for HBL. It is not as painless as one imagines, especially the less privileged families with no access to other teaching resources will suffer.

Maybe MOE gave in due to pressure from parents?

I am very sure many of the parents go out (to shop, to dine in). Yesterday the shopping malls were so crowded! DH called a few restaurants to book for a dinner and all are fully booked!

Maybe it is easier to ask the Govt to give in instead of giving up their own voluntary action of going out.

Indeed there is a price to pay for HBL. Since the last few periods of HBL, we have already know HBL is more effective only for older children with initiative to study and able to understand concepts on their own. For younger children, HBL can only be used for revision and not introduction of new concepts, that they may not readily pick up or pick up partially. This will affect their foundation for the subjects

The impact on younger children, unfortunately can only be seen in a few years.

[SG_KP1]

zac's mum\" post_id=\"2038531\" time=\"1631932097\" user_id=\"53606:[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=2038531 time=1631932097 user_id=53606]
I have the same sentiments. WTF and all that.

At least I will be able to use the at-home time to help DS revise for his SA2 exams. That period so happens to be after his Compo/作文 papers and before his Oral and subsequent papers. Or his teachers may be planning full-on revision via Zoom/mock papers with recorded explanations, I don’t know.

For sure it is not easy for the P5 teachers to be slapped with this sudden move. I know they are very responsible. How will they implement their final important revision lap with the kids before SA2? Sigh…[/quote]

Those were my first questions/thoughts. While I definitely understand the need to hold the national exams (and want as many kids as possible to be able to attend), it just shifted the burden to 40,000 x 3 = 120,000 other kids (P3-P5 SA2s).

For us, we are stuck between Oral and LC/Language Paper 1s for HBL. So can definitely do some targeted practice, but just hard for the teachers to reach all of the students and give the ideal level of feedback/corrections (and/or keep moving forward with revision and practice for the Paper 2s). I guess just have to try our best...

[sky minecrafter]

SG_KP1\" post_id=\"2038536\" time=\"1631933156\" user_id=\"188234:

zac's mum\" post_id=\"2038531\" time=\"1631932097\" user_id=\"53606:[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=2038531 time=1631932097 user_id=53606]...Or his teachers may be planning full-on revision via Zoom/mock papers with recorded explanations, I don’t know...

...Those were my first questions/thoughts. While I definitely understand the need to hold the national exams (and want as many kids as possible to be able to attend), it just shifted the burden to 40,000 x 3 = 120,000 other kids (P3-P5 SA2s)...[/quote]

As with previous years, our school had already scheduled HBL for the non-graduating cohorts during the Psle period (P4 HBL was initially planned on 30/09, 01/10, 04/10)

[zac's mum]

The more I think about it, the angrier I get.


Those worried parents could actually opt to keep their kids at home if they’re worried. Why pressure MOE to implement FHBL?

So now us parents who are against FHBL, can we actually opt to send our kids to school? I cannot, unless I can prove that I can’t WFH etc.

[SG_KP1]

sky minecrafter\" post_id=\"2038538\" time=\"1631934076\" user_id=\"130531:[quote=\"sky minecrafter\" post_id=2038538 time=1631934076 user_id=130531]

SG_KP1\" post_id=\"2038536\" time=\"1631933156\" user_id=\"188234:

[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=2038531 time=1631932097 user_id=53606]...Or his teachers may be planning full-on revision via Zoom/mock papers with recorded explanations, I don’t know...

...Those were my first questions/thoughts. While I definitely understand the need to hold the national exams (and want as many kids as possible to be able to attend), it just shifted the burden to 40,000 x 3 = 120,000 other kids (P3-P5 SA2s)...[/quote]

As with previous years, our school had already scheduled HBL for the non-graduating cohorts during the Psle period (P4 HBL was initially planned on 30/09, 01/10, 04/10)[/quote]Interesting, this was before 2020 as well? Any reason why they aren't off 5/10 and 6/10 too?

One nuance is that is something is known or planned well in advance, it is easy to deal with. I don't know how much behind the scenes lead time the schools/teacher were given for this though. Obviously the more the better, as it is not an easy period for them (teachers) either...