SST Chinese standard – should I be worried?

[NickL]

Hi parents,

Just wanted to check if anyone else has a child in SST?

My son is currently in Sec 1, and honestly, I’m starting to feel quite worried about the academic pace. It’s already been about four months since school started, but the progress feels really slow.

I’m not just saying this for the sake of it — I compared with my older son’s materials from a few years ago (he was from another school), and the difference is quite obvious. The amount covered and the depth are really not on the same level. I’ve also casually checked with relatives whose kids are in other schools, and they seem to be moving much faster.

Also wondering — does SST mainly focus on Math and Science? Because for Chinese, it almost feels like… nothing much is happening? There’s barely any homework, very little teaching content, and after almost half a year, the progress in both the textbook and other materials is quite minimal.

At this point, I’m even wondering if I should get my son to apply for Higher Chinese (HCL) instead. I’m quite concerned that if this continues, he might end up graduating with very weak Chinese, which is really not what I want.

Would really appreciate hearing from other SST parents — is this normal? Or should I be concerned?

Thanks in advance!

[kiasuparent123456]

@NickL I don’t have a child in SST, but found this response useful!

https://www.askvaiser.com/share/JUT_rl9YJJt-etFiSXe8dJe2VR6HpM0K

[thebottomsupblog]

@nickl I’m from the KiasuParents team. Some replies from my parent network:

• If he can push his child to go HMT, the teacher is much much better and slightly more demanding…
• the chinese standard yes- not good
• my boy was HMT previously but dropped already haha
• the teacher is very good bcos she will contact me to update me …we work very closely
• however sec 1 first half i think they doing some chinese project work

[FanKeeLay]

@NickL I saw this parent’s feedback on SST’s public IG, but the school did not reply:
This award does not reflect my family’s experience with SST’s Chinese Dept. My son graduated last year. Based on what happened, I chose not to enroll my younger son though we live nearby.
His Higher Chinese teacher openly said the dept arranged stronger support, more experienced teachers, and Chinese specialists for Higher Chinese classes, decided by the HOD.
Express Chinese classes did not receive the same level of specialist support, even at graduating level. Resource differences were clear.
As a parent, this was concerning. Access to specialists and commitment should not depend on stream. Recognition should reflect fairness, not selective concentration of expertise.

[FanKeeLay]

@NickL The parent’s feedback can be found at the following link:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DUpTuX0CZQl/?igsh=MWl0bHk4dGNnazhzMA==

The school has not responded at all.
FYI.