Pei Hwa Presbyterian Primary

[php]

janet_lee88:

Hi php,

I thought there might be better textbooks. Sometimes, parents may not be lazy to do research but don't have the knowledge to do so.
Just curious, any old boy or girl from Pei Hwa here ? What was the standard during your time ??

sorry, not meant all parents are lazy...forgot to mention those having difficulty in gathering information. i believe they want kids to think 'out-of-box' - exploring on their own.

[janet88]

Hi php,

Kids at P3 or P4 won’t know how to get more info unlike P6 maybe.
There are 5 chapters to handle and it’s very time-consuming to run around for info. Science paper is set so tough…really pity the kids.

[php]

janet_lee88:

Hi php,

Kids at P3 or P4 won't know how to get more info unlike P6 maybe.
There are 5 chapters to handle and it's very time-consuming to run around for info. Science paper is set so tough...really pity the kids.

kids have to start somewhere. when my dd was in kindy, they had a programme called Junior Scientist. the kids had to use computer to search for information and then presented them....dd was an expert in google search, yahoo search, etc ....but this must be done with adult presence. This is the direction where schools are moving to....in this internet world....Definitely P3 and P4 kids are more than capable in doing that but it is the parents that are worried and don't allow the kids to expose excessively to the wired world.....

[markfch]

E3:

Here are a few real examples:
1) girl -> GEP -> RGS -> didn't do well for \"As\", studied overseas
2) girl -> GEP -> RGS -> didn't do well for \"As\", took up Diploma
3) boy -> GEP -> Henry Park -> didn't do well for PSLE, neighbourhood Sec.

The above parents did not send their kids for any \"special training programmes\", the kids went thru the GEP selection and were successful.

4) girl -> non-GEP -> River Valley High -> studying Medicine in NUS.
5) boy -> non-GEP -> River Valley High -> studied Medicine in NUS, doctor now.
6) boy -> non-GEP -> RI -> accepted into Law in NUS
7) boy -> non-GEP -> RI -> accepted into Medicine in NUS
more to go...

I've seen more (Sorry...another long-winded one :oops: )

Your post encouraged me cos I know ds is definitely not GEP material though he is quite smart in his own way. So ds still got chance to do well in life . But it is worrying to note that those kids who got into GEP based on merit (not 'trained') didn't really fulfil their undoubted potential. I think that is the sad part.

Btw, it's ok that your post is lengthy cos I took away something useful from it. :celebrate:

[IJJ]

php:

janet_lee88:

Hi php,

Kids at P3 or P4 won't know how to get more info unlike P6 maybe.
There are 5 chapters to handle and it's very time-consuming to run around for info. Science paper is set so tough...really pity the kids.

kids have to start somewhere. when my dd was in kindy, they had a programme called Junior Scientist. the kids had to use computer to search for information and then presented them....dd was an expert in google search, yahoo search, etc ....but this must be done with adult presence. This is the direction where schools are moving to....in this internet world....Definitely P3 and P4 kids are more than capable in doing that but it is the parents that are worried and don't allow the kids to expose excessively to the wired world.....

:oops: I am still a 'hardcopy' parent. Mine research mostly in libraries, from books rather than from the web.

[markfch]

php:

Ask yourself the following questions :-

How many top PSLE scholar come from GEP class each year?
How many top 'O' or 'A' level scholar come from GEP class each year?

Ans : The majority will come from non-GEP.....

If the assessment method is able to detect the top 5% gifted kids in each cohort, then a more decent figure of said 90-95% of them should come from GEP class, but this is not the case.

One criticism of GEP is that different kids peak at different times. Not all kids will peak at P3. Secondly, and I know that this pt is like flogging a dead horse, but there are kids who are 'born' gifted and those that are 'trained' gifted. And 'born' gifted is definitely superior (suddenly I've a urge to eat superior shark fins soup upon saying the last sentence, yummy yummy :drool: ).

[Mrsbongz]

markfch:

(suddenly I've a urge to eat superior shark fins soup upon saying the last sentence, yummy yummy :drool: ).

hahah.. I'm like you markfch, anything can make me think of food... lol..

[janet88]

HI IJJ,

I am also a hardcopy mum…not so comfortable with son surfing net for answers. At P4, I think my son is not mature enough to go online. Only my hubby goes online to find answers.

[Jennifer]

verykiasu2010:

php:

[quote=\"Jennifer\"]
My elder boy had PE teachers as his Science teachers in P4 semester 2 and whole of P5, then P6 the HOD Science. All taught according to textbooks. No useful labs sessions (according to my boy lah). I dun see where the focus was.

Jennifer, i heard from my friend and this happened in other schools too. If you are going to depend on the textbook to do well, then you can simply forget about it.... there are too little information in there....what you can find in the textbook is just the basic concept and keywords that you need to know...the rest will be up to the kids to explore and research and apply correctly during the exam....so it is very different from the ways we learnt Science last time.....dd has another one more year to go, so i don't really bother to find out more about primary science. we wou ld know where there will be any changes coming up...

just my personal experience : i-science is better than my pals are here for the science subject - content wise[/quote]My elder boy was the last batch in PH to use i-Science. According to the HOD, this textbook is watered down. Maybe that's the reason why now P3 used Perfect Match.

No doubt the pupils should not depend on these textbooks, I believe teachers shld play a part in bringing out the interest in the pupils. If you present it as a boring facts loaded subject, how to expect the children to love it? My children are fortunate as I am able to teach them the subject.

[Jennifer]

I was at BPP library this evening, saw this series on "Experimenting with Everyday Science" and briefly read a few chapters of Art & Architecture.


1) Art & Architecture (ref 701.03 TOM)
2) Food
3) Materials
4) Music (ref 781.23 TOM)
5) Sports (ref 796 TOM)
6) Tools & machines

The books are meant for children to read, some experiments need adult supervision. There is a list of materials (even suggests where to get them), clear step by step instructions, observations, analysis and notes.