Meet-The-Parents Session
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Wonder if all the good teacher is actually from those "good" school. It takes a lot of effort for the teacher to be so involved especially when there is 30 students in each class.
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my boy is at Juying pri sch (Jurong).
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Actually, meet the teachers/ parents session is really great. I had to meet 5 teachers at a go (P2 and P1) and I left the meeting feeling so great about the school and that we made the wise decision to put the kids there. The reasons are as follows :
* Teachers who are so approachable and keen to help as long as parents seek their help
Eg. Kid didn’t do well, what are the things that we can do to help the child,etc… The teacher spoke to me on the phone prior to the session and during the session, we had further discussion on the day. Also, she shared with me that she got my girls to do a speech infront of the class and I totally applaud her for that. I shared with her that Sporeans are way too "quiet" as compared to their regional/ western peers, we need our young ones to be outspoken. Besides, she also shared with me several observations about my P2 girl in different situation and I really found that useful. BTW, this teacher only teaches my P2 english and she is not even the form teacher.
* Teachers who listen.
The kids have written expression for SA1 since P1 and I personally found that a challenge. But for this yr P1, they only start written expression in SA2. We thot that is a great move as it gives the P1 more time to settle down and also teachers felt that they are not pressured to teach for the sake of exam but rather teaching them how to enjoy doing a compo.
* Teachers who care
My P2 didn’t do well for her chinese and she is supposedly in one of the top class. The teacher told me that when my girl rec’d her paper, she cried. She reassure me that my girl knows her work but the paper this time round is tough so the avg score in the level is only 70 odd. I thot that was great iso just telling parents that oh in good class results not tip top, better buck up. Instead, she told me that my girl works hard and we should encourage her more. She also has several suggestions for us on how to help her. In addition, she will be running remedial class to help them on their weak areas. I like the fact that teachers don’t tell parents to go find a tutor,etc… and fix the problem. But they put in extra time/ effort to help the kids.
I left the session feeling so great about the school and the teachers. I know the kids are in great hands. I also felt so proud of the school when the principal once said during P1 orientation that the school seek to develop the child in their talent and this is not just academically. It does not mean that the school only treats those with good results well but they also want to help those weaker ones.
Well… there are always saying that the school std dropped,etc… but I was thinking I am aligned with what the teachers are doing such as not just focusing on the good ones only to boost the school results… -
Time for the meeting session again. My child teachers do not disclose result of compo, oral and not even listening comprehension. I could not even take a look at my child writen compo during exam without the score. The teacher I encounter will only answer my question generally and not specific to my child’s performance. Why is this so ? and is this the same situation in your school? I wonder whether there is any training or guildlines given to the teachers to practice it more correctly? Otherwise, the meeting has become meaningless and more and more parents or teachers find it a wait of time to meet and less neccessary.
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ChiefKiasu:
... whether the answer is derived in the proper logical steps.
Argh. This is why our schools fail kids who are predominantly right-brained and for whom learning is not done in the traditional, logical, step-by-step way. concern2, I quite agree with your SIL worrying about the issue of creativity and flexibility being (not) encouraged in schools.
Math is taught in a sequential, step-by-step manner and students are expected to solve math problems in a logical fashion. Teachers tend to anticipate that students can demonstrate their work by detailing the series of steps they took to arrive at their answers. But, imho, it is ridiculous to expect that all students should learn in this manner.
My ds1 is an example of a kid who does not 'do' math the usual way. He is able to offer accurate solutions to complex math problems intuitively but absolutely cannot explain how he arrives at answers. He doesn't go through steps to reach a conclusion. There is no working. How is he to show his work when there is nothing to show?? I can imagine that in school he will continue to be denied credit for answers not supported with detailed steps, because teachers cannot conceive that not all kids think in the same way they do.
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clarabella:
can forsee more of such kids coming up as more are going for abacus training.
He is able to offer accurate solutions to complex math problems intuitively but absolutely cannot explain how he arrives at answers. He doesn't go through steps to reach a conclusion. There is no working.
clarabella:
I can imagine that in school he will continue to be denied credit for answers not supported with detailed steps, because teachers cannot conceive that not all kids think in the same way they do.
that's why i never really enjoyed my primary school days.
that's why i dont think i'll survive working in the gahmen sector...where there are a lot of protocol...why go through all the steps (to get approval) when things are so straight forward/or there are better alternative ways to approve the stuff? :roll:
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jedamum:
Yes, Jedamum, and right-brained classes too...
can forsee more of such kids coming up as more are going for abacus training. -
jedamum:
Wow, jedamum, abacus is so 'useful' huh? No wonder it's popular.
can forsee more of such kids coming up as more are going for abacus training.
Hiya concern2
I always wondered why parents are so keen about right-brain training, since our education system is clearly very left-brain oriented - no convergence mah. But I was recently told that all those right-brain training centres apparently aim at whole-brain training ultimately... sounds good., yeah?
It would be REALLY interesting for the education climate if a whole generation of kids enter school with all the perceived benefits of such brain 'training' behind them.
Maybe it would finally force our educators to come up with a different teaching model.
Uh-oh, off-topic already. Sorry, everyone! -
clarabella:
i guess abacus is pretty useful for mental calculations, so when the kid see the questions, he instinctively process them in his brain but finds it difficult to account for the steps.
Wow, jedamum, abacus is so 'useful' huh? No wonder it's popular.
you can see pretty young kids doing multiplications and divisions using abacus, but I don't think most of them know the rationale and workings to derive at the answer.
JMHO. -
jedamum:
Jedamum, I think one of the amazing things about 'Right-brain' training is that people learn through the subconscious mind, either through familiarity by sight or by hearing. And once these become familiar, when children come of age, together with school education, they are enlightened. No need to use logic to 'drill' or dry our mouths explaining 'concepts'. They become faster learners naturally cos the 'nerves' in the brain has been well connected at an early age. Left-brain, right brain, yes, they become part of the whole brain training. In fact, as research has shown, abacus trains the mind to focus and visualize, hence these 'wonder' kids are very strong in these areas.
you can see pretty young kids doing multiplications and divisions using abacus, but I don't think most of them know the rationale and workings to derive at the answer.
JMHO.
I totally agree with Clarabella that the current school curriculum should include some techniques of right-brain training methods. They are fun and so much more relaxing. And these techniques aren't new. So is our system slow or what...? Waiting for proven results? Wait for another 10, 20 years? How old will our kids be then? The precious years to build up the foundation is gone forever...
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