Opinions of the Primary School Registration System

[mummy168]

Imagine if your great grandmother, your grandmother and your mother, and you and your girl all go to the same primary school. And the primary school is filled with people with similar traits. No other person could get in because school is 100% filled up at P2A. The whole family tree will share the same value shaped by the school. And this scenerio is replicated in the whole school population and all sing the same song. There is no opportunity of cross fertilisation of ideas with people outside this group in the whole primary education. The end result will be an elitist group or an in group or an exclusive group, whatever term you wanna call it. And how could the parent who is a part of the equation guide the child in not having the ‘elitist’ value? Herein lies the entrenchment of classes in the current pri sch registration system.

[tankee]

mummy168:

Imagine if your great grandmother, your grandmother and your mother, and you and your girl all go to the same primary school. And the primary school is filled with people with similar traits. No other person could get in because school is 100% filled up at P2A. The whole family tree will share the same value shaped by the school. And this scenerio is replicated in the whole school population and all sing the same song. There is no opportunity of cross fertilisation of ideas with people outside this group in the whole primary education. The end result will be an elitist group or an in group or an exclusive group, whatever term you wanna call it. And how could the parent who is a part of the equation guide the child in not having the 'elitist' value? Herein lies the entrenchment of classes in the current pri sch registration system.

Your argument is hypothetical. First schools are not fully filled at phase 2a, secondly, children of staff are qualified for earlier phase too.

[janet88]

tankee:

mummy168:

Imagine if your great grandmother, your grandmother and your mother, and you and your girl all go to the same primary school. And the primary school is filled with people with similar traits.

Your argument is hypothetical. First schools are not fully filled at phase 2a, secondly, children of staff are qualified for earlier phase too.

I don't think there are many schools attended by great grandmother & grandmother are still around. In those days, not many families can afford to send children to school, not to say girls. Also, if you are staying far from the school, I don't think many parents will send the kids there either...there will still be, but they will consider the distance.

[tankee]

janet_lee88:

I don't think there are many schools attended by great grandmother & grandmother are still around. In those days, not many families can afford to send children to school, not to say girls. Also, if you are staying far from the school, I don't think many parents will send the kids there either...there will still be, but they will consider the distance.

that's a good point !

:goodpost:

[dorisp]

mummy168:

Imagine if your great grandmother, your grandmother and your mother, and you and your girl all go to the same primary school. And the primary school is filled with people with similar traits. No other person could get in because school is 100% filled up at P2A. The whole family tree will share the same value shaped by the school. And this scenerio is replicated in the whole school population and all sing the same song. There is no opportunity of cross fertilisation of ideas with people outside this group in the whole primary education. The end result will be an elitist group or an in group or an exclusive group, whatever term you wanna call it. And how could the parent who is a part of the equation guide the child in not having the 'elitist' value? Herein lies the entrenchment of classes in the current pri sch registration system.

:!:

[3Boys]

tankee:

mummy168:

Imagine if your great grandmother, your grandmother and your mother, and you and your girl all go to the same primary school. And the primary school is filled with people with similar traits. No other person could get in because school is 100% filled up at P2A. The whole family tree will share the same value shaped by the school. And this scenerio is replicated in the whole school population and all sing the same song. There is no opportunity of cross fertilisation of ideas with people outside this group in the whole primary education. The end result will be an elitist group or an in group or an exclusive group, whatever term you wanna call it. And how could the parent who is a part of the equation guide the child in not having the 'elitist' value? Herein lies the entrenchment of classes in the current pri sch registration system.

Your argument is hypothetical. First schools are not fully filled at phase 2a, secondly, children of staff are qualified for earlier phase too.

Is it alright for top schools to be consistently >60% filled by end of 2A? Leaving the rest of the interested public to fight over the rest?

I'm not saying I know what the right number should be, but this seems uncomfortably high in my view. Has there been any public discourse on this issue? I don't think one should just sweep it under the carpet and say 'that's life, get on with it'. I use that phrase quite often, but here is a situation where I think more thought needs to be applied.

[mummy168]

janet_lee88:

I don't think there are many schools attended by great grandmother & grandmother are still around. In those days, not many families can afford to send children to school, not to say girls. Also, if you are staying far from the school, I don't think many parents will send the kids there either...there will still be, but they will consider the distance.

I am using girls for my example. It could jolly well be boys. If the pri school sy is to stay, the scenerio I paint could really happen in your great grandchildren time!

[janet88]

mummy168:

I am using girls for my example. It could jolly well be boys. If the pri school sy is to stay, the scenerio I paint could really happen in your great grandchildren time!

Honestly, do you think it's worthwhile to think so far ?
Those parents who are old boys/girls may want to send their kids back to their former school, but let's say daddy wants to send his sons back to his former school but has 2 daughters ?

[mummy168]

hquek:

Govt can only do so much. One can argue that (for example) clan members shouldn't get priority to enter a school. But in the first place, how and why was the school set up in the past? Becos clan members got together.If one doesn't give say, catholics a 'better' chance to get into a catholic school - instead it becomes inundated with 'non-believers', does it not dilute their original purpose?May as well rename all schools to abc govt primary then. Why keep the history if there is no intention to recall the roots?.

The schools were set up by the clans, the religious groups to meet the needs of the community during the 60s. Then we were fighting for survival. Time has changed and with it our social structure. Policies set have also to change to accomodate the change in our society. Schools could not be run as a'religious' entity.

If the catholic schools are to be filled up with all catholic, the christian schools all christian and the buddhist schools all buddhist, that's when our fragile social cohesion may be broken. Experience from other coutries have shown that people fight and kill over religion....the riots, the burnings... With no interaction with the other religions coupled with the multi racial structure of our soceity, tensions could easily arise.

[3Boys]

mummy168:

The schools were set up by the clans, the religious groups to meet the needs of the community during the 60s. Then we were fighting for survival. Time has changed and with it our social structure. Policies set have also to change to accomodate the change in our society. Schools could not be run as a'religious' entity.


If the catholic schools are to be filled up with all catholic, the christian schools all christian and the buddhist schools all buddhist, that's when our fragile social cohesion may be broken. Experience from other coutries have shown that people fight and kill over religion....the riots, the burnings... With no interaction with the other religions coupled with the multi racial structure of our soceity, tensions could easily arise.

If those institutions were entirely private entities, they are free (almost) to do what they wish with admissions policy. However, last time I checked, they are still at least partially funded from taxpayers monies, which implies that admissions should be non-discriminatory in the majority. Some special interest admissions, yes, but to have the majority of admissions slots locked away from the general public? TUR>60% at end of 2A? Even before application of church/clan based admissions? How is that fair?