Primary 6 student tries to jump off school building

[sall]

If the boy is very serious about his work, then maybe he really had a breakdown. If he’s outgoing and mischievous, then it could be another of his pranks. Maybe he’s just bored and trying to get some attention.

[MMM]

Yah read the comments of one parent that the child is just being mischevious.


My initial impression when I heard it from hubby was... is it due to school stress. Shall we cancel all the enrichment classes? I rather they be normal than go crazy. :?

Anyone knows what school is the child in?

[pinky]

my son’s friend committed suicide when he was in P5 - he left a note for his parents but details not released. Speculations were pointing at school work pressure though…

[cherrygal]

Perhaps he was in a top school in Tampines? Students get pushed very hard by their teachers and parents in P6. Must remind ourselves to be nicer parents when our kids reach that stage. They will see no joy in life if the home is also a pressure cooker.

[Happy Mama]

pinky:

my son's friend committed suicide when he was in P5 - he left a note for his parents but details not released. Speculations were pointing at school work pressure though..

OMG! Poor boy!

Kids these days are really under a lot of stress and school homework has been piling on them too, until they are totally left with not much time for leisure.

[MMM]

I think alot of us are guilty of it. Pushing the kids. Sometimes when things like that happen and we put things into perspective, we start to view performance in a different manner. Is it worth it?


I personally think it’s difficult to strike a balance. Eg. if we don’t push the kids, they might not move. But if we push them to hard, they might fall off the cliff… Guess, as parents we just have to constantly remind ourselves and keep a lookout for their behaviour to tune our expectations.

[peapot]

Whether the boy was doing it out of mischief or out of school work pressure, both ways are equally sad and depressing.

[YingYing]

I guess it's a combination of school pressure & \"personality of the generation Z\" ; complete with present-day parenting style ...


I have no doubt that today's school load is definitely more demanding than the \"yester-years\" ... However, I also have no doubt that today's children are quite a bunch of \"softies\" ... In those days when i was growing up, my mother used to cane us over \"less than desirable results\" and you don't see me nor my siblings trying to jump off buildings! We also had our fair share of swimming class, music class & tuition... but yes, i admit the stress level is different from what kids of today face.

Kids of today have been so drilled to excel academically, that parents most of the time \"forgot\" to remind them about moral values (don't get me wrong, i'm sure all parents teach their children values; but maybe they forget to remind them). I've seen & heard so many times that parents reward kids with PSP, iPod, $500 cash if the child does well... Gone were the days when parents ingrained in their children that \"to do well academically is only for your own good\".

If you are guided by moral values, you know that jumping off a building is an irresponsible act. If you are guided by moral values, you will know that studying hard is for your own good & is your own responsibility; not so that you can get that PSP or iPod from Daddy or Mummy.

Don't get me wrong. I'm fine with reward-system provided it is applied correctly & explained properly to the children how a reward works. I have seen cases where children \"fell short of the deal\" but yet parents still get them the reward (eg a certain friend's child is supposed to get a certain percentage of all subjects to get an iPod but when the child didn't get the grades, he still gets his iPod!) This , to me, is a flawed reward-system which translates to a flawed parenting style.

I guess most parents these days are caught up with material pursuits themselves that they hardly have time for the children. So, they try to make up for it with material possessions. And over time, they feel it is \"time\" for their children to \"work for their material pursuits\"...so they get the children to earn (eg the iPod) by way of excellent grades. And slowly but surely, they become indulgent in their children without realising...

I mean have you ever heard of a child getting rewarded these days because he/she helped Mummy with the chores? (eg sweeping the floor, laundry etc). Perhaps there is but very rare.

I once had an ex-colleague who proudly proclaimed that her daughter has 3 different birthday parties (to cater to different crowd & had 3 different birthday cakes to cut over a 3-day period!!!). This, to me, is indulgent! But then again, she is the only child hence I can understand the fuss over her birthday (altho I don't condone).

Parenting is a very subjective yet sensitive issue so I shall refrain from commenting too much. Anyway, I am still learning the ropes.. but I hope to continue not to indulge in my kids so that they do not grow up to be other people's nightmare! :roll:

[IJJ]

It saddens me to read such news. I have to agree that Singapore educational system can be very stressful. The system takes most joy out of the learning journey.

[dramamama70]

Wow, what a shocker. But from speaking to my friends and family members who teach, suicide seems to be happening in our schools, just not reported widely.


My son is sitting for PSLE and my eldest is sitting for O levels this year and I can feel the pressure the kids are going through. We try to give them as much time to relax as possible but unfortunately there is no running away from homework and tuition.

My son especially, comes home with at least 3 worksheets everyday and each worksheet has about 30 MCQs and 10 open-ended questions. And these have to be handed in the next day. I see him go through the papers (with help from my husband or his tutor) and I feel so sorry for him.

And my daughter is forever buried in books that she only emerges for meals and toilet breaks. She told the the \"scholars\" in her school are really smart and she wouldn't even dream of competing with them. And btw, these scholars are from our neighbouring countries and their studies are fully funded by our government.

Sigh. All for the sake of good grades