Petition to Review the Singapore Education System
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About the beauty of DSA - Your child will have an extra opportunity to take a $50 test, known as GAT. A rare opportunity for me to tell others that my child did the GAT. Beside meeting this criteria: Pupils with very good academic results and are talented in the following sports will be considered (red wordings - randomly lifted off from a DSA participating school.)
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N-level should be done totally done away and in its place a 5-year O-level track and a 6-year O-level should replace it for less academically inclined pupils.
Thereafter, a student will then be posted to ITE if he/she is unable to make the grade to poly. -
I sorry to say that I don’t agree with doing away with N levels. N levels open up many more routes for the students.
Students that barely scape through N levels will be routed to ITE for their NITEC studies. Those who did well enough will be encouraged to take up O levels - the syllabus thicker and the answers are required to be answered more in depth.
If they didn’t do well for O levels, they will still go to ITE BUT for their Higher NITEC studies - allowing the student to save up an additional year. If they did well, they can then proceed to JC or Poly of their choice.
N levels have to filter weaker students before they attempt to do their O levels. A parent must know that if your child fails English or Mathematics at O levels, there is a very high possibility that they will be rejected for admissions with ITE. Where can these students go to if they have been rejected by ITE? The N level mathematics syllabus will therefore save many of this potential souls who if attempted O levels right from the start.
I understand that all parents wish that their children will lead happy and carefree lives, that they are able to do well for their studies and become useful citizens. However, we should remind ourselves that not every child will be the dragon and phoenix of their time. -
meinteel:
I sorry to say that I don't agree with doing away with N levels. N levels open up many more routes for the students.
Students that barely scape through N levels will be routed to ITE for their NITEC studies. Those who did well enough will be encouraged to take up O levels - the syllabus thicker and the answers are required to be answered more in depth.
If they didn't do well for O levels, they will still go to ITE BUT for their Higher NITEC studies - allowing the student to save up an additional year. If they did well, they can then proceed to JC or Poly of their choice.
N levels have to filter weaker students before they attempt to do their O levels. A parent must know that if your child fails English or Mathematics at O levels, there is a very high possibility that they will be rejected for admissions with ITE. Where can these students go to if they have been rejected by ITE? The N level mathematics syllabus will therefore save many of this potential souls who if attempted O levels right from the start.
I understand that all parents wish that their children will lead happy and carefree lives, that they are able to do well for their studies and become useful citizens. However, we should remind ourselves that not every child will be the dragon and phoenix of their time.
No need to say sorry, you are entitled to your own opinion.
The 5-year 0-level route replaces the N-level Academic whereas the 6- year O-level route replaces the N-level Tech.
Now we are talking about a very very small minority of students after the above is implemented. This very very small group of students can proceed to ITE without any difficulties. Personally consider the N-level exam have outlive its usefulness. Even for poly entrance, an 0-level pass in english is not mandatory for many courses.
After attending 5 to 6 years of formal education, even the slowest ones are capable to make it at ITE. This prposal is primarily caters to weaker ones and they can benefit tremendously from this programme vs the current N-level.
Do have more confidence on our slower pupils. -
Courses that admits students that fail are mostly engineering and IT-related courses. It does not apply to communications, business, vet tech, etc courses that are highly popular with the young today.
Even then, the engineering courses require you to have D7 (marginal fail of 45-49%). The student gets 7 points right from the start. Assume he gets 2 A2 and 2 B3 (one of which MUST be mathematics) for the remaining subjects, that will leave him a staggering 17 points. This will effectively cut him off more than 50% of the available courses over all the polytechnics in Singapore. It also will be noteworthy that this is considering that he will get admitted into courses that are have in previous year admitted someone of 17 points.
If he has failed mathematics, I am afraid I can’t find him a course in polytechnics. For a academically less inclined student, I see no fuss in him taking N levels in his 4th year before taking O levels in his 5th. If he does badly for O levels, he has something to fall back on.
This same principal applies to why some students take O levels first before going for A levels while others (IP students) skip Os and go for A levels. As the average students are considered less academically inclined, a safeguard and fall back is provided for them. The number of years (6 years) taken is the same, but the students who didn’t do well for O levels can opt for other routes rather than trying to force themselves to do well for A levels.
Any NA or NT student can after 4 years of study, opt for more hands-on courses (or from the horses mouth, more practical courses) rather then to continue in "dry & boring" academics that would not interest these kids.
Of course with that being said, I should state clearly that I do not look down on students who are less academically inclined. Many continue to have good potential and can still make it to universities someday. Also, having that paper qualification will not warrant any form of success in life, neither will it grant any form of happiness. -
Read parents' comments to the petition here... http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?SgEd2011&1
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looking4Tutor:
No biggie lah... thank you!!Chenonceau:
Looking4Tutor, can please do me a favour... the above post looks like Chenonceau was the one who wrote the comment that you responded to. Is there a way attribute authorship to MOE, not me? I was merely the one who copied and pasted it here. Thanks!
It was my honest mistake, no intention to harm your good name. :oops: I have listened and prompt action taken to rectify the error. :imanangel: -
We have a newly appointed Minister of Education, Mr Heng. Congratulation to you, sir. Understand that you had had some dealing with education issues in your career. Hence, the education policy of today is somehow understood by you and to some extend influenced and endorsed (agreed upon) by you. So will it be a ‘All is fine with the present policy no change deems necessary’ statement issue from your office.
Ms Sim Ann, congratulation for your posting. Please drop a note in this thread so that I can have the assurance that you will listen with your heart. As for tackling bilingualism in our educational system, hey listen to me be creative to think of new approach don’t commit the same mistake of lowering the mean score. Your colleagues will be laughing when the kiasu parents, who have spent ten of thousand dollars in A* Higher Chinese enrichment class since their children began babbling, and their children have spent thousand of hours to master it, come after you.
Last but not least, congratulation to you, Mr. Lawrence Wong. You stated that education is the best solution to close the income gap. (Well, I’m not so sure about that.) But your suggested solution, which is education, is one of the playground for the rich and an additional burden for the poor in SG context. How? To sovle the income gap first or to solve the education issues first?
Eagerly wait for detailed solution. :xedfingers: -
looking4Tutor:
Firstly, I must congratulate you Mr Heng on your newly appointed post as Education Minister. I hope you have children in primary school, so that you can better understand the pressures our children are facing in school today. There is no longer this word 'childhood' once our children start primary school. It's no longer smooth-sailing from P1 to P6.We have a newly appointed Minister of Education, Mr Heng. Congratulation to you, sir. Understand that you had had some dealing with education issues in your career. Hence, the education policy of today is somehow understood by you and to some extend influenced and endorsed (agreed upon) by you. So will it be a ‘All is fine with the present policy no change deems necessary’ statement issue from your office.
Last but not least, congratulation to you, Mr. Lawrence Wong. You stated that education is the best solution to close the income gap. (Well, I’m not so sure about that.) But your suggested solution, which is education, is one of the playground for the rich and an additional burden for the poor in SG context. How? To sovle the income gap first or to solve the education issues first?
Eagerly wait for detailed solution. :xedfingers:
Although you have just been appointed, it was mentioned that you have education issues in your career. I sincerely hope you will look into the education system soon, especially upper primary.
Mr Wong, I hope you can understand that not all families are well-off, or have dual-income, and also not all children are GEP material. Hence, there is a need to look into the issue of whether we need to have such a tough education system in Singapore.
To the newly-elected cabinet, I believe you have heard us, the citizens of Singapore. Please work on the pressing issues as soon as possible. Thank you. -
Funz:
I think, I on the other hand may become more Kiasu. Today more schools are turning IP. IP traditionally mean richer curriculum for more capable kids. So more IP to cater to more capable kids. So if time comes for my DD to take her PSLE and she cannot make it into an IP school, does that mean she is lagging?
Btw, recently I heard an interesting case of a child who did well in PSLE 27x t-score, went into IP school but failed 'A' level. In the end the highest qualification attained at 18YO was PSLE certificate.....what happen to such kids?
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