Petition to Review the Singapore Education System

[janet88]

Chenonceau:

[quote=\"janet_lee88]If schools have attractive benefits for tutors to teach in schools instead , June holidays will not be packed with additional tuition. Also due to introduction of this DSA thing, parents engage private coaches in the hope of scoring additional points in tennis, archery etc to gain access to dream schools.

730am to 130/145pm of school is suffficent...give the kids a LIFE away from books. Our Singaporean children have high myopia rate. Give them a chance to play. How many years of childhood can they enjoy ???

I think it is terrible that NONE of DD's friends and classmates have locked on to MOE as an target organisation. Something is wrong.[/quote][/quote]

There must be something wrong about MOE...too much red tape perhaps, or else dinosaurs there hindering progress to move forward to 21st century. Yet this ministry is the one which is supposed to groom the young.

[sleepy]

Not only parents feel the pressure, kids feel it too. My dd requested for tuition after being spooked by her teacher who narrowly raced to cover the examinable topic just 2 days before exam.


My dd self studied that particular topic 1 week earlier because she realised by then her teacher was behind schedule and she feared she may not have sufficient time to digest. Yet all her classmates seem to know the topic well in advance as they were attending tuition.

After this incident, she feels very insecured as it dawns on her she could not count on her teacher.

[sleepy]

2ppaamm:

The sad thing is, those people who need help cannot speak up for themselves. Those who can speak up for themselves don't need help.


What chance does someone like this stall owner have vis-a-vis those who know where and how to get help for his children. Even if he has the money, he would not have the time to spend with the kids or source out good tuition teachers for his children, who might just be as bright as another.

I did not have a privileged background either. But because we did not need tutors or expensive enrichment, I was given equal opportunity in education and sports. Education leveled the playing field for my friends and I in Singapore. In fact, I am no inferior as I conduct businesses and negotiate with business and academic luminaries from any part of the world.

The stall holder's children reminded me of myself, running around in the market helping my mother. They will never be given the same opportunities as I did. Simply because the education back drop has changed so much. The duck rice seller will never be able to speak up for his children because he wouldn't even know what opportunities his children missed.

Yes! :hugs:
:goodpost:

[GSK]

Hi


Sorry, I do not hv the time to read all thru yet. I just can’t wait to hv my said. Somehow I agree the Singapore Education System need to be reviewed or improved.

Understand some parents mentioned that kiasu parents are at fault. I would say partially is the education system is the main caused of it. Why I say that, I understand from one of my friend that her son failed his maths scoring 10 1/2 upon 100 in P3, she’s not very ks type but of course, she started to worry now. She began giving her son tuition classes (english and maths). And this example showed that is the education system that forces her to be KS. And mind you, the school is just an neighbourhood school, not those elite school.

Kiasu is contagious. There are some that are still not KS yet, but it will become more and more. So I find a change is needed before everybody’s becoming KS.

My DH just dun understand why instead of "go school to learn", it becomes "learn to go school". Hee hee. Of course some oredi KS like myself. I’m KS as I find it is important to learn at young, just hope tat it comes easy and less stressful during their school life. But now seems like my kiasu mindset needs to carry on in his Primary school life, an average child will not be able to catch up. It’s a lose lose situation for the poor, medium class, uneducated and also those tat are not KS, unless the child is really gifted and motivated.

I would say if you can’t beat it, you just join it, if you can’t join it, you will just lose it. Tat’s simple. Of course, there’s never be fairness.

Pardon my Ang Mo. I’m not so well educated, very worried writing initially. The above just my view.

[Chenonceau]

GSK:

I would say if you can't beat it, you just join it, if you can't join it, you will just lose it. Tat's simple.

Well said... for someone with bad ang moh.

[chubby08]

It’s time for the new MP of eductation to look into this issue. The ex one must be sleeping throughout the past few years…

[janet88]

chubby08:

It's time for the new MP of eductation to look into this issue. The ex one must be sleeping throughout the past few years...

The former education minister has been asked to go to defence...pardon me for saying this...hope he doesn't screw up that ministry. He hasn't done anything to improve his former portfolio :stompfeet:

My son actually wanted to continue with his English enrichment as he fears for the subject...passing narrowly for SA1. But I cannot afford to let him do so bcos he just started 1-to-1 Math.

[jenao]

I hope the new minister is actually listening and hearing the feedback instead of just wayang to "engage the people" like they did with the mother tongue weighting and at the end after stakeholders make lots of noise, back to same old same old, parents not really heard. And if changes need to be made, they have to be substance not form like the teach less learn more approach.


Post GE, there is a lot of talk about listening to the people, engaging them and then transforming the system etc etc like the National Development, transport, mcys etc have been very very visible in engaging people. Hopefully, all these are not for show at the end of the day.

[vlim]

ironically, I am scared that they make changes…though is stressful now, at least we as a parent, we know how/what to prepare our kids for the exam…But if they change…I might ‘catch no ball’…that is what happen to my p3 dd…I don’t know how to prepare her for science exam as they practise ‘learn more,teach less’…and I don’t know what have they learn!..

So is the system that make the kids stress, or the desire for our kids to perform well in exams so that they can get into good school that make our kids and us stress?..I wouldn’t want to put all the blame to the system as I believe other countries kids also facing the similar education stress…as it is no longer like our time. As long as we pass the school exam, our parents would be happy…

[sall]

In some of the posts, parents complain that teachers never teach at all, or can’t finish the syllabus etc. I think it’s not fair to make such statements. There are very dedicated teachers , there are also some bad teachers. But on the whole, teachers are so tied down with so many prog organised. Some teachers have to miss lessons to attend to such activities such as hosting foreign students, visitors and many more. These are the demands of the principals, please don’t blame the poor over-worked teachers. I just talked to a current P1 teacher, who told about the reports she had to make for each student, for each assignment. This is just one example of the many unnecessary tasks a sch teacher has to do. For this petition, I think the welfare of teachers should also be taken into account.