2011 Request for Advice on Selecting Secondary Schools
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Augmum:
No Augmum, you didnt scare me, dun worry. i expect DD's grades to drop in Sec school, that was what happened to me during my \"era\" haha ! it is just that i read in the other thread on DHS, someone mentioned if you are not bilingual and not good in CL, then better not go to DHS so I get the impression that it is super tough ! But it is gd to hear that despite the demands of the subject, the students are still enjoying the subject.
dun mention orangejuice, juz post yr Q, if i know i 'll def supply u with info.OrangeJuice:
V grateful to Augmum and Phankao for sharing their experiences with the 2 schools, I am reading the threads that jtoh and Augmum have shared here, the info. will definitely come in handy with decision-making...big headache whenever I ask DD between njc and dhs which one is her preference, she just shrugged and said dunno ...sigh ...
so far DHS culture sounds similiar to NYGH but the std of CL scares me leh...DD is not A* calibre for MT maybe high A that's all....in this respect, njc may suit her better ??? Anyway, thanks again for all who \"helped\" here , really grateful !
oops........ hope i din scare u off regarding HCL
i juz wanna to convey the mssg that be prepared mentally shd u see a big drop in marks compared to primary sch,
as some parents may feel uneasy after seeing the drop in marks,
but the child 's std/proficiency of CL will def up.
there are pupils in my gal's class who only gotten a pass in HCL at PSLE,
though not getting high marks in class but they are still surviving fine.....
(everyday seen them playing balls during recess...haha)
so pl dun get too worried for this.....
the pupils would know WHEN to pull up their socks...... -
OrangeJuice:
Just wondering whether you know NJC's flag raising time ? if not it is OK
NJC's is 7.40am. On Thursdays it's 8.30am, I think. I'm not particularly sure, since mine happily reaches school by 7am to 7.15am latest everyday regardless. -
phankao:
Thanks Phankao for the very prompt responseOrangeJuice:
Just wondering whether you know NJC's flag raising time ? if not it is OK
NJC's is 7.40am. On Thursdays it's 8.30am, I think. I'm not particularly sure, since mine happily reaches school by 7am to 7.15am latest everyday regardless.
-
jtoh:
You're welcome, Orangejuice. There are quite a few active ksp parents on the DHS and NJC sites. I think Augmum, Phankao, VitoRelax and a few others will be able to help you out with your queries.
Okay Orangejuice, my turn to give some input.
Are they Happy:
Well all I can say is my girl looks Happy. But I think this is the same whether you goto DHS or NJC. Everyone starts from square one, eventually they will make their own friends, irrespective of whether in DHS or NJC.
BOARDING:
I notice a lot of parents are worried about boarding. But let me assure you, the kids love it. It is like a holiday for them. DOn't worry, they come back during the weekend. The kids only miss their parents & sweet home after a few weeks of staying there.
So, for me it is good for them to go boarding. They do drama, martial arts, fine dining etiquette ... etc. At the begining of Year 2, they do a Stage show & perform for us parents. I was impressed with their maturity.
Of cos, during the first week, I saw some parents smuggle in MacDonald, Pizza Hut for their kids. They managed to do that bcos the security guard close one eye lah ...
I was told (but not sure if it true) one very rich parent decided to pull out his kid from boarding & keng to get mc for exemption. Rumour is that the rich parent worry their kids will get kidnap (maybe this is a joke - not vey sure).
WORK LOAD:
Damn bloody jialat. Lots of project work. Intially DD broke down once bcos too much work & group members didn't do work but play xbox instead.
Teachers:
There are both good & bad teachers. Some are very passionate about teaching while some take it just as a job.
CONS:
Most of the programmes, cca & whatnot are run & organized by students themselves. So, very often my girl wouldn't know what time she knock off until the day itself. For example, DD have to attend briefing tomorrow bcos she is taking part in this Sat Open Day. At this hour, she still waiting for her fren to tell her what time. This is also normal occurance for her ccas.
CCAs are worse, some sessions are called up at last min. Eg at 11pm receive a sms from Seniors that tomorrow got to turn up. Or, at 11pm, receive a sms that tomorrow's meeting cancel (this is good liao, sometimes cancel at last minute on the day itself). I got the impression that the meetings are setup at the whims & fancy of seniors who cannot (or forget) decide on the timing & date ... -
Nightrace:
yes, not only chinese lessons.....somehow, their chinese role plays are more entertaining
Not only for Chinese lessons, role plays for Geography and Language Arts (=English) too.Augmum:
yes, their chinese lessons are quite entertaining ....
i remember recently, they had to rewrite the story taken fr bk with some additional characters ....
then they had role plays ......brought so much laughter to the whole class.... :imcool: That helps to boost his θι.
i am juz trying to say that their chinese lessons arent that boring..... -
phankao:
I think they base it on their year 1 & 2 performance. I believe there's an option to not do HCL bc my ds already said he'd probably need to drop HCL in year 3 bc he doesn't do too well in it. They do band them for some subjects in year 2 - Chinese is one of them. So although they remain in same class groupings, they split up for some subjects.[/quote]oic......there is an option to drop HCL.....thanks for the info.
yalor.....so either NJC or DHS also have to take HCL..Augmum:
[quote=\"phankao\"]
For your info, it is compulsory for NJC's lower junior high students (year 1 & 2) to take HMT.
but how abt yr 3 then ??
isit means that the sch would base on pupils' end of yr 2 HCL results to decide for them ? -
Nightrace:
i think at least a grade C is a reasonable criteria.....
In DHS, students who do not obtain a grade C or above for their Y2 overall HCL results will be channelled to offer CL in Y3.
think someone mentioned that in RV, it'll need at least grade B for juz promotion (if i din read worngly ) -
jtoh:
dun think so......Nightrace:
In DHS, students who do not obtain a grade C or above for their Y2 overall HCL results will be channelled to offer CL in Y3.
What if you don't get grade C and above but want to continue to take HCL? Will you be given the option to do so?
as beginning of this yr , her chinese teacher emphasizes on the importance of chinese
as it will affect yr 3 to yr 6..... -
OrangeJuice:
Hey thanks for info re school flag raising time, the later timing makes a lot of difference to any child
is good to take schoolbus as the child still can have a good rest in the bus.Augmum:
[quote=\"OrangeJuice\"]
I dont drive and DH travels v often on the job so he wont be avail to send kid sto sch plus we want DD to be independent, so schoolbus service is sth that we dont want to consider for post-primary yrs....Time taken to both schools will take abt same time I think. I have brought DD to DHS site to take a look before (v huge and new) and I will prob bring her to NJC open hse this sat to have a feel of the school.
some of them luv to sleep in the bus so as to catch up some sleep hrs.
fyi, if u are not aware, DHS flag raising time is at 8.00 am
and 9.00a.m on Thursdays. (so the pupils can wake up later ) Just wondering whether you know NJC's flag raising time ? if not it is OK :)[/quote]yes, i was so glad the moment i heard their flag raising time is at 8 a.m/ 9 a.m.
dun think there're many sec schs having flag raising time at 8 a.m....... -
OrangeJuice:
No Augmum, you didnt scare me, dun worry. i expect DD's grades to drop in Sec school, that was what happened to me during my \"era\" haha ! it is just that i read in the other thread on DHS, someone mentioned if you are not bilingual and not good in CL, then better not go to DHS so I get the impression that it is super tough ! But it is gd to hear that despite the demands of the subject, the students are still enjoying the subject.[/quote] haha.....next time i better dun talk too much abt their HCL......
dun mention orangejuice, juz post yr Q, if i know i 'll def supply u with info.Augmum:
[quote=\"OrangeJuice\"]V grateful to Augmum and Phankao for sharing their experiences with the 2 schools, I am reading the threads that jtoh and Augmum have shared here, the info. will definitely come in handy with decision-making...big headache whenever I ask DD between njc and dhs which one is her preference, she just shrugged and said dunno ...sigh ...
so far DHS culture sounds similiar to NYGH but the std of CL scares me leh...DD is not A* calibre for MT maybe high A that's all....in this respect, njc may suit her better ??? Anyway, thanks again for all who \"helped\" here , really grateful !
oops........ hope i din scare u off regarding HCL
i juz wanna to convey the mssg that be prepared mentally shd u see a big drop in marks compared to primary sch,
as some parents may feel uneasy after seeing the drop in marks,
but the child 's std/proficiency of CL will def up.
there are pupils in my gal's class who only gotten a pass in HCL at PSLE,
though not getting high marks in class but they are still surviving fine.....
(everyday seen them playing balls during recess...haha)
so pl dun get too worried for this.....
the pupils would know WHEN to pull up their socks...... :lol:
no worry lah....there are pupils there who entered DHS w/o taking HCL or not doing very well in CL....
gradually, they will get use to it......
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