GEP 2011 - Screening & Selection

[sleepy]

25hr mama:

If this is the case, then the selection test criteria is not as stringent as what we thought it shd be. SA2 result is not out yet, but my friend is worrying now that her dd may not be able to meet the 65% passing mark for Gep English which is also one of the criteria for promotion. She said, both mummy & kid maybe be happier if they were to stay in mainstream. Even tho English has never been her strength, but still manageable from P1 to P3. As for now, both mummy & kid really stressful.

I always believe 'try first'.

In this instance, your friend & her dd already gave GEP a chance & tried for a whole year. So they would have enough pointers to make an informed decision whether to continue or transfer to mainstream.

[jtoh]

bebebub:

25hr mama:

If this is the case, then the selection test criteria is not as stringent as what we thought it shd be. SA2 result is not out yet, but my friend is worrying now that her dd may not be able to meet the 65% passing mark for Gep English which is also one of the criteria for promotion. She said, both mummy & kid maybe be happier if they were to stay in mainstream. Even tho English has never been her strength, but still manageable from P1 to P3. As for now, both mummy & kid really stressful.

Going by what you said, one has to think through carefully before accepting the offer. A child may be gifted, but the GEP program may not be suitable for the child. Makes me wonder if our GEP program is in anyway \"customised\" and \"tailored\" to each child, or is it a cookie-cutter (gifted) program.

Question: what happen after round 2? Any further screening/interviews... Will MOE mail the envelop directly, or handed out via school?

No there aren't any interviews etc after the selection test. And GEP isn't customised for each child.

[corneyAmber]

sleepy:

25hr mama:

If this is the case, then the selection test criteria is not as stringent as what we thought it shd be. SA2 result is not out yet, but my friend is worrying now that her dd may not be able to meet the 65% passing mark for Gep English which is also one of the criteria for promotion. She said, both mummy & kid maybe be happier if they were to stay in mainstream. Even tho English has never been her strength, but still manageable from P1 to P3. As for now, both mummy & kid really stressful.

I always believe 'try first'.

In this instance, your friend & her dd already gave GEP a chance & tried for a whole year. So they would have enough pointers to make an informed decision whether to continue or transfer to mainstream.

I would say \"depends on the child\"

If a child after trying GEP is ok to fit back into mainstream, then yes \"try first\" by all means, but if a child has no mental strength to go through the adjustment of GEP and then back to mainstream, then it may be detrimental for the child to go down this path, rebuilding of esteem takes time. I have seen many different profiles of GEP kids, there are just some who cannot take even small failures well, they break down and they argue with adults incessantly yet achieve nothing, ego is very high. What I have witnessed was pretty rude. I have also seen those who are humble to accept every failure as a learning experience and move on. Unfortunately, I have been exposed more to the first group and a handful to the second group.

[phankao]

25hr mama:

My friend juz shared her dd's experience wif me; her dd currently in P4 GEP. She has been doing extremely well for all her Math papers, always almost or full marks. As for her English papers, juz the opposite, almost near to failing. From P1 to P3, Math was her strongest subject, as for English, fluctuated between B1 & B2.

I was juz thinking, Gep Math & English, much tougher compared to mainstream, obviously she has no problem at all for Math, but finds English difficult. We used to think that, to to selected for GEP, kids MUST do well for both math & English.
But after her dd's case, she is guessing, maybe they juz need to do well in either one to pass the selection test. Any parent has a better understanding of the criteria?

My elder boy was in twinning class in p4 and there was a GEP Chinese boy in his group that could not even understand English! The PE teacher spoke to him several times without sucess in English and when told that by the other boys, his response was \"er, then how did you get into GEP?!\".

[bebebub]

Totally agree. The mental state of the child is one thing, the external opinions and comments made by others when child returns to mainstream is another. Imagine the euphoria of being selected and going to GEP, then return to mainstream and have to deal with nasty or negative reactions. Not easy for a 10 year old, I must say.


What does the child stand to lose if he/she decides to turn down the initial GEP offer?

[LLK]

ksasalways:

What is over is over...now is to get the kids recompose themselves and get ready for the next hurdle...Year-End Examine.


Good luck to all the boys and girls. You have done well to clear the screening and it must have been a draining selection test for everyone. Good job.

For my DD's case a few years ago, we knew nothing about GEP screening test. We got notice from school saying pupils are invited to take such test. We told her to just try and surprisingly she got thru'. After attended MOE briefing at St Andrew's JC, we decided not to accept the offer, thinking that it was too troublesome to change school and she also preferred not to leave her schoolmates. Luckily she did well enough in her PSLE and is now in her secondary school's SBGE class.

[jedamum]

phankao:

25hr mama:

My friend juz shared her dd's experience wif me; her dd currently in P4 GEP. She has been doing extremely well for all her Math papers, always almost or full marks. As for her English papers, juz the opposite, almost near to failing. From P1 to P3, Math was her strongest subject, as for English, fluctuated between B1 & B2.

I was juz thinking, Gep Math & English, much tougher compared to mainstream, obviously she has no problem at all for Math, but finds English difficult. We used to think that, to to selected for GEP, kids MUST do well for both math & English.
But after her dd's case, she is guessing, maybe they juz need to do well in either one to pass the selection test. Any parent has a better understanding of the criteria?

My elder boy was in twinning class in p4 and there was a GEP Chinese boy in his group that could not even understand English! The PE teacher spoke to him several times without sucess in English and when told that by the other boys, his response was \"er, then how did you get into GEP?!\".

maybe that boy is average for math and english, but did very well in GAT?

[jtoh]

jedamum:

phankao:

[quote=\"25hr mama\"]My friend juz shared her dd's experience wif me; her dd currently in P4 GEP. She has been doing extremely well for all her Math papers, always almost or full marks. As for her English papers, juz the opposite, almost near to failing. From P1 to P3, Math was her strongest subject, as for English, fluctuated between B1 & B2.

I was juz thinking, Gep Math & English, much tougher compared to mainstream, obviously she has no problem at all for Math, but finds English difficult. We used to think that, to to selected for GEP, kids MUST do well for both math & English.
But after her dd's case, she is guessing, maybe they juz need to do well in either one to pass the selection test. Any parent has a better understanding of the criteria?

My elder boy was in twinning class in p4 and there was a GEP Chinese boy in his group that could not even understand English! The PE teacher spoke to him several times without sucess in English and when told that by the other boys, his response was \"er, then how did you get into GEP?!\".

maybe that boy is average for math and english, but did very well in GAT?[/quote]More likely that he was very strong in Math and did alright in written English. There are foreign kids who do alright in written English but can't speak or understand the spoken language well.

[sleepy]

Seems that English is not the deciding component in GEP screening test.

[jtoh]

sleepy:

Seems that English is not the deciding component in GEP screening test.

Yes it is. Both English and Math are important. You'll find GEPpers who are very strong in Math but average in English, and also those who are very strong in English and average in Math.