Child Underperforms Because Tested Above Cognitive Level

[Chenonceau]

Oops… not countries… 66 locations.

[autumnbronze]

Chenonceau:

MOE is in a single country. It's Teachers don't share teaching resources. It's schools don't share teaching resources. [color=#800000][b]Why?
MOE has been sleeping all these years, and it still thinks it is world class. MOE management was busy getting Teachers to serve that it forgot that they need to serve the Teachers too.

Nice read :hugs:

I love the significance of the word 'empowerment'. I always use this word to motivate my pupils.

Chen,

Hope I am reading this correctly.

As to why teachers and schs are not sharing resources, it's due to
competition, insecurity of the people in question and KPIs. Thats what I observed during my time.

Whether KPIs are achieved or not, there has to be justification. And believe me, no one wants to produce a negative justification.

On a separate note, I came across in one of your postings where you questioned why teachers with passion are not being promoted. Well, its pretty obvious - they are not there to wayang and suck up to the 'right' people. Again, these are based on my personal observations. There was a teacher who always did the wayang during her lesson observations and presentations. She did well. So well that recently I heard that she has been posted to MOE. And these are the sort of people who will be spearheading MOE's policies .... Imagine that! *gasp*


I never said there weren't any bad apples in the teaching profession

[buds]

:shock: Gasp! Autumnbronzee... this is really why then MOE hadn't budged much for years. The ideal passionate ppl are not in there. They're on the ground working with the children. If they are up there, they be able to revamp n help even more children. One teacher I know does not give a hoot to even get there.. she says she enjoys her work most where the children are.. not with the adults. Her satisfaction came solely from teaching. This same teacher was known (by children) throughout all levels n not just the ones she was teaching. I wrote to P commending her extraordinary teaching AND mothering efforts for my girl as a thank you note before we left n complimented her in when I had a last chat with P. I told her, she had many hidden gems amongst her team n that teacher was one of them. :love:

[Chenonceau]

buds:

:shock: Gasp! Autumnbronzee... this is really why then MOE hadn't budged much for years. The ideal passionate ppl are not in there. They're on the ground working with the children. If they are up there, they be able to revamp n help even more children. One teacher I know does not give a hoot to even get there.. she says she enjoys her work most where the children are.. not with the adults. Her satisfaction came solely from teaching. This same teacher was known (by children) throughout all levels n not just the ones she was teaching. I wrote to P commending her extraordinary teaching AND mothering efforts for my girl as a thank you note before we left n complimented her in when I had a last chat with P. I told her, she had many hidden gems amongst her team n that teacher was one of them. :love:

THAT IS WHY WE MUST SPEAK UP!!

[Chenonceau]

buds and AB, you are, from every indication, intelligent and wise Mommies. You are going to sit silent and keep quiet KNOWING that the people in MOE who have passion are those with the LEAST power? They're those who are STILL working with kids and have no say on policy because they are supposed to be too stupid?


You are going to SILENTLY let these MOE big shots dictate the suffering of our children and mould the future of our country?

Speak up.

This is our country. Those are our children. Teachers are our friends, our sisters, brothers, cousins, aunts. They BELONG to US. If we care, we must speak or else nothing will change because from every newspaper report, we are told that MOE is world class by Minister Heng.

Is it? Ask your conscience. Is it?

[buds]

YES then! Let's!


But where's the proper channel so it won't just be yet another ranting fruitless corner, babe?

[Chenonceau]

buds:

YES then! Let's!


But where's the proper channel so it won't just be yet another ranting fruitless corner, babe?

Speak up here. People read. I am not unaware that there are good Teachers. I am not blind to the fact that there many great educators. I rebut every point that comes in to make excuses for MOE because it WON'T admit that it has failed this nation. I would concede every argument everywhere else (small matters) but I push hard solely on this topic so that people can be convinced.

We must speak publicly and often. It's no use telling MOE privately. Until we can get enough people to realize and to clamour for change only then will MOE take us seriously. Enough hush talk and discreet feedback. Enough gentle feddback.

If you care for your children and the future of this country... SPEAK. Forget about channels. SPEAK. In cafes... in other forums... with your spouse... with your kids' teachers... at every festival gathering. SPEAK.

[smartmummy]

If he tried and dropped, then it's ok lah. No regrets.

But never try then how. He like chess and his school doesn't have then we enrolled him in a private organization in last school holidays. He learnt from me only he skipped two levels and enrolled in the 3 rd level. They did an assessment. As a mother I believe he has the talent. Most of the time he won me and his classmate. He show the passion.
in

jedamum:

smartmummy,
there are alternatives.
when my boy does not have access to LRD last year, we were prepared to fork out money to subscribe to Today or MyPaper for that additional enrichment reading. ended up, we let him read Straits Times Online after the grandparents who are Straits Times subscribers told us about the promotional subscription they were having.

when my boy's sch did not subscribe to Chinese magazine last year, i went to buy fortnightly copies off the newstand too.

for CCA-wise that one really depends on luck. even if the sch has the CCA that your kid wants to join, sometimes, they only cherrypick potential students to fill in the limited vacancies.

[buds]

I’ve done more reading on your sharings and I do believe that you are not asking for the skies… but just more unity… cohesion… appropriate testing level… within ALL schools… with all educators n its relevant sectors in SG. Those who want to reach over the rainbow can go ahead but the rest of us mere mortals are happy if our children are happy motivated learners instead of cookie cutter squares.


If what my DD’s teachers and school have done can be replicated in all other schools then more children AND parents will find holistic education highly engaging n more fruitful than the structured whiteboard-textbook styled method… tested fairly and also holistically instead of just academically… that compulsory supplementary can measure up as a quality value add enrichment pgrm and remedial lessons as honest help for children who need them… then our children can retain their childhood AND their love n hunger for learning, like they should.

Now… do correct me if I’m wrong or if I missed out anything.

[Chenonceau]

We are told that we have not enough resources. Let me tell you why. Schools don't share resources. They're busy COMPETING with each other. Let me point to another analogy.


The Hamish people in Pennsylvania lead an austere lifestyle. They build houses the old fashioned way with wood and wooden pegs. For a long time, their community was far too small to support a dedicated construction company. Baby... they had not enough resources. So what did they do? They SHARED!

If a family needed new house, all the men in the community take time off to help build that house. See photo HERE...http://blog.100-mile-house.org/?p=162. They ALL live in houses larger than yours and mine. They had not enough resources so they SHARED.

If I write a model compo and you write a model compo and she writes a model compo....all our kids will have 10 model compos to read and memorize. Resources are wasted because schools don't SHARE.

Schools don't SHARE because they wanna compete and win. They wanna compete because MOE only knows how to motivate people with
(1) competition
(2) pay
(3) failure

This is shocking because extrinsic-intrinsic motivation is part of every basic program that teaches people to teach. Edward Deci did research in educational psychology... and MOE is unaware of the power of Edward Deci's theories and work? It has been unable to adapt the knowledge base given to the WORLD by Edward Deci to motivate Teachers and staff http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_L._Deci.

Why?