MOE Relooking P1 registration - Too much priority to alumni

[castanst]

tankee:

doodbug:

Under this proposed scheme, for the popular schools, I think alumni who live >2km will have no chance of entering the school, even if they volunteer.

perhaps if the school is very popular.

but if the home is indeed > 2km away from the school, wouldn't it be better for the child's sake to choose another school that is much closer to home?

there is really no right or wrong to this.. every parents will know and decide what is best for the child.

this is like .. sme parents belive in sending their kids to tons of enrichment lessons..but sme dun believe in enrichment lesson at all!...
no right or wrong..

[Strparent]

magiccastle:

Since all schools are the same , then the GEP classes should be conducted at the normal neighborhood(nn) schools and not at the premium popular(pp) schools. The nn school with the GEP class cohort will be able to produce top students with Stellar PSLE results. Then we can compare the school results of those pp schools with those nn schools but with GEP .

yes, in that aspect, I personally feel MOE should do away with the GEP program altogether. Then it may filter off all these interest to get into the branded sch and lessen the effect of promoting elitism amongst the students ( & sometimes parents :siam: ).

The whole process has changed anyway in sec sch with the IP programs.

Moreover, hundreds of children are pushed and pressured to attend courses which 'teaches' how to do well in GEP selection tests, thereby making this so-called 'gifted ability' almost redundant and heavily lopsided to those who can AFFORD to be trained to be 'gifted' :faint: :faint:

Then all schools can be almost equal, and the MAIN priority should still be the proximity of the schools to the young children's genuine permanent residence.

Just thinking out loud, and caring for the children's welfare and hoping they have less stressing 'enrichments' just to catch up enforced in some instances by their kiasu face-wanting parents.

[lucid]

I think there is a focus on alumni as it seems to be a given that the government has "solved" the piority to Singaporeans issue. I think more should be done. At the moment, having 1 more chance over a PR does not mean that there is piority to to the citizen - it merely means that there is higher probability of being picked in a ballot!


A PR can volunteer and/or join a clan and/or worship at the right churches and be eligible for 2B now. In addition, they can also choose (and with probably more financial flexibility) to buy homes near the school of choice.

I would propose that ONLY citizens are eligible for the Phase 2A-C and all unallocated spaces be given to PRs after that. Now, that is real piority.

[dorisp]

lucid:

I would propose that ONLY citizens are eligible for the Phase 2A-C and all unallocated spaces be given to PRs after that. Now, that is real piority.

:goodpost:

[LOLMum]

dorisp:

lucid:

I would propose that ONLY citizens are eligible for the Phase 2A-C and all unallocated spaces be given to PRs after that. Now, that is real piority.

:goodpost:

what about phase 1 whichis the siblings phase? :scratchhead:
this is the one phase which could take up more than 50% of the available places. :sad:

should younger siblings of the pr student be automatically given a place?

[absolut_vodka]

Thus this being my 'suggestion' as posted on another similar topic thread.

absolut_vodka:

If the ministers want to convince us that all schools are the same, then they should prove to us by putting their own children/grandchildren into neighbourhood schools that are not popular.

I was formerly from one of the top all gals school and to be honest, though I love my school and all that it has provided for me, I am half-hearted to send my dd there due to the distance. Obviously, there will be some willing to trade places with me since it's definitely not an easy school to get into. I spent a good 11years (coz there used to be pre-primary available for enrollment) waking up at 5am to go to school and on some days only get home after the sun sets due to CCA or extra lessons and I can't imagine putting my dd through the whole agony. However, the schools around the vicinity of where I stay are all popular schools which are impossible to get in if I don't do something. The nearest one is even outside of 1km.

And to make matters worse, my hb's primary school has already closed down and that means for my ds (the younger one), I eventually will have to do something.

I realized after reading through the couple of related threads that there will be no pleasing everyone. Every current scheme has its pros and cons but it's not fair to one group or another.

So I asked dh what is his ideal registration process would look like, given that he has no links that he can use to get our kids into school and this is what he suggested:

1) to combat the low birth rate, local families (meaning citizens) with three or more kids get to select the school of their choice first. Given that education is a concern for many parents, this may well be one way to 'push' couples to have more than 1. This practice was used previously by the Govt. when they were pushing 'stop at two'. Women who were willing to undergo ligation procedures to stop at two were given priority in school selection. I remember one minister saying that education paves the way out of poverty for low income families. If there needs to be a cap on the numbers then maybe 5 km radius from their existing residence since that would 'enlarge' the pool of schools available for selection.

2) next phase would be for local families with two or more kids as above.

3) followed up balloting for SG citizens with one child. If there is a need to further differentiate locally born and bred citizens from new citizens, then one more ballot should be given to those whose fathers have served NS as a further recognition of the sacrifice made. Once the citizens have been admitted, the remaining spaces can be opened up to PRs and foreigners for balloting.

This is essentially a 'Singaporeans First' policy. Remember that we do not have a choice. We were borned here and so are our kids and so they must have first priority. PRs as we can see in many instances, do not regard themselves as Locals. Many use SG as a stepping stone to go elsewhere and they can give up their PR status anytime the situation looks less favorable to them. And they have the option to enrol into international schools - an option not available to locals. Same with the foreigners. Many opt for our local schools due to the cost concern.

This registration will even out the playing field. No more alumni/old boy/old gal priority, no issues of property prices escalating further around popular schools, no more exploiting poor parents precious time doing PV. The only downside I can think of, would be couples who have trouble conceiving. For those, it's off-topic here but govt can do more to fund fertility treatment since these are people who are willing to have children but are unable to. Unfortunately, for these individuals, I have to say that there has to be a cut-off age to qualify since it is medically proven that egg quality deteriorates as the women age.

I think this system will incentivize more to carry on having more than 1 child, more so than the measly $4k baby bonus that we get now, or the dollar for dollar matching in CDA (since many poor families aren't able to come out with the monies to put into the CDA a/c to begin with).

absolut_vodka:

Yes, I do understand that it seems 'unfair' to those who want more but can't have so if these couples don't mind (don't find it intrusive), maybe they can show medical evidence (fertility treatment records, miscarriages, dr's letter, etc) that they have indeed tried for more to get into phase 2 or be given priority over those who made the conscious decision to only have 1 in phase 3?

[HappinessSmile]

Singaporeans should have priority. PR and Foreigners last.

[cherrygal]

janet_lee88:

Phase 2 should be categorized.

*Phase 2A for old boys/girls as well as children of staff teachers in a category by itself.

*2B for religious groups, PV and clans. Take out grassroots.

Some schools belong to clans. Catholic/Christian have strong relationship with schools. PVs serve the schools directly. For PVs, limit intake to 20 and absorb all the children of the parents who have chalked up the required hours.

Totally agree to remove that grassroots things. They already get free parking at the GRC and first priority in choosing HDB flats etc. Why do they need so many perks if it's in their hearts to volunteer and serve? As for PVs, schools should only take in a limited number of PVs so they dun volunteer for nothing.

And schools should take in Singaporean PVs first.

[Mawar]

I have been following the rapid exchange of ideas and have not found the right time to jump in. Like zero point, need to come in at right time or get tripped over.


These are my thoughts and wishlists.

All the phases instituted through the years to accomodate vested groups are not much different from my kids and their close friends who love to set rules and more house rules to gain the upper hand in their games. These days their games have become so complicated and exclusive that only the same players could play because the rules are too complicated for new members to follow. Sorry for the digression.

I lost a lot of sleep and hair when it was time for P1 registration. I felt stressed because I had assumed that P1 registration was a given and was supposed to be a breeze. I blamed myself for being so naive and nonchalant. Should have signed up with this site earlier! :stupid: Afterall primary education is compulsory, isn't it? DH's and my parents didnt know better and simply registered us in schools that have since gone the way of the dodo birds. The nearest primary schools around our place suddenly became very popular in the recent years due to newcomers. Those same schools indicated that they preferred PVs who were homemakers. :mad: Some mummies even PV at 2 schools!! :imdrowning: Everything seemed to be stacked against us. The most painful was to hear that they didnt intend for their children to stay in those schools but they would try to jump ship after P3!!

Anyway, why so many phases? Because some schools are better than others. So parents clamour to get their kids in. What do we base this assumption on? The PSLE results of top students, and the near impossible high entry barrier. Year in year out, same few schools produce the creme de la creme. Some of these schools offer the much coveted GEP program. Special dedicated resources that some of us could ill afford!! The second category of coveted schools operate out of a certain stretch of road. These schools have been around longer than independent Singapore, and have groomed most of who's who. The rest of us try our best to get our kids in. Those inside try their best to keep undeserving ones out.

But reading your discussions has made me optimistic. The time has come to rewrite some of the rules and to gently dismantle some of the barriers. It will happen gradually as the voices outside grow louder. I dont hope to see a major upheaval or revamp. But I like the idea of rotating the GEP centers to neighbourhod schools so that the schools own high ability students could participate and pass down the pedagogy down, the idea of relocating some schools to ease congestion along a certain stretch of road, or even the idea of setting up satellite schools/campuses to spread the great tradition and best practices to all corners of Singapore. Most importantly, I hope that our leaders who promised to serve us remember to serve our own children first.

[Chenonceau]

Mawar:

Most importantly, I hope that our leaders who promised to serve us remember to serve our own children first.

:love: