Asia spending billions on tutors: study
-
Sun_2010:
The student's parent may also drop the tuition as they have encountered a good teacher. Most pple whom I have came across, would not want to waste money on tuition if they had a choice. Sometimes, once the kid's result improve, they would stop the tuition.
(Black hat on )
How about this angle ?
Next year, the next set of students enter the class A. However the all students have tution already. Maybe they had the misfortune of meeting TeacherB clones in previous years, maybe they had high expectation parents, maybe they had everyone goes-to-TLL-means-it-is-goo-so-my-child-will-too kind of parents.
All do well . So Teacher A is penalized because her students opted for tution even though she is a fantastic teacher?
I wonder how many parents are the super kiasu type who would want tuition at all cost.. Maybe.. maybe only the RICH ones who always want their kids to top the class. From what I read here, even some quite well-to-do parents would not want tuition if they could.
Also, we could look at rewarding good teachers instead of penalizing the not-so-good ones. No harm having more incentives, isn't it?
There are 2 different types of views here..
One is, parents are kiasu, they send their kids to tuition regardless of what they can learn in school
The other view is, tuition is out of desperation. they would not want it, whether for the welfare of the kid or the cost involved.
If you belong to the first group, you will not understand the frustration of the other group.
Instead of trying to help the 2nd group, they ignore all pleads, just becoz they believe all parents are like the first group.
Whereas for those whose experience are like the 2nd group, choose to take steps to improve the situation, and do not discount the existence of the 1st group. -
schweppes:
:hi5: again schweppes, we are in synch on this and I execute similarly as you with realistic checkpoints and feedback from my child.The thing about failures and setbacks is that it is said to mould one's character and build resilience. Last thing we want is when failures and setbacks happen one to many times, and that can make the child feel resigned to fate. Or worse, breaks his spirit completely. No parent wants that to happen.
So, whether parents scramble to coach their own kids or outsource to tutors/ enrichment centers, it's about all about helping the child as best as can be or at the very least, help the child to cope in school.
Of course, there are some over-zealous parents out there... must be 1st in class/level or else, must be the best of the best or else.... and the latest one, blaming one's own parents for putting them in the \"wrong\" primary school as that affects his own child's current p1 registration now.. Can't do much about those. Takes all sorts to make the world.
End of day, who is to say who is right or wrong? Each family dynamics is different.
I can't speak for other parents but I do want my kids to perform to the best of their abilities. And if I can, push them a little - out of their comfort zone, challenge their boundaries, just a tad. As their mother, I owe it to my kids to develop their strengths, instill the right values and educate them well.
At the same time, I am also very mindful of their limitations and what they can or can't do. Whilst I want them to do their best and be the best that they can be, I am also realistic. I am consciously mindful that I need to calibrate my expectations as well.
Looking at my kids, I'm glad I pushed dd1's capabilities. I think if my dh and I didn't do that, we would have denied her the opportunities to develop her to her full potential. And we wd have failed as her parents for not nurturing her to be the best she can be, to where she is now.
Just my personal sharing.
-
Strparent:
This is one example of the outcome of education skewed towards more academic pursuit with less focus on character building.
:faint: :faint: :slapshead: :slapshead: nvr heard that one b4schweppes:
Of course, there are some over-zealous parents out there... must be 1st in class/level or else, must be the best of the best or else.... and the latest one, blaming one's own parents for putting them in the \"wrong\" primary school as that affects his own child's current p1 registration now..
that type must![](\"http://i50.tinypic.com/2r5s4so.gif\")
http://i50.tinypic.com/2r5s4so.gif\">
if anything to blame on own parents, better blame they raised an ingrate son/daughter :mad: -
Lilac66:
Lilac66 - You have both a good head and a good heart. Bless you! And your post far exceeds $2. It is priceless!
I do agree with alot of oxyleo's views. I salute her for her courage to put it in words what the few of us feel. By and large, I would believe ( not 100%) many of the parents here who feel that MOE, teachers should not be made to shoulder all the blame are parents who have been blessed with more compliant, relatively bright kids who can do well without tuition but will do much better with it.The discussion here sometimes takes on a heated tone becoz it springs from a sense of exasperation that those not in the situation of these helpless struggling parents , are not able to fully empathise with their plight. Even some parents whose children are doing fine are now very uptight coz PSLE is round the corner, so what more those who are having a hard time just praying that the kids are just able to clear this ist major exam?
I know we should not blame the system , or teachers or even parents squarely for the problems of the education landscape now, but we should not dismiss the fact that if the children do not at least clear this PSLE (at all costs to some parents), their self esteem will definitely take a hit, whether it'll be a fatal one or not, it depends on the child's character whether resilience is in him.
I think some parents here are talking about diff things regarding a child's abilities. Of course one with learning disabilities will not be expected to \"bloom\" or flourish academically like normal children even with the best educators. But as parents of such children , we'll hope to give them the best training to at least equip them with basic life skills for earning a living in future. Well, what the other parents like oxyleo or ksi pointed out is that when a child (assuming no learning difficulties)is struggling with schoolwork, we do not sit by and watch doing nothing thinking that's the way to train the child to be indep , face consequences etc.. It's like a child having a fever, do we sit by and watch hoping the body will fight the infection and he'll emerge stronger from it without resorting to anti-biotics? No of course not, but we don't want to do too much either as as the immune system will take a reliance on stronger antibiotics to get well.
Tuition is like antibiotics. It's effective when we really need it, but over-reliance on it when our body can try to fight the infection, will have detrimental effects over the long term.And is tuition part of the problem or part of the solution? Maybe abit of both. So I don't think it's fair to blame parents solely for the tuition phenomenon just as we should not do so to MOE or teachers. Each has a part to play to ensure the best education experience for our young.
bear with my $2 worth of lengthy post.. -
The problem with antibiotics, as most family doctors know, is that all patients expect to be given antibiotics for viral infections. Antibiotics are ment for bacterial infections. Patients who walk out of a family clinic without antibiotics often grumble that the doctor is no good, or just wants to earn more money from repeated visits. If the patient still shows symptoms of infection after a week, the doctor will often finally prescribe antibiotics. After which, most patients recover, though some may continue to cough for a longer period.
Perhaps there are many parallels between the use of antibiotics and tuition. Both as seen as a "magic bullet" to obtain results. Perhaps the solution here, is to educate the patient about the precautions, and possible adverse outcomes from their use, and abuse. -
schweppes:
End of day, who is to say who is right or wrong? Each family dynamics is different.
I can't speak for other parents but I do want my kids to perform to the best of their abilities. And if I can, push them a little - out of their comfort zone, challenge their boundaries, just a tad. As their mother, I owe it to my kids to develop their strengths, instill the right values and educate them well.
At the same time, I am also very mindful of their limitations and what they can or can't do. Whilst I want them to do their best and be the best that they can be, I am also realistic. I am consciously mindful that I need to calibrate my expectations as well.
Looking at my kids, I'm glad I pushed dd1's capabilities. I think if my dh and I didn't do that, we would have denied her the opportunities to develop her to her full potential. And we wd have failed as her parents for not nurturing her to be the best she can be, to where she is now.
Just my personal sharing.
And you have done a super duper whooper job with your DD1 jie, considering the hurdles you had to overcome :hugs: :hugs: -
limlim:
Class A taught by a passionate and diligent teacher A, all passed. Because Teacher A is very good, None of the students require tuition.
Class B taught by an incompetent and bochup Teacher B. Student learnt Nil from the teacher B. All the students seek tuition. All passed. Average result better than class A.
End of the year, both got the same raise, bonus etc.. or maybe Teacher B got promoted becasue the class result is better and other KPI the same.
Is it fair to teacher A?
Will it kill her passion?
Will she follow teacher B, teach less, learn more (outside)?
Negative motivation?
Shouldn't we have some means to REWARD teacher A? The fact that none of her student requires tuition is a wonderful feat by itself.
Limlim,
Just to clarify, promotion is not solely based on class results alone. There are other factors to be taken into consideration - lesson observation for one. -
oxyleo:
Lilac66 - You have both a good head and a good heart. Bless you! And your post far exceeds $2. It is priceless!Lilac66:
I do agree with alot of oxyleo's views. I salute her for her courage to put it in words what the few of us feel. By and large, I would believe ( not 100%) many of the parents here who feel that MOE, teachers should not be made to shoulder all the blame are parents who have been blessed with more compliant, relatively bright kids who can do well without tuition but will do much better with it.The discussion here sometimes takes on a heated tone becoz it springs from a sense of exasperation that those not in the situation of these helpless struggling parents , are not able to fully empathise with their plight. Even some parents whose children are doing fine are now very uptight coz PSLE is round the corner, so what more those who are having a hard time just praying that the kids are just able to clear this ist major exam?
I know we should not blame the system , or teachers or even parents squarely for the problems of the education landscape now, but we should not dismiss the fact that if the children do not at least clear this PSLE (at all costs to some parents), their self esteem will definitely take a hit, whether it'll be a fatal one or not, it depends on the child's character whether resilience is in him.
I think some parents here are talking about diff things regarding a child's abilities. Of course one with learning disabilities will not be expected to \"bloom\" or flourish academically like normal children even with the best educators. But as parents of such children , we'll hope to give them the best training to at least equip them with basic life skills for earning a living in future. Well, what the other parents like oxyleo or ksi pointed out is that when a child (assuming no learning difficulties)is struggling with schoolwork, we do not sit by and watch doing nothing thinking that's the way to train the child to be indep , face consequences etc.. It's like a child having a fever, do we sit by and watch hoping the body will fight the infection and he'll emerge stronger from it without resorting to anti-biotics? No of course not, but we don't want to do too much either as as the immune system will take a reliance on stronger antibiotics to get well.
Tuition is like antibiotics. It's effective when we really need it, but over-reliance on it when our body can try to fight the infection, will have detrimental effects over the long term.And is tuition part of the problem or part of the solution? Maybe abit of both. So I don't think it's fair to blame parents solely for the tuition phenomenon just as we should not do so to MOE or teachers. Each has a part to play to ensure the best education experience for our young.
bear with my $2 worth of lengthy post..
Thank you, it's just my humble opinions. Anyway, have always enjoyed reading your posts as well as ksi's composed replies in the midst of all the heat.
-
Laura02:
Hi Laura02 - Agree it is a good idea to draw parallels here. Good for discussion purposes.The problem with antibiotics, as most family doctors know, is that all patients expect to be given antibiotics for viral infections. Antibiotics are ment for bacterial infections. Patients who walk out of a family clinic without antibiotics often grumble that the doctor is no good, or just wants to earn more money from repeated visits. If the patient still shows symptoms of infection after a week, the doctor will often finally prescribe antibiotics. After which, most patients recover, though some may continue to cough for a longer period.
Perhaps there are many parallels between the use of antibiotics and tuition. Both as seen as a \"magic bullet\" to obtain results. Perhaps the solution here, is to educate the patient about the precautions, and possible adverse outcomes from their use, and abuse.
Well, I think you are absolutely right about people and antibiotics. Newspapers do their part to educate the public about antibiotics, medical journals express their facts about antibiotics, and people still insist on antibiotics. And interestingly, with not quite such great variation in experiences, quite many it seems successfully get it from their docs.
Of course, most of us are patients, not doctors, so we share our stories, chit-chat around, and find quite often, when we fall ill from the flu, well-meaning friends ask, \"Did you get antibiotics from your Dr?\" Those who originally intended to follow religiously what they read from newspapers and journals, get, you know, kinda worried. \"You mean, your Dr gave you antibiotics? I thought cannot anyhow eat.\" When more and more people around you say,\"Yah, I always get them. Go and ask your Dr lah,\" how many of us, being not medically trained, are going to begin to think maybe there is no harm in asking. Especially so when those who get it report quick and fast recovery.
Yes we can educate patients, but in association to this phenomenon, would be why Doctors, who abide by a strict code of ethics, prescribe it still? Just because patients complain about them and threaten not to give them business anymore? Wouldn't it be expected of Doctors to uphold ethics over profit? If some prescribe it, some don't, how can patients really be sure it isn't really helping one get better faster?
You see, patients and doctors are human. Patients are confused by the inconsistency, and try to avoid being conned to spend more money. Certainly not that they are being conned, but who doesn't want to save more money? Doctors, having studied all these years, have families too, and other than saving lives, do have mouths at home to feed.
Can we just educate one without the other? Or do we need cooperation from both parties? -
limlim:
If that is the case, then we should 'police' ALL civil servants perhaps, not only teachers, so we won't have to read yet another prostitution or corruption episode .....
Strange no one defended the teachers in this aspect so far..
Of coz, we can say, \"not all teachers are like that\".. which is of coz true.
But, why we cannot move towards the direction of \"All teachers are NOT like that\", with proper policies and regulation in place?
It is not to impose some unreasonable standards on teachers, but rather, for MOE to be aligned with standard industrial practices. What is wrong with that?
Just bcoz some parents are asking for MOE to adopt widely accepted industrial practices, it is being inhumane? as some suggests?
Teachers are collectively teachers, but on their own, they are individuals. You cannot expect them to be cut from the same mold. We might as well employ robots to teach then.
Standard industrial practices can be implemented till the cows come home, I doubt very much it will help because these are mere guidelines, and guidelines are very often open to interpretation. One can argue that this shouldn't be the case, but if there is justification, then how?? This is my
understanding.
One example ...
The teachers are ranked based on certain criterias. However, it seems that
the criterias are subjected to interpretation. A teacher, who has consistently been doing his job well goes on on long MC. During the ranking session, he is given a D grade because he has nothing to show in his work review for that year in one school. This is based on the HOD's or P's opinion, (justification) no two ways about it, no sympathy. On the other hand, in another school, he can be listed as ungraded because the P and HOD are aware and appreciate that in the past few years he has done an admirable
job (justification) and don't want him to lose his morale. Getting a D means he is taken out of the promotion radar for the next 3 or 4 years, no matter how much he proves himself within the first year after obtaining a D, he still has to ride it out ....
Sorlli if I :offtopic: :oops: :oops:
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better š
Register Login