Help on ML exemption

[Musings]

Hi


Can someone shed some light on the criteria for exemption from MT?

Because I have a younger child (still in preschool) who has speech delay and is seeing KKH speech therapist on a monthly basis. Based on child development unit doctors in KKH, he does not have other developmental issues but just speech delay. Of course speech therapy is to work only on his English pronunciation. But he also has problems distinguishing and speaking the 4 sounds of chinese characters.

Have been seriously considering exemption from MT - but not sure if he will qualify or what supporting documents (psychologist report?) is required. I have only heard of those with Asperger or autism who manage to obtain exemption.

would appreciate some feedback from those who had obtained MT exemption. Thanks.

[jacsplace]

Thanks poots. I don’t think my kids have Tamil dyslexia. I think they are just not interested and frankly I can’t blame them. There really is no value in learning Tamil in Singapore where everything is done mainly in English and Mandarin. Nobody needs to know Tamil in order to survive in Singapore, so really what’s the point of studying it?

[lurline]

Hi musings,


My eldest son who is in P4 now, had a similiar case as your child. He was diagnosed with speech delayed for 2-3yrs when he was in K1 and had speech therapy in KKH and SGH before he joined P1. He does not have any other problem except speech delayed. He also cannot distinguish han yu ping yin sounds. I thought that he will overcome this problem over time as his case according to his therapist is consider mild. However, he suffered when he joined primary school. His first year result was 30 for Chinese. I gave him intensive tuition for chinese and he managed to score 50+ in P2, 70 in P3. His paper 2 is fine but he cannot make it in oral and writing, always fail.

I can pursue further assessment to diagnose him and maybe he can be exempted from taking Chinese in future but I prefer him to work hard in this area now. He works extremely hard and spend hours doing chinese. He is just an average student or below average for Chinese but he has learnt an valuable lesson through his hard work. Now he knows that he just have to put in more hours to practise compared to his friends.

Getting an exemption will make things easier and let him focus on his other subjects though. Right now, he is lucky that he breeze through Maths and Science but I’m not so sure abt next yr, P5 is a big jump, I heard.

Just sharing…

Thks!

[thetinyseed]

Musings:

Hi


Can someone shed some light on the criteria for exemption from MT?

Because I have a younger child (still in preschool) who has speech delay and is seeing KKH speech therapist on a monthly basis. Based on child development unit doctors in KKH, he does not have other developmental issues but just speech delay. Of course speech therapy is to work only on his English pronunciation. But he also has problems distinguishing and speaking the 4 sounds of chinese characters.

Have been seriously considering exemption from MT - but not sure if he will qualify or what supporting documents (psychologist report?) is required. I have only heard of those with Asperger or autism who manage to obtain exemption.

would appreciate some feedback from those who had obtained MT exemption. Thanks.

As long as you have either a psychologist or in your case, a speech therapist report, you can apply for MT exemption. This is not guaranteed. But if you strongly feel your child should be exempted, you will need to \"fight\" your case. If your child starts P1 without approval for exemption, the school teachers may recommend exemption if your child is struggling to cope.

[mom-of-2 0]

poots:

Kids who are exempted are not really penalized, apart from not being able to go to SAP schools where Chinese is compulsory. However, if they do well enough at PSLE to qualify to learn a 3rd language in secondary school, and they choose to do so, they will have to offer this as a 2nd language and will not be allowed to drop it later. A big advantage of exemption is that they are deemed to have satisfied the MT requirement for entry to local university, and will be exempted all the way through sec sch / JC. They might get penalized in the job market though.

It's not true that MT exempted kids are excluded from SAP school. My daughter's classmate in NYGH is exempted from MT although she apparently enjoys all other Chinese related classes such as wushu, Chinese dance and Chinese speech and drama.

[mashy]

Hi!


I would like to check, after exemption, do they give u a letter? Do they state the reason for exemption?

Coz When applying for uni, I’m wondering do we need to submit proof that our kids have been exempted from MTL.

[mashy]

slmkhoo:

mashy:

Hi!


I would like to check, after exemption, do they give u a letter? Do they state the reason for exemption?

Coz When applying for uni, I'm wondering do we need to submit proof that our kids have been exempted from MTL.

MOE issues a letter giving the exemption. The letter my daughter received does not state a reason.

Thank you! I'm wondering will I have to keep telling everyone the reason until I run out of pp to tell. great that they don't state the reason.

[Parent2008]

poots:

I've a S1 kid in a Band 1 SAP school & a P6 one who is exempted from MT. The S1 kid is doing MT, not HMT (among a minority in this school).


If you have a genuine case for exemption, I think you should go for it! All the more as I gather Chinese is not even your child's MT!! A poor CL grade will REALLY affect the PSLE score (especially as over 80% of the cohort gets A/A*). Getting U grade (<20%) means automatic retention. Running on 3 subjects, a kid cannot expect to top the Nation, but up to 260+ is possible and many schools including top ones like RI / RGS (but not SAP) accept them thru DSA or thru MOE posting exercise.

Your child can always pick up CL at his own pace after PSLE, and sit for exams a few times (many kids do O Levels CL separately from other subjects anyway - and sitting for it twice is also quite normal). Those who argue that this is unfair do not understand that some kids have a genuine basis for exemption, and that MOE makes provisions for them. If the MOE panel of specialists has approved the exemption, no one has the right to judge you harshly. What can I say ... surely a one-legged child should not be expected to compete with able-bodied 2-legged children in running. If you need further advice, do msg me. Been there, done that.

My DD is struggling with MT Chinese; just got 38%. We did a test with a Psychologist and she prescribed testing for Dyslexia using Weschler Test. The test did not show any form of Dsylexia and her report did not support exemption.

Now, the problem is that I understand that besides Dyslexia, there could be other Learning Difficulties and other angles to request for exemption.

Would appreciate if anyone in this forum could help with recommending a Pyschologist who has done this exemption and can propose the right kind of test. We spent almost $2000 but end up with a report that is not useful. I am also wondering if all who gets exempted because of Dyslexia because this seem to be the most common reason.

DD is crying everyday and very moody. Please PM if if you can help. We need to help her.

Thank you.

Parent2008

[lakshmi v]

My child’s Actual mother tongue is not taught in Singapore. He is in p5 and is struggling in MT around 35% . We tried all sorts of tuition, enrichment. Soo worried. Want to try for exemption. Can anyone help. Please pm.

[jacsplace]

lakshmi v:

My child's Actual mother tongue is not taught in Singapore. He is in p5 and is struggling in MT around 35% . We tried all sorts of tuition, enrichment. Soo worried. Want to try for exemption. Can anyone help. Please pm.

Hi, did you try for exemption? any update? Thanks.