Anglo-Chinese School (Independent)

[DadOfGirl]

ruohoo97:

autolycus:

The syllabus for Sec 3 and Sec 4 are sometimes not so closely related. For example, most schools do organic chem in Sec 4, and for the O-levels, basic concepts for thinking about organic chem are hardly taught in Sec 3. So it does indeed depend on the subject, but grades vary because suddenly at the end of Sec 4, topics that haven't been touched for a while come back again.

Then of course, students at S3/S4 are also experiencing personal growth and change... the appearance of pimples and other such wonders.

Oh, no, those conditions in red happen much earlier, in sec 2, maybe.

Bottomline is , if your child has done well in Sec3, it's parent's responsibility that nothing changes in next 12 months. No Job change for parents, no House moving... essentially routine should remain same for entire family. I would suggest to even not add any friends/ keep same good company of friends. O-level is one exam result... so so important.

That kind of tickels a question... DSA for JC are more for students with humanities combination or Science? I mean what does JC compete for? Talent for languages or Science/maths proficiency?

[kittybank]

autolycus:

wormy:

How is the express stream exam questions' level of difficulty compared with other sec schools? The report card shows L1R5 score and I wonder if this is a good gauge of students' performance in O levels.

It's quite a fair gauge. The variance in ACS(I) questions tends to be wider than in most other schools, but I don't think they're easier on average. Which level are you talking about, or is this a general observation?

Thanks Autolycus, DS is in yr1. Read from earlier thread that to get into IB at yr 3, one needs 85%. Sch does not disclose range nor mean nor highest scores. Diffcult to guess which percentile he is in. Are there really so many boys getting 80% and above. It doesn't seem so easy at sec sch to score 80s except for math

[autolycus]

BeContented:

Hi Autolycus,

DS has just submitted and accepted CO from ACSI. We are looking forward to the next phase of his school life

Was reading on the subject combination by other parents, I know it's a wee bit too soon to ask, but am being curious. DS has color deficiency and is told that some study/careers choices may be out for him (color discrimination requirement). Supposedly when he needs to choose his subjects in Yr3.....does he need to take account of this condition?

Thanks.

Hi BeContented, your DS and I are in the same boat. However, I did graduate as a double Chemistry major, so it's not too bad a problem. After all, 8-10% of males suffer from some form of colour deficiency, and about that percentage of women can see extra colours which nobody else can see (not kidding, true).

The choices that may be out for him are likely those that depend on extreme colour accuracy — interpreting reconnaissance photos, some kinds of electrical engineering, some kinds of graphic arts, stamp collecting, things like that. It depends on the degree of his colour deficiency, but I'll note that most people with mild CD are allowed to drive (like myself) and live fairly normal lives (unless we have to choose the paint colours for our walls or something).

[autolycus]

ruohoo97:

Dear autolycus, my son is not in ACS yet, but I thought Physics is required for \"o\" level stream? , For o level, performance in which subject for average student is more likely to do better? biology or Geography? Sorry to ask such funny question, if you may think.

No, Physics is not a necessity. For O-levels, you need English, Mathematics, a Math/Science subject, a Math/Science/Humanities subject, and two others.

Hmm. There are many kinds of average students. Biology and geography are both susceptible to hardcore mugging strategies. However, geography can be learnt with less mugging by most people, while biology can be learnt with less mugging for those with good visual imagination.

[autolycus]

DadOfGirl:

That kind of tickels a question... DSA for JC are more for students with humanities combination or Science? I mean what does JC compete for? Talent for languages or Science/maths proficiency?

All-round talent, actually. I remember working on the DSA scoring system and I have to say that they look for extreme talent in any area. The thing about the IB is that it is less biased towards sciences than the old A-level model we went through. This makes some people think it is more language or humanities biased (relatively speaking) — which isn't true. Perhaps the best way to think about it is that we want our children to be flexible and adaptable in the long run, so the best system is one that challenges them in multiple dimensions.

[autolycus]

wormy:

Thanks Autolycus, DS is in yr1. Read from earlier thread that to get into IB at yr 3, one needs 85%. Sch does not disclose range nor mean nor highest scores. Diffcult to guess which percentile he is in. Are there really so many boys getting 80% and above. It doesn't seem so easy at sec sch to score 80s except for math

Actually, the point is that places are reserved for the IP students who started in Y1, so that only the best non-IP students can enter the IP at Y3. This is true even for the scholar intake that comes in around now to enter Y3 next year. So the 85% (which corresponds to an average grade of 7 for the IP/IB system) is just a guideline.

[PiggyLalala]

autolycus:

ruohoo97:

Dear autolycus, my son is not in ACS yet, but I thought Physics is required for \"o\" level stream? , For o level, performance in which subject for average student is more likely to do better? biology or Geography? Sorry to ask such funny question, if you may think.

No, Physics is not a necessity. For O-levels, you need English, Mathematics, a Math/Science subject, a Math/Science/Humanities subject, and two others.

Hmm. There are many kinds of average students. Biology and geography are both susceptible to hardcore mugging strategies. However, geography can be learnt with less mugging by most people, while biology can be learnt with less mugging for those with good visual imagination.

Surprise to know tt geography is a 'mugging' subject. So wat can we say abt a child who is good in both geo and biology... A 'mugger'.

[autolycus]

PiggyLalala:

Surprise to know tt geography is a 'mugging' subject. So wat can we say abt a child who is good in both geo and biology... A 'mugger'.

Haha, no no... I said that these subjects are susceptible to mugging strategies. However, I have always preferred that students learn these through experience, reflection, and reasoning. Biology at the DNA/molecular level is hard to teach directly that way, while geography at most levels is easier to teach that way.

[julialai]

Hi


My DS has accepted the CO to ACSI recently. So we are now wanting to find out more about what to expect in Year 1. It'll predictably be a big leap academically ..would appreciate if some of you whose DS have gone through Year 1 to give us some advice on how to cope and adjust well - I treasure your wisdom on hindsight!

TIA for your sharing!

[UncleLim]

Autolycus' answer to Thimberwolf101 is a must-read for all parents considering ACS(I). Many of us lament that in our time, the system failed to make us adaptable all-rounders. Instead, we had to learn how to survive in the increasingly globalised real world the hard way as working adults. I see an IB schooling as the first step in true education, a somewhat junior version of a liberal arts college where one starts to think, learn, explore, agree or disagree, propose or defend. I, for one, would gladly exchange many university classes in Integral Transforms in Harmonic Analysis and VLSI System Design for something more practical in corporate life.

autolycus:

Hi, thimberwolf101!

The real point of the IB curriculum can be understood better by looking at the projected job market of the future. At the moment, you can already see signs of it — there are very few jobs where a person will not benefit greatly from the ability to communicate exactly, meaningfully, and at short notice.

This is especially true of the more value-added jobs in the economy. It isn't all about 'arty' or 'PR' people, but about the ability to make sense out of a broad range of any kind of data or information — business proposals, legal briefs, knowledge construction, research. That's why the IB is designed to teach all the basic kinds of communication at a reasonably high level, not only the kind required to deliver a narrowly-targeted answer.

I've been looking at a broad range of students too — ranging from the govt school I first taught in, to the girls' school and then the boys' school that I later worked at. My students, some now married with school-going kids of their own, have often come to realise that catering to the natural tendencies of a child is only one side of the story; sometimes, you have to try to get them to do what does not come naturally.

Symbolic math is one such skill that isn't natural, and clearly facility with electronic devices can't be either. However, these abilities can be taught based on a foundation of more general skills — symbol/speech processing, visuo-spatial awareness, analogy with physical movement, memory training etc.

The ability to speak (or its foundational skillset) is wired into the human brain — training it is actually easier than doing science/math. Think about that...

I think that the only reason the IB syllabus looks strange to many of us is that we grew up (and are still living) in an era where hardcore math and science are favoured disciplines. So when the IB allows only two sciences, we think it is science-deficient or humanities-favouring.

But that's not true. It's actually the IB which is balanced and the A-levels of our time which were not. That is why in 2002, Tharman made the A-level curriculum move towards a required 'opposing' subject and added other things in — our present A-level system has actually been modified to be more like the IB, because many people who study the future of globalisation think the IB approach is better.

Cheers!