MOE - We wish, we want.... so we write
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MR06:
If the exams are standardised and weaker schools taken care of by MOE's headquarter sending in a support team, parents would be assured of an acceptable standard across board. There would not be so much fighting tooth and nail over the popular schools. Those who fail to get in would have the consoling thought another school would still be ok. It is less likely to see someone wanting to \"move heaven and earth\" should his/her child fails to get into that \"dream school\".
True. But I wonder how many primary schools are actually 'below par' (by definition not every school can have PSLE results above the mean), not in the sense of academic results achieved by the students, but in actual teaching etc. In the latest Pri 1 admission exercise, I noticed that quite a number of primary schools that are reputed to be good all rounders did not even have to go for balloting at P2C. I am not talking about schools reputed to be 'weak' here. Just saying...
Does anybody know of any primary school that is known for setting internal exams that are too easy compared to the PSLE? :scratchhead:
I am raising this because I do not want a centralised exam database to result in dumbing down. -
pirate:
I have spoken to some secondary school students at their open house as to how their primary school's exam papers compare to the PSLE and their response is that the school's paper is not challenging, too easy, ..... They also rely on the top schools' exam papers to prepare for PSLE.MR06:
Does anybody know of any primary school that is known for setting internal exams that are too easy compared to the PSLE? :scratchhead:
I am raising this because I do not want a centralised exam database to result in dumbing down. -
My DS is in p2 currently and just as there are students scoring full marks, there are also students failing (heard the score was sub 30) in the same paper. If the standard within a class can be so uneven (there was no streaming for class allocation), the gap may be wider at a national level.
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Coolkidsrock2:
My DS is in p2 currently and just as there are students scoring full marks, there are also students failing (heard the score was sub 30) in the same paper. If the standard within a class can be so uneven (there was no streaming for class allocation), the gap may be wider at a national level.
Some schools used to have assessment for P1 kids and put pupils with similar standard together. I think the hoo-has by parents with kids being placed in the slower-paced classes caused it to be scrapped.
While I understand it may be hurtful for the adults, the emotional effect on the kids is almost zero. For at the tender age of 7, they will not know or care what is a \"good\" class. It can only be good for them to be grouped with kids of the same ability so the teaching pace is just right for them.
At the end of the day is \"face-saving\" for parents more important than the well-being of their kids? Just imagine if a late bloomer is unlucky to be placed in a class of bright kids. Will the teacher slow down just for this child? Is it so unthinkable for him/her to not cope in such a class?
The assessment should be viewed in the right context. It is not carried out to class or condemn a child. It is not streaming, it is a gauge for the school to know where to start and at what pace. If there are more work to be done and more time to be spent to bring them up to the expected level, the school will do the necessary. All the children will be regrouped in P3 according to their learning outcomes. -
MR06:
Do not underestimate the emotion that young kids can have (fundamental mistake of most adults - they are too young to understand or feel it). Most kids don't express this type of negative feeling (being in a lousier class) openly. To them, it is not \"cool\" - it is \"steady\" among his peers if he dares to defy. Some conveniently also use such streaming as an official endorsement/excuse that they are born stupid/slow to justify their poor results so that they can continue playing and be lazy. Only a very small percentage of kids are really born slow and needs coaching at a slower pace. For the rest, it is simply motivation - something that is so easy to say but unfortunately is near impossible to carry out. Usually if a kid has already reached P1 and does not understand when to deliver and when to play, it is difficult to turn back....While I understand it may be hurtful for the adults, the emotional effect on the kids is almost zero. For at the tender age of 7, they will not know or care what is a \"good\" class. It can only be good for them to be grouped with kids of the same ability so the teaching pace is just right for them.....
....The assessment should be viewed in the right context. It is not carried out to class or condemn a child. It is not streaming, it is a gauge for the school to know where to start and at what pace. If there are more work to be done and more time to be spent to bring them up to the expected level, the school will do the necessary. All the children will be regrouped in P3 according to their learning outcomes. -
atutor2001:
As a society, parents, teachers etc need to create an environment where it is ok to learn at your own pace and perhaps slower than your peers. Bear in mind that what is considered 'slow' today is actually the normal pace of development of a child in the past because the standards have been greatly accelerated.
Do not underestimate the emotion that young kids can have (fundamental mistake of most adults - they are too young to understand or feel it). Most kids don't express this type of negative feeling (being in a lousier class) openly. To them, it is not \"cool\" - it is \"steady\" among his peers if he dares to defy. Some conveniently also use such streaming as an official endorsement/excuse that they are born stupid/slow to justify their poor results so that they can continue playing and be lazy. Only a very small percentage of kids are really born slow and needs coaching at a slower pace. For the rest, it is simply motivation - something that is so easy to say but unfortunately is near impossible to carry out. Usually if a kid has already reached P1 and does not understand when to deliver and when to play, it is difficult to turn back.MR06:
...While I understand it may be hurtful for the adults, the emotional effect on the kids is almost zero. For at the tender age of 7, they will not know or care what is a \"good\" class. It can only be good for them to be grouped with kids of the same ability so the teaching pace is just right for them.....
....The assessment should be viewed in the right context. It is not carried out to class or condemn a child. It is not streaming, it is a gauge for the school to know where to start and at what pace. If there are more work to be done and more time to be spent to bring them up to the expected level, the school will do the necessary. All the children will be regrouped in P3 according to their learning outcomes.
It is not easy but I believe there is a greater recognition of this than in previous generations.
I have 2 boys of very differing abilities. For my younger boy, I have to consciously remind myself and his school teachers that he should be allowed to learn at his own pace and now 'force' him to keep up with the astonishing feats of excellence his peers in the same class is achieving. Over the year, we see his progress and development (the progress may not be remarkable but is progress nonetheless) and celebrate those achievements.
There will less concerns of self esteem issues of being banded in a lower ability class if the school teachers and parents are equally supportive or nurturing towards these students - instead often it is the adults who unintentionally cause the problem by expressing feelings of disappointment that the child is not 'streamed' into top classes etc. Of course, schools need to assure parents that the lower ability classes are given sufficient and appropriate resources to support their child's learning and therefore the child does not lose out by being in a lower ability class. -
It is us, the parents, who turn the streaming into what it shouldn’t be. It should be done in such a way that children are given the best environment to learn. We need to accept that our child may not be in the top class.
What the system does lack in many case is flexibility. I believe that in primary school we should have streaming by subject and children should be able to move from one stream to another at multiple times during the 6 years. Yes, this would be harder work for the schools but children come into primary school with different levels of education and they develop at different speeds. One of the reasons why parents are so caught up in what class their child is in, is because there are too few opportunities for them to move later. -
Haiz, have to dig out my post and repost here from an embargoed thread.... A suggestion by me and an exchange with pirated.
MR06 wrote:
To help even the playing field for children disadvantaged due to their social-economic backgrounds and also the late bloomers, I hope there would be English, Chinese and Maths clubs just for P1 and P2 kids. Joining eligibility - the bottom half of the class.
These clubs should be manned by teachers/parent volunteers and open Mon-Fri before/after school. The major draw and emphasis of these club should be fun, otherwise it would turned into another form of remedial lesson.
Everything should be done during club session and any incomplete works to be continued on the next session; ie. no homework. There should be flexibility to join the club for any no. of days and there should be no penalties for skipping any session. In other word, it is a fun club and not one the child feels compelled to sit-in.
With greater and more frequent exposure to the subject/s they are weak in, at their pace and learned in a relaxed setting, these children will slowly gain mastery of the basic fundamentals be it the art of making a proper sentence, correct pronunciation or intonation or the way to align the numbers for addition and subtraction.
With such help, there will be a surge in confidence of these children in handling their weakest subject/s. It would be kind of a hand holding for these kids enabling them to have a good start as they begin their learning journey.
pirated wrote:
no target no pressure will they learn ? if they could, they could have done it at home, just play what they like, take their time to learn, what is the difference ? just another social play club
MR06 wrote:
We are talking about P1 and P2 kids. Take a break! There are existing remedial lessons from the school, I am not asking for these to be scrapped.
What I have in mind is, if force feeding is not doing the job, try enticing them by presenting the food in a more palatable form and let them eat whatever amount they want at their own time. You would be surprised at the result by providing the right environment, adding more fun, and taking away the stress.
Does everyone has the right home environment, the right stimulation and interaction you would get from a school's club? Does the child has enough siblings or neighbours of the same age group to participate in games based activities?
With the publising of the PIRLS 2011 and TIMSS 2011 reports, any suggestions?
MOE Press Release - International Studies Affirm Singapore Students' Strengths In Reading, Mathematics & Science
http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/press/2012/12/international-studies-affirm-s.php
Read more from http://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=43802&start=30 and pen your thoughts.
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I had been mulling this for some time and after reading this article, (Girl, 14 sold sex for drinks http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20130108-393979.html), decided to pen my thoughts.
As all primary schools will be single-session by 2016,( Transition of Primary Schools to Single Session http://www.moe.gov.sg/initiatives/single-session/) I hope MOE would initiate and co-ordinate the staggering of school hours to cater to the different needs of families in response to a more complex and fast-paced living environment.
School Hours and Activities http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/parliamentary-replies/2011/02/school-hours-and-activities.php
We could have say schools starting at 7.30am, 8.00am, 8.30am and as late as 9.00am. Eg. if Toa Payoh has 8 schools, There would be 2 schools that starts at each respective time.
It would enable parents especially salaried employees with fixed hours to juggle better between family and work. They can choose a school that fits better with their routine creating less stress and enabling them to discharge their parental duties well in their kids formative years.
The staggered hours would also alleviate traffic congestion. We may even see more babies in the pipeline.....
Btw, why am I the only one writing regularly in this thread? :? -
MR06:
It's a good idea in theory but with the P1 registration system as it is, how many parents really have the choice between very many schools?I had been mulling this for some time and after reading this article, (Girl, 14 sold sex for drinks http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20130108-393979.html), decided to pen my thoughts.
As all primary schools will be single-session by 2016,( Transition of Primary Schools to Single Session http://www.moe.gov.sg/initiatives/single-session/) I hope MOE would initiate and co-ordinate the staggering of school hours to cater to the different needs of families in response to a more complex and fast-paced living environment.
We could have say schools starting at 7.30am, 8.00am, 8.30am and as late as 9.00am. Eg. if Toa Payoh has 8 schools, There would be 2 schools that starts at each respective time.
It would enable parents especially salaried employees with fixed hours to juggle better between family and work. They can choose a school that fits better with their routine creating less stress and enabling them to discharge their parental duties well in their kids formative years.
The staggered hours would also alleviate traffic congestion. We may even see more babies in the pipeline..... Btw, why am I the only one writing regularly in this thread? :?
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