GEP Preparatory Program

[Fairyprincess]

FireflyMom- I feel the same way as you. I was almost angry that the teachers give out the "yellow envelope" directly to the students, rather than to the parents. Cos my gal was super excited to return home that day to tell us she got into the prog, and she really wants to join the prog- to learn more and be exposed. How to stop a child that is so keen? I also dun know what to say- my protective streak said to me that is no need for her to be exposed to GEP, cos NYPS regular curriculum good enough…yet, her reasoning was that she got into the prog with no help/ enrichment- why is she not good enough for the prog!!!


So here I am, supporting her as she starts this journey- we will see how it goes…

To me, the end point for pri sch is a decent PSLE score, so I still question the value of GEP, if it does not necessary fully help the child move on to a good sec sch…

KSMom8- thanks for your sharing. Your child must have been very disciplined to learn the full PSLE techniques within Term 3 of P6- that is very very commendable…

[iRabbit]

Would going for MO training be construed as part of GEP prep? Are the qns (between MO & GEP) even the same? I know MO Math is so distinct from normal math, it's possible to ace the former, yet fail the later.


Btw, what's up with the new-found tranquility in this thread? Has everyone gone benign and decided that a placid thread is all to yearn for?

[Trapwithin]

FireflyMom:

Personally, I believe the Prep classes can help one clear round1 but I do not believe that one (not talking about those who are gifted and still have prep classes) can simpy clear round2 by just attending these classes. Some things (esp in GATs), 你看得见就是看得见，看不见就是看不见。How to train or force?

This is very true.

Its doesn't mean that everyone who has Micheal Phelps's coach to coach their kids in swimming means their kids can get all the Olympics gold medals. Every individual is different.

[CayennePepper]

Trapwithin:

FireflyMom:

Personally, I believe the Prep classes can help one clear round1 but I do not believe that one (not talking about those who are gifted and still have prep classes) can simpy clear round2 by just attending these classes. Some things (esp in GATs), 你看得见就是看得见，看不见就是看不见。How to train or force?

This is very true.

Its doesn't mean that everyone who has Micheal Phelps's coach to coach their kids in swimming means their kids can get all the Olympics gold medals. Every individual is different.

I'd love to see material from prep courses to compare with the questions from the screening/selection tests. (My ds remembered a ton from both rounds, complete with diagrams and all.)
Hmmm. Is it necessary to go for prep courses for Round 1? The type of questions seem very similar to those in school exams.

[Trapwithin]

CayennePepper:

I'd love to see material from prep courses to compare with the questions from the screening/selection tests. (My ds remembered a ton from both rounds, complete with diagrams and all.)
Hmmm. Is it necessary to go for prep courses for Round 1? The type of questions seem very similar to those in school exams.

Mine did not go for prep courses, according to my dd Round 1 questions are slightly tougher than the P3 SA2 questions. Round 2 questions are a lot tougher.

[Fairyprincess]

Good morning parents:


Let me share something about the GEP selection tests- this is from what I heard, so pls take it with a pinch of salt (yes, in light of all these comments about authenticity; validity and credibility of info)…

For round 1- my gal told me she left some qns she did not know blank, and I was very mad- I said- just tikam tikam any answer if you do not know, maybe it will be correct and you will get a point
For round 2- she did exactly what I said

Then after she got the GEP acceptance notice, I spoke to some ex-teachers, and they told me that in the GEP selection tests- correct answers get 1 point; blank answers= 0 points; incorrect answers will MINUS points- so no point to tikam tikam- the final outcome may be worse than if you left it blank. This is how the test is supposed to SIEVE OUT the correct type of kids for the GEP prog…not "enter GEP by chance" type (because I kept thinking- how accurate can these GEP selection tests be, some kids may get in due to luck cos its all MCQ qns mah)

But this is hearsay only ah, no verification from any source, so use the info very carefully…

[sleepy]

Fairyprincess:

Good morning parents:


Let me share something about the GEP selection tests- this is from what I heard, so pls take it with a pinch of salt (yes, in light of all these comments about authenticity; validity and credibility of info)...

For round 1- my gal told me she left some qns she did not know blank, and I was very mad- I said- just tikam tikam any answer if you do not know, maybe it will be correct and you will get a point
For round 2- she did exactly what I said

Then after she got the GEP acceptance notice, I spoke to some ex-teachers, and they told me that in the GEP selection tests- correct answers get 1 point; blank answers= 0 points; incorrect answers will MINUS points- so no point to tikam tikam- the final outcome may be worse than if you left it blank. This is how the test is supposed to SIEVE OUT the correct type of kids for the GEP prog...not \"enter GEP by chance\" type (because I kept thinking- how accurate can these GEP selection tests be, some kids may get in due to luck cos its all MCQ qns mah)

Mine answered every question. For English, some are best guess answers.

[Fairyprincess]

If the GEP selection is so super accurate- we can conceive the following:

For all the wrong answers in EACH MCQ- the "most wrong" will MINUS the "most marks" while the "least wrong/ best guess that is accurate/ almost correct" answer will MINUS the "least marks"- it may be this type of scoring where all the answers in each MCQ is given a certain % of marks depending on how wrong or how close to correct it is.

Of course, the above sounds super cheem, but when I asked someone in the statistics field, they agreed that the above could be done and incorporated into MCQ scoring…again, this is hearsay, no confirmation if GEP selection test marking is actually like this…

Sleepy- your child’s best guess answers could be actually the correct answers or close to correct answers (if the above scoring method is actually used)

[sunflower]

FQW:

Would going for MO training be construed as part of GEP prep? Are the qns (between MO & GEP) even the same? I know MO Math is so distinct from normal math, it's possible to ace the former, yet fail the later.

I think MO and GEP test qns are of different nature. Besides, there’re several components to the GEP tests. I’ve come across people who attended MO training but were unsuccessful in the GEP tests.

[be_contented]

I am parent of both a GEP child and non-GEP child. I thought this forum is about whether GEP prep is needed or not. Now it turned into a war of words, so I thought I give my thoughts on this.


What is GEP prep? I think this prep can come in many forms :-
- GEP schools who set aside some P3 students & prep them with more difficult Math questions. This was confirmed to me by a friend’s DD who is in a GEP school.
- Parents who send children to Math Olympiad or Kumon classes, or buy books from Popular like Brain Math, Math Olympiad, IQ Math, etc.
- Parents who prepare their children at a young age by sending to brain training classes like Heguru, i-Genius, etc
- Parents who spend money to send kids to GEP prep classes

These are all forms of preparation, aren’t they? As to why GEP branch do not share their materials - it’s precisely because if they do, there will be many parents who will force their children to memorise the questions in order to ‘win’ the system. BTW, my GEP childl could not remember a single question from the paper, and he did not finish the paper as well. My non-GEP child is thriving in the mainstream.

GEP is just one phase of a child’s education. If he makes it into the program, then let him enjoy it. It gives them chance to learn higher-level (lower secondary) stuff. If for whatever reason the child does not thrive in the environment, then parents should be wise enough to make the right decision - exit program. If he thrives, then it is a good program to stretch the child. Yes, it doesn’t prepare child for PSLE as well. But hey, if PSLE score is all that matters to the parents (or the child), then don’t sign up for the program. There is no need to disparage the program whether your child is in or out.

Likewise, IP (Integrated Program) allows children to skip O levels. Is it fair - for late bloomers who may not have done well in PSLE and miss the IP boat? Just like is it fair - for late bloomers to miss the GEP boat at P3? Parents should also be wise enough to realise that doing the O levels has no bearing on the intelligence of the child. Maybe the O levels route gives the child more discipline and rigour to excel at the right time. In fact, parents with IP children who are struggling should consider letting the child switch to O levels, and not force him to continue in IP. No shame in that at all - it’s about doing the right thing for the child to learn at the right pace.

To prep or not to prep - for GEP, and for PSLE? I think to each his own. You can prep your child whether at home, go to the so-called right schools, pay $ to go for classes, etc. If the child makes it into the GEP program or IP school, good for him. But it is only the beginning. Watch whether the environment suits the child and be wise to make the right decisions during the journey. If the child, after all the prep, does not make it, it’s OK. The education journey still continues in mainstream, NA, NT, etc. Who is to say that an NT child cannot be more successful in life than a GEP child?

Finally would like to add that for people who do not like the GEP program, or the IP program for that matter, there is no need to disparage the programs as such. It is not constructive to just see the ‘bad’ things. Don’t forget there are children who have stretched their learning because of these programs and have truly benefitted. And there are many children who are not in either of these programs who have thrived and succeeded in their education despite ‘missing’ the boat.