Science topics - Different school, different topics. Why?

[lawyerteachertutors]

i must say that the primary science syllabus has been in a bit of a mess all these years. topics like simple machines and solar system used to be in primary 5 but have been taken away from it. water cycle used to be taught at primary 4 but has been shifted up to primary 5. i have students that studied digestive system and magnets at p3 while others are only learning it at p4. there are many other examples of crosses between different levels which i am sure you know what i am talking about. the moe scholars can’t seem to make up their minds what they want for each level and stick to it.

[sharonkhoo]

lawyerteachertutors:

i must say that the primary science syllabus has been in a bit of a mess all these years. topics like simple machines and solar system used to be in primary 5 but have been taken away from it. water cycle used to be taught at primary 4 but has been shifted up to primary 5. i have students that studied digestive system and magnets at p3 while others are only learning it at p4. there are many other examples of crosses between different levels which i am sure you know what i am talking about. the moe scholars can't seem to make up their minds what they want for each level and stick to it.

As long as they are all covered before the PSLE, the fact that different teachers prefer to teach the topics in different order probably means that it doesn't make much of a difference.

[lawyerteachertutors]

imo it is all right to shuffle topics covered within the same level in that same year, but to have topics shuffled at two different levels is simply unacceptable. they should do away with the upper and lower blocks n have fixed topics for each level for each of the years from p3-6.

slmkhoo:

lawyerteachertutors:

i must say that the primary science syllabus has been in a bit of a mess all these years. topics like simple machines and solar system used to be in primary 5 but have been taken away from it. water cycle used to be taught at primary 4 but has been shifted up to primary 5. i have students that studied digestive system and magnets at p3 while others are only learning it at p4. there are many other examples of crosses between different levels which i am sure you know what i am talking about. the moe scholars can't seem to make up their minds what they want for each level and stick to it.

As long as they are all covered before the PSLE, the fact that different teachers prefer to teach the topics in different order probably means that it doesn't make much of a difference.

[janet88]

term 1, for science under ‘diversity’, covered everything excluding materials.

term 2, cycles of plants/animals excluding states of matter.

it is confusing.

[sharonkhoo]

lawyerteachertutors:

imo it is all right to shuffle topics covered within the same level in that same year, but to have topics shuffled at two different levels is simply unacceptable. they should do away with the upper and lower blocks n have fixed topics for each level for each of the years from p3-6.

slmkhoo:

As long as they are all covered before the PSLE, the fact that different teachers prefer to teach the topics in different order probably means that it doesn't make much of a difference.

Why do you find it unacceptable? As long the child learns all the topics before the major public exam, I don't really see any problem with it. My kids have been in a small international school overseas for many years, and often subjects like science and social studies are taught in 2-year blocks, eg. all grades 3 & 4 kids do the same topics, then the grade 3 kids will do the rest of the topics the following year, while the grade 4 kids will have done them the year before. It has worked fine for the kids. They don't do this for Maths and English though.

[senseimichael]

slmkhoo:

Why do you find it unacceptable? As long the child learns all the topics before the major public exam, I don't really see any problem with it. My kids have been in a small international school overseas for many years, and often subjects like science and social studies are taught in 2-year blocks, eg. all grades 3 & 4 kids do the same topics, then the grade 3 kids will do the rest of the topics the following year, while the grade 4 kids will have done them the year before. It has worked fine for the kids. They don't do this for Maths and English though.

I have taught and managed international schools, and my two older boys went through international schools. It's different when there are no exams involved which might stream your kids into classes with \"less desirable\" fellow students (I have yet to hear of international schools that do such streaming). Once exams and Asian parents (both legal combinations) are involved, then the parents would want more accountability in the teaching and examinations.

[sharonkhoo]

senseimichael:

slmkhoo:

Why do you find it unacceptable? As long the child learns all the topics before the major public exam, I don't really see any problem with it. My kids have been in a small international school overseas for many years, and often subjects like science and social studies are taught in 2-year blocks, eg. all grades 3 & 4 kids do the same topics, then the grade 3 kids will do the rest of the topics the following year, while the grade 4 kids will have done them the year before. It has worked fine for the kids. They don't do this for Maths and English though.

I have taught and managed international schools, and my two older boys went through international schools. It's different when there are no exams involved which might stream your kids into classes with \"less desirable\" fellow students (I have yet to hear of international schools that do such streaming). Once exams and Asian parents (both legal combinations) are involved, then the parents would want more accountability in the teaching and examinations.

Since the exams and streaming are internal to the schools until P6, I still don't see it as a problem as the students are compared against others in the same school. They should all have covered the same topics as the students in other schools by the PSLE.

[senseimichael]

slmkhoo:

Since the exams and streaming are internal to the schools until P6, I still don't see it as a problem as the students are compared against others in the same school. They should all have covered the same topics as the students in other schools by the PSLE.

If all kiasu parents think like you, slm, there would (indeed) be no issue at all (like in international schools). Unfortunately, in the \"high stakes\" game of grades in Singapore, parents want to give their children as much of a head start as possible, and that means starting from as early as kindergarten. Hence the big money in prep classes.

[phtthp]

I think at P2 -

schools can consider starting a Preparatory Science course.
because I feel that suddenly introduce a new subject at P3, by throwing the kids into the deep blue sea, is a bit … un-nerving.

furthermore, the topics confusing. Some schools teach this topic, but not that, until P4. There is no standardization of all topics for Science. Science is a tough subject.

[janet88]

Thought most schools would be teaching and testing Diversity at CA1/SA1...but 'materials' parked under diversity would not be taught until term 3...instead replaced by animal and plant life cycles. In a way it is ok bcos materials with 'hard' and 'flexible' terms would be harder.

So I combed through all the past year papers for questions on life cycles which is taught at P4 for most schools

What simkhoo mentioned is true...exams and streaming is internal...and ultimately we do see PSLE as the real big thing...I do want to go easy but the high stakes exam in 3 years time has to start preparing from now...building the foundation which I missed.