Is PSLE so important?

[wonderm]

http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/forum-letters/story/dont-throw-the-baby-out-the-bath-water-20121121


Don't throw the baby out with the bath water

I WOULD urge caution in reforming the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), which has hitherto worked well (\"Don't publicise top scorers and their results\" by Mr Tan Soon Meng, and Forum Online letters \"Nip elitism in the bud\" by Mrs Suzy Egan and \"PSLE review's Rorschach test\" by Mr Rodney Neo; all published yesterday).

We must be mindful not to throw the baby out with the bath water.

Parents are thus far the harshest critics of the PSLE, and I wonder if it is their perceptions, and not the education system, that ought to be under review instead.

Parents often try to project their expectations onto their offspring, and they are often the ones who trumpet their children's academic prowess.

Human beings are innately competitive and, take away the system, I am sure other ways will emerge for parents to continue to benchmark their children against their peers.

Policymaking sometimes neglects to take into account those for whom the policy matters.

I am an immensely grateful product of the system and am firmly against radical changes that will move it away from meritocracy.

We cannot shield children from competition in the long run.

Shielding them in schools and even within the country will be a disservice to them.

Eventually, children will grow up and must compete globally.

Singaporeans especially must not only survive but also thrive in a rapidly globalised world.

What chance will they have if we do not provide them with the best tools and environment to thrive?

The Government should consider the ramifications of any change before implementation, and be mindful of populist measures that may eventually compromise our ability to compete globally.

Tan Suan Jin

[SAHM_TAN]

I’m ok either way. I don’t feel that the achievements of the top scorers are belittled becos their names are not published in the different media. I don’t think the top scorers will be shortchanged becos their names are not published unless they are working towards such glory instead of the rewards like a wide choices of schools or the knowledge that they can do it.


I assume that their family celebration will not be affected becos their kids’ names are not published.

[Lilac66]

Actually I see pros and cons. The cons… as firefly has mentioned, it can be the time for neighbourhood schools (if the top scorer(s) hails from there) to raise its profile and prove themselves. These can be inspiring stories celebrating the fortitude and tenacity of the kids esp if they’re from less advantaged background making good on their efforts.


On the other hand,seeing from the kid’s perspective…If the kid goes to secondary school with the label of being the top scorer… the pressure to continue to perform is tremendous. Imagine the number of eyes on him looking to see if he is befitting of the tag. I’m not too sure if any kid likes that attention. I don’t think I’ll compare it with Olympic competitors as they are in it for the glory and fame. Some of the top PSLE scorers did not even dream of emerging as that.

IMHO, I feel that the schools having their own internal announcements and celebrations will suffice, they are still being acknowledged for their hard work and achievements.

My 2 cents.

[Twinkies]

Thanks, Wonderm.

After reading the link you posted, I found another reader's letter from the same newspaper forum. Would like to share it here.

Managing expectations is the real challenge

IT IS understandable that parents are anxious about their children not securing places in brand-name schools, and put excessive pressure on them during Primary School Leaving Examination preparations (\"PSLE not the be-all and end-all: PM\"; last Saturday).

It is also not uncommon to read that Singapore has an elitist education system (\"The assurance parents want\" by Mr Ng Qi Siang, and \"Nip elitism in the bud\" by Mrs Suzy Egan, Forum Online; both published yesterday).

The existence of top and illustrious schools is not a peculiarity of Singapore; it does not make the national education system elitist.

The crux of the issue lies in managing parental expectations rather than an overhaul of the system.

What makes a system elitist is when schools that are perceived as less desired are not infrastructurally well-developed - in facilities, teaching calibre and learning resources. Such is not the case here.

As a former government school teacher, I feel that the Education Ministry should be praised for its credible effort in encouraging and helping schools create their niche areas in uniformed groups, sports, the performing arts, teaching and learning, as well as specific subject strengths such as English or science.

The schools are moving towards a more diverse education landscape that tailors instruction to meet and suit the needs of different learners.

A differentiated approach to developing schools' strengths should be encouraged and praised by the public.

The main problem is that society sets a narrow definition of success and what constitutes \"elites\".

Elites are not wholly confined to those who score distinctions in all subjects or students from premier schools. There is a wealth of talent in today's students.

We are also guilty of behaving unrealistically in expecting all our children and young people to invariably excel academically. Success should not be measured purely by gaining entry into top schools.

Embracing the dual concepts of talent diversity and value-added education is of the essence in helping Singapore remain a vibrant global city.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was right when he warned that Singapore must not compromise its strengths in developing children to prepare them for a very competitive world, and for their jobs, both of which will be hard.

Chiang Ky

[MotherHen]

For me, it’s not simply about publishing or withholding the names of the top scorers. I’m more concerned if, in our haste to "reduce stress", we are doing too much too quickly, without thinking of ramifications. Like wonderm and jtoh, I worry about grade inflation and dumbing down. It’s a slippery path downhill and we would lose our edge as a nation if that happens.


In life, it is not possible to have zero stress, zero competition. It’s more important to learn how to manage our expectations and stress levels. We as (kiasu) parents no doubt add on to our kids’ stress. I’ll be the first to admit that I am guilty as charged. To me, it is not right to lay the blame squarely on the education system per se.

[SAHM_TAN]

Is education a competition?


It seems that way becos of streaming into P3, P5 classes with the existence of top, MA and foundation classes, and there are increasing less vacancies as a child progresses to sec, differentiating bet IP, express, normal, NT, JC and Uni. But maybe it’s just academic abilities placement. The argument abt the fairness of the playing field will con’t, but surely in essence, learning and education is not a competition.

[SAHM_TAN]

I doubt not publishing the names will reduce the stress of PSLE. I doubt there can be no stress.


The changes that have been made to the curriculum thus far, I don’t think the changes have made it easier for the kids in the coming PSLE.

[wonderm]

MotherHen:

For me, it's not simply about publishing or withholding the names of the top scorers. I'm more concerned if, in our haste to \"reduce stress\", we are doing too much too quickly, without thinking of ramifications. Like wonderm and jtoh, I worry about grade inflation and dumbing down. It's a slippery path downhill and we would lose our edge as a nation if that happens.


In life, it is not possible to have zero stress, zero competition. It's more important to learn how to manage our expectations and stress levels. We as (kiasu) parents no doubt add on to our kids' stress. I'll be the first to admit that I am guilty as charged. To me, it is not right to lay the blame squarely on the education system per se.

:goodpost:

I am not too concerned about knowing the names of top scorers. It is the number of and the direction of recent changes that concerned so many of us.

[wonderm]

SAHM_TAN:

Is education a competition?


It seems that way becos of streaming into P3, P5 classes with the existence of top, MA and foundation classes, and there are increasing less vacancies as a child progresses to sec, differentiating bet IP, express, normal, NT, JC and Uni. But maybe it's just academic abilities placement. The argument abt the fairness of the playing field will con't, but surely in essence, learning and education is not a competition.

Thanks for sharing this very refreshing view.

I am just wondering, if competition is bad and should be avoided because it adds stress. What about all sorts of academic competitions like Maths and Science Olympiad, Essay Writing Competition? should they be banned?

Just for discussion.

[wonderm]

slmkhoo:

wonderm:

[quote=\"SAHM_TAN\"]Is education a competition?


It seems that way becos of streaming into P3, P5 classes with the existence of top, MA and foundation classes, and there are increasing less vacancies as a child progresses to sec, differentiating bet IP, express, normal, NT, JC and Uni. But maybe it's just academic abilities placement. The argument abt the fairness of the playing field will con't, but surely in essence, learning and education is not a competition.

Thanks for sharing this very refreshing view.

I am just wondering, if competition is bad and should be avoided because it adds stress. What about all sorts of academic competitions like Maths and Science Olympiad, Essay Writing Competition? should they be banned?

Just for discussion.

Some people thrive on competition, others don't. I feel that there is room for all sorts. By all means have competition for the ones who want to compete, who perform better when there is a challenge. But there is no need for every child to feel the pressure of competition. In this, I feel that it is the human agents (some parents and teachers) who have done the most damage to kids by pushing them to compete even if the child is just average, doesn't like competition, gets stressed easily etc. The 'system' allows different streams, different schools, but parents tend to want their kids to 'aim for the top', and teachers want to see the highest grades possible, even at the expense of sleep and leisure, and some kids just don't cope well with that pressure. I have 2 girls, one in each camp, so I can see both sides. No competition would mean less push for one girl who does well when faced with some challenge, but setting high goals puts too much pressure on the other. For this 2nd one, we just ask her to work consistently and do her best, and we select schools and courses based on her results, not select a 'good' course or school and ask her to aim for results that will get her there. It's just having a different perspective for different types of kids; no need to have a one-size-fits-all way of doing things.[/quote]Well said! :goodpost: