Teach Less, Learn More
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Wah, another excellent write up by Chenonceau again. :udawoman:
Sigh...I think you should copy your letter to the garmen.
The learning thru play is another joke lah...what do teachers know about learning thru play? They just sit and shake legs niah while the children really PLAY lor. What learning? Chey. :faint:
Only very few, and I mean VERY FEW teachers would understand the essence of LEARN THRU PLAY. -
smurf:
Wah lau Smurf, you embarass me again lah.... :oops: :heresmyfish:Wah, another excellent write up by Chenonceau again. :udawoman:
Sigh...I think you should copy your letter to the garmen.
The learning thru play is another joke lah...what do teachers know about learning thru play? They just sit and shake legs niah while the children really PLAY lor. What learning? Chey. :faint:
Only very few, and I mean VERY FEW teachers would understand the essence of LEARN THRU PLAY.
But thank you.
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Champion:
Thanks for this. Was really clueless and son is already halfway through P3! :idea:jfangs:
Hi Jfangs,
We have quite a few recommendations at the other forums, you may like to take a look at the links:
http://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19568
http://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6640
Will spend more time in Popular to do my 'assessments' (of guide books!) :moneyflies: -
jfangs:
You most welcome! :D..Me also learn and pick up tips from many parents here through their sharing and advice on Science Guide/Assessment Books. :grphug:
Thanks for this. Was really clueless and son is already halfway through P3! :idea:
Will spend more time in Popular to do my 'assessments' (of guide books!) :moneyflies: -
Chenonceau:
The True Spirit of Teach Less and Learn More
I think I am gonna confuse everyone by seeming to contradict myself. I actually embrace the notion of Teach Less and Learn More. It is a basket of pedagogical strategies that I embrace, and that every corporate trainer (worth his salt) knows: PROVIDED IT IS DONE RIGHT. Underlying the true spirit of Teach Less Learn More is an important principle.
PEOPLE LEARN BY DOING
In management training, you would rarely catch trainers teaching through TALK TALK TALK. For trainers to make a living and get repeat business, they need to develop and deliver highly interactive programs. Else, the adult learners will complain, and after tea break, many won't even come back to your class. Adult learners have day jobs, you see. They can and do choose to go back to fight workplace crises if they think you're boring and ineffective as a corporate trainer. Adults have no time and they wanna learn fast and effectively, without the need for revision.
To ensure learning effectiveness, I learnt to create a sequence of learning activities that get adult learners DOING something right through the 8-hour workshop. As they DO, they learn and when they learn through DOING, they retain (without having to revise). After, they have DONE, I give feedback. I teach (i.e., TALK TALK) less, but because they DO MORE, they learn more and effectively.
This is the true spirit of Teach Less Learn More. I embrace it, and practise it. However, the creation of such lessons requires more time and effort than devising a simple TALK TALK TALK.
(1) You gotta choose the right materials (i.e., you need to source for high quality materials, and make sure everything is available for ease of reference)
(2) You need to construct the right activity that will force the cognitive processes you want.
(3) You need to master your domain superbly. This is because you never know how each individual approaches the cognitive task, and thus, you will never be able to foresee every single question that a student might ask. And you really really teach most effectively when the student has cognitive reception (i.e., there is a question in the student's head that is waiting to absorb your answer)
(4) You need to analyze student work, and be able to give individualized feedback in a non-threatening and very supportive way.
In the context of our kids, this translates into...
(1) Choosing the highest quality materials (not overwhelm them with a lot but pick the best): But... how many parents have the capacity/skill to evaluate teaching materials by ourselves? The school needs to provide our kids with, and not leave us to go ask our buddies to recommend Math Heuristics and Onsponge. All I did was throw Onsponge to my son. He managed. There were one or 2 sums he could not crack and so he asked his Dad for feedback.
(2) Assessing the relative areas of ignorance and understanding for our children (i.e., know which cognitive processes to focus on) and choose exercises or activities to target specific areas (so as not to waste time). But... how many parents can evaluate and target thus? Schools should design individualized skills practices for each child so that they don't waste time doing exercises they already master. My son has to go through tons of simple math problems for homework when he has already learnt branching and unitary transfer. Everyday, I pick him up and I ask \"Have Teacher done with the class the kind of questions that are in the last few pages of Paper 2 yet?\" Till today (2 weeks before exams, the answer is \"No\").
(3) Master Science, English, Math, Mother Tongue superbly. How many parents are good in all 4 subjects? I am great at English and can handle the whole gamut from Compre to Creative Writing. My hubby takes on the Math load 'cos he masters that domain superbly, and my 2 males actually ENJOY cracking those horrible sums. But what if my hubby is bad at Math? Does every Teacher in MOE master all 4 subjects?
(4) Analyze our children's skills practice and give feedback in a non-threatening and supportive way. How many parents have short fuses? And because we love our children, the fuses get even shorter eh? How many parents know how to analyze and give feedback on work done?
Teach Less Learn More does work, but Teachers need to work SMARTER and HARDER to make it work. Teachers need smaller classes so that they can give SKILLS FEEDBACK consistently, regularly and patiently. It takes professionalism and skill to Teach Less Learn More. When they rolled out the new enhanced syllabus with skills emphasis, MOE should have looked at how teachers teach... and made changes there too. Then roll out both together.
Right now, Teach Less Learn More has become a joke... and a slogan of pain and failure. Why? Because parents have to teach what the school has no time/resources to teach... and teaching methods have not evolved. When actually, Teach Less Learn More points to a basket of strategies that are simply designed to have People Learn by Doing, not by Listening to Teacher Talk. It is a pity because Teach Less Learn More can work if properly done.
All it takes is smaller classes, more individual attention, less TALK and more feedback. Like in corporate training.
:goodpost:
That's Why One of the Tasks Sch Can Do Now is Improve the Class Size, If Cannot Achieve 1:20, then 2:40 is another Alternative. Parcel-ing it could Let the T Have More Time for Skill FeedBack, etc.
Chenonceau,
U No Need to Send Petition, Just Send your Write-Up to MOE, Endorsed by the KSP Parents Here Will DO.
Am Sure People in Power Cannot Ignore or Dismiss Constructive FeedBack Like Yours ....
:celebrate: :celebrate:
MayBe Will Ask U Join them and Stand for Election, Some More ....
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Funx3:
I so busy trying to keep my son out of ITE... cannot look after me and mine... how to look after voters. What if get flamed too. Yucks! Pwee!Chenonceau,
U No Need to Send Petition, Just Send your Write-Up to MOE, Endorsed by the KSP Parents Here Will DO.
Am Sure People in Power Cannot Ignore or Dismiss Constructive FeedBack Like Yours ....
:celebrate: :celebrate:
MayBe Will Ask U Join them and Stand for Election, Some More ....
How about I take some time and collate all the thoughts I put up in this thread... and start a new thread... then KSP parents just go in under their nicks and indicate support? Also, I need to rewrite some parts so it's more respectful and more constructive. Some parts I wrote a bit EMO lah...
But before that, lemme go ask ChiefKiasu for permission. Dun wanna be a troublemaker. -
No need to paiseh lah, chenonceau. You really write very well.
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Chenonceau:
Yeah Go Do So. I'll Definitely Be Amongst the 1st Parents to Endorse it.
I so busy trying to keep my son out of ITE... cannot look after me and mine... how to look after voters. What if get flamed too. Yucks! Pwee!Funx3:
Chenonceau,
U No Need to Send Petition, Just Send your Write-Up to MOE, Endorsed by the KSP Parents Here Will DO.
Am Sure People in Power Cannot Ignore or Dismiss Constructive FeedBack Like Yours ....
:celebrate: :celebrate:
MayBe Will Ask U Join them and Stand for Election, Some More ....
How about I take some time and collate all the thoughts I put up in this thread... and start a new thread... then KSP parents just go in under their nicks and indicate support? Also, I need to rewrite some parts so it's more respectful and more constructive. Some parts I wrote a bit EMO lah...
But before that, lemme go ask ChiefKiasu for permission. Dun wanna be a troublemaker.
About the Emo Part, Think A Lot KSP R Much More EeeeeeeeeeeeMo than U!
Ha Ha ....
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insider:
:goodpost:There are so many ‘planners’ in MOE, most if not all should be qualified and of course we will question why they can be so ‘senseless’ to test so much.
I put myself in the planners’ shoes for a switch of roles.
There are textbooks – these are the supposedly standard that kids should attain by the end of a level (be it P1 or P2 etc). MOE does not have the intention that parents will send their kids for tuition or enrichment and teachers should be able to cover the content comfortably, adequately, and meaningfully.
Children who can master all concepts listed in the textbooks are considered reach ‘age appropriate’ stage meant for the general average kids, meaning based on this amount of content, the bell curve should be there that some will pass with flying colours and some will fail and the average makes up the bulk.
But parents send for tuition and enrichment, etc.
So the bell curve skewed very much to the right with a large proportion of the cohort attaining the 90s and the 100.
In order to ‘rectify’ the bell curve back to its ‘original shape’ (coz kids are so ‘smart’), deeper concepts within the content will have to be added. Such added concepts are never the intention of MOE coz the time allowed for teaching are only meant to cover what are mentioned in the textbooks.
Teachers ended with hot potatoes in their hands coz many children have already pre-mastered the concepts meant to be covered and lessons become boring and majority get 90s or 100. BUT the concepts still need to be taught for those who have no external support. They are torn. I believe most feel as helpless as parents and over time, they become disillusioned about what their role is in the life of young children (and therefore I believe form one of the main reasons for high turnover rate in the teaching profession).
In conclusion, exam papers will definitely cover more than what are shown in the textbooks or covered by teachers. Teachers’ job is to cover the textbooks and additional deeper concepts that are not meant to be covered may be covered during ‘remedial’ classes or parents have to coach or send for tuition/enrichment.
We already have entered a vicious cycle and the original culprits were the more affluent parents. I don’t see how can MOE rectify the situation coz they cannot do magic to multiply so that there are 48 hours in a day nor they can ‘control’ parents’ hearts…
PS:
I feel as long as a child knows the concepts mentioned in the textbooks, the child cognitively is sound. As to how much additional concepts parents want their children to grasp to cope with TOP schools' exam standard = how much pressure and stress that the family has to go through.
When a child cannot grasp deeper concepts outside of the textbooks, it is not the fault of the child coz those concepts are not age-appropriate to begin with. That's why my position of always seeking for balance to see cognitively where my children really are vs the system and will not scold my kids if they can't fit into a system when the system is a flawed one.
While I think it is good to 举一反三 (loosely translated: think of 3 examples/applications based on concept learnt) when learning/teaching a new concept/theory to ensure a proper understanding, it would b v stressful & counter-productive to kids & parents if non age-appropriate materials are crammed just so as to do better in an exam. A balanced approach needs to b striked & always remember the law of marginal returns.
Too much emphasis has been placed on academic results at the expense of other aspects of the kids' development. But at the end of the day (or at the end of the kids' lives), r good results really matter that much?
That is for us parents to answer & act accordingly instead of just following the herd.
A different matter if the kids themselves r interested to find out more. E.g. a relative used to be so fascinated w our old uni textbks on econs, finance, chemical engineering etc that we gave them to him even tho he was only in lower sec then. DH was skeptical then but now the teenager is embarking on A*STAR overseas scholarship & wants to b a researcher. However, how many kids can do that w/o pulling out their hair & teeth?
Perhaps my \"contrarian\" (is there a silent majority not speaking up here? ) view is rooted since the day we couldn't bare to abort DS1 even tho tests shown that he might b a Down Syndrome baby. Fortunately, he is not 1 & seems to b healthy & quite smart so far, but the experience taught us to b contented w our kids as they are, in terms of academic results.
We want them to have a balanced, happy & healthy childhood, for as long as possible. That, has to be fiercely guarded. -
Hifive:
Brenda10:
Hi mummies, how often your kid does use this program at home? DD said they use it in school to practice the CL Oral Test and there is 10 exercise.
Hi Brenda10
My DS also uses it for his CL Oral Test and CL exercises (done both in school and at home). During this time when the SA1 is near, I saw him doing it more often especially as homework for weekend.
Hi Hifive
Yes, same here and we will try to cover the exercise that is not done in the school for preparation of next week Oral.
Thank you and good luck. :celebrate:
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