Is GEP really necessary?

[jtoh]

Sun 2010 and vk2010, I like your posts. They reflect my sentiments too. Now I don't need to write so much. Just like your posts can already.

[sleepy]

pinball:

Honestly, does anyone know how a GEP kid feels being in the prog, a lot of these talk are based on what the parents/adults think. I believe majority of the GEP kids enjoy the prog and nor do they feel they are elitist. A lot of assumptions are based on without understanding what the curriculum is about.

My dd said she's happier. Lesson time is so much more fun! So in terms of child's happiness index, mission is accomplished.

Friendship wise, it's about the same, you click with some & don't quite click with some. Although her ex-classmates catched no ball what she was talking about sometimes but that didn't affect their bonding at all. Her existing classmates speak at same wavelength. Nevertheless, temperament & personality played a greater role in establishing friendship than IQ.

[sleepy]

Nebbermind:

verykiasu2010:

It is about enriched curriculum stretching the intellectual ability of the kids. Never about exam. It is also not about grooming an Issac Newton or Thomas Edison or Einstein or Galileo .... it is about not stifling them in their intellectual curiosity based on the normal curriculum

I believe not all the GEP schools share this view. Some are more relax and treat the prog as enrichment and only do the catching up for psle during the last few mths. Others, I heard, push very hard and ensure the students ace every single CA and SA during the 3 yrs.

Oh, in that case dd's school probably belongs to the former, seems quite laid back. Hardly produce any top scholars the last few years & didn't prep students for Maths Olympiad till p5

[wiimum]

Increasingly it looks like it is no longer necessary, especially if it is all for the p4 to p6 years. Not worth all that fuss. Afterall by the time they reach secondary, there is not much distinction between the GEP and non GEP, especially in IP schools. Just my 2 cents.

[smurf]

if the GEP kids in GEP centres are NOT segregated from the rest of the mainstream classes, then why got such labels as GEP and non GEP? for what purpose??

[Nebbermind]

sleepy:

Oh, in that case dd's school probably belongs to the former, seems quite laid back. Hardly produce any top scholars the last few years & didn't prep students for Maths Olympiad till p5

Perhaps the school wants the kids to get adjusted to the environment and the GEP curriculum before putting in the optional stuff.

In life, there's a time for everything...not everything need to be accelerated. Already doing alot of enriching 'extras' for GEP so let them enjoy the journey rather than feeling stressed with the extra work.

[2ppaamm]

So what is in GEP that makes it necessary for them to be pulled out of their primary schools and go into a different school? Does anyone know? Why can’t enrichment be done in the same primary school?

[2ppaamm]

smurf:

if the GEP kids in GEP centres are NOT segregated from the rest of the mainstream classes, then why got such labels as GEP and non GEP? for what purpose??

Also my question... does anyone know? Try very hard to segregate and give a branding to these kids, pull them out for special programs, give them special privilege. Then, after doing all these, put them in twinning programs, tell them to blend in??? :siao:

Confusing the kids? Wasting resources?

What is being taught in GEP that cannot be taught to a bigger group of students who did not make the tests, but are no less smart or academically inclined. Afterall, we know that GEP program is really just academic. There are many, many, many non-GEPers who could easily handle the GEP workload and syllabus. One test determines your future forever.

[Nebbermind]

2ppaamm:

So what is in GEP that makes it necessary for them to be pulled out of their primary schools and go into a different school? Does anyone know? Why can't enrichment be done in the same primary school?

Limited resources/teachers? I remember GEP has their own grp of teachers but not sure if it's the same for every school.

[2ppaamm]

Nebbermind:

2ppaamm:

So what is in GEP that makes it necessary for them to be pulled out of their primary schools and go into a different school? Does anyone know? Why can't enrichment be done in the same primary school?

Limited resources/teachers? I remember GEP has their own grp of teachers but not sure if it's the same for every school.

If GEPers are supposed to be the smartest, they learn the fastest, why are their class sizes the smallest? Gifted learners can learn without instructions. Why can't we have bigger classes of GEP? and smaller classes of those with learning difficulties, the special needs?

Afterall, GEP weeds out all difficult cases under this thing called 'attitude rating' and focus on a uniform group of children. They should be the easiest to handle in the whole school. The rest of the school have special needs, learning difficulties, behavioral problems etc etc, and these cannot be weeded out. The rest of the school needs more resources.