jtoh:

I find schools like MGS and SCGS are very good in this respect. Their affiliated students enter at COP of 220 (previously 200), and yet the overall cohort manages to be in the top tier of O level results.

Aberc:

strangequark:

School banding has got nothing to do with differentiated curriculum or how fast/slow the teachers teach. The bands were based on the value-addedness of the individual schools, derived from their O-Level results and the PSLE T-scores of the O-Level candidates.

Yes, I agree. It is important to see the correlation between the psle tscore and the o lvl results at the end of 4 years there.

There is no surprise when the school turns out a band 1 result if the cop is 250. But there are a handful excellent schools which turn in band 1/ band 2 results consistently even though the cop is in the 23x range. Conversely, there are some that take in cop in that range and turn in less than ideal results.

strangequark:

School banding has got nothing to do with differentiated curriculum or how fast/slow the teachers teach. The bands were based on the value-addedness of the individual schools, derived from their O-Level results and the PSLE T-scores of the O-Level candidates.

ks2011:

Looks like half the parents want the school banding to stay.

Chenonceau:

BeContented:

I kinda pity teachers, principals, MOE

I think your pity somewhat misplaced... but then, it is only my own opinion.

I much more pity the kids from poor homes without SAHM nor access to tuition IF MOE wallows in self-pity or basks in your pity. MOE cannot afford to enjoy pity nor to pity itself. It has a job to do to serve the rich, moderately rich AND abject poor of this country. It also ALREADY has a LOTTA MONEY to do its job. What is there to pity?

I do pity MOE's teachers and am hopeful recent changes will help them and in helping them they will help our kids better. I pity the Principals less because they do have a voice (and are paid a lot more than Teachers).

I pity the children more, teachers next, Principals less... and MOE, not at all.

BeContented:

I kinda pity teachers, principals, MOE

Laura02:

They were more friendly, warm, welcoming and appreciative. While not academically inclined, they were also more patient and understanding of the couple of handicapped kids in class. So, now my stance is that while pupils should be streamed, everyone should recognize that pupils in the slower stream may not be academically strong, but that they have other gifts and strengths that are just as important, and just as worthy of our admiration and praise.

Laura02:

I have gone into to class to teach a simple financial literacy program as a parent volunteer in my dc's school. Last year I taught one of the better classes in Pri 4. This year I taught the slowest class for the same level. There was a big difference. While the children in the faster classes were able to quickly grasp the concepts I was teaching, and indeed some of them already knew the terms I was introducing to them, the children in the slower classes were, well, slow to catch on.

For instance, as part of the program the kids were asked to play a game that's pretty similar to \"the Game of Life\". Kids in the faster class could mentally accurately add, subtract and move round the game board quickly. Kids in the slowest class took over 10min just for form a group of 6, while those in the faster class we already in their teams within 5min. And this was because they just simply moved more slowly. And they needed help with simple addition and subtraction, single digit addition and subtraction. Which at P4 is worrying.
My point here is that if you put slower students with very fast students you would get half a class bored out of their wits, while the other half struggles to understand what's going on. I too used to disagree with streaming, but now I can see why teachers would prefer to have students grouped according to their abilities. If your child's teacher finds the basic texts too basic for the class' ability, they would rightly try to stretch and broaden their teaching scope. But some classes really find the basic text difficult to follow and need to go slowly so that the kids can grasp basic concepts.
Having said that, I genuinely enjoyed teaching the slowest class. They were more friendly, warm, welcoming and appreciative. While not academically inclined, they were also more patient and understanding of the couple of handicapped kids in class. So, now my stance is that while pupils should be streamed, everyone should recognize that pupils in the slower stream may not be academically strong, but that they have other gifts and strengths that are just as important, and just as worthy of our admiration and praise.

BeContented:

ks2011:

I guess as a parent of a primary kid, I would look at the last year COP when I seek admission. Beyond that, do we need bands?


I also don't like the streaming of kids by subject or results in primary school. Why can't all kids be taught the same syllabus making it even ground for giving psle. Currently, we have different schools teaching at different level of difficulty. Even in the same school, different class teachers pitch differently. For e.g: when my older child was in primary school, the teacher did not use the textbook much since it was very basic.

What would you propose then? Use a more difficult textbook?
I guess everything gotta give & take.
If my child is weak, I would complain that teacher should go slower, but what happens to the faster kids?
If my child is fast, I would complain teacher too slow, my kids not learning/gotta wait for others etc.
Even in the top class where all are of higher ability, absorption rate is different.

I kinda pity teachers, principals, MOE

Laura02:

I have gone into to class to teach a simple financial literacy program as a parent volunteer in my dc's school. Last year I taught one of the better classes in Pri 4. This year I taught the slowest class for the same level. There was a big difference. While the children in the faster classes were able to quickly grasp the concepts I was teaching, and indeed some of them already knew the terms I was introducing to them, the children in the slower classes were, well, slow to catch on.

For instance, as part of the program the kids were asked to play a game that's pretty similar to \"the Game of Life\". Kids in the faster class could mentally accurately add, subtract and move round the game board quickly. Kids in the slowest class took over 10min just for form a group of 6, while those in the faster class we already in their teams within 5min. And this was because they just simply moved more slowly. And they needed help with simple addition and subtraction, single digit addition and subtraction. Which at P4 is worrying.
My point here is that if you put slower students with very fast students you would get half a class bored out of their wits, while the other half struggles to understand what's going on. I too used to disagree with streaming, but now I can see why teachers would prefer to have students grouped according to their abilities. If your child's teacher finds the basic texts too basic for the class' ability, they would rightly try to stretch and broaden their teaching scope. But some classes really find the basic text difficult to follow and need to go slowly so that the kids can grasp basic concepts.
Having said that, I genuinely enjoyed teaching the slowest class. They were more friendly, warm, welcoming and appreciative. While not academically inclined, they were also more patient and understanding of the couple of handicapped kids in class. So, now my stance is that while pupils should be streamed, everyone should recognize that pupils in the slower stream may not be academically strong, but that they have other gifts and strengths that are just as important, and just as worthy of our admiration and praise.

ks2011:

I guess as a parent of a primary kid, I would look at the last year COP when I seek admission. Beyond that, do we need bands?


I also don't like the streaming of kids by subject or results in primary school. Why can't all kids be taught the same syllabus making it even ground for giving psle. Currently, we have different schools teaching at different level of difficulty. Even in the same school, different class teachers pitch differently. For e.g: when my older child was in primary school, the teacher did not use the textbook much since it was very basic.