Catholic High School
-
phttp, you rightly pointed out that there are very kiasu parents out there (not referring to you although you were conferred with the title KiauGrandMaster somehow) who want everything for the kids. AEP, MEP, Third language, don’t know what else out there to be bundled for the child. All given in the name of stretching the child. What for ???
We are not like that. Whatever he gets exposed to or tries to get exposed to, 90% are from him not us. Sure this is going down some dangerous path that we may not know if he does something bad, but so far he is ok. -
Hi all, on the topic of govt-funded vs. independent schools, materials aside, would you say there’s a considerable gulf in the quality of the teaching staff? For eg CHS/VS as compared to SJI?
-
zac's mum\" post_id=\"1995903\" time=\"1600752546\" user_id=\"53606:[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=1995903 time=1600752546 user_id=53606]
Their dilemma lies in joining which \"dual track\" IP school.
Aren’t there some SAP schools in the East that you can pick from?[/quote]
1) join CHS or VS ?
2) join IP or join O-level ?
both schools are good.
Difference lies in, which JC they prefer when their son reaches 17 year old in Year 5,
and also
the distance travelling to and fro, up and down, daily. Distance play a very important part too.
School fees wise, both similar, around $30 per month.
VJC has been in existence for a long, long time, a few past decade.
Are there any niche programme that is found and present in CHS, but absent in VS ?
If say, her son like Chinese a lot, or eyeing to study in one of the Top China universities one day after completing his GCE A-level, does it mean that he is keen to take up the Chinese BSP Bicultural scholarship programme, come Upper Sec 3 ?
If Yes,
then come to Catholic High, because SAP schools like (CHS, Hwa Chong, Dunman High, Chung Cheng High, etc ) Secondary schools, offer.
Here is a description of the BSP scholarship programme, when students move up to Eunoia Junior College (Year 5)
https://eunoiajc.moe.edu.sg/curriculum/special/bsp/
Note
Even the end of Sec 2 O-level students, if they are keen in this Sec 3 Chinese BSP scholarship programme, Yes, even these O level students who are interested, after attended an interview, and if they got selected by the interview panel, these students also need to change their original course curriculum from O level, to join IP starting Sec 3. They cannot remain inside O level track, anymore -
He mentioned son prefers SAP school.
Also mentioned son prefers Science & doesn’t like the 3 humanities.
And they live in the East. Reluctant to commit to further 2 years of long travel to EJC.
In view of all of the above, wouldn’t it be more suitable to pick IP track? Cos from what I understand, IP track has its end goal on A levels. And Science-oriented kids usually do Econs as their A level humanities (don’t have to care about Literature, Geography, History except do the basic minimum to pass those subjects’ exams in lower sec). Whereas in O level track he still has to fret about scoring well in one (or two) of those humanities for O level exam.
So now we narrow down to CHS IP versus VS IP. The former is far from home, and locks them in to EJC. Minus points. VS IP wins.
And if he really wants SAP IP in the East, there is Dunman High IP. No? -
zac's mum\" post_id=\"1995957\" time=\"1600773980\" user_id=\"53606:[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=1995957 time=1600773980 user_id=53606]
Only with reference to the above, the promotion criteria of some IP schools, include adding the grade of one humanities subject, so the student cannot “dont care ...and do basic min to pass in lower sec”. Of course I think if the other subjects are 90, the student can “dont care” and score 0, and yet still promote because the final grade is simple average. 5 subjects 90 can cover one subject 0.
And Science-oriented kids usually do Econs as their A level humanities (don’t have to care about Literature, Geography, History except do the basic minimum to pass those subjects’ exams in lower sec). Whereas in O level track he still has to fret about scoring well in one (or two) of those humanities for O level exam.[/quote] -
zac's mum\" post_id=\"1995957\" time=\"1600773980\" user_id=\"53606:[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=1995957 time=1600773980 user_id=53606]
think they prefer a dual-track IP school like CHS or VS, not a single-track IP school like Dunman High, although Dunman is located in the east, also SAP and much closer to them, compared to Catholic High.
He mentioned son prefers SAP school.
Also mentioned son prefers Science & doesn’t like the 3 humanities.
And they live in the East. Reluctant to commit to further 2 years of long travel to EJC.
In view of all of the above, wouldn’t it be more suitable to pick IP track? Cos from what I understand, IP track has its end goal on A levels. And Science-oriented kids usually do Econs as their A level humanities (don’t have to care about Literature, Geography, History except do the basic minimum to pass those subjects’ exams in lower sec). Whereas in O level track he still has to fret about scoring well in one (or two) of those humanities for O level exam.
So now we narrow down to CHS IP versus VS IP. The former is far from home, and locks them in to EJC. Minus points. VS IP wins.
And if he really wants SAP IP in the East, there is Dunman High IP. No?[/quote]
Or maybe they prefer mission school ?
CHS is a mission school, but Dunman and VS are not -
zac's mum\" post_id=\"1995957\" time=\"1600773980\" user_id=\"53606:[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=1995957 time=1600773980 user_id=53606]
I will hazard a guess that Dunman High is scoring low for their handphone policy.
And if he really wants SAP IP in the East, there is Dunman High IP. No?[/quote]
Anyway, with regards to the handphone policy in VS, they can use their handphones before school dismissal, like during recess, lunch breaks, before CCA starts, etc. They are “not required to put the phones aside till school dismissal”. Remember to update your schools score sheet.
Option\" post_id=\"1995877\" time=\"1600747006\" user_id=\"185249:
On websites for SJI, NUS High, VS, CHS, there were guidelines on handphone usage, requiring them to put aside till school dismissal.
-
MerlionInGermany\" post_id=\"1995962\" time=\"1600776244\" user_id=\"2964:
Most of the schools’ phone policies are same-same, whether they publicize it or not. Hence, they should all score fairly similar. I haven’t come across any schools that say you can use the phone as and when you like, during class, when there’s an ‘urgent’ call or text an ‘urgent’ message.
I will hazard a guess that Dunman High is scoring low for their handphone policy.zac's mum\" post_id=\"1995957\" time=\"1600773980\" user_id=\"53606:[quote=\"zac's mum\" post_id=1995957 time=1600773980 user_id=53606]And if he really wants SAP IP in the East, there is Dunman High IP. No?
Anyway, with regards to the handphone policy in VS, they can use their handphones before school dismissal, like during recess, lunch breaks, before CCA starts, etc. They are “not required to put the phones aside till school dismissal”. Remember to update your schools score sheet. Option\" post_id=\"1995877\" time=\"1600747006\" user_id=\"185249:
Anecdotal evidence would probably suggest that students from all the top schools, including CHS / VS / DHS etc, are relatively heavy phone users. How else you expect them to share info / coordinate project-work / “research” or find info? If one seriously want to siam handphone, these schools are probably not the best option. -
Yes, DHS handphone policy isn’t what he prefers, though distance-wise it comes in at 36 minutes.
No lah, we spoke to VS directly. From this year onwards, Sec 1s through their 4 years are supposed to put their handphones away till dismissals. We spoke to CHS too. First 2 years, students are expected to put their handphones away till dismissals. We won’t go into any enforcements from them because it’s likely that they were disclosed based on implicit trust that any right to share should come from them. The end goal for both the school and us is to make decisions with eyes open. There is no reason for them to give us feedback that is not accurate, or which they think is not accurate.
No also, we are not dead set on mission schools. The reason we spoke to schools through calls is because this year is a Covid 19 year, so we know we can forget about visiting various schools in person. Did we do additional research ? Yes. On the online platform, CHS was the only school we saw that had its Chinese write-up. We covered that. In addition, it was the only school who deployed 2 figureheads to speak in Chinese and we covered that too.
The case for VS was different. Actually the handphone policy fitted exactly what he prefers. One of the initial thoughts was whether a non-SAP environment has other areas that will either keep his interest in the language alive/ raise the bar. If yes, the question becomes : how straightforward is it for him to go to a non-SAP school that has other areas favourable to him. VS was compared with Cedar Girls (CGS). At this point, you folks will feel we have done something strange since he cannot opt for a girls’ school. VS and CGS have an alliance, so we want to know if this alliance extends to all areas.
It turns out that CGS has a Chinese society (nope, he is not joining a Chinese society but we were gauging the environment and discovered this) but VS does not have something similar. We also look at whether the school has activities beyond the text books (or what we call lessons for examinable Chinese). No traces.
At home, the handphone is viewed only as one of the ‘semi-ubiquitous’ devices. He is more comfortable with the Google/ Zoom platforms used during the HBLs, for project issues. He is comfortable with turning the TV into a learning device. He is not ‘banning himself outright’ ban on future handphone usage (there are times when he doesn’t use it like a ‘normal user’), but probably guarding against risks.
He prefers a SAP environment because he sees them more Chinese focused. To what extent (0-100%) is it true that none of the non-SAP schools have sufficient focus on Chinese ? And to what extent is it true that all SAP schools are Chinese focused ? We know there are parents who want the children to be in SAP schools for different reasons, but this requirement comes from him, not us. In case you folks are wondering if any one of us were from China, answer is no. -
Ultimately he needs to weigh whether his love for Chinese activities is worth the extra travelling time. Is he going to join a Chinese-related CCA? Otherwise I believe VS would offer more sporty or less “nerdy” options. It’s how he wants to develop himself as a whole person.
And…do note that there is no SAP JC. I highly doubt EJC will have Chinese activities to the same extent as a SAP school.
If he really really wants a full SAP experience, why not go to HCI for 6 years?
But then there’s no SAP university in Singapore. Go overseas?
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login