Hi Zann, I'll share what I understand about LEAPS.


1. Leadership
The rank determines the number of points awarded in this category. If the child holds any leadership position in school, such as prefect or class chairman, he will also get extra points for this.
Maximum of 12 points in this category.

2. Enrichment programmes
I'm not so sure about this, but I think the schools will make provision for the kids to fulfil this area.
Maximum of 4 points

3. Achievement
Representation of the school in interschool competitions, attainment of sports leaders awards, president guides, and achieving good results (top 4 for sports or gold award for performing arts) make up this category.
Maximum of 15 points

4. Participation
Mainly on attendance, min 75%. Extra points if the child takes part in SYF or NDP.
Maximum 10 points

5. Service

If a child changes CCA halfway through, I understand he will lose his points for that CCA and has to start afresh. Thats why schools do not encourage students to change, and it is very important that a Sec 1 child manages to get a CCA which he enjoys.

As for the IP program, I am not very sure about that.

Hope this helps

[Editor's note: Topic selected for http://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/content/what-cip.]


CIP is actually part of a CCA grading system called LEAPS. It awards points in 5 categories, namely Leadership, Enrichment, Achievement, Participation and Service.

CIP comes under Service, where each student is required to perform minimum 6 hours of community service per year.

Over a period of 4 years, points are awarded as follows:
100 or more hours - 5 points
80-99 hours - 4 points
60-79 hours - 3 points
40-59 hours - 2 points
24-39 hours - 1 point

These points will go towards the CCA grade (25 and above to get an A1 grade and therefore -2 points for JC admission).

Generally schools will try to help the students fulfil as many CIP hours as possible. Or for example, some church going students go on mission trips to help teach the less fortunate, or build a new school for them etc - all this can be taken into account.

EN:

Hi Kiasulang


Another thing that I want to add, for DSA sports, I think the child will need to win at least in inter-school competition. For a normal eca, the eca practice is once a week, but when school competition draws nearer, the number of practice per week increases. I'm not sure if this is the current practice but that was what happen in the past. For children that are exceptional, they will be invited for Singapore School (in the past) & they have at least twice a week practice. Frequency will increased if there are competition coming. All in all, it will be an every practice.

The achievements criteria for DSA sports depends on the sport you are looking at. Some of the less common sports do not have interschool tournaments at the primary level. As such, the school will probably look at individual achievements, and the school coaches/teachers' recommendation.

Training before competition will usually increase - usually about 3 times a week. I think swimming is one of those sports that the swimmers train everyday, some even up to twice a day.

Hi, I'm not a parent, just a sports coach who chanced upon this website. I will like to share what I know and experienced about DSA admission through sports.


I represented my schools from primary through to university level. If someone were to ask me what is the most memorable about my teenage life, I will definitely say its the CCAs that I participated in. What sports has brought to me has been invaluable, and that is the underlying reason for my passion to teach sports.

I quite agree that some parents do go too far in pushing their kids when they are still very young. Some parents I know even start their kids off as early as p1 so as to get a headstart in DSA 6 years later! But I have also seen parents, who despite knowing their child has an aptitude for a certain sport, do not want their children to get too involved, or always think they won't be good enough. At the end of the day, parents all want to do their best for their kids.

I will like to elaborate on some of the good points brought up earlier.

Pros
- for DSA application (if win)
IMHO, if the child has good ball sense or athletic ability, it is worth a go to try see how far he can go. For example, racket games usually look for good coordination, agility and ball sense. I have seen kids who pick up a sport less than 1 year and still DSA successfully.

- time management
Sports can make the kids more disciplined, and improve their time management. If they want to go for their training, they will need to finish their homework first.

- ability to handle disappointment
Sports can make kids more mentally resilient, as they learn how to accept defeats graciously, and that hard work is required to succeed.

I hope my lengthy post has not bored anyone
If anyone needs more information on the DSA process, or whether their kids are eligible for DSA, do pm me and I'll be happy to help if i can