Tag: singapore education system

Remember when our value was tied to how well we fared in exams? To the A’s or B’s that we got in our subjects? Well this is all going to change for our children. 

In an unprecedented move, our Ministry of Education had announced that they will be making several changes to exams and assessments in school. Some of these changes include removing weighted assessments (including class tests, group projects) and exams for Primary 1 and 2 students. Mid-year exams will also be removed for Primary 3 and 5, as well as Secondary 1 and 3 students.

These are bold changes, as Singaporeans have long questioned the effectiveness of our education system and the emphasis we seem to place on academic grades. 

It’s a move welcomed by many, but along with these changes are several other concerns. For one, when we take away one of the major means of gauging a students understanding and proficiency of a subject, what yardstick are we going to assess them with moving forward?

Speaking at a recent forum with parents and students, Education Minister Ong Ye Kung posed the question back to parents: What is the yardstick that they will use to measure their success as a parent?

It’s a difficult question to answer, because all our life up till the point where we start working, we have been measured by the A’s, B’s, or C’s from our performance on test and exam papers. These grades have inadvertently transformed into something our society uses to define our worth. It is why we have a society that deems students in the ‘normal’ stream as of a lower calibre than those in the ‘express’ stream. 

These cliched perspectives are so deeply entrenched in our society that it is hard for us to envisage how else we can measure the success of a student if it is not through exams and grades. 

Are Exams Important?

In a quick poll I did on Instagram, 33 out of 41 respondents actually voted that exams are good for students. 

Respondents are largely in their twenties or thirties—an age group of people that will soon become parents themselves

These are the same group of people who, through my understanding of our generation, have complained about how we have wasted so much time in our earlier years learning and being tested in subjects that have no relevance to our lives today. 

However, 80% of them maintained that exams are still important, because it helps to assess a student’s grasp of a subject.

“Exams provide feedback. Its replacement must still critique a student.”

It is because of the kiasu culture we have in Singapore that have turned it into a competition of grades rather than a way to assess a student’s progress, as parents want their kids to ace exams to get into better schools, which they believe will give their child a better shot at success. 

This is further egged on by the disparity in which we judge and treat people of different academic backgrounds. It lies in the way scholars are said to enjoy a faster career progression, and in the way some we tend to compare the quality of students based on their alma mater. 

Even if you and I don’t judge people by their academic level, the society will. We still compare schools and we still regard graduates from esteemed schools, like Harvard, with higher respect.

How Do We Measure Somebody’s ‘Worth’ Without Grades? 

The purpose of removing exams is to reduce the emphasis on academic results, but more importantly, what are we replacing it with?

One 27-year-old, Vic, explained that it’s less of abolishing exams than changing our perspectives: “I think students’ education or knowledge can still be measured with tests but the stigma of failing a test should be abolished. What I'm proposing is a mindset change.”

She also proposed for an abolishment of a grading system, which is one of the changes implemented by MOE, where details like grades and class position will be removed from end-of-year assessments. Secondary school students will also be streamed according to subjects instead of the ‘Express’ or ‘Normal’ streams that we had in our time. 

In this case, the changes are also a way to free up time for students to pursue non-academic interests. In order to get there, however, schools and teachers need to be able to create a wholesome environment that enables students to achieve that.

On the aspect of achieving academic rigour, suggestions I got from respondents include challenging students with problem-based assignments to cultivate in them analytical and critical thinking abilities which will help them in the future. 

Some of the suggested ways to assess a student without relying on exam papers and grades

Other suggestions include group projects or learning trips that allow students to explore a broader range of non-academic interests. These are alternatives that will help expose students to both academic and non-academic areas of interest. 

Unsurprisingly, most of the (serious) suggestions given were centered around the idea that a student should be prepared to handle the intricacies of real-world and work situations, more so than acing exam papers. 

The problem lies in our obsession with the ten-year series, which is characteristic of students who are more preoccupied with learning how to ace exams than learning the concept of what’s being taught in each subject. 

One respondent, who’s currently assisting her father in running her family’s F&B chain, said: “A lot of students just learn how to deal with exam questions, instead of understanding the concept of how the content or solution work. Knowing and understanding how things work goes a longer way than knowing how to score in exams.”

At some point, all of us would have talked about how there are many things we learnt in school that have absolutely no relevance to our lives today. I, for one, have no idea how to apply pythagoras theorem to my life or line of work—not that I can even remember the concept today.

With that said, it was my decision to pursue a career that does not require proficiency in math. There are plenty of other professions that requires one to apply maths at work, like engineers. 

Subjects like maths or history will not necessarily help us in our jobs, nonetheless, I see them as a foundation that sets the base for us to further pursue our preferred vocations in our tertiary years. If anything, these valuable general knowledge help us form a more well-rounded view and understanding of the World. Let’s not forget that Singapore’s education system is seen by outsiders as one of the best in the world, and perhaps it is for these knowledge we are armed with that makes us ‘superior students’ to the rest of the world. 

Though, arguably, having to study all those ‘foundational subjects’ means a longer route to success. In comparison, Koreans (for instance) can start training in K Pop from as young as 11. Then, at 17 or 18 where an average Singaporean would have just gotten the opportunity to start pursuing vocational studies, these K Pop trainees would have already made their debut in the industry. 

Which brings us back to the question of whether Singapore, as a whole, is capable of embracing students with non-academic passions.

Mindsets Have To Change

If a student wishes to pursue career paths in performing arts or culinary arts, will schools and educators be able to offer resources to nurture this student in those areas? 

Should there already be programmes and resources in place, will parents and by extension, our society, be able to accept and encourage a child to pursue such non-conventional pathways at the tender age of 11?

At the end of the day, this all depends on what we, Singaporeans, want to place value in: In achieving academic excellence before attempting a vocation, or in embracing a more progressive education that not only allows, but encourages students to explore beyond the English, Math, and Sciences, from a young age. 

Regardless, these changes are a work in progress, and whether our children in the future reaps the benefits of this system is heavily dependent on how we, as future parents, react to the changes that MOE has rolled out. 

For as long as we have kiasu parents around, the competition to be The Best will always be there. 

At the end of the day, it boils down to what we want to instil in our 15, 10, or even 3-year-olds. If grades are not the way forward, what do we want to teach and assess our kids with? 

With qualities like kindness and compassion? With communication skills like speaking and presenting? Or with a mix of soft and vocational skills to help them navigate the complexities of the world? 

Also read: Is There A Need For Better Sex Education That’s More Than STDs And Abstinence?.
(Header Image Credit: Wikipedia)

In a rather unexpected move, the Ministry of Education announced that it will be abolishing examinations at various levels in schools. Here is an infographic to catch you up on the changes:
MOE remove exams
Image credit: Ministry of Education
While the change is MOE’s effort in further emphasising the commendable “Life beyond Grades” movement, it came as no surprise that a lot of Singaporeans are unhappy with it. Some of the complaints came from parents whose children will be affected by the change. It’s only natural for one to be concerned about their child’s education, especially when their child will be stepping into an ever-changing education system and one that is so different from what they went through themself. However, as much as Singaporeans do love to complain, the common complaints, or rather, concerns raised by parents do carry some weight.

KIDS WILL BECOME UNPRODUCTIVE

Let’s think about our own childhood for a moment and try to remember a time we studied because we genuinely wanted to study. Chances are, the only time we studied that diligently was when we had to for exams.
MOE remove exams comment
Image credit: HardwareZone
I’m not going to lie, the first thing I thought of when MOE made the announcement was, “What if all my child does is lepak?” But since I'm no parent, I asked one instead.
"Exam period was the only time I could get my son to study properly. It’s going to be hard to get him to study now." - Lavenia, parent of 7-year-old in P1
Like NTB2DO in the screen capture above, several users on the HardwareZone forum have been discussing the move since MOE’s announcement. While a handful of these users were just complacent Singaporeans without children, just eager to put their opinions out there, there is an abundance of those who shared their legit concerns on what this would mean for their children’s future. We cannot expect children (or anyone) to enjoy taking exams, but it’s undeniable that exams have significantly pushed many children to be a little bit more disciplined and studious. We also can’t deny the amount of distractions kids have these days. Back when millennials were children ourselves, all we had were our Barbie dolls, Game Boy and a handful of other toys and we still managed to get distracted. Just look at how many distractions kids have today. “I’m definitely worried that my son will spend more time playing more games and what not," says Lavenia. Could this mean more pressure for parents to supervise their children?

UNPREPAREDNESS WILL LEAD TO STRESS

One of the reasons behind removing exams for P1 and P2 is to remove unnecessary stress that we’re embedding into young children. However, I call bullshit on the idea that having exams at that age causes unnecessary stress to children. Exams aren’t the main cause of stress in a child. Try and recall if you felt stress at taking exams at that age. Unless you had a tiger mom or dad, you probably didn’t feel any overwhelming amount of stress from exams. HardwareZone user NTB2DO gives us another great example:
MOE exams comment
Image credit: HardwareZone
More likely than not, children feel stressed as they fear how their parents would react to their results. This fear is derived from the high expectations our parents have for us to do well, which often turns into disappointment when we don’t live up to it. And the fear of having to face the consequences of ‘failing’ our parents. Even a mere pop quiz or spelling test could be extremely stressful for children if parents continue to be the one driving the pressure. On the other hand, parents are concerned that their child may not be prepared enough to suddenly sit for an exam for the first time when they progress to primary three.
“I would want my daughter to be exposed to going through an exam in P1 or P2 at least, because she’d have more time to warm-up before her streaming year.” – Ilena, parent of a child enrolling into P1 next year
With the pressure from their parents, coupled with how they're going to be introduced to 'the exam environment', students could find themselves in a more stressful situation than before.

DOESN’T CHANGE THE ‘GRADES ARE EVERYTHING’ MINDSET      

It’s no secret that most Singaporeans highly value academic success, and while MOE has good intentions, the recent change will not fully address the “kiasu” mentality instilled within Singaporeans. The mentality that grades and academic growth triumphs everything else. Exams or no exams, we’ve grown up associating success with how well we do in school. We grew up having our parents, teachers, and society as a whole assess us based on our academic qualifications. Let’s face it, these children will still be assessed this way when they eventually progress to their last years in primary and secondary school and so on. And the best way to achieve the As to get them to their ‘ideal schools’ is still by mugging and memorising pages and pages of information. Because the better your memory, the higher your likelihood of scoring an A, right? To make things worse, who can forget how our parents just had to compare us to our siblings, friends, cousins and even neighbours when we 'didn't do as well’. This 'tradition' lives on even until today, and it isn’t just the children. Parents are feeling the pressure themselves.
“I feel intense pressure coming from kiasu parents all around me. The competitive academic culture and the pressures that it places on parents and thus on children are very real.” - Germaine, parent of a child enrolling into P1 next year
According to Germaine, parents around her are sending their kids for enrichment classes that teach them to read, spell, and solve math problems way before the enter primary school. Everyone wants their child to be the best in the race, and this consequently contradicts MOE’s stance of wanting to focus more on kids’ personal development over academics in the first two years of primary school.
“If parents and teachers continue to stress over the consequences of not getting good grades, we’ll be right back where we started.” - Esther, parent of 7-year-old in P1

A GOOD FIRST STEP, WITH ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

While MOE’s latest move is commendable, it’s a shame that it just may not be enough. Yes, taking away exams lets kids be kids a little longer. Yes, removing rankings from report cards do help to discourage comparisons amongst peers. And yes, there shouldn’t be emphasis on grades down to the decimal point. But in an education system that deems a student a failure solely based on their grades, change doesn’t happen overnight. These are great initial steps but to truly make a change, MOE and parents have to unite and understand each others concerns as well. Be it changing the curriculum to include more experiential learning methods, or overhauling the entire education system, whatever step MOE decides to take next, it must take into consideration not only how it affects schools and students, but how it affects parents. Only when the changes address the prevailing concerns then will Singaporeans be convinced that there will be real change. Also read, In Defense Of My Arts Degree: Why The Arts Are Absolutely Essential (Header Photo by pan xiaozhen on Unsplash)
"Life is about more than getting good grades." How many of us have told ourselves this, only to fall into a deep pit of depression when our grades came back less than stellar? Having grown up in Singapore's education system, we all know the importance of getting good grades. Having faced streaming exercises from young and then having competed for placement into "good schools", and then into university, how could we not? Studying hard and getting good grades is the point of school... Right? Not really. Grades are important of course. Grades do open certain doors and in certain courses (e.g law, medicine), grades are, in fact, everything. But for the rest of us, grades are not the end all be all and now, as I'm graduating from university and finally exiting the education system for good, I'm beginning to appreciate this fact. University is a total experience, and if you put your time and energy solely into securing a good grade, and let everything else fall by the side, you miss out on so much of it. Now and then, stop hitting the books and go do these things instead.

1. Expand your social network

Don't just stick with the friends you knew prior to university, or with people who are just like you. Interact with people who are different. Not only will they expand your world and your thinking, you never know when these relationships might come in handy! I cannot emphasize further how university is all about “making connections”. I once heard from a career coach that 70% of jobs hiring are not listed on the Internet. Wouldn’t it be nice to one day hear from a friend “Hey, I recommended you to my manager”. Your friendship network can give you a leg up on your job search by taking it beyond the Internet.

2. Learn from the experts

Instead of keeping silent and under the radar in tutorials, and keeping your questions to yourself, talk to your professors! Not only do they have a wealth of knowledge, talking to them also helps sharpen your thinking.

3. Develop practical skills

When you're an undergrad, it's kinda like that Britney song goes: you're not a child, not yet an adult. You're somewhere right smack in between. In this state of in-between, make a conscious effort to pick up practical skills like presentation skills, leadership skills, confrontational skills, any kind of skill that up until now, you might've been lacking. University provides plenty of opportunities for you to practice "adulting" and you'd be wise to use them! The cliche "it's not the end but the journey that counts" works well here. Once you're out of school, you'll realize that learning to give presentations confidently, do thorough research, and practicing the art of thinking critically are far more useful in real life than to answer questions perfectly right.

4. Take those extra-curriculars

In university, you learn that the busier you are, involved in societies, volunteering, organizing events, etc., the better you get at managing your time. I was section leader in a music club, publicist in a sports club, and ambassador of my course. Juggling all these commitments helped me learn to prioritize my time and the thought of losing sleep rushing assignments was enough to keep me from procrastinating. Plus, taking part in other activities also helped enrich my university life. There are so many activities taking place on campus every week from concerts to yoga classes to stargazing sessions... Sign up for these things. Not only do they cost you close to nothing (and sometimes, nothing), they create opportunities for you to expand your interests and meet like-minded people while doing so!

5. Think about your future

Don't get tunnel vision trying to score an A for every module you're taking. If you haven't a clue what you'd like to do once you're out of school, every now and then, take a break from it all and consider what you'd like to do in the future. What are you good at? What are your interests? What are your passions? If you feel lost, embrace that feeling. It's all part of the journey. Just start thinking about who you are, where you want to go, and what options you can consider. It's better to think about these things while you're still in school than try and figure it out after you're out. After all, whether or not you'd like to admit it, what you have in school is time. University isn’t just about getting a 5.0 CAP, it’s about so much more. It’s about meeting new people, picking up new skills, trying new things, having new experiences, learning more about yourself, and about having fun. (Yes, having fun.) There are plenty of practical things to be gained from university and of course, some not as practical but just as important ones as well. If you're a newly minted undergrad, good luck to you and I hope you experience every bit of the university journey!