Please post your comments and share your thoughts on Mr Warlick's view of teaching and learning. Has the schooling you received and are receiving providing you the education you need to succeed in the present century? What else can schools do to ensure that you posses the learning literacy that Mr Warlick talked about. Do share your thoughts and insights and remember to leave your name after you have made your comments.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
E learning 5 March 2010
You will learning what I'm learning at the International Conference on Teaching and Learning with Technology. You will need to access the following website http://davidwarlick.com/wordpress/ and for the next 55 minutes, I would like you to read what Mr David Warlick has to say about flat classroom.
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Hi Mrs Boo!
ReplyDeleteThe blog post that you want us to read is the presentation on Flattening rooms and flat classrooms right?
I think there is a problem with that particular presentation!
Ridzuan 1010
ReplyDeletePersonally I think that the Singapore education system is already designed to suit Singaporean students' needs. For instance, tutorials are used for discussions. Here, we share our experiences and response together with the class and our tutors. Thus being able to see opinions from different points of view. Mistakes are commonly made in tutorials but thats how we learn best.
Thus, there are many examples to explain how the Singapore education system is already suitable for us students, and tutorial is only AN example.
Hence personally, i believe that the Singapore education system is suitable for us and we can succeed in the future.
I feel that the Singapore education system is a competitive one and the government is constantly looking into how else we can better improve this system. The education we receive here in Singapore does equip us with the relevant skills and knowledge to help us succeed in the future and in this present century. This is because the local education system focuses on a holistic education, not just academic excellence. Students are judged based on their ability to excel in both areas of their academics and their CCAs.
ReplyDeleteSchools can start teaching students at the primary level how to infer and evaluate the reliability of information from the web. This skill is becoming increasingly crucial as our younger generation become more internet-savvy.
Singaporean students are known to be reserved and less active in class compared to students from other countries. Thus, teachers should be trained to evoke a strong sense of curiosity in students to allow them have their doubts clarified by asking questions.
Ginette
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, Singapore's education system is quite stressful. Although the competition between students has caused many to feel burdened, it increases our ability to adapt to the pressure we faced and also allow us to learn more effectively.
Moreover, our educational system does not only care about academic results, it also take our external activities into consideration. Students also have to participate in workshops like character development programme. We are also taught to be civic minded. For example, school would orgainse trips to the old folks home to care for the elderly.
Furthermore, the environment provided for the students are also conducive. Students are able to learn well and thus maximise their potential.
Qianhui 1010
ReplyDeleteSingapore's strong education system is wellknown and recognised around the world. We have been moving in recent years towards an education system that is more flexible and diverse. We are exposed to broad-based education in and out of the classroom, from lectures, tutorials to core-curriculum activities.
In my opinion, i think the key question is : how do we define whether a person is "well-educated?" Does being able to excel in examination means that the students would be able to gain the fundamental skills and excel in their jobs in the future?
The Singapore educational system can be considered as one of the best in the world as primary education is readily available and made complusory to all Singaporeans. Furthermore, school fees are heavily subsidised by the government to keep education in Singapore affordable.
ReplyDeletePrimary school education helps us build a 6-year foundation of the different core subjects before we enter secondary education which focuses more on character-building through CCAs, as well as CIP. Moving on to tertiary education, we learn skills such as critical thinking and reasoning skills. These skills come in handy when we enter the workforce as it is in high demand in the market.
In conclusion, what we learn from our primary education to tertiary education contributes to our success in the present century.
In my own opinion, I believe that the schooling we receive in Singapore provides us the education we need to succeed in the present century.
ReplyDeleteThe Singapore education system is unique and different, with the government looking into how the system can be improved. The system not only equip students with the required skills and knowledge to take on future challenges, but provides a holistic education where every individual that passes through the education will have good moral values and an excellent general well-being.
We also have different educational levels in which each educational level builds upon the previous stages and lays the foundation for the next level. As students advance through the levels, they are judged based on both their academic results and CCA achievements as well.
In contrast to Mr Warlick's view that integrating technology be stopped, schools should use more technology in their teachings as technology brings the world closer, through the use of the internet. We can access various information just with a click of a button and it will definitely be of use to students in their learning, where they can retrieve resources they need efficiently, making learning more effective. Hence, schools should also impart skills of how to analyze information from the web as modernization takes technology to a whole new level gradually and the younger generation becomes more tech-savvy.
Schools can also send students for character development program to enhance students' potential as well as to train students to speak out as Singaporean students are not so actively involved in class discussions.
Thus, I believe that the Singapore education system is effective and successful as it is designed to cater to us so that we can succeed in the future with the necessary skills acquired.
Melissa 1010
ReplyDeleteYes, I feel that the schooling we have received and are receiving, provides us with the education we need to succeed in the present century. Nowadays, the school teaches us to blance our CCA and academics. Both are equally time consuming and we seriously need to have good time management to juggle them. And in future, we too will have to balance our work and family life hence I feel that the system of having a CCA is good as we will learn how to manage our time and prioritise our time which is a vital skill in future. Besides that, the JC subject combination which requires us to take up 3H2 subjects and 1 contrasting subject also moulds us to be all-rounders. The subjects that we are learning now are extremely relevant, for example, Economics, which allows us to know about the growth of the world.
I believe that everyone has a different way of learning things. For example, some people learn better by looking at a demonstration, by trying out the task themselves and the list goes on...
ReplyDeleteThe point is, I feel that students can learn even better this way, if their strengths were being used for learning, rather than trying very hard to use their supposed weaker learning method to learn. This would only work if there were enough teachers/professionals or space for such practise to be carried out in every school.
I believe that the education system in Singapore will help us to succeed in the 21st Century and am satisfied with the educational system in Singapore except for the emphasis of a BIG FINAL TEST. I believe students should be evaluated on their general performance in school to give a better holistic assessment.
I feel that as Singapore focus alot about fostering and nuturing talents and characters through education, Singaporean youths have turned out to be independent learners and leaders.
ReplyDeleteAlthough school work and examinations are getting increasingly tough for students every year, it encourages a higher level of learning and also help us, students, get accustomed to the stress as we might be facing more hardships in the future.
Education system in singapore also focus on independent learning, as students are encourage to discover and tackle problems on their own. It also helps students to work well with others in the future through exercises such as project work. This develops the student's communication ability and also nutured an independent person which is highly looked out for in the market.
Hence, I conclude that the stressful education system actually helps us, students, to develop into mature beings that independent, outspoken and strong, which would greatly help with our careers in near future.
I think that Singapore's education system is a very all-rounded one. It does not only focus on academic, but also on the students' character developement and co-curriculum activities. Therefore, it allows the students to be developed in all areas and have the ablility to face all types of challenges.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, many countries uses Singapore's education system as a guide to improve their own education system. This therefore shows that our education system is an effective one.
Also, Singapore depends highly on human resources. Hence, the govenrnment constantly revise on the education system for improvements to make sure that all Singaporeans are educated and are competitve in the workforce.
Thus, i believe that Singapore's education system will allow us to succceed in the present century.
In my opinion, Singapore's Ministry of Education is farsighted, and is equipping us well with the not only knowledge, but also essential skills we need for succeeding in the present century.
ReplyDeleteFor instance, Singapore's education system is always adopting innovative ways of delivering education such as promoting use of technology in classrooms and encouraging a holistic education.
As early as 1970s, schools have started to urge students to take up a Co-curricular activity (CCA). And now, having a CCA is almost complusory. Students have to show active participation in at least one CCA as this will be reflected in School Graduation Certificate (SGC), which is an important component for admission into the more popular courses in universities.
This provides a more holistic education for students, as they get to interact with people and equip themselves with new skills.
As competition gets fiercer, getting decent results is no longer all we need to secure a place in a course of choice. Students need to have BOTH good results and outstanding CCA records. Only with such, then he/she will be deemed as an all-rounder and companies will be more willing to employ them.
Also, Project Work (PW) helps students to improve in presentation skills. Possessing good presentation skills will enable us to have a niche over others. Companies prefer confident and fluent employees.
In my opinion, an educated individual is not one with a good academic certificate that ensures qualification for most jobs, but one who is equipped with relevant life skills and reinforced with sound moral values, and on top of that, have outstanding academic achievements. A person who can only study will not go far in life.
ReplyDeleteIn the Singaporean context, I believe we are on the right track. I say this because our education system is in line with what I had mentioned above. Nowadays, students require excellent grades, coupled with their achievements with their respective CCAs, to qualify for local universities. Grades alone does not stand out. CCAs provide us a balanced education, as we not only have to study hard, we need to excel in our CCAs as well. This provides Singaporean students a holistic education.
As for stopping the integration of technology, I do not agree with that. In our present times, we are constantly changing and improving. Technology is revolutional in a way that students nowadays can obtain information quickly from the internet, in stark contrast to sifting through thick reference books in the library. This cuts down on a lot of time, which is something we should not ignore, let alone eradicate. We should always look ahead and improve ourselves, even if it means being IT savvy. Removing technology from our learning is taking a huge step backward, and is not the solution. Instead, we should strive to effectively combine technology with our learning, so as to keep up with the times, and study in a modern environment that is beneficial to our education.
To a certain extent, the education in Singapore only provides us with the knowledge of the theory. What controls our success is not only our knowledge; it’s the ability to apply what we’ve learnt into suitable conditions. Personally, I feel that schools should reinforce the importance craving a potential in every student. Through this, students will be able to realize their strengths and develop it further. In this way, many students will not spend time studying without having a goal in mind. Time will be consumed and everyday will be well-lived.
ReplyDelete*PS: Do allow me to add on as this is merely a outline of my work. Thanks
I personally feel that Singapore's education system is something that Singaporeans can be proud of. However, there is still room for improvement as nothing is perfect. The flexibility and adaptibility of the system should be looked into. It may suit most people but not for the minority and this minority should be made an exception in this system. Children who are intellectually talented should be recognised and Singapore should design a system to suit their needs so that they would not waste their time trying to promote to the next level of education. Those who are talented in other aspects such as asthetics should be given the room and chance to excel instead of confining to the rigid system.
ReplyDeleteSingapore should develop a system which students will be exemplorary in terms of asthetics and academics, example making music and maths compulsory subjects. The questions that appear in the A level and O level are more challenging and train one's critical thinking skill and they are constantly improving.
I agree that the schooling I received and am receiving provides me the education I need to succeed in the present century. The education system in Singapore is renowned for its high quality teaching and this has never changed. Students receive a holistic education throughout their years here.
ReplyDeleteOn top of that,the education system ensures that the students here are both mentally and intellectually capable of handling the various challenges posed by the everchanging society.
In a nutshell,students here have been trained to achieve sucess in the present century through the development of almost every aspect of life.
Sihui 1010
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion,the schooling i have received thus far is insufficient to prepare us for the future because at the present century,the Internet is fast becoming an essential tool.People are becoming more and more internet-savvy in Singapore while the schooling we receive is mainly textbook-based.Without the proper technology skills,we are definitely at a disadvantage in the present century.
Schools should impart more skills on technology skills as this would be more effective than just teaching from the textbook.Students would also have more interest in lessons conducted through the internet.
However,on a separate note,Singapore's education system is one of the best in the world.Schools nowadays stress not only on academic studies, but also character development through CCA and service-learning.Students also have to learn how to cope with vigorous training sessions for their CCA while at the same time manage their studies well.This will have help to groom us into better multi-taskers.
Singapore's education system is such that students are put according to our academic abilities. For example, there is a streaming in Primary 4 into Band 1, Band 2 and Band 3. We are further "sorted" out after Primary School into our various Secondary Schools and so forth. Students are then taught at different paces, depending on how fast students can grasp the concepts. This way, faster students do not have to wait for the slower students and the slower students will not have too much difficulties trying to understand the lessons.
ReplyDeleteHowever, they have not put into consideration the late bloomers, who may have not done well in the earlier years of their education. In addition, there are also students who do not realise the importance of studying until they are much older. Therefore, I think that it is not fair to have streaming at such an early stage.
In conclusion, the education in Singapore is good, however there is still room for improvements.
I personally feel that studying in Singapore is a great challenge. Education in Singapore focus on being an all-rounder. Not only studies are important, having a good character and excel in aesthetic are equally important. Even though this system may cause stress in students, I feel that this in fact will help us cope with our work life in future. For example, in school, we learnt to be flexible in thinking so as to excel in both studies and aesthetic. This is useful for work life as we have to be flexible in whatever we do and not only think squarely.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I feel that Singapore education system neglected on educating students to voice out their opinions. Most of the students are afraid of voicing out especially when they grew older. This isn't good as most won't be able to clear their doubts by keeping things to themselves.
In conclusion, I feel lucky to be a Singaporean and have the opportunity to study in Singapore as it ensures me better opportunity in work in the future.
In my point of view, the education system of Singapore is quite well established. It has been regular reviewed due to the rapid changes of external factors, including our social environment and development of technology.
ReplyDeleteLearning approach is not only the process of copying and understanding the knowledge and theories but how are we going to apply them in the real life.
In order to succeed in the present century, one must be equipped with the necessary lifeskills and knowledge. Personally, I feel that Singapore's education system will be able to help us succeed in the present century.
ReplyDeleteOther than the usual contextual knowledge, the education sector has placed an emphasis on nurturing spirit of Innovation and Enterprise (I&E). For instance, some secondary schools allow students to set up stalls, in line with the promotion of I&E spirit. As such, this allows us to have some hands-on experience and further enhanced our critical thinking, where we have to play by ear and be more flexible. These lifeskills are essential to a successful entrepreneurship.
Also, the tertiary education has not only equip us with better knowledge, it also helps to build up our confidence. For example, oral presentation/public speaking will eventually help to shape us into some fluent speakers and this will help to build up our confidence. Hence, being a confident and fluent speaker actually puts you to an advantage.
Apart from that, Ministry of Education is constantly reviewing the syllabus, and this helps to ensure the curriculum that the students are going through is always relevant to the changing world. As such, students are better-equipped, which helps us to gain a stronger footing in the present century.
Thus, in all, I believe that the schooling we've received and are receiving has provided us with the education that we need to succeed in the present century.
Personally, i feel that Singapore's education system provides us with essential knowledge in order to cope with the future ahead of us.
ReplyDeleteDuring school time, we are given enough time to learn and engage in 'question and answer' sessions with the teachers. If this wasn't enough, we could arrange with teachers to enhance our learning too. The system also provides us with numerous opportunities to showcase and enhance our talents in respective areas, such as leadership posts like cca leaders, or even international competitions. All these is important as they would help us decide our future.
However, i feel that the education system is providing or spoon feeding us too much information. Students now don't think out of the box as much as they used to before and are starting to be less creative. Students should interact and be allowed more space for ideas instead.
In conclusion, even though singapore's education system has its bad points, it is still a great system which helps us lots.
I personally feels that Singapore's education system is already far better than some of the undeveloped countries. People in Africa or other poorer countries do not even get a chance to study and learn more about the world. Some countries do not place much emphasis on studies too.
ReplyDeleteWe are provided with many stages of learning. We acquire basic knowledge since primary school,and took the PSLE examinations to assess our knowledge skills. After going to Secondary School, we will be given more chances to develop interest on various subjects( learn more in depth and through learning,discover our area of interest ). After taking 'O' levels, we are also given time to think of our future path,and choose what we really want (JC/Poly). This is a well-planned learning system.
Not only is studies important,our government places equal significance on character development and CCAs. Other than studies,we could develop a talent by joining CCAs that we like. Through CCAs,we foster bonds between schoolmates and at the same time,learn a talent or skill that could be useful in future or when we start work in the economy. (Eg.Bizclub helps students to learn about business skills that comes in handy in future). In Secondary school and JC,it is also compulsory to do at least 1 Service-Learning project. We help to contribute to our society by helping the needys or underprivileged. This helps us in developing core values that are essential in the society,making us more humane. In our school,we also have Student Initiated Groups(SIG),whereby students could open their own preferred CCA and learn to manage them.
In this modern society,only books and notes alone do not help in shaping us to a knowledgable person. We need exposure to other sources. For example,hands on experience could be an excellent way to arouse interest of students in a specific subject. Many students will rather face new things compared to books.The Body World@Science Centre that I visited recently is an excellent way of learning Biology or just about common knowledge. Through the exhibition,I found out that I learn a lot although I did not use books or notes. Overseas learning trip is also a good way to learn about a specific country's history,culture,economy,current affairs,etc(Inject elements of fun in studies).
Overall,i feel that the past is not equals to the future. Singapore's education system should change in times to come as people of different generations will be different. People in the past may prefer books but people in the future may not even need to go to school(Using E-learning,although i feels that E-learning for too long seems to cut off the communication between people). Therefore,Singapore's Education System should be more flexible and continue to provide us with the best education possible(:
Yee zheng 1020
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I believe that Singapore Government has craft out an education that cater to the needs of the fast-paced world. Such that students from Singapore are able to meet the minimum requirements of their future career and are able to fulfill their duties in their respective areas of specialization. It also provides the Student with a high level of education and world-recognized examination such as Cambridge ‘O’ level and Cambridge ‘A’ level. Thus, Singapore Students have no worries in getting themselves a job with the possession of these certificates.
However, there are still flaws in the education system in Singapore. Our Local Students view learning as a must, not as an interest or passion. They learn for the sake of scoring good grades, not because they love it. I believe that Singapore Government has placed too much emphasis on theory but not as much on hands-on. I think that students should be exposed to the outside world and our education system should be more of out-door learning. Such that, students will have no fear in the future when they enter the society as working adults and also make learning a lifelong process instead of a temporary obligation.
In conclusion, I believe that students should have a perception of learning as passion and not learning for the sake of outstanding grades. Otherwise, they will find themselves in great deal of troubles when they are in the working society as they are not upgrading themselves consistently with the necessary knowledge or skills. Also, I think that our education system should be craft in a way that it provides students with more outdoor and oversea experience such that we will not be restricted in that confined classroom of ours which allow us to have a broader perspective towards the world .
Personally i think that the education system of Singapore caters the need of the students who are studying here. The education system does not only focus on their academic but at the same time, it ensure that the student all rounded.
ReplyDeleteStudents are encourages to have a balanced lifestyle, by participating actively in their CCAs and lessons. This also helps them to get a on how to manage their time while, which may eventually help them when they enter the working society in future.
Nowadays students are pushed to take the initiative to study on their own while the teachers are there to advise and provided them with necessary help. This helps the students to be independent and responsible of their own academic.
In conclusion, i think that the Singapore's education system has provided the students with all the essential needs and prepared them well for the upcoming challenges that they may face in the future. However, there are still room for improvement.
Yee zheng 1020
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I believe that Singapore Government has craft out an education that cater to the needs of the fast-paced world. Such that students from Singapore are able to meet the minimum requirements of their future career and are able to fulfill their duties in their respective areas of specialization. It also provides the Student with a high level of education and world-recognized examination such as Cambridge ‘O’ level and Cambridge ‘A’ level. Thus, Singapore Students have no worries in getting themselves a job with the possession of these certificates.
However, there are still flaws in the education system in Singapore. Our Local Students view learning as a must, not as an interest or passion. They learn for the sake of scoring good grades, not because they love it. I believe that Singapore Government has placed too much emphasis on theory but not as much on hands-on. I think that students should be exposed to the outside world and our education system should be more of out-door learning. Such that, students will have no fear in the future when they enter the society as working adults and also make learning a lifelong process instead of a temporary obligation.
In conclusion, I believe that students should have a perception of learning as passion and not learning for the sake of outstanding grades. Otherwise, they will find themselves in great deal of troubles when they are in the working society as they are not upgrading themselves consistently with the necessary knowledge or skills. Also, I think that our education system should be craft in a way that it provides students with more outdoor and oversea experience such that we will not be restricted in that confined classroom of ours which allow us to have a broader perspective towards the world .
Nur Atikah 1020
ReplyDeleteReceiving education in Singapore is definitely a challenge and also a privilege. The education system is planned flexibly to cater to the needs of students in this 21st century. However, it also has loop-holes.
We now,believe in self-directed learning. By making mistakes, we learn from them and thus progress further to greater heights. Here in Singapore, we do not only focus in achieving good grades for academics but also in other areas such as co-curicular activities(CCAs). They aim to shape the students to be an all-rounder or holistic.
Students in Singapore learn to juggle between studies and CCAs. This further helps them to build on their time management. Thus, our education system prepares us for our future careers.
However, there are still improvements to be made such as encouraging the students to speak their minds, to voice out so that they can learn more by themselves.
Hence, I feels that if improvements are made, the education system in Singapore will be better and would definitely provide better and holistic education for students like us.
Foong Ming, 1020.
ReplyDeleteYes, I believe that the schooling that I have received and will continue to receive will provide all the skills needed to survive in the present century, provided that I do my part in utilising what I have learnt.
How does one say that he or she has had a good schooling? In my opinion, a good schooling would develop one holistically instead of only just academically, morally or aesthetically.
In this century, being able to execute and follow instructions or orders is not enough to be competitive or to stay relevant in the rapidly changing landscapes. People must be able to adapt to an environment that they have never been in before, near instantaneously. Now, the mental flexibility and agility of the person in integral in determining his or her productivity or usefulness. Innovation is a highly prized and rote memorization, once the only thing needed, would now get one nowhere.
The Singapore education is well on its way to achieving in ingraining the above into her students. From young, students have been encouraged to be creative, flexible, innovative and critical thinkers amongst many others. These skills, essential to ensure that one stays relevant in this multi-polar world, have been actively promoted by a multitude of ways. For example, all JC students are required to undergo Project Work in which communication and teamwork is a fundamental skill needed by all team members in order to complete their assigned tasks well.
However, no matter what is done by institutions or the government, nothing will be effective if the student him or herself is not receptive to the methods being used to upgrade him or her.
World class training sessions and development programmes can be planned and executed. However, if the participant does not believe in or utilise what has been thought, all effort would have been wasted. I feel that this is a problem in Singapore where the students undergo numerous trainings with the intention of not to upgrade themselves, but to get it over and done with to be able to announce or certify that they have undergone the training like everyone else has.
If one is unable to utilise skills they have allegedly gained, to show or produce results, their ‘upgrade’ would amount to nothing.
In conclusion, I believe that the Singapore education system has all the programmes and framework in place to produce students that will be highly competitive and in high demand due to their numerous apparent qualities and skills.
Foong Ming, 1020
ReplyDeleteYes, I believe that the schooling that I have received and will continue to receive will provide all the skills needed to survive in the present century, provided that I do my part in utilising what I have learnt.
How does one say that he or she has had a good schooling? In my opinion, a good schooling would develop one holistically instead of only just academically, morally or aesthetically.
In this century, being able to execute and follow instructions or orders is not enough to be competitive or to stay relevant in the rapidly changing landscapes. People must be able to adapt to an environment that they have never been in before, near instantaneously. Now, the mental flexibility and agility of the person in integral in determining his or her productivity or usefulness. Innovation is a highly prized and rote memorization, once the only thing needed, would now get one nowhere.
The Singapore education is well on its way to achieving in ingraining the above into her students. From young, students have been encouraged to be creative, flexible, innovative and critical thinkers amongst many others. These skills, essential to ensure that one stays relevant in this multi-polar world, have been actively promoted by a multitude of ways. For example, all JC students are required to undergo Project Work in which communication and teamwork is a fundamental skill needed by all team members in order to complete their assigned tasks well.
However, no matter what is done by institutions or the government, nothing will be effective if the student him or herself is not receptive to the methods being used to upgrade him or her.
World class training sessions and development programmes can be planned and executed.However, if the participant does not believe in or utilise what has been thought, all effort would have been wasted. I feel that this is a problem in Singapore where the students undergo numerous trainings with the intention of not to upgrade themselves, but to get it over and done with to be able to announce or certify that they have undergone the training like everyone else has.
If one is unable to utilise skills they have allegedly gained, to show or produce results, their ‘upgrade’ would amount to nothing.
In conclusion, I believe that the Singapore education system has all the programmes and framework in place to produce students that will be highly competitive and in high demand due to their numerous apparent qualities and skills.
in my view, i feel that singapore's education system has always been a stressful but complete one as we do not focus on academic excellence, we also look forward to greater success in other areas such as sport and moral education. we have been provided with many chances to excel in these areas by upgrading our skills through workshops, training etc. hence, singapore's education can be said to be a complete one as the sudents are constantly expose to acquire skills to excel in many areas, equipping us with the abilities that are essential in our future.
ReplyDeletein addition, singapore's education system has always been 'upgrading' over the years, ensuring that it meets the needs of what the students of the new centuries. such as unlike last time, now as we have advanced technology, we can often make use of these technology to advance our learning, making learning more effective and flexible.(such as the e-learning)
we also can to do presentations often and students are encouraged to speak up during lessons due to feedback from the societies that the young adults of out century do not have the ability to speak up and have stand of their own.
despite a 'complete package' given, areas of improvement are still there as we would often realised that overall, singapore's education still place the strongest focus on academic results. students compete with one another to vie for places in the university. and through these processes, other educational areas like moral behaviours are often neglected.
in conclusion, i believe that singapore's education is rather complete but when it comes to areas other than academic, it still has a long way to go.
Yes, I believe that the education I have been receiving in Singapore will provide me with the relevant skills to succeed in the present century. I always believe that we have a very strong education system in Singapore, where they not only ensure that we are receiving proper education, but also gives us chances to develop our own potentials.
ReplyDeleteIn Singapore, we start our most basics in Primary school, where the 6 years spent are probably on the most basic skills we should have, followed by in Secondary, where we learn to apply these skills to real life situations and for me, in junior college, they will allow me to focus on the subjects that is relevant to what I am going to do in the future. Here, we learn in depth on the subjects that is relevant and prepare us for not only today's world, but also for a world where there will be jobs that have yet to be invented and challenges not yet foreseen. Since secondary school or even some primary schools, we have been trained to speak up and present to the entire class, not to mention enrichment programmes that are made available or even compulsory for us to attend. These enrichment programmes will enhance our confidence level and hence, eventually, help us in succeeding in the present century as confidence, which can be considered as a skill, is very important in helping us to succeed.
I feel that schools can encourage learning external skills as i have mentioned above, for example, training your confidence level, moral courage and many more as I think that it is very important that as students, we should have these skills to help us along in the future. Hence, schools can start encouraging us to take up such enrichments starting from primary school, and not only the basic learnings that can be learnt only in the classrooms.
Cheng Woon 1020
ReplyDeleteI feel that the education system in Singapore is able to meet the needs of different students. This is because lessons help build up our academic capabilities, CCA, the sports CCA, help build up our fittness levels, Councils or prefects or class comitties help build leadership skills. Thus, the Singapore education system helps build up different parts of our characters to help us become better people in the future who may be the future leaders of Singapore.
Now,schools in Singapore have started practising using things like e-learning to teach their students to make use of modern technology to study. For e-learning, pupils log on to the internet to access notes or homework, complete it and hand it in totheir teachers the following day. This teaches students to use technology in their studies and teaches them to be more independent in their work. Outings are also arranged to places of importance in Singapore or overseas trips to other countries. This helps teach us things that we cant learn in our textbooks and gives us a greater insights of other parts of the world.
Thus, Singapore school system gives us a well-rounded education.
We all know that it is difficult to please everyone. This also applies for education. Every individual has his or her own way of learning. Such examples of learning include visual, auditory, reading/writing and kinesthetic/tactile. Singapore's education system emphasizes on visual, auditory and reading/writing learning. This might be difficult for kinesthetic/tactile learners, such as myself, to adapt into Singapore's curriculum. However, it is important that such students learn to adapt.
ReplyDeleteThe education system is doing its best to implement values into students. Quoting our Mathematics Teacher, Mr Foo "As the education system improves, the crooks also become smarter". Thus, it is important that students are instilled with the right values. Singapore does this through Civics and Moral Education (CME) periods during school curriculum.
Science and Technology are expanding at such a fast rate that in my opininon, laptops will be nothing but a bulky piece of plastic in ten years time. Plus, most current jobs require one to have a basic knowledge of using Microsoft Office. Through e-learning, students would be forced to learn how to use the computer to do their assignments. E-learning can also be a beneficiary tool during disease pandemics when students are forced to stay at home as they can do their assignments from home. With this, students will never fall behind academically. Without the knowledge of using a computer, students might fall behind when looking for a job as now in the 21st century, having an IT skill is important.
In school, students are always encouraged to have a co-curricular activity (CCA).Personally, I love having a CCA as that is where I can unwind and get as far away as i can from the stress of school. To others, having a CCA might be a chore. Thus, this proves that each individual is different and everyone has their own preference. CCAs help to instill skills and characteristics such as discipline and leadership into students. They also help students make friends such that they have a bigger social circle.
The Ministry of Education(MOE) is also spending a big part of their budget to send students overseas. This would broaden their horizons and give them an opportunity to learn beyond the textbook about another country's culture, traditions and geography. Exchange programmes will also enable students to socialise with students from other countries.
Thus, we can see that Singapore's education system focuses on giving a holistic education for students to do well in the future.
Similar to what Mr Warlick has said, Singapore's education system is pretty good, however, I believe that there are still room for improvements.
ReplyDeleteThe structured education system of Singapore ensures that what we learn during our earlier years prepares us for what we are doing today.
Furthermore, schools have also enriched and equipped us with useful skills(CCAs,overseas trip,ECAs etc.) that we would need to survive in this ever-changing world where competition is stiff.
Furthermore, students have a say in the subjects that they would be taking, thus, they would be able to fortify their decision of their future occupation.
I believe that the present education that I am receiving is relevant and will help me to succeed in the present century.
ReplyDeleteAs stated by Mr Warlick, the present generation of learners are different from the past. Present learners are more tech-savvy and are dependent on the internet for various sources of information.
Within this new and dynamic information environment, schools should be more obliged to educate its students through technology, whereby they can source for important information online more efficiently. For example, with Google and Yahoo, it would only take a few seconds before the related searches are shown on the page. Educating students through the internet would thus mean that students are exposed to a greater amount of information, often much more than they need, in the fastest method.
However, it is important to note that skills to gather, analyze and evaluate such information should be taught to the students. Without such skills, the student would only be doing 'cut-and-paste' assignments which would remove the purpose of teaching through advanced technology.
- Currently, litespeed are offered to students of various levels as a platform for education.
In view of this, relevant life skills should also be taught in order for the new generation to succeed in this century. This is done through the current co-curricular activities offered in schools of Singapore. CCAs like national cadet cops allows students to acquire certain life skills and understand about current affairs. This would help students greatly when competing with competitors of other nations in the future when they enter the working class, as good acedemic results alone does not help one to achieve successes in life.
All in all, I feel that the education students are receiving in Singapore are highly relevant and will definitely help us in a way or another in successing in life. A holistic education is offered.
HINWAI 1020
ReplyDeletei find that the singapore education system is too competitive. at primary 2 , we are introduced to the GEP system, at pri 4, streaming and then at pri 6, PSLE. then, at sec 2 subject combination and lastly at sec 4 o level. from young, we are given the impression that you have to be at the forefront of the academic race or else you will fall behind and become shunned by society. also, i feel that the singapore government indirectly encourages elitism. setting up of elite schools like RI or HCI prouduces scholars that have an extremely self-centered mindset. i say this because i know of a friend whose brother is in an elite school and his behaviour changed from bad to worse. whenever he came to ask his brother for help on homework, the brother would always use a demeaning tone, and say things loudly and deliberately as if he was speaking to a 4 year old. or that the brother would just comment that it was impossible his brother did not know such simple things. before o level, my friend told me that his brother did not bother to further explain the solutions as he felt it was just too bothersome. Singapore should really stop emhapsising on the smart students and instead foucus more on the academically weaker students. who knows, in the long run, they develop better people skills, or compassion towards others compared to elitists who only have a self centered mindset and are ignorant of people around them.
Edward 1020
ReplyDeleteWhile I believe that the current education system is useful and revelant to our future lives, I cannot help but feel that it is also one of the most competitive education system (not compared to China).
How often is it when we heard from our teachers that if we do not study hard we are going to fail something? How often do we hear from our teachers that we need to study hard now that we reached the next level in education? In Primary 1, your teachers will be telling you that your not in Kindergarden anymore and you ought to study hard. In Primary 3, we were told that we need to study hard cause we got a new subject (science). In Primary 4 we need to study hard for the streaming, and in Primary 6, we need to study hard for PSLE. While it may seems challengeing, it just get worst in Secondary school, with the shorter education but more subjects and harder subjects.
While the schoolwork becomes harder, the student also requires more help nowadays. Many students takes up tution in order to cope with the schoolwork, and usually ends up with a huge amount of stress.
To combat the increase of stress levels among students, I think that the goverment should spend more time on teaching students how to combat stress, rather than focusing on changing the syllabus. The government seems to be changing the syllabus in school every year, and this only helps to increase students' stress levels. The belief of the need to do well in exams and get into good schools further increase the stress placed upon students. All of this will sooner or later lead to the mental breakdown of students.
As such, the government of Singapore should instead focus on teaching students how to manage stress and most importantly, introduce ways for students to relax from schoolwork. A good way is that the government should place greater emphasis on things such as Co-Curriculum Activities(CCA) instead of examinations. This will help students to relax from work, and also help the students better interact with their peers outdoors.
Being a student who went through the rites of being told how much I should study for 11years of my life, i believe that the government should place more emphasis on stress management for students, instead of increasing students' workload in the hope of improving their results.
Chuan Ping 1010
ReplyDeleteI feel that schooling we received and are receiving are providing us the education we need to succeed in the present century.
In response to QianHui's post:
I agree your point regarding "We have been moving in recent years towards an education system that is more flexible and diverse". For instance, in curriculum times, the school not only equips us with learning skills, it also equips us with necessary life skills and sets aside a period of our week for Class Time, whereby reflections of the week/month were made and heard. This enables us to maintain a balance between both our studies as well as some virtues of life, that would come in handy in the future.
In response to SiYun's post:
I agree to your point regarding "PSLE examinations to assess our knowledge skills. After taking 'O' levels, we are also given time to think of our future path,and choose what we really want (JC/Poly)". These leaving-school's examinations test about our understanding of the different topics that we learnt, and also give us a gauge on where we stand, in terms of our understanding and analysing of the questions. This ensures that we are fully prepared to go to a higher level of studies. Not forgetting the regular class tests, common tests and mid year examinations. These tests prepare us for the end of year examinations and also the targeted leaving-school exams. So, i am very sure to say that we are well-prepared for our leaving-school exams and once we graduated from uni, we would already have the neccessary and relevant information and skills that are required for our career and stuffs.
In response to ChenMin's post:
This is as regard to your point about "Students are encourages to have a balanced lifestyle, by participating actively in their CCAs and lessons. "
Personally, i feel that our education system is such that it ensures us a balance of CCA and acaedmic stuffs. Through CCA, we get to enjoy ourselves after a day of hard work and effort, and also to find time to bond with our CCA mates. CCA also provides us with the chances to learn new skills. For instance, the sports cca would provide intensive training to brush up our skills, and also take part in competitions where opponents could exchange hands and tactics, which could be use as tools for further improvements.
In conclusion, i agree that singapore's education would prepare us for the future, and should continue it's standard so as to enable further generations to receive similiar system and excell in whatever they are doing.
In my opinion, I feel that the education that we are receiving in Singapore is sufficient and it provides us with the relevent skills to succeed in this century.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I think that MOE should not start to band the students as early as primary4, once the students are banded into EM3, it is very difficult for them to get into the express stream or even normal acadamic. Again in secondary2, students are required to choose their sudject combination based on their results, if they did badly, and got into a subject combination that they do not like, they will not do well. They will then face promblems if they got into JC, for example, students with combined science are not allow to take 2 H2 science, students who did not take additional mathematics are not allowed to take H2 maths. And we will face problems once again when choosing courses in university.
Even though by banding and streaming, students are taught based on their abilities, and can focus in less subjects and hence study them more in depth. However, by doing this, our future will be restricted. At primary4, we are still young and immature, and may not understand the importance of studying. At secondary2, we may like a certain subject as we can do well in it, and gave up on studying another subject that is useful to our future career.
Zhao Yuechen 1010
ReplyDeleteSingapore have a very high standard education system. It follows the British education system, at the same time did carry on some Chinese ancient points of view. So people always says Singapore mix the east and west culture well together.Actually there are lots of advantages of being a center point of cultures. The active learning atmosphere in western countries and the hardworking learning attitude of Chinese, make sure Singapore's education system undefeated.
Respond to Belvia's post:
I agree with her that Singapore's education system focuses on a holistic education, not just academic excellence. Students are judged based on their ability to excel in both areas of their academics and their CCAs.
Singapore schools provide CCAs as a must activity from primary school to university. It shows that government pays great attention on its people's holistic development.
Schools also hire instructors to help students to improve their skills. SYF is also held for students to show their talents.
Evaluation the reliability of information from the web is becoming increasingly crucial as our younger generation become more internet-savvy. Thats true. School is teaching us some very relevant skills in serving the net. this will be helping us in the whole of our life for sure.
Respond to Zhenyi's post:
Singapore education system neglected on educating students to voice out their opinions. Most of the students are afraid of voicing out especially when they grow older. I found that as we growing older, fewer and fewer students are willing or say daring to voice out their opinions. Not only their commands, even their questions or doubts. It always happen during lessons that when teacher is asking for a question, everyone are refused to share their answers. However, we used to ask friends questions when we don't understand but not the teachers.
We got to learn to voice out our opinions, and let others to know what are we thinking and what kind of person are we. Schools do take notes of our achievements and results but rarely consider about what are we thinking actually. There are thousands of ways to get things done, the result matters, but the process is far more important to our further development.
Respond to Suhui's post:
Singaporean youths have turned out to be independent learners and leaders. It encourages a higher level of learning and also help us, students, get accustomed to the stress as we might be facing more hardships in the future.
Students here are encouraged to discover and tackle problems on their own. PW for example, require us to think about creative ways to respond to a question or situation, at the same way let us figure out the problems that we might be encounter, and also find ways to solve them. Schools are teaching us the skills of forward thinking which is a necessary skill for leadership development. Problem solving, is also something school want us to pay attentions on.
Future Leadership tea cession is held at our school month ago to encourage us on leadership development. Besides academic developments, social and leadership trainings are considered by education systems also.
Prithika 1010
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the singapore education system is one of very good quality and high standard. i think its pretty well known that most of our students excel in the area of mathematics and science. Infact, our students are continually topping the rankings for maths and science.
Recently, the ministry of education has encouraged schools all over singapore, mainly the primary and secondary schools, to focus on soft skills in the area of arts and science instead of hard skills like the academics. Singapore schools have been emphasising on the need for good quality education and the importance of performing well in examinations. That could probably be the reason why we, students, are always striving for better grades.
However, the singapore education system not only focuses on providing us with education of high standard to prepare us for the globalised world. There has been growing emphasis on developing skills apart from academics. That was the reason why CCAs were introduced and made compulsory for all students. This is evident for the holistic education system here.
Moreover, most of the schools in singapore make use of the latest technology to make teaching more simple for the teachers and to make learning more interesting and interactive for students. Such technology cannot be seen in many countries around the world.
Prithika 1010
ReplyDeleteBut my take is that while MOE emphasises more on having good grades and participating actively in CCAs and other activities, it also should take note that the education system should be catered to the needs of the students of that generation. That is, the education system twenty years ago cannot suit the current generation.
Likewise, the current education system cannot suit the future generation. My point is that our education system must change as time goes by, looking at the needs of the "current" students while retaining the foundation of it all. We can almost never plan for the future because the world around us is changing all the time.
MY take is that your grammar is all wrong.
ReplyDeletePei Ling 1010
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I believe that the education system in Singapore is the education tha I need to succeed in life.
In response to ZhenYi's post:
I do agree with her that studying in Singapore is a great challenge for Singaporeans. In Singapore, we have to make sure that we are consistently doing well in our studies and at the same time, be active in our CCA. Now that testimonials and SGC is crucial upon graduation, teenagers have to no choice and try their very best to fit the term "all-rounder". Being a "mugger" and do well for examinations is not enough to get into a school/course that you want, unlike how education is the past was like. This causes the stress level of teenagers in Singapore to reach a dangerous zone and CCAs are no longer seen as activities for teenagers to enjoy, but only to add on to the stress level.
In response to Belvia's post:
Singaporean students are known to be reserved and less active in class compared to students from other countries and i agree to a large extent regarding this statement. I had visited schools in other countries and the situations are very different from how it is like in the classrooms of Singapore schools. Let me make a comparison between the school in China and in Singapore. In China. the students are very proactive in learning and they take pride for their own studies. They came to class fully prepared and whenever the teacher ask a question, almost the whole class will raise their hands and eager to answer. No matter whether they know the answer, they still raise their hands as they wanted to try. This learning spirit of China students left a deep impression on me and it gave me a feeling that they are the ones responsible for their own learning. However, in Singapore, we seldom see this kind of active behaviour in our classrooms. Whenever the teacher ask any questions, only the same old few people will raise their hands to answer and sometimes even none! Singaporean kids are more introvret and they are very afraid to get the incorrect answer. Also, students in Singapore are very reliant on their teachers. if they don't do well in exams, they will blame that the teacher is lousy and not blame themselves for not asking what they don't understand and not working hard for the exams. This is caused mainly by the banding of the schools in Singapore. Of course, all schools wants their students to get good results for national exams to prove that the school's output is good and thus getting into better band and getting value-added awards for academics. Some schools will seek the easier way out which is to spoon feed the students with answers. Hence, the students will no longer take responsibilty for their own learning and expect the teachers to do everything for them.
In response to Angelina's post:
I also agree with her statement that "singapore's education system has always been 'upgrading' over the years, ensuring that it meets the needs of what the students of the new centuries. such as unlike last time, now as we have advanced technology, we can often make use of these technology to advance our learning, making learning more effective and flexible.(such as the e-learning)" The government spend alot of money on facilities of schools to ensure students receive education under the best conditions. Nowadays, almost all schools are equipped with visualisers, interactive whiteboard, wireless connection around campus. Some schools even use tablet pcs and macbooks in place of our usual textbooks. All these makes learning more interesting and boost the interest of students to be more proactive in their own learning.