KiasuParents - Parenting in Singapore

Hi,

this is my first post to kiasuparents. Hope to tap on the experience of parents who have tried DSA for NYHS.

My DD1 (Pri5, GEP) has been scoring above 85% in P4 (overall, top in English) and P5 (mid year, top in English) and scoring around 85% for CL. She was given the option to do HCL but we didn't take up (she is in a non-SAP GEP sch) after much consideration of the pros and cons. One main reason was that she does not have the flair for CL (unlike English) and her CL grade comes with lots of hardwork. So DH and I do not want to 'kill' her interest by getting her to do HCL.

So far, we have been looking at RGS or SOTA for DSA. But increasingly, I have reservations about whether RGS is suitable for her and DH and I have been hearing good things about NYHS. However, we are not sure whether will she be considered for DSA at NYHS without HCL and if considered, what are her chances?

Anyone has similar experience or information to share? Now wondering whether did we make the wrong decision on not doing HCL...

Hi. Don't worry. NYGH does accept GEP students who do not do HCL through DSA. Of course you'll have to meet their minimum DSA requirements which in your dd's case doesn't seem to be a problem. Good luck!

Tks, jtoh, that is certainly very reassuring.

At least, DH and I need not consider coercing DD to take HCL in Pri 6 - which definitely will be an uphill task and also super stressful for everyone! Imagine trying to cope with the switch from CL to HCL over and above the preparation for psle ...

TREX8 wrote:Tks, jtoh, that is certainly very reassuring.

At least, DH and I need not consider coercing DD to take HCL in Pri 6 - which definitely will be an uphill task and also super stressful for everyone! Imagine trying to cope with the switch from CL to HCL over and above the preparation for psle ...

If you did not do HCL in Pri 5, it is near impossible to do it in Pri 6

Hi TREX8,

You're welcome. I'm curious to know why you are considering SOTA as an option. And also why you don't think RGS will be suitable for your dd.

Hi jtoh,

we are considering SOTA because of the IB prog. Currently, IB prog is restricted to the boy's sch (ACS and SJI) and girls can only join in Year 5. IB prog suits DD as she is the 'humanities' type of person (good with Eng Lang, literature and exploring issues etc) but cannot appreciate the beauty of subjects like Math.

DD likes what she reads about SOTA and we are thinking of trying under theatre arts (she is good with writing, selected for P5 CAP, loves to read and enjoys literature) as she does not qualify for other areas. Since it admits students purely through DSA, we will just go and let the experts see if they see an unpolished gem in DD

DD is quite a perfectionist and wants to excel. This year, she has been feeling bad about not winning competitions (despite the fact that being selected to represent school is good enough) or not being selected. I suppose that is because her classmates were all talking about garnering accolades to put into their DSA portfolio! It didn't help that some of her friends are getting platinum and gold for the various math olympiads (and DD CANNOT even handle GEP math).

That resulted in DH and I rethinking about RGS, which will be a place where the top female brains will gather. We thought it will be a struggle for DD to go through 6 yrs (and the angst of teenage years) trying to either prove her worth and/or to accept that she is already amongst the best and be comfortable with it.

To qualify, the infor about the schs and prog we have thus far are only based on what we hear from fellow parents. We have not done any 'leg-work' yet. One friend said that I should have gone to the school's open house this year (when DD is in P5) but all the open house were over when she told me ... Still not too late to do open-house when she is in P6, right?

Hi TREX8,

Yes, do check out the Open Houses next year. There will be time for you to re-assess the schools and see which ones are more suited for your dd. I think SOTA's Open House might be earlier than RGS and NYGH so you might want to keep an eye out for it.

If your reason for selecting SOTA is because of the IB programme, you might want to re-consider because SOTA is a specialist school for art talents. If your dd isn't that passionate about her art form it might not be the right avenue for her. You might want to consider going to either RGS or NYGH from Year 1-4 then moving over to ACSI in Year 5 for the IB Programme. There have been students who move from RGS to ACSI in Year 5 and they do very well. Alternatively, HCI (Year 5&6) offers an excellent Humanities Programme too. Just alternatives for you to consider.

jtoh wrote:Hi TREX8,

Yes, do check out the Open Houses next year. There will be time for you to re-assess the schools and see which ones are more suited for your dd. I think SOTA's Open House might be earlier than RGS and NYGH so you might want to keep an eye out for it.

If your reason for selecting SOTA is because of the IB programme, you might want to re-consider because SOTA is a specialist school for art talents. If your dd isn't that passionate about her art form it might not be the right avenue for her. You might want to consider going to either RGS or NYGH from Year 1-4 then moving over to ACSI in Year 5 for the IB Programme. There have been students who move from RGS to ACSI in Year 5 and they do very well. Alternatively, HCI (Year 5&6) offers an excellent Humanities Programme too. Just alternatives for you to consider.

just to add : though GEP kid but without special talent in any art form, chances in DSA success could be slim......(I could be wrong?)

a transfer at year 5 could be a better alternative.....try DSA in year 4 then

TREX8

From your postings, it seems your girl's inclination is towards humanities.

My view in this instance is for your girl to try SOTA under theatre studies. Unlike visual art, she does not need to have a personal portfolio. Of all the art forms in SOTA, dance is the most regimental and phsically demanding follow by music. For all art disciplines, it like full day school. Her passion for eng lit, exporation and experimentation will provide her with solid encouragement to engage in the study of integrated humanities.

The way SOTA teaches eng lit is very different from mainstream schs. The school encourages independent thinking to the extend of being a critic, much like US high schs. Different opinios, outward expressions are very much sought after in this sch.

I am aware that we can do a transfer at Year 5 to join ACS (I) IB's programme. But it does not seem a good consideration as DD would have missed out on 4 yrs of the prog and might have difficulty fitting in as IB and 'A' levels preparation seems very different. Moreover, DD does not make friends easily- so switching schools will present a new set of problems, what more- a switch from an all-girls environment to mixed-gender.

Recently, a friend whose daughter's in NYGH Yr 1 told me about the Humanities Programme at Yr 5&6 in HCI - that's why we are now looking at NYGH (previously out of our radar zone) and hence my post on whether she qualifies without HCL.

Innovate, what you've wrote about SOTA expressed why we are considering SOTA for DD. However, whenever I mentioned that we are considering SOTA, we get a mixed bag of responses. Some have positive things to say (like my neighbour whose son is in the Music Programme and another friend whose daughter is in the Visual Arts Programme) but their kids do show a definite gift in their art form, unlike DD who is more a generalist (she plays piano but does not go for grading, she draws but does not take classes but she is definitely not talented in these areas.)

Some do not think it is suitable for DD without a specific art form, others think that DD might not find the environment challenging as SOTA accepts students as long as they qualify for Express stream (even DH thinks so...) and some thinks the programme is simply too recent without any proven records yet unless ACS(I)'s IB.

At this point in time, likely to consider DSA for SOTA, RGS and NYGH and see what happens. Just wondering whether will we be subjecting DD to too much stress with DSA to 3 schools?