KiasuParents - Parenting in Singapore

Hi all,

I am hoping to get some advice on this.

My DS is taking PSLE this year. So far he has done fairly well in the English Maths and Science (70s to 90s), except for MT which he barely passed. For the past few CAs and SAs, his MT marks were almost always in the 40%s to 50.5% region.

As a parent, I am worried sick on the outcome of his PSLE result, and his options thereafter. It is as if we could foretell that no matter how well he scored in the three EMS subjects, his MT is likely to drag the entire score down to a low 200. It will be as if all efforts put in will NOT be validated, and sabotaged due to his MT score. In fact, he spends almost 50% of his daily time on MT work, tuition, etc, but due to his weak foundation, he just couldn't get to the tipping point.

I have encountered parents who made the drastic move to emigrate (one friend did that just after her son finished p5). Some , who could afford the international school education, placed their kids in international schools here post PSLE. In fact, if you read the newsletters from these International schools, there were very inspiring cases where the kids whose PSLE score was barely 200, performed very well and even earned an almost perfect score in the IB. These are the late bloomers, who just couldn't run fast enough and missed the speeding bus in P6.

What happened to those who just couldn't afford these two options? Continue with the current system? after all, every school is supposed to be a good school, right?

It pains me to see him work and yet the outcome/results always harped on his weaknesses rather his strengths.


PS: Not sure where to put this topic or whether it has been discussed before. If there is a previous thread, Mods, so sorry to trouble you to help to combine the thread. Thanks

Have you considered what is his interest? Is it possible for him to try DSA into a school of his preference via other means like CCA, music or sports or even academics like his Maths or Science?

You can also continue his secondary school education in any of the secondary schools he is posted to. At O levels, MT will feature less prominently. If he scores well, he can still proceed to A levels or a Poly course of his choice. There are many cases of late bloomers success in secondary schools too.

There are many roads to Rome, and it is not the end of the road just because someone has missed the speeding bus in P6 as you said. I've seen many cases of success, as long as the kid is determined and focused.

All the best to your son for his PSLE this year!

Hi,

For MT, as my understanding with tuition teacher. Maybe you can work in the area of oral and listening comprehension as it comprise higher %. For paper 2 look through to understand what result in the lower score and work from that area to ensure scoring. I am not quite sure whether it work on your son. As sometime tuition did help but we still work with them to strengthen the understanding. No worry, we just need work harder to ensure they did better. All the best to your child.

Maybe your child has a learning disability for Chinese which MOE can grant an exemption?

Jennifer wrote:Maybe your child has a learning disability for Chinese which MOE can grant an exemption?

I think so too. Maybe Janet can give advice on how to get MT exemption as her dd just got exempted.

zbear wrote:

Jennifer wrote:Maybe your child has a learning disability for Chinese which MOE can grant an exemption?

I think so too. Maybe Janet can give advice on how to get MT exemption as her dd just got exempted.

bbmom's ds is also exempted from MT.

Do not be too discouraged. The national statistics show that 80% of those taking Chinese as MT score A/A*. There have been cases where students who consistently fail at the school level manage an A at PSLE.

At the secondary school level, students will take at least 7 subjects, of which only 1 is MT. Which means MT will feature less prominently in the overall scores. Furthermore, at O levels, you don't need to take your MT into the calculation of your L1R5. You should however aim to secure a pass to get into JC.

If your child's MT is really bad, there is an option to take MT at syllabus B level, which is simpler. Something for you to consider.

Thank you, parents, for your encouragement.

I guess we just have to push on. With just another 6 months to go, we are supporting him as best as we could, although deep down, I have mentally prepared myself, and himself on what the outcome may be.

It is the process that matters, the attitude, resilience and perseverance that will stand him in good stead through his life. Not the PSLE score.

hi staypositive,
my daughter is exempted from MT. she received the exemption from MOE last year as she has a language impairment.

we brought her to the polyclinic to get a referral. for kids 7 and above, they will be referred to NUH Child Development Unit...the wait to see the child psychologist can be rather long...you can ask the polyclinic doctor to expedite since it is urgent.

when you do get the appointment at NUH, the child psychologist will assess the child and refer you to see the speech therapist...to get the MT exemption, 2 assessments have to be done - Language report and IQ test. The doctor or speech therapist will ask you to consider going private as the process is long. after the tests have been done, the reports will be submitted to MOE for their panel of specialists to assess. I waited 3 months to get that confirmation.

staypositive wrote:Thank you, parents, for your encouragement.

I guess we just have to push on. With just another 6 months to go, we are supporting him as best as we could, although deep down, I have mentally prepared myself, and himself on what the outcome may be.

It is the process that matters, the attitude, resilience and perseverance that will stand him in good stead through his life. Not the PSLE score.

staypositive,
I understand how you feel. Ds is just like your son with regards to his academic unevenness. However we have been aware of his learning difficulties since preschool. At his latest review, ed psych recommended exemption which definitely means he can now aim much higher for PSLE. Nonetheless, my choices previously were:

1) to prepare for a low PSLE score and shortlist local schools based on that
2) DSA
3) consider international schools

With these in mind, I have been doing school research since end of P4, and also started preparing portfolio for him for DSA, as well as prep him mentally for the process (ie possible rejection).

At P6, time is somewhat limited so if you do want your child assess for exemption as janet pointed out, private is way faster. But even then, really limited time now with unknown outcome as it has to go through at least 2 specialists, school, and then MOE. Your son will have to continue preparing for CL just in case it was rejected.

I would think the easiest path now is to consider DSA based on his strengths. If you intend to, now is the time to start shortlisting all the schools to understand what they are looking for vis-à-vis your child's profile and put a portfolio together.

But if you do not want to have any potential emotional roller-coaster in the run-up to PSLE, then just shortlist attainable schools and find a few you feel good about.

good luck!