Contradiction in the Education Streaming Policy

ZHU_GE_LIANG SG

Hihi everyone, it is my unbiased analysis once again.

NEWS SOURCES
According to http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/232984/1/.html, streaming in Primary schools are scrapped.

However, on 4 May 2006, Education Minister defended that Streaming causes "factory rejects" as accused by veteran Opposition Chiam See Tong. (Here: http://www.todayonline.com/articles/116322.asp)

HIGHLIGHTS
Education Minister, Tharman said on 4 May 2006, that
1) The Primary School Streaming had successfully kept student drop-out rates here to just 3 per cent each year.
2) Streaming has proven itself to become the "best social leveller" for society

NOW: Tharman says "The people who were calling for doing away with EM3 were also calling for doing away with ability-based education. In other words, everyone studies the same thing. It doesn't look nice to be studying a simpler subject and so on, so forth."

MY ANALYSIS AND OPINIONS
1) From forums everywhere, it seems to me that people are happy with the ruling Party of Singapore that the Streaming is scrapped, forgetting the fact that the opposition has raised this problem ages ago. It seemed to me that Tharman has claimed credit for this scrapping of Streaming

2) I have searched thoroughly but fail to find the contradicting statements by Tharman on these 2 occasions. Or rather i fail to find the reason behind the change of his policies. Since he said on 4 May that Singapore's system is already the BEST and Streaming helps weaker students blablabla, etc... Is Tharman convinced by Chiam's words of scrapping the Streaming idea or snatching Chiam's credit?

abao SG

first time you’ve seen such contradictions happening meh?

spinsugar SG

PAP will only do things on their terms. The opposition has always been ridiculed and portrayed as incompetent in the govt-controlled media. It would not serve them to break this trend and lend credit to the very people they want to "fix".

If they appeared to accept or agree with the opposition's criticism of their own policy back then, people would start to question... could fuel alot of discontent. This is coz at that point in time, Chiam's words were still fresh in the public's mind. Basically, if Singapore citizens start to feel that someone in the opposition had some good ideas, then we might get interested in what the opposition has to say.. mght become a trend.. that's just not gonna "win votes".

Remember, the PAP is never wrong. The public should never doubt that. *claps of thunder* Laughing

mhcampboy SG

Our dear Tharman childrens study in Singapore American School. Laughing

charlize SG

Why? Laughing

Cpt.ZR SG

hahha some people do that because they think its more glam? hahah

OR

He found ALOT and i mean A.L.O.T of very bad points in SG studies system... and dont wanna expose it... after all the our minister of education...

mhcampboy SG

why??? because there is Contradiction in the Education Streaming Policy Laughing

akinos SG

i was thinking of this… so if they put more EM3 to EM1 in a class, all will think like EM3s? then if put EM1 to EM3 together, we will have them thinking like EM1s? i personally feel that doing away with streaming has alot of flaws..

trendz SG

The aim of placing the students in streams would go according to their ability to learn; the pace they learn and take to absorb knowledge. Scraping the streaming system would definitely result in some of the weaker students being unable to catch up, while the more academically-inclined students would say 'hey teacher, can you speed those s*t up?! I definitely know what the hell ya talkin' about; next chapter please?!'

and we often see em3 students fighting and creating havoc all day long, while the em1 students are complete dorks or nerds to say the least. (most of 'em). At least the em1 teachers are havin' it easy.

soon, we're gonna see the whole school creating havoc and teachers screaming their heads off and the principal tearing her hair out. Mr. Green

BillyBong SG

Unfortunately, everyone has been caught up in a 'rat race' of sorts.

Even the school children have been unwittingly sucked into this blackhole.

Streaming has its benefits and it detractors. To some extent, i'm all for streaming, as it provides the foundation for competition. And it is through competition that everyone learns to improve their capabilities.

However, we tend to forget that streaming breeds elitism, and because MOE has failed to rein in the problem, it persists among the children and their parents. Students who do not perform as well based on paper grades tend to lose focus and get easily demoralised.

The whole system then degrades into a vicious cycle: the only way to get out is to be good at it; Thus students who cannot meet the perceived high standards gets marginalised into normal / technical streams later on. The fact that EM3 was abolished served notice to this fact, but it has not changed the incorrect mindset of people.

We have been trained to develop an 'all-rounded' education, but have completely forgotten how to be 'well-rounded'. We mimic other systems and people who are successful, without realising that it has become an empty goal.

The true purpose of streaming has therefore become completely warped without realization.

cj.nice SG

You think just say scrap streaming, all problems will be solved?

The mindset of competitiveness remains. Teachers, parents, principals, students, MOE, everyone wants to do well and better.

I bet there will still be unwritten, unpublicised, black market kind of streaming continuing in schools.

When "creative thinking" was introduced, syllabus cut, teachers are still doing marathon to incorporate what they used to teach with the new. As a result, more work and pressure for teachers and pupils.