The Straits Times
Dec 24, 2015
The minimum entry requirement for popular secondary schools was
raised by between two and eight points this year.
The increased scores - which are aggregated from four subjects at
the Primary School Leaving Examination - follow a record
performance by this year's cohort.
Schools with the highest cut-off points include Nanyang Girls'
High, which took the lead with 264 points, up from 262 last
year.
The score for both Methodist Girls' School and Raffles Institution
rose from 256 last year to 261, while that for Raffles Girls'
School went up by two points to 260.
Hwa Chong Institution's cut-off went up by four points to 260,
while Dunman High School's score was 258, compared to 253 last
year.
The cut-off scores for CHIJ St Nicholas Girls' School's Integrated
Programme and O-level track this year were 258 and 253
respectively, up from 253 and 245 last year.
Students were informed on Tuesday of the secondary schools they
have been posted to.
Some parents whose children missed the mark for their chosen school
by a few points are making appeals.
As in recent years, the Ministry of Education (MOE) did not release
this year's top score, which indicates how well pupils did compared
to their peers, but many online believe it to be
283.
Some parents also said they expected the cut-off points to increase
as many pupils fared so well.
Of the 39,286 Primary 6 pupils who sat the PSLE this year, a record
98.3 per cent did well enough to move on to a secondary school, up
from last year's 97.6 per cent.
Between 1980 and last year, the percentage of students eligible to
enrol in secondary schools ranged between 81.7 and 97.8 per
cent.
An MOE spokesman told The Straits Times that cut-off points are not
pre-determined before students are posted to schools as these
depend on their PSLE results and their school
choices.
"The previous year's posting aggregate range is published to serve
as an approximate guide, and the eventual range may vary depending
on demand patterns and cohort size for that year," she
said.
She added that factors such as teaching programmes, teachers'
commitment and student motivation contribute to the improved
performance of PSLE cohorts.
Housewife Anne Tan, 50, thought her son had a good chance of
entering National Junior College (NJC) based on last year's cut-off
score of 254.
This year, it rose to 258. Her son, 12, whose score was 256, was
posted to his second choice, Anglo-Chinese School
(Independent).
"He wanted to do the Art Elective Programme in NJC, and we live six
MRT stations away from the school," said Madam Tan, who submitted
an appeal to NJC this month.
Dr Sin Wen Yee, 46, whose son was posted to Catholic High School's
Integrated Programme, said she considered appealing to Raffles
Institution, his first choice, which he missed by two
points.
She said: "I expected that schools would have higher cut-off points
because many of his schoolmates had fairly high scores and my son
was surprised with his own score.
"But my son, who was from Catholic High School's primary section,
says it is a happy place to be in, and he feels that he will have
more opportunities to excel and shine."