Originally posted by da-cheese-freakk:
Haha, I just wrote this huge post, but I didnt sign in. So
I lost all of it. [b]
Basically, what do you guys think of the Singapore Education
System?
What do you think of GEP?
Of streaming?
Of PSLE?[/b]
Streaming and special programmes (e.g. GEP) are highly necessary
in any successful education system. Aside from catering to the
individual learning abilities of the students, it inculcates in
them the mindset that the System is undergirded by meritocracy; you
get good grades, you get your pay-off. They also give incentive to
students to work hard, a clear target to work towards.
Examinations, as dreadful as they always seem, serve as an
effective gauge of how much knowledge has been imparted, how
successful the process of teaching and learning has been.
Nowadays we are moving towards a more holistic approach in schools
-- athletes are presented with awards in recognition of their
sporting abilities, students with exemplary leadership are
similarly rewarded and proficient students of the arts who show
exceptional talent also receive some sort of glorification -- all
these while detractors are still claiming that this
"performance-based system" wrongly conditions students to believe
that a person's value is solely based on academic adeptness. I
believe that we are on the right track, i.e. nurturing and
appreciating the various talents of our students while still
placing significant emphasis on the importance of grades and
ensuring effective streaming. The sort of highly differentiated
environment in schools may prove too tough for some students to
cope with, but ultimately, it makes it much easier for our students
(when they grow up) to swallow the fact that the modern world
functions on Social Darwinism and that those left behind are as
such only because they have chosen to be left behind. 
