Not published.
September 2012
September 2012
Editor, Forum Page
Straits Times
I agree with the views expressed by Lisa Latip ("Proper childhood? Mum faces challenge, ST 1 Sep).
Although I belong to one generation before her, I also wanted my three children to enjoy their childhood. But,
they had to struggle with demands of the school system and also need to attend
enrichment and tuition classes.
The root of the problem is the high standard of the school syllabus set by the Ministry of Education. Twenty years ago, I saw a Maths problem in a Primary 4 textbook that I recalled learning in Secondary 1 during my time. I do not know if the standard had since been increased further!
The high standard did not seem to produce a better quality of people that leave our schools. We need people
who are educated, broad minded, confident in solving problems and are guided by moral, ethical and
social values. Our highly stressed education system did not seem to produce this kind of people,
even among those that did well in the system.
We should also ask if we want to continue with a competitive education system to produce
scholars at a young age.
The alternative is a system that produces educated people who are confident of their
place in society. The top leaders should be identified after they had worked for many years in
society.
I hope that the Minister for Education, who is now heading the National Conversation, can change the
education system go give back the childhood to our children.
Tan Kin Lian
3 comments:
Thailand is a contituion monachy. Students are allowed to choose a national school or 100% private owened school. These private schools are available nationalwide from pre-primary level to university level.
Private schools are widely accepted by even poor farmers for their better syllabus and flexibilty.
In Singapore, can SG citizen study in an international school on this tiny island?
My letter was not published in the newspaper. So, I produce it here.
I agree that our children should be given a childhood. Be able to enjoy and play. But one must not forget that literacy and knowledge is the basis for progress. Not just for Singapore, but for the whole human race in general.
If the syllabus in the Singapore education system is not of a certain standard, how else are we going to keep our next generation competitive in the global market?
Learning should be fun, and one should instil in their children from young that the quest for knowledge should not be a painful one, but for the betterment of him/herself. It is the mindset and mentality that makes the difference!
It is no use blaming the education system or the teachers for not doing their jobs without first doing some soul searching. Teaching and learning should first begin from home. Cultivating the right beliefs and values should start from the parents and grandparents. Are we cultivating the culture of learning from within the family? Or are we just pointing our fingers at others first whenever something goes wrong?
I remembered my parents giving me spelling and made me recite my multiplication tables during my car rides to school. I was only in K1 then. In my primary school days, both my parents were working, and yet, my mother would always sit beside me and made sure I did my assessments and knew my work thoroughly before exams. I never had any tuition of any sort. Are parents still doing this these days? Or are they just relying on tuition and enrichment centres to do that for them?
Teaching your own children should be fun and enriching. It can also be turned into positive bonding. It is how you approach it. I am still learning and trying out what works best for my child.
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