tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post4837309996814396417..comments2024-03-19T18:44:15.041+08:00Comments on Little Stories: Education - The Government Still Doesn't Get ItGilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-10868490101495842582008-08-31T01:13:00.000+08:002008-08-31T01:13:00.000+08:00Ng Eng Hen will be a terrible Education Minister.....Ng Eng Hen will be a terrible Education Minister.... lets see what kind of mess he makes in the next few years...<BR/><BR/>In contrast, I think Tharman has done a great job.... we can see good policies trickle down the system subtly... and that is the hallmark of a GREAT job!<BR/><BR/>ok.. i'll just quote an exmaple to illustrate... Tharman abolished the exclusivity of GEP .. and when Ng takes his post, he wants GEP to sharpen the elitism in GEP ... that total reversal! (i think by now they could have made the policy softer)<BR/><BR/>what a waste of time and resource.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-37450123568622792642008-08-21T21:57:00.000+08:002008-08-21T21:57:00.000+08:00To anon 12.44pm, I share your wish list. Our schoo...To anon 12.44pm, I share your wish list. Our school syllabus is heavy and keeps on expanding. Last year rally, LHL said it is useful to learn Malay. Sure enough, my daughter’s school introduce Malay subject this year as a “third language” for appreciation. Fortunately, he didn’t mention a fourth language this year. I just wonder if our educators review how an average student copes with their studies in additional to CCA, project work, etc. It is no wonder that they will feel stress out. There is just so little time left after school to do revision in order to understand the subjects. I know of teachers rush through lesson in order to cover syllabus. I hope NEH’s speech about shaping student in the other aspect will not result in another squeeze to the teaching time or to the student limited time in coping with all the other subjects. Something really need to be done to look at how student managing their studies.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-35556039997529088442008-08-21T12:44:00.000+08:002008-08-21T12:44:00.000+08:00my wishlist:1) MOE to walk the talk, teach less, l...my wishlist:<BR/>1) MOE to walk the talk, teach less, learn more. Review the syllabus load, either teachers not efficient or too much to teach? Case of Lost in translation<BR/><BR/>2) MOE to stop churning initiatives after initiatives, acronyms after acronyms, which are usually swamps of technicalities and intricacies, just go back to good old days of learning interface. <BR/>(No, this does not mean forgo computer,or technology)<BR/><BR/>3) Principals have courage to see beyond the rat race and ranking, but develop values and characters, and enjoyable learning environment in school<BR/><BR/>4) Teachers less bogged by other activities but teach. Have a central Admin to handle every admin matters that is usually done by form teachers now.<BR/>Also, principals should not encourage environment of the more projects the teacher submit, the better. These teachers are the "chiong" and disliked ones, who pander to the principal, and get promotion<BR/><BR/>5) CCA to have non-competetion category, for non-medal material<BR/><BR/>6) Parents to get rid of their kiasu mentality, e.g. must compete to send to endless tution classes, enrichment etc. they don't make the kids cleverer, only exam smart. Kids become dull, no spontaneous creativity and lost childhood<BR/><BR/>7) reduce exam, and setting trick questions for the sake of it, memorisation etc. But Can have banding grades<BR/><BR/>8) education system to allow varied interest, and talents to develop, not talking about exceptional talents like sports school, arts school, but something even an average child can identify with<BR/><BR/>9) more adult education opportunities to upgrade, change career etc. And not dictated for life at 18 years old by choice of study. The current social/economic/edu system is too narrow minded to allow such transition later in life<BR/><BR/><BR/>How do we know the result of successful education:<BR/>when children go to school happy and enjoy what they do in school. When grow up, have the thirst for knowledge and learning, coupled with strong life values to live life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-45606285976406864442008-08-20T20:02:00.000+08:002008-08-20T20:02:00.000+08:00Education - The Government will never get it. Teac...Education - The Government will never get it. Teaching is a passion.The way I look at it, many young teachers teach because they cannot find a job (from what i see at my daughter's school) and when i feedback on a teacher, I was told he is 'experienced' but this does not mean he can deliver the lessons effectively. My daugther could not do a particular module due to 'resource' issues. Perhaps all resources went to elite schools. We only want world class students. It is always about grades, grades and grades...no time to nurture unless you are somebody. For the record, she is in secondary and teachers do call them 'stupid'. Wonder what training they went in MOEAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-40871153677971361592008-08-19T22:05:00.000+08:002008-08-19T22:05:00.000+08:00Raising the number of teachers will probably help ...Raising the number of teachers will probably help to create small class size and benefit to student learning. This is positive but action seems to be slow. Unless the existing qualification of teachers is not able to deliver the subject that they teach, getting more with higher qualifications is less important to me. In my daughter’s sec school, I have seen, in several occasions, teacher drives against direction marked on the road in school compound, despite of shouting from students. My daughter’s Chinese teacher gets her classmate to coach her. During meet the parents session, she told me that she conducts remedial lesson for weaker students. In her first year, she had a temp history teacher who cannot deliver lesson. He was dismissed only after complaint from students and parents 3 months later. Each of these observations points to some different aspect of issues in school. The main one that I see is incompetent school management team who don’t pay enough attention to the qualities of their teachers or monitor the performance.<BR/><BR/>By the way, the performance art (CCA) trainers have already started training students for competition that usually take place in second quarter of next year. So, you can see where they place the priorities.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-60155556155618673252008-08-19T10:00:00.001+08:002008-08-19T10:00:00.001+08:00Btw, any1 knows what is in the moral education tex...Btw, any1 knows what is in the moral education textbooks these days? I believe we are happy to count the burmese junta, Muguabe, unpopular nepalese prince, et al as friends/customers.<BR/><BR/>NoNameAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-87087710292171019572008-08-19T10:00:00.000+08:002008-08-19T10:00:00.000+08:00I don't think Ng Eng Hen is that stupid. MOE has t...I don't think Ng Eng Hen is that stupid. MOE has the benefit of quite enlightened senior leadership, but the quality of its personnel is not uniform throughout the organisation, whcih is a massive one. Angeline Soo is right to point out that some of these grand ideas get lost in translation. The problem Ng Eng Hen identified is also the right one, even though you say your grandmother could've come up with it. Singapore has some phenomenally poor teachers. The best and brightest do not consider teaching as a career, because as a society we're encouraged value certain things, like the size of one's paycheck, prestige, etc. Of course you need a certain kind of person to be a good teacher, but that kind of people are just as common amongst the brightest as they are amongst the not-so-bright. But for the former, Teaching, like nursing and social work, is defined as a 'noble profession', which means its one whose appeal stops at one's conscience.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-70000227767806048142008-08-19T08:09:00.000+08:002008-08-19T08:09:00.000+08:00What did I ask from teachers? I was merely comment...What did I ask from teachers? <BR/><BR/>I was merely commenting on Ng Eng Hen's new plans to impart values to students. <BR/><BR/>And yes of course, parents play a very important role as far as children are concerned. However, my post is primarily about Ng Eng Hen's speech.Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-39618235762963699732008-08-18T21:00:00.000+08:002008-08-18T21:00:00.000+08:00"Again my point, in this post, is not to say which..."Again my point, in this post, is not to say which values should or should not, or are or are not, being imparted in our system - but merely to say that values aren't formally teachable, but are transmitted in less-obvious ways." <BR/><BR/>To Mr Wang, I think you are asking too much from the teachers - in the first place, can the parents impart those values themselves? Parents spend more time with their children that the teachers and will have a much more positive impact in the long term.Eaststopperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16903639886157996151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-50065240337671004662008-08-18T17:39:00.000+08:002008-08-18T17:39:00.000+08:00/// Mr Wang Says So said... The way the Chinese.../// Mr Wang Says So said...<BR/> The way the Chinese language is taught in our schools, I think that when students encounter the phrase "饮水思源", ///<BR/><BR/>Ah, Mr WSS, this is my favourite Chinese idiom, and you can credit me with its new interpretation:<BR/><BR/>With the advent of NeWater, 饮水思源 takes on a whole new meaning. Yakkkks!!!Thehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02941744057903049051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-10382286695511429342008-08-18T15:55:00.000+08:002008-08-18T15:55:00.000+08:00Personally, I skipped most of law school. In my fi...Personally, I skipped most of law school. In my final year, I attended about three lectures in total. However (or should I say, consequently) I graduated on the Dean's List for Academic Excellence, LOL.Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-67504643723739771192008-08-18T15:21:00.000+08:002008-08-18T15:21:00.000+08:00I think the root of the problem has to do with the...I think the root of the problem has to do with the lack of intellectuals in our society. <BR/><BR/>They are usually perceived as fire brands so most ppl I think shy away from them i.e no action, talk only. So many of us dont feel the need to role model and emulate them. I notice this during my campus days whilst studying in the US.<BR/><BR/>There, students were generally graded into two groups. <BR/><BR/>The first were the conformist kwai kwai students, people like me who study and most of the time, we even get the best grades.<BR/><BR/>Then there were those who just turned up for registration and after that you do not see them till the exam date. Usually they scrap through and just make it, 90% of the time, they are either MIA or completely pissed drunk spending all their time chatting up girls in the college drink holes.<BR/><BR/>Guess what? Fast forward, 10 years, those laggards who once couldnt even hold down a decent job, started business in the mom and pop's garages and sold it off for millions.<BR/><BR/>Guess where I am? Trust me, you dont want to know. I spend most of my time wondering these days, where did I go so wrong?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-17205311630888730622008-08-18T11:25:00.000+08:002008-08-18T11:25:00.000+08:00to use Randy Pausch's term: it's called the head f...to use Randy Pausch's term: it's called the head fake. U teach one thing, but u r really getting them to learn another thing - the very thing that would be far more important in life or to the meaning of life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-90262522379046742942008-08-18T09:45:00.000+08:002008-08-18T09:45:00.000+08:00Anon August 17, 2008 11:38 PM:Right. In the two co...Anon August 17, 2008 11:38 PM:<BR/><BR/>Right. In the two counter-examples you have offered, the values demonstrated may be said to be "efficiency", and, in the 2nd case, "focus" or "pragmatism" or "humility".<BR/><BR/>As I said, values are being imparted all the time to the students in school. They are just not formally teachable, but are imparted through teachers' actual conduct.<BR/><BR/>Again my point, in this post, is not to say which values should or should not, or are or are not, being imparted in our system - but merely to say that values aren't formally teachable, but are transmitted in less-obvious ways. <BR/><BR/>I think it's a point which MOE will likely miss, therefore the point is worth making.Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-53196065621859895062008-08-18T09:35:00.000+08:002008-08-18T09:35:00.000+08:00"If you want to be rich, you'd better study Biolog...<I> "If you want to be rich, you'd better study Biology and become a doctor one day."</I><BR/>Hehe sorry hor Mr Wang, just a minor correction. If this child want to study Medicine at NUS, it is Chemistry not Biology which is the compulsory subject.<BR/><BR/>I just checked last week for my kid.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-84632966113950133172008-08-18T08:52:00.000+08:002008-08-18T08:52:00.000+08:00The Grand Illusion by Paul Krugman can be read in ...The Grand Illusion by Paul Krugman can be read in our nation blding press today.<BR/><BR/>Also saw (I tink in Life) a reference to Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-85641658698111299592008-08-17T23:38:00.000+08:002008-08-17T23:38:00.000+08:00I would like to clarify certain point, from a teac...I would like to clarify certain point, from a teacher's point of view.<BR/><BR/>"For example, suppose I am a science teacher. Every day, I may encourage students to ask questions freely. Or I may ridicule those who waste my time by asking "stupid" questions."<BR/><BR/>I agree with this, if students ask genuine question. However, you might not know, most of the time, pupils did not master the art of listening. They talk while the teachers are talking. And after the teachers finish giving the instruction, they will ask the same thing again. Waste of time, isn't it?<BR/><BR/>"If a student does badly, I might scold him and say, 'I think you'd better drop this subject. I don't want you to drag down the school's overall scores!' Or I might tell him that it's important to keep trying and not give up."<BR/><BR/>I agree with encouragement.<BR/>However, certain time, you will realise that a lot of pupils may be in the so-call good class because of their pride. They may had opted to study for eg,triple science when they don't really have the ability. In the end, they suffer a lot. The teacher may have advise him to drop, (not in the tone mentioned above), is not really because of pulling down the grade, but because it is important for him to put his focus on subjects that he can do well, to increase his level of confidence.<BR/><BR/>The eg you cited may just for illustration purpose, but I just hope you can see from another angle.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-22812133190798067712008-08-17T22:04:00.000+08:002008-08-17T22:04:00.000+08:00Hi Mr Wang,Thanks for the elaboration. You're righ...Hi Mr Wang,<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the elaboration. You're right that systems can be engineered to encourage the instilling of certain values. I believe your ideas are already being carried out to varying degrees in schools, dependent on the Principal of course.<BR/><BR/>There's a greater issue here - that of competition and what it is turning us into. I think it is also ironic that the example of Finland was brought up - the comment, while commending Finland's lack of examinations, points to a ranking to validate its success.<BR/><BR/>I was never a star student by any definition. But do we have an implementable alternative?<BR/><BR/>Think it's time to reread Alfie Kohn's Case against Competition.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the dialogue everyone.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-33483718006974236662008-08-17T18:45:00.000+08:002008-08-17T18:45:00.000+08:00Singapore's education system has evolved greatly i...Singapore's education system has evolved greatly in the past few years to cater to the diverse needs of different children. However, one thing that they should really consider is their mentality of "students with better results rise higher". Singapore places too much emphasis on exam results. And yes, although we do produce good results, where are we on the world standard? Just look at Finland, they do not have exams, but they are ranked top 10 on some international exams and singapore in not even in the list. What an irony!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-27365643526589783202008-08-17T16:38:00.000+08:002008-08-17T16:38:00.000+08:00Further elaboration.Suppose I were a school princi...Further elaboration.<BR/><BR/>Suppose I were a school principal. Further suppose that I have considerable autonomy & resources to run the school as I like.<BR/><BR/>Then imagine that I wish to instil certain values in my students. Let's say that the values I wish to instil are "leadership"; "creativity"; and "teamwork". (This is just for illustration - I could have picked any other values).<BR/><BR/>I think that there is very little use in "teaching" leadership by, say, requiring students to write an essay about leadership; or "teaching" creativity by asking teachers to give a lecture to the students on this topic; or by myself giving a speech about the value of teamwork twice a year.<BR/><BR/>This is what I mean by values not being formally teachable. <BR/><BR/>However, I do believe that I *can* create a system where such values may be imparted and absorbed by the students.<BR/><BR/>Just for example, I may have a system whereby students get to be a prefect or a class monitor /chairman on a rotating basis. Eg every term, there are new prefects; and every month, each class has a new class chairman, or something like that. In this way, more students get at least one chance to be in some kind of leadership position.<BR/><BR/>For instilling creativity, I may require teachers to develop more lessons, across a range of different subjects, such that students tend to be rewarded for original, interesting or innovative ideas, (rather than for good memory, or precision with formulae; or successful rote learning).<BR/><BR/>For teamwork, I may emphasise more participation in group sports (eg basketball, soccer, volleyball) and group school projects (eg all members of the same group always get the same group). Through these means, students will simply learn over time what teamwork is about. This, I believe, is much more effective than having them learn Chinese proverbs like fen1 gong1 he2 zuo4.Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-12899398292986622782008-08-17T16:17:00.000+08:002008-08-17T16:17:00.000+08:00Perhaps I should clarify and elaborate. On values,...Perhaps I should clarify and elaborate. On values, I had earlier written these words:<BR/><BR/><I>"Currently, our students do acquire values, as a result of being in school. In fact, this is an inevitable process. But the values that they truly acquire are not the ones that the teachers deliberately teach, as part of a formal plan like <A HREF="http://www.singaporeangle.com/2008/06/values_education_in_singapore_1.html" REL="nofollow">National Education." </A></I><BR/><BR/>If you had clicked on that link, you might have read something quite ironic. It leads to a scholarly piece analysing values education in Singapore. Among other things, it cites a study published in the Journal of Moral Education, which concludes that neither teachers nor students take National Education and Civics & Moral Education (CME) seriously, because they are non-examinable subjects.<BR/><BR/>What you may not see is that THIS itself is a reflection of values that ARE being imparted in our education system. In other words, academic grades and academic excellence have become a value in themselves. Or you may say that the value imparted is pragmatism, reflected in an attitude like "If the subject is not examinable, then it won't be needed for PSLE / O-level, so why the hell should I care about it?".<BR/><BR/>Now, in all likelihood, "pragmatism" as a value was never <B>formally</B> taught in schools, as part of an official teaching plan or school syllabus. Why and how did Singaporean students (and teachers) absorb this value then?<BR/><BR/>The point I'm making here is that values CAN be learned, but they cannot be TAUGHT the same way that you would teach the periodic table in Chemistry; or quadratic equations in Maths. Unfortunately, I don't believe that MOE will be able to grasp this point, and Eng Hen's speech doesn't give me any reason to believe otherwise.Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-31401187350871340632008-08-17T15:38:00.000+08:002008-08-17T15:38:00.000+08:00Lucian is correct!Its not MOE's fault.And we cant ...Lucian is correct!<BR/><BR/>Its not MOE's fault.And we cant blame scarcity mentality on the gahmen can we? Its not like we are reminded daily that scholars are the best or Singapore is a tiny nation with no resources. <BR/><BR/>If only the inferior lower class(and their unworthy offsprings) accepts their place in society...<BR/><BR/>NoNameAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-63480911024896443212008-08-17T14:23:00.000+08:002008-08-17T14:23:00.000+08:00This Ng Eng Hen fellow once said that he can earn ...This Ng Eng Hen fellow once said that he can earn much more and work less hard in his previous job as a surgeon. So he said Singaporeans got a good bargain even when he is paid millions as minister. Hence his nickname is "bargain Hen". So he thinks (and more important Lee Hsien loong agrees) he is worth his salary even if he does not talk more sense than ordinary folks on education matters. Not happy is it? Vote PAP out lah, said George Yeo, another one of the kind.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-41265614477754662652008-08-17T13:49:00.000+08:002008-08-17T13:49:00.000+08:00lucien, as long as 2 hands dun clap, there is no s...lucien, <BR/><BR/>as long as 2 hands dun clap, there is no sound. <BR/><BR/>both hands must hv power to move. if one hand is lame, no use as the other hand will just slam; if both hands lame, it's totally lame.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4405345292513335071.post-14552940137507679232008-08-17T11:04:00.000+08:002008-08-17T11:04:00.000+08:00Hey Mr Wang,Disclaimer: I work for MOE, but this i...Hey Mr Wang,<BR/><BR/>Disclaimer: I work for MOE, but this is my personal opinion yadda yadda...<BR/><BR/>I agree that the government has a large part to play in our societal evolution beyond pragmatism, but I'm not certain if you can pin it on formal education.<BR/><BR/>Your post states that these values aren't formally taught, but absorbed like osmosis, and yet your post title blames the government. These informal osmosis of values happens on a personal basis - human to human, and are often not the result of a government initiative.<BR/><BR/>I admit that the government has to take the lead by exemplifying values that transcend the first 3 tiers of Maslow, but we as parents, friends, sons and daughters need also to play our part.<BR/><BR/>If blaming the government is all we do, I think it is us who doesn't get it. That our character is in our hands, and the first step is to put aside the crutch that makes us blame the government for everything.<BR/><BR/>Please correct me if I'm wrong. The last thing I want is to be blinded by the day job.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the discussion.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com