O levels?
The O level results were released today
It can't help but stir up memories of 2 years ago, when I was in their situation. I can't say I was full of confidence and all when I took my results, because I hardly slept the previous night (although that might be due to the football match I watched at 3am) and I was a bit nervy. Well, more than a bit actually.
After all, it was the culmination of hard work (or non-hard work) I have been toiling through for four years of my life. It was all for this darn slip of paper that ironically might slip me up in my life. Four years of my life, wasted in learning stuff that are now obsolete to me.
If wasn't for the great friends back in secondary school, I would have considered sueing the Ministry of Education for sheer wastage four prime, glorious years of my life.
The means of teaching and evaluating the students in Singapore are just way too myopic, nobody seems to see the big picture. Allow me to paint it so that it's more visible.
All these subjects that are being stuffed down students' throats are just... Disturbing. Honestly, one can do without half of these things taught and live on in a better life.
Students are taught a wide spectrum of subjects, and the way the system evaluates the students expects them to be good at every subject. Anyone who has heard of the phrase "Jack of all trades, master of none" will get what I am trying to say.
Another form of expressing it is saying that the knowledge of the matter itself is secondary, as it can be forced down by rote learning, but what is important is the method by which they learn: through the notion that there is a cast-iron way to get the correct answer.
For instance, a supposedly flexible subject such as English has a standardised method that teachers gives to students to study. No wonder all the flair and creativity has gone missing.
This turns students into supposed 'computers', where a program is installed, and it is ready for use. But Singapore has gone past the age of industrial worksmanship, we need to advance, not only in the industrial-like way, but also in the cultural aspect.
What I propose is that instead of only having logic-based learning in school, where the subjects are like Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Principle of Accounts, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Geography and such, other subjects that focus on the more creative side of life.
Schools can offer a more language-based education, like for example, studying etymology, learning the Germanic or Latin origins of words in different languages, and learning more languages like French, Spanish, Malay. Although some of these are offered now, but they are limited and not encouraged, whereas, in my opinion, they should be promoted and encouraged.
This may seem useless to some, who feel that subjects like chemistry, math and biology will better equip a person for life. For others, who are not inclined towards logic-based subjects as mentioned above, and are thus being deemed as 'failures', such linguistic abilities will be more useful.
Linguistically-inclined people are now being neglected by the education system, with only two languages being encouraged to be taken for O levels. They should be given a chance to learn more on languages than 'useless' subjects such as accounts, as it is more useful for their future careers prospects.
In other words, it's like saying pythogras' theorum is as useful to a journalist as shorthand writing is as useful to a mathematician, and we should offer not only pythogras' theorum in school, but also shorthand writing, so as to take care of everyone, as well as benefiting the community at large.
For Singapore to improve, and as the Prime Minister said during the National Day Rally '07, "we are leaving no one behind", the education system needs to improve to make sure it really does as promised, to advance as a nation.
It can't help but stir up memories of 2 years ago, when I was in their situation. I can't say I was full of confidence and all when I took my results, because I hardly slept the previous night (although that might be due to the football match I watched at 3am) and I was a bit nervy. Well, more than a bit actually.
After all, it was the culmination of hard work (or non-hard work) I have been toiling through for four years of my life. It was all for this darn slip of paper that ironically might slip me up in my life. Four years of my life, wasted in learning stuff that are now obsolete to me.
If wasn't for the great friends back in secondary school, I would have considered sueing the Ministry of Education for sheer wastage four prime, glorious years of my life.
The means of teaching and evaluating the students in Singapore are just way too myopic, nobody seems to see the big picture. Allow me to paint it so that it's more visible.
All these subjects that are being stuffed down students' throats are just... Disturbing. Honestly, one can do without half of these things taught and live on in a better life.
Students are taught a wide spectrum of subjects, and the way the system evaluates the students expects them to be good at every subject. Anyone who has heard of the phrase "Jack of all trades, master of none" will get what I am trying to say.
Another form of expressing it is saying that the knowledge of the matter itself is secondary, as it can be forced down by rote learning, but what is important is the method by which they learn: through the notion that there is a cast-iron way to get the correct answer.
For instance, a supposedly flexible subject such as English has a standardised method that teachers gives to students to study. No wonder all the flair and creativity has gone missing.
This turns students into supposed 'computers', where a program is installed, and it is ready for use. But Singapore has gone past the age of industrial worksmanship, we need to advance, not only in the industrial-like way, but also in the cultural aspect.
What I propose is that instead of only having logic-based learning in school, where the subjects are like Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Principle of Accounts, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Geography and such, other subjects that focus on the more creative side of life.
Schools can offer a more language-based education, like for example, studying etymology, learning the Germanic or Latin origins of words in different languages, and learning more languages like French, Spanish, Malay. Although some of these are offered now, but they are limited and not encouraged, whereas, in my opinion, they should be promoted and encouraged.
This may seem useless to some, who feel that subjects like chemistry, math and biology will better equip a person for life. For others, who are not inclined towards logic-based subjects as mentioned above, and are thus being deemed as 'failures', such linguistic abilities will be more useful.
Linguistically-inclined people are now being neglected by the education system, with only two languages being encouraged to be taken for O levels. They should be given a chance to learn more on languages than 'useless' subjects such as accounts, as it is more useful for their future careers prospects.
In other words, it's like saying pythogras' theorum is as useful to a journalist as shorthand writing is as useful to a mathematician, and we should offer not only pythogras' theorum in school, but also shorthand writing, so as to take care of everyone, as well as benefiting the community at large.
For Singapore to improve, and as the Prime Minister said during the National Day Rally '07, "we are leaving no one behind", the education system needs to improve to make sure it really does as promised, to advance as a nation.
posted by The Wordsmith at
11:48 pm
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