SINGAPORE: Singapore has for years been trying to reframe an education system often seen as an “arms race”. Further changes may be ahead, with the Ministry of Education (MOE) studying how to further reduce the stakes of examinations.
This could involve recalibrating examination difficulty levels and the way in which results are used, said Education Minister Desmond Lee on Jan 29, adding that the ministry will engage students, parents and teachers on these issues in a series of conversations.
When asked what alternative assessment models will be studied and whether the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) is likely to stay, Mr Lee only said the government is “not locked into any outcome” and does “not want to prejudge”.
While the minister revealed few details, much attention is likely to be focused on the PSLE whose outsized influence on children, families and schools has long made it the most scrutinised national exam here.
Calls for examination reform are not new. As early as 1997, an MOE-commissioned review report pointed out the distorting effects of examination preparation on teaching and learning.
Yet even with several MOE initiatives including changes to the PSLE scoring system in 2021 and broader government rhetoric about the need to move away from a grades-based meritocracy, stress levels faced by parents and students around examination preparation appear largely unchanged.
What more can be done and what effects will further attempts at reforms have on various sectors and stakeholders?
One might ask if key examinations, such as the PSLE, serve any function at all.
These can range from being assessments that certify the completion of a course of study to being used as ostensibly equitable sorting mechanisms to allocate students to different educational institutions and programmes. To this end, examination questions are often designed to differentiate among candidates. This probably accounts for the periodic uproar over PSLE mathematics questions that some deem “too difficult”.
Furthermore, examinations signal to teachers and students which aspects of the school curriculum to focus on, act as an indicator of eligibility for further education and offer evidence of expected competencies of prospective students or employees.
The centrality of exams within the meritocratic ideal also increases the stakes attached to exam success.
At the same time, though, there is growing recognition that most traditional school examinations do not provide meaningful information about non-academic competencies.
Any reforms to do with examinations will be closely watched by the private tutoring industry, which has benefited not only from the widespread demand for exam preparation, but also in some cases through the provision of preparatory services for the Direct School Admission (DSA) scheme.
This scheme, introduced in 2004 to signal the importance of non-academic skills and attributes, and to provide an alternative admission route, is under review. Critics have said the scheme benefits students from wealthier households who are able to afford preparatory classes.
Parents will also be monitoring any reform measures, though reactions may be mixed. While there will be widespread relief at the prospect of a reduction in the “arms race”, there will at the same time be apprehension about how reforms could affect their children’s eligibility for preferred schools or programmes.
Some may even worry that less difficult examinations could affect their children’s preparedness for the next level of education.
A key consideration here will be the availability of alternative assessment mechanisms. There will also be concerns among educators who wonder whether curricular or pedagogical changes are required in response to students who are admitted through these mechanisms.
Several alternatives have previously been proposed. For instance, various Members of Parliament such as Denise Phua (PAP-Jalan Besar) have called for a through-train system linking primary and secondary schools, along with the scrapping of the PSLE.
Local advocacy group EveryChild.SG has called for the abolition of both the PSLE and DSA. Instead, it has suggested having centralised and regular computer-adaptive testing in Primary 5 and 6 in order to guide students’ choices of secondary school learning bands.
Doing so will free the vast majority of students from the adverse effects of PSLE-generated competition, while providing an alternative for parents, the group has said of its proposals.
The minister also said in the interview that Singapore will be learning from other countries.
Outside of Singapore, there are places that have abolished high-stakes examinations at the end of primary school.
For instance, Hong Kong replaced its Academic Aptitude Test with centrally scaled school-based assessments in 2000. These internal results play a part in secondary school admission, along with parental choice, discretionary admissions, through-train arrangements and geographically-based randomised allocation.
South Korea did away with admission examinations for middle and high school over five decades ago in favour of residence-based lotteries to dampen both the intense competition for elite schools, as well as the rise in private tutoring expenditure.
That said, these sorts of reforms come with their own set of controversies, such as the inequity of residential-based lotteries and the alleged lowering of achievement standards.
File photo of students. (Photo: CNA/Raj Nadarajan)
As the MOE launches a series of conversations to solicit ideas from a variety of stakeholders, there will be a few critical considerations.
Firstly, reforms will likely affect students not only at the point at which they sit for the examinations, but also in terms of their subsequent life chances.
Secondly, the issue of equity will loom large and care must be exercised to ensure that alternative systems do not in turn perpetuate or aggravate existing inequities.
Thirdly, different stakeholders will inevitably have varying, and at times conflicting, views and concerns. Take for example the potential mixed response from parents. It may therefore not be possible to achieve complete consensus.
Next, reforms within a particular aspect or sector of the education system have carry-on effects elsewhere within and even outside of the system.
Lastly, the impact of reforms can be blunted if they are introduced within a wider social context in which beliefs and attitudes towards examinations, and the purpose of education in general, are inimical to the spirit of these reforms.
This means that reducing the stakes of examinations is a necessary step to take, but without a corresponding shift in broader social attitudes towards competition, merit and success, the race may simply continue.
Jason Tan is Associate Professor in Policy, Curriculum and Leadership at the National Institute of Education.
Continue reading...
This could involve recalibrating examination difficulty levels and the way in which results are used, said Education Minister Desmond Lee on Jan 29, adding that the ministry will engage students, parents and teachers on these issues in a series of conversations.
When asked what alternative assessment models will be studied and whether the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) is likely to stay, Mr Lee only said the government is “not locked into any outcome” and does “not want to prejudge”.
While the minister revealed few details, much attention is likely to be focused on the PSLE whose outsized influence on children, families and schools has long made it the most scrutinised national exam here.
Calls for examination reform are not new. As early as 1997, an MOE-commissioned review report pointed out the distorting effects of examination preparation on teaching and learning.
Yet even with several MOE initiatives including changes to the PSLE scoring system in 2021 and broader government rhetoric about the need to move away from a grades-based meritocracy, stress levels faced by parents and students around examination preparation appear largely unchanged.
What more can be done and what effects will further attempts at reforms have on various sectors and stakeholders?
WHAT FUNCTIONS DO EXAMS SERVE?
One might ask if key examinations, such as the PSLE, serve any function at all.
These can range from being assessments that certify the completion of a course of study to being used as ostensibly equitable sorting mechanisms to allocate students to different educational institutions and programmes. To this end, examination questions are often designed to differentiate among candidates. This probably accounts for the periodic uproar over PSLE mathematics questions that some deem “too difficult”.
Related:
Furthermore, examinations signal to teachers and students which aspects of the school curriculum to focus on, act as an indicator of eligibility for further education and offer evidence of expected competencies of prospective students or employees.
The centrality of exams within the meritocratic ideal also increases the stakes attached to exam success.
At the same time, though, there is growing recognition that most traditional school examinations do not provide meaningful information about non-academic competencies.
POTENTIAL IMPACT
Any reforms to do with examinations will be closely watched by the private tutoring industry, which has benefited not only from the widespread demand for exam preparation, but also in some cases through the provision of preparatory services for the Direct School Admission (DSA) scheme.
This scheme, introduced in 2004 to signal the importance of non-academic skills and attributes, and to provide an alternative admission route, is under review. Critics have said the scheme benefits students from wealthier households who are able to afford preparatory classes.
MOE to look into lowering exam stakes, improving social mixing in primary schools
Parents will also be monitoring any reform measures, though reactions may be mixed. While there will be widespread relief at the prospect of a reduction in the “arms race”, there will at the same time be apprehension about how reforms could affect their children’s eligibility for preferred schools or programmes.
Some may even worry that less difficult examinations could affect their children’s preparedness for the next level of education.
A key consideration here will be the availability of alternative assessment mechanisms. There will also be concerns among educators who wonder whether curricular or pedagogical changes are required in response to students who are admitted through these mechanisms.
Several alternatives have previously been proposed. For instance, various Members of Parliament such as Denise Phua (PAP-Jalan Besar) have called for a through-train system linking primary and secondary schools, along with the scrapping of the PSLE.
Local advocacy group EveryChild.SG has called for the abolition of both the PSLE and DSA. Instead, it has suggested having centralised and regular computer-adaptive testing in Primary 5 and 6 in order to guide students’ choices of secondary school learning bands.
Doing so will free the vast majority of students from the adverse effects of PSLE-generated competition, while providing an alternative for parents, the group has said of its proposals.
Related:
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER COUNTRIES
The minister also said in the interview that Singapore will be learning from other countries.
Outside of Singapore, there are places that have abolished high-stakes examinations at the end of primary school.
For instance, Hong Kong replaced its Academic Aptitude Test with centrally scaled school-based assessments in 2000. These internal results play a part in secondary school admission, along with parental choice, discretionary admissions, through-train arrangements and geographically-based randomised allocation.
South Korea did away with admission examinations for middle and high school over five decades ago in favour of residence-based lotteries to dampen both the intense competition for elite schools, as well as the rise in private tutoring expenditure.
That said, these sorts of reforms come with their own set of controversies, such as the inequity of residential-based lotteries and the alleged lowering of achievement standards.
File photo of students. (Photo: CNA/Raj Nadarajan)
WHAT MOE WILL HAVE TO CONSIDER
As the MOE launches a series of conversations to solicit ideas from a variety of stakeholders, there will be a few critical considerations.
Firstly, reforms will likely affect students not only at the point at which they sit for the examinations, but also in terms of their subsequent life chances.
Secondly, the issue of equity will loom large and care must be exercised to ensure that alternative systems do not in turn perpetuate or aggravate existing inequities.
Thirdly, different stakeholders will inevitably have varying, and at times conflicting, views and concerns. Take for example the potential mixed response from parents. It may therefore not be possible to achieve complete consensus.
Next, reforms within a particular aspect or sector of the education system have carry-on effects elsewhere within and even outside of the system.
Lastly, the impact of reforms can be blunted if they are introduced within a wider social context in which beliefs and attitudes towards examinations, and the purpose of education in general, are inimical to the spirit of these reforms.
This means that reducing the stakes of examinations is a necessary step to take, but without a corresponding shift in broader social attitudes towards competition, merit and success, the race may simply continue.
Jason Tan is Associate Professor in Policy, Curriculum and Leadership at the National Institute of Education.
Continue reading...