A one-stop portal for teachers

MOE launches online resource to help educators

conducting holistic assessments of their pupils

Joanne Chan

joannechan@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

The online resource will help educators with lesson plans and multiple assessment modes.

And a few important lessons have already been learned from the experience of 16 prototype schools that were tasked last July with the challenge of replacing the semestral examinations with new ways to judge the progress of Primary 1 and 2 pupils.

At CHIJ Kellock, learning Mathematics is now more engaging, as pupils solve problems using toy blocks, rather than pen and paper.

English classes are also more interactive, as students work on their communication skills via show-and-tell.

CHIJ Kellock Primary 2 pupil Sarah Long said: “You get to do more things. You can draw, and write and think of ideas.”

CHIJ Kellock principal Clara Lim-Tan said holistic learning and assessment help to build independent thinkers.

“In terms of the future of schooling, we can no longer just talk about the teachers’ role as spoon-feeding the children. We want to facilitate and get the kids to be curious about learning and to be independent learners themselves,” she said.

The holistic assessment website will not only provide information on ageappropriate assessment tasks, but also the stories and reflections from the 16 schools from the perspective of pupils, teachers and parents.

At a seminar yesterday, Senior Minister of State (Education) Grace Fu highlighted that parents had a key role in ensuring that holistic assessment works. Processes to enhance communication between teachers and parents will be needed.

One way the 16 schools did this was to create portfolios for each child, to track their progress in the year. Each subject was broken down into different aspects for assessment, for example, public speaking and grammar for the English language, so that parents could take note of their child’s strengths and weaknesses.

Ms Fu stressed that the development of the whole child requires careful planning.

“There should also be a balance between assessments that provide feedback and do not count towards a final grade, and assessments that are graded to check for mastery of learning. The school’s assessment plan enables teachers to plan and coordinate,” she said.— With primary schools expected to embark over the next three years on holistic assessments of their pupils — which means going beyond high-stakes mid-year and year-end examinations, especially at the Primary 1 level — the Education Ministry has launched a one-stop portal for teachers.

We want to facilitate and get the kids to be curious about learning and to be independent learners themselves.

CHIJ Kellock principal Clara Lim-Tan

iN 2010,  SiNGAPORE PRiMARY SCHOOL's  CHiNESE  Language Syllabus for PRiMARY 6 had bEEn   rEducEd  by mOre than 50% tO Only 11 Chapters.  Previously, the full syllabus text book had 28 Chapters. 

Many parents and CHiNESE language teachers WeRe  VeRY  SaD  SaD  SaD  SaD . . . .

Parents  from the MAiNLAND  CHiNA  were furIous . . . .

SiNGAPORE CHiNESE language standard  is  really  low  low  low  low  no class . . . .

CHiNESE Language TUiTiON  centres  bOOmz  bOOMZ  BOOMZ

The bonding continued over lunch, with visitors including Idaho Governor C L “Butch” Otter joining in to watch the World Cup finals.

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