11th August 2022

Students keen to pursue a master’s degree at the National University of Singapore will enjoy a discount of 10 per cent for certain courses from next year. This applies to all courses whose fees are not already subsidised by the Government, with an additional 5 per cent discount for NUS graduates.

NUS announced these developments at the launch of its inaugural Lifelong Learning Festival at the Shaw Foundation Alumni House at its Kent Ridge campus.

Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, the guest of honour at the event, said Singapore’s universities, polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education should allow students to pick and choose modules from any institution and tailor their education to suit their needs.

He added that the higher learning institutes should work to complement and recognise one another’s modules, and that they are collectively competing against the best varsities and institutions all around the world.

11 August 2022

Parents who are keen to be involved in their child’s school can consider where they can use their professional expertise.

Ms Joey Ching, a 51-year-old senior procurement manager with five children, for instance, encouraged working parents to join at least one activity a year.

“Joining at least one activity could help to create great memories for their children or be conversation starters for a better parent-child relationship,” she said.

8th August 2022

A National Institute of Education (NIE) survey has found that students in Singapore are more engaged with school and enjoy it better when their parents take an interest in their school life.

The study looked at the impact of parent involvement on three areas: cognitive engagement (academic progress), behavioural engagement (attentiveness in class) and emotional engagement (how much they enjoy school). Results showed a positive correlation between parent involvement and all three areas.

The study found that parent participation in both primary and secondary schools was comparable for academic-related activities such as parent-teacher conferences and discussions about the child’s progress. But more secondary school students reported that their parents backed away from getting involved in non-academic school activities or needs.

21 July 2022

Ms Liew Wei Li, the Ministry of Education’s director-general of education, said that fifteen per cent of Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) questions are classified as “challenging” each year, and the national exam is kept at a consistent standard of difficulty.

PSLE maths exams have been a source of angst over the years, with complaints surfacing from time to time and parents taking issue with certain questions.

Ms Liew said each pupil’s marks in the new scoring system reflects the child’s mastery of the subject as there is no bell curve or quotas imposed on the number of pupils for each Achievement Level (AL) band. Under this new system, which took effect last year, pupils attain ALs of 1 to 8 for each of four subjects, with their final PSLE score being the sum of the ALs.