Singapore’s Education System: Rigid, Competitive, and Determined

By   |  December 9, 2008

I met my friend Richard in 2007 while attending Orange Coast College; by chance we ended up in the same geography class. His mother is originally from Myanmar, and his father grew up in Hong Kong. They met for the first time in Taiwan, but soon immigrated to Singapore after getting married. Richard was born in Los Angeles while his parents were visiting the US, but when he was four months old, his family moved back to Singapore. His parents had planned to give birth to him in America so that he could obtain American citizenship in order to return later for university. He spent most of his childhood growing up in Singapore and taking frequent trips to Myanmar and Hong Kong. He also lived in California briefly for a few months during one summer to attend a middle school in America, but soon had to return to Singapore to finish the rest of his secondary education. During these months in America, Richard’s perspective on international education changed drastically, as he discovered how “severely behind” the American system was in comparison to Singapore in the areas of math and science. For example, the material covered in his seventh grade class in America had already been presented to him in the fourth grade during his studies in Singapore. Eventually, Richard set out for America again to pursue his college education in California, and is now a student at the University of California at Irvine majoring in economics after completing his AA degree at Orange Coast College.

Even though Richard’s educational experience is perhaps quite mixed, there are many people from Singapore these days that have experienced similar situations. Because of Singapore’s small size and its limited supply of higher education, many citizens are losing confidence in their country’s education system. This had lead many parents in Singapore to make long-term educational plans for their children at a very young age, and has also given way to a new generation of Singaporeans who have opted for foreign citizenship and educational opportunities. Even though many analysts consider Singapore to have one of the best education systems in the world, with an economy that creates thousands of elites in different fields year after year, many families in Singapore have begun to look elsewhere for their children’s education needs due to a fear of falling behind in the competitive Singaporean system.

Singapore, like America, is a melting pot of different cultures. The four major races that make up Singapore’s population are Malay, Chinese, Tamil, and Caucasian. Since the area was once ruled by the British, Singapore follows after the British style of education, unlike the US. There are four official languages – English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil – but English is the official language in the schools. Therefore, every school subject is taught in English despite the prominence of the other “mother tongues” within the large immigrant groups. Depending on which immigrant group each student comes from, that student is also forced to study their mother tongue from primary school onward, until it becomes an optional course during college. Richard has a Chinese background, so he attended Mandarin language classes for 12 years.

At the age of 5, the majority of Singaporean kids start attending kindergarten; this usually lasts for two years. Even though the kindergarten program is optional, most parents do not want their children to fall behind because of the very competitive environment, and thus enroll their kids. Some of the children also attend cram schools starting at an early age in order to study advanced mathematics and science during their free time, instead of engaging in popular American activities such as sports.

After kindergarten, all students must attend primary school for six years, which is equivalent to elementary school in the US. In Singapore, they refer to the first grade as P-1, and each student is placed in a group of children that remain together from P-1 until P-4, with the exception of their various mother tongue language classes. At the end of P-4, there is a so-called “streaming process” at which point every student must take an examination which separates them into different levels depending on their score. The students are then divided into three competency levels for the next two years of P-5 and P-6: EM-1 (top level, 25% of students), EM-2 (mid-level, 50% of students), and EM-3 (bottom level, 25% of students). At the EM-1 level, in addition to normal courses, students are required to take three science classes: physics, chemistry, and biology; they must also take an advanced course in their mother tongue language, in addition to their normal language class. At the EM-2 level, in addition to normal courses, students are required to take two science classes: physics and chemistry. At the EM-3 level, students take basic courses in math and science which are less demanding. This style of primary school contrasts sharply with the US system, which abstains from dividing young students into various skill levels or testing them extensively. One thing that Singapore shares in common with the US is the existence of optional private schools (organized mainly for religious purposes), however these schools must adhere to the same strict student-division laws that public schools recognize.

At the end of P-6, every pupil must take another examination which is called the PSLE (Primary School Leaving Examination) in order to enter secondary school, the equivalent of the American middle school and high school systems. Students are tested in four subjects in PSLE: math, science, English, and their respective mother tongue. The total possible score of the PSLE examination is 300 points, and its official purpose is to assess students’ suitability for secondary education and to place them in an appropriate schooling level in order to match their learning pace, ability, and inclination. Each secondary school evaluates students’ performance in the PSLE to determine if they want to accept the graduates or not (the most competitive secondary schools usually only accept a score above 220 – the average score is 210). If one gets above 200 points on the PSLE, he/she will likely enter the “express stream” (around 60% of all students) which takes 4 years to complete and consists of an accelerated mix of general education including math, science, language, and other subjects. If one gets between 170 to 200 points, he/she will be placed into the “normal academic stream” (around 20% of all students) which takes 5 years to complete and consists of almost the same combination of subjects as the “express stream.” Besides being an accelerated program, “express stream” courses in math and science are also more advanced. Moreover, a select group of students from the “express stream” are allowed to take a higher level course in their mother tongue. Lastly, if one gets below 170 points on the PSLE, he/she will be placed into the “normal technical stream” (around 20% of all students) which takes four years to complete. Students at this level are forced to take classes in home economics and technical experiments. At the end of the first year of secondary school, if a student’s performance has been outstanding, he/she might be able to graduate to the next stream level. However, this is the only chance they have to switch, and if they end up performing poorly, teachers will send them back to their original level.

At this stage in the education system, a great deal of animosity begins to emerge amongst the lowest ranked students, and they become the target of much condescension in and out of school. Even ambitious students in the lower levels start getting blamed for various problems in society such as crime, which often drives them to give up on school and fall into foul play. Here we start to see some similarities with the American post-elementary education system. While the US does not have entrance exams to enter middle schools or high schools (which are open to all residents), the American system does begin to divide students into varying class levels on a per-subject basis such as college-preparatory, honors, and advanced-placement. However, these class levels are open to any students regardless of their poor performance in previous years – the idea of second chances seems to be more prevalent throughout the entire American education system, in fact. However, it seems we must declare that as in Singapore, many underperforming students in US schools are shunned by some school districts, which often drives them to legitimate foul play and hopelessness in and out of school. It would seem, though, that the conscious presence of condescension among US students themselves is much lower than in Singapore since the division of US students into skill levels is far less outright, obvious, and dire. The grading system in Singapore secondary school is also much different than in America – 75% is an A1 (A+), 70% is A2 (A), 65% is B3 (B+), 60% is B4 (B), 55% is C5 (C+), 50% is C6 (C), 45% is D7 (F).

At the end of secondary school, every student must to take the GCE “O” level examination which separates students into either polytechnic school (vocational school) or pre-university (junior college). Only junior college students are allowed to go on to attend public university in Singapore. However, if a polytechnic student finishes among the top 5% of his/her school, then he/she has a chance to go to university as well.

Ultimately, Singapore’s education system focuses on dividing students into various skill levels and so-called “streams” starting at a very early age. Math is a highly regarded subject in Singapore, and students who fail to succeed at math often find themselves at a dead end in the system, unable to proceed to higher levels of recognition. Even non-mathematical career paths like nursing school require good math skills for students to be accepted. Additionally, every step to the next level in Singapore’s education system is based on examination scores, which instills a fear of exams into students from a very early level and dissuades innovative citizens from pursuing programs like art school or music school. In conclusion, the rigidity and judgmental atmosphere built into Singapore’s education system has created a culture of super-worrisome parents, super-competitive students, and citizens who are willing to move out of Singapore and across the world in pursuit of their educational dreams.

Comments? Leave your intelligent feedback down below or consider following CollegeTimes on Facebook or Twitter to stay updated or to get in touch!

Share This Story:

Page ID #431  -  Last updated on
Tags:  

Please scroll down to leave a comment.

28 Comments on “Singapore’s Education System: Rigid, Competitive, and Determined”  (RSS)

  1. Btw our main races are Chinese, Malay, Indian, and Eurasian

  2. Btw it’s Chinese, Malay, Indian, and Eurasian.

  3. There are some inaccurate statements about the Singapore education system in this article.

  4. Thanks for your information
    Education-in-singapore/”>Study in singapore

    Studying in Singapore, no doubt, will act as a platform to a brighter future. Driven by excellence, Institutions in Singapore offer a broad-based curriculum and global perspective to equip students with the relevant qualifications and training to succeed in a competitive environment. Hence educational institutions offer the latest and best in educational tools and technologies.

    As learning is lifelong, Institutions in Singapore offer a comprehensive range of training and enrichment programmes for executives, professionals and homemakers who place value on equipping themselves to achieve their aspirations. There are many who have chosen Singapore for their education and are happy that they made that decision, we believe they subscribe to what we believe in.

  5. I’m a Filipino teacher in the Philippines, using a certain education curriculum from America. For 12 years in teaching, i realized how important it is to respect the education or learning level of every child, to boost his morale, as God created every one of us wonderfully. Yes, it’s true that american system of education is full of second chances, just as God does to us. In our system, character training is above academics.But accordingly, the graduates of our curriculum that are not so good in academics especially in math, would find math easy in college entrance exams in universities. And they have good communication skills.
    Real life is full of rewards that would motivate us to strive harder and better. That’s why, every good performance of our students are rewarded, be it academic or character.
    Our system may not be competitive,yet, when students graduate from the system, they are sharp, not just academically, but also, emotionally and spiritually.
    At the end of “school”, students would face the real life, the “job”. And it’s the character of every individual that would count. It could “make” or “break” us.
    Thanks to the author for sharing his story.

  6. You forgot one thing – students are screened at Primary three for the Gifted Education Programme, a programme for bright children. Although the programme ends at primary six, it usually provides its members with an edge in life. For example, GEPers can enter good Secondary schools through the DSA despite doing worse than other students from the Mainstream in exams. Certain programmes in Secondary school are reserved for the GEPers. This often gives them an edge in university applications and a clearer path towards a bright future.

    • True but GEP is just additional enrichment and might actually not really help out in PSLE. this come from a GEP student:)

    • True but GEP just provides additional enrichment and might not actually prove really useful in PSLE. This comes from a GEP student :)

    • True but GEP is just kind of additional enrichment and might no actually prove really useful in PSLE. This comes from a GEP student :)

  7. A very nice article about education system, however after reading it I feel that kids in Singapore are really pressurized at a very young age to excel.. I am not the kind of a parent who want to pressurize… instead let him do what he like best at his pace… but sigh.!!! that not many parents are like me..

    Thanks for writing about the education system.. I got some info about the American system :)

  8. It’s very true..The education system in Singapore can be pretty unforgiving and is heavily reliant on private tutors. Many parents spend thousands of dollars to ensure their children catch up with what the teachers were supposed to have taught properly at school, if they can afford it, that is. On the other hand, we have overworked teachers who could have otherwise made a difference by inculcating a passion for the subject in place of the senseless rote learning that is prevalent in the system. It eventually boils down to whether the family can afford an expensive overseas education for the child to escape this continuous grading. However, in the spirit of meritocracy, there are also overseas government scholarships for the top 0.5/1% of the country (regardless of family income), to give hope to those who may not have the financial resources to pursue college education abroad.

    • I disagree with what you said about “spending thousands of dollars to ensure their children catch up with what the teachers were supposed to teach” graduated primary school with a t-score of 260 and doing pretty well in secondary school now without much help from outside school enrichment classes and still get to enjoy a variety of non-academic procedures. It’s either because you have not met nice teachers or the child does not pay enough attention or clarify thoughts in class.

  9. I’m a teacher In Singapore n I have been through the same system. Other than the mistakes pointed out by some Singaporeans, I also spot some inaccuracies. Pri school science is not separated into biology, physics, etc. it’s more like a combi of these. The Pri sch science exams r pretty tough. But I think it’s not as broad based as places like USA. By the way, we still have streaming but we have it as foundation units. U only do the basics in a particular subject that u are weak in. Because previously, the weak students did basic mother tongue… But some of these kids were actually gd in their mother tongue because they mostly speak in their mother tongues at home

  10. I understand that the Singaporean Government placed a lot of emphasis on the Singaporean education system and its competitiveness because Singapore is a small country that relies heavily on its manpower.
    Only by being competitive would the people be able to improve and drive Singapore to her success.
    However, that being said, I would also like to agree that education is not the most important factor when it comes to success. There are enough famous people who failed academically but still succeed in the end.

    Maybe then the Singaporean government should place more emphasis on character education instead to build the quality of its people instead of focusing too much on academic grades.
    I mean at the end of the day it all boils down to this, “Not all that can be counted counts, and not all that counts can be counted”; grades aren’t everything.

  11. OMG, do you see whats taking place in Syria? Regardless of a brutal government crackdown, the manifestations continue

  12. wow . well said . i agree with whatever that was written
    about singapore education system !

  13. I hate the government for making the definition of success in life is only by means of academic life.
    Everyone knows that there are dozens of people who had little education & still made it big.
    Yet, the government still had its rigid mind set on academics as being the sole yardstick for success.
    It irritates me as I see beyond the horizons of brimming opportunities that lie beyond Singaporeans’ imagining.
    Singapore claims that it is meritocratic; it’s not, it is based on seniority.
    Singapore claims it is creative; yet it sadly fails at being so.
    Why? Cause no creativity can be cultivated in a land where students are lead to believe academics is their life & death. Creativity is left to the FTs. Might as well stop calling us Singaporeans and call us outsiders instead.
    We are treated like that even in our own land. If the government is so keen on begging FT to come here & neglect us Singaporeans, our citizenship is practically pointless.

    I type this even though my hand aches from writing & practising my Social studies (a compulsory subject only for Singaporeans). There are additional reasons as to why I hate the government but it is too long a list of “crimes” they committed. If you are smart, you don’t need to think too hard to know what I mean.

  14. I refer to this article. Some of your points are wrong. Singapore is a melting pot – correct. You mentioned that about the four races. There is more than four races but is not given much importance. Tamil is not a race. The four common races are Caucasian, Malays, Indians and Chinese. Tamil is equivalent to saying Cantonese ( Sub groups of a race).

    Students are allowed to take a second language ( now known as mother tongue). Not necessarily of what their ancestors spoke.

  15. School is now obsolete, because of the internet. Sending your kids to school is a waste of time, money, and most importantly… life. Check out http://www.khanacademy.org/

  16. In 2004, EM 1 and EM 2 for Primary 4 streaming was merged. In 2008, streaming was scrapped and replaced with subject-based banding. Currently, a polytechnic student should also be within the top 10% to qualify for university. The fourth Singapore university to open in 2011 should also allow more poly graduates to enroll in universities.

    I don’t like the competitive environment in Singapore either but I guess it’s necessary for Singapore to survive and succeed with our limited resources and what not. But I guess it depends on the individuals themselves too. Some people thrive on competition. Others don’t. But life still goes on anyway and we shouldn’t subject ourselves to the pressure and expectations of society, I suppose.

  17. Some of the information you have provided is inaccurate.
    Currently, students are no longer being streamed at Primary 4 into EM1/EM2/EM3 streams.(They are instead being allowed choose to take subjects at different difficulty levels.)
    The subjects taken in each stream when it was in place is also not accurate. Students in EM1 and EM2 studied the same subjects, with the exception of Higher 2nd Language for EM1 students.

    Home Economics and Technical classes may be taken by all streams in Secondary school, depending on the curriculum put in place by the school.

    I agree though, that the competition in Singapore is great. And it is important to be able to grasp things fast. Wonder how it is like in other countries. More leisurely?

    Other than O Level examinations, there are other examinations that students can take, for example, the International Baccalaureate and School Diploma.

  18. It’s so true…. the government streamed us,including myself,(the late-bloomers) at a very young age.. which maybe demoralizing.. I hate the education system >:(

    By the way, is it true that after we(singaporean-students) finished our ‘O’ levels, we could enroll into most of the college/universities in the US ?

    Are universities in US as good as going into ITEs or polytechnics?

  19. we are not that bad. it is true that our education system is basically run on meritocracy. at least we have a sports school now right?^^!

  20. Very interesting article, thank you

  21. Singapore doesn’t have Caucasian as one of its main race, it’s Eurasian.

  22. Hi i think this was a very useful article in telling how competitive singapore is. thanks alot to the preson who wrote the article.

  23. whatever ! i just want to know who is Sandra Fe! and why she write the singapore food: a melting pot of different cultures@

  24. i don’t care if u meet your friend Richard!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.*



You may use these HTML tags and attributes:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>

*

2019 MBA Admissions Consulting

These days, college is expensive and not the best choice for everyone. But do you know which degree is still highly valuable? That's right, an MBA degree. If you study at a high quality MBA program in the United States, you can use that degree to improve your reputation and career ANYWHERE in the world, unlike law or medical degrees (or worthless degrees from diploma mills). Contact our experts to see if you're a good candidate for our top MBA programs... all our programs are accredited by AACSB! Official MBA partner of The Economist.

[contact-form-7 id='66877' title='Aringo Form']