Week 4 Blog Prompt

1)To what extent do you agree with the issues that the student has raised here? Point out some issues of agreement and possible contention


1. I actually agree with a great deal of the issues that the student has raised, and is also a critic of the Singaporean education system.  Indeed, our education has not been stimulating enough to mould the curiosity and thinking process in our students. I would say that what we are learning has been largely content-based, depriving us of the space to think out of the box.  What a student has to do mostly is to memorise these content in order to excel in the exams, during which they are just required to regurgitate these information., though I tend to agree that some unchangeable facts still have to be learnt by heart. However, I oppose extensive memorisation .Most of their time has been spent on just doing this.This has resulted in the severe want of general knowledge and common cents of students, and also their initiative. The entire mind is simply fixed on the subjects they are expected to learn and no attention is paid on to the other attributes of their basic education. Soon after the exams, everything that they had memorised would be largely erased of their mind as they "embark on a new round of knowledge influx". I, as a student here, would like to share some of my personal first-hand experience. Weeks after weeks, we are overwhelmed with assessments or tests on different subjects, on different scale， in addition to the crushing amount of homework assigned daily. Our daily schedule is so hectic that we cannot even afford to spare a minuscule fraction of our life for activities outside that. To most of us, we would just share a common compulsion of clearing the tasks in front of us. Our study material comprises mainly of notes and textbook materials. I believe all of us are prodded by the shortage of time to just stick to and revise on what is given. The education policy of "teach less, learn more"  further compounds the situation, requiring students to expose themselves to further knowledge outside the school curriculum, which is tantamount to increasing the workload and responsibilities of the students. What is the point of this when the students are studying for the sake of studying? The crux of education lies in the fact that it equips us with sufficient knowledge to buttress our depth of thinking processes in the face of future uncertainties, and in short, to tide the child through and advance him fair through life.We even not in the least inspired to think differently.How can our students, the masters of our future, be the founders of change? And how can they adapt our country to the arising turbulent times? Singapore simply cannot take its current prosperity as granted but must further and better it, and that should be the ideal outcome education should yield.
 Studying does not only make you knowledgeable, but also versatile in your thinking and reasoning. Will the knowledge that you memorize be always applicable to the various situations you are in? It is only then does the essence and core of basic education, the ability to make logical and cognitive deduction, comes into handy.That is why we have to receive education. Without this, how can the knowledge that we know be of use? It can be deemed as thrash then. Coupled with this would be the exam-oriented mentality instilled in students and parents here.  The actions of the students fundamentally revolve around the sake of acquiring excellent results for the exams, and has neglected the fact that they are retarding their own mental capacity and all-round development. The perception of intelligence here equates to one's results, which is actually also a misconception. In a nutshell, the Singaporean education can be said to focus on the raw acquisition of information and knowledge rather than the life skills of the student. In Western countries, schools emphasize the significance of thinking and students are engaged in more open critical thinking conversations with one another for their lessons, instead of the conventional Eastern method of imparting solely knowledge to the students. It is only when the student experiences thinking and applies the knowledge he has acquired that the aims of the education has been fulfilled. The result is that Westerners tend to be more creative, innovative, and critical compared with the people in the East. The success is highlighted when school dropouts can also emerge as world figureheads, for example, Apple CEO Steve Jobs.  To the Westerners, education is not the mere acquisition of knowledge, but instead a guide to success. These explains why Easterners are comparatively conservative in their culture, and also how the Westerners has been so advanced in their technologies and societies.  The schools in the West also offer a wide array of third-languages such as Chinese and Korean. This is done in mind of the objective to put students in a good stead when the slated Asian economic dominance arrives. The students there are open-minded and are willing to embrace the virtues of other languages and cultures, thus they learn foreign languages whole-heartedly. Third-language courses are also offered here, but surprisingly, the students claim that they pick them up just for A-levels, with no true intent or interest in the language.  And here in Singapore, any students who raise any bizarre ideas and suggestions would be depreciated and ridiculed, leading to the stagnancy of growth in the creative bunch here. It is no wonder why some pro-Western students would grumble at the education systems here due to its restrictions. 


Also, it must be noted and agreed that the obsession with grades here has also in turn downplayed the dissemination of cultural and moral values. The reliance on content has gone to the extent of even imparting moral concepts through the use of CME textbooks. These can never be infused into the minds of students through lectures, but through early influences and education in childhood and the practical application of it. Rather than teaching the examples of moral deeds, why not stress the importance of morals? The failure to balance between moral and general education has seen its repercussions on the society, that is the corruption of moral values in our Gen-Y. Despite China's education system as even more "dead" than ours, they had successfully groomed morally sound characters. I believe that the reality of the Singapore education system had already made an imprint on student's mind that only their studies mattered to them. 


Therefore, these are two major loopholes of Singapore's education system identified by Janelle Lee, both of which I strongly agree with and rendering me unable to speak up for the system.


2.The letter nonetheless has some flaws in it.  I feel that she is asserting a commanding tone in this letter. This is shown by the use of many rhetorical questions like  "Have we lost the true meaning of education somewhere in the paper chase, buried under all the degrees and diplomas and paychecks?", and also some words of direct criticism, such as "ugliness". This has made it become a true letter of criticism.

Large proportions of her letter were constructed by this tone, and also her reasoning. It lacks some substance in the sense that she should make comparisons of Singapore's education system with those of other advanced countries, and from there probe into the failures of the local education system. This can provide the reader with a stark contrast, which can make it more convincing. Last but not least, to improve on her letter, she should have written on a two-sided basis and also inspecting the merits of Singapore's education system at the same time, after which she can give suggestions on them. This can make the letter seem less commanding.

3. The uprising trend in suicidal cases involving cases would be the main issue I would raise to the Minister. The causes of these suicides have been blamed on the failure of the education system for pressurising students to their extremes. Thus to prevent more of such tragedies from recurring, the education system will have to be reviewed in light of this. I would  also raise other issues such as the growing obesity among students and urge for the all-rounded development of students in our education systems.