Primary Six Forum

7th February 2014

7.00pm to 9.30pm

Education System – Primary Level

Primary 1 to 2

Orientation Stage:

Primary 5 & 6

Subject Based Banding

Parental Option

P5/P6: Mother Tongue, English Language, Math, Science, Higher Mother Tongue, Foundation EL, Foundation Math, Foundation Science, Foundation Mother Tongue

PSLE

Primary 3 to 4

Foundation Stage:

Education System – Sec/JC/CI Level Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE)

Normal (Acad.)/ Normal (Tech.) Course (Sec 1- 4)

Special/ Express Course (Sec 1- 4)

GCE ‘O’ Level Examination

Secondary 5N

GCE ‘N’ Level Examination

Spe

cialized

Ind

ep

end

en

t Scho

ols

Private

Fun

de

d Sch

oo

ls

Inte

grated P

rogram

me

Institute of Technical Education

GCE ‘A’ Level Examination/ Other Qualifications Polytechnics JC/CI

Universities

What are the Education Options available after Primary School?

Mainstream secondary schools

Specialised schools

Specialised Independent schools

Integrated Programme schools

Mainstream secondary schools

Offers Express Stream (4 years to ‘O’ level) Offers Normal Stream (4 years to ‘N’ level and another 1 year to ‘O’ level) a) Normal Technical (NT) b) Normal Academic (NA)

Integrated Programme Schools

a) An integrated Secondary School and JC education

b) Secondary school students can proceed to sit for their A level or equivalent without taking the O level examination

c) Students can enrol for IP either in Sec 1/3 d) Allows students who are academically

inclined to benefit from engaging in broader learning experiences

May offer either the GCE O or A-level, or specialised diplomas For students with certain aptitudes in the Arts, Sports or Maths & Sciences

a) SOTA (School of the Arts) b) SSP (Singapore Sports School) c) SST (School of Science and Technology) d) NUS High School of Maths and Science

Specialised Independent Schools

Specialised Schools

a) Focus on hands-on learning and practical knowledge

b) Training to prepare students for ITE subsequently

c) Training for the ITE Skills Certification - Assumption Pathway School - Crest Secondary - Northlight School - Spectra Secondary

KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

Motivational Talks (Term 1, 3, 4)

Star Map (After CA1, SA1, Prelims)

P6 Study Camp (2nd-4th June)

Mass Oral Remediation (Term 3)

Target Remediation (Term 3)

Teaching of Heuristics (Math)

Concept Mapping (Science)

Consultation sessions with teachers

- They spend quite a substantial amount of time on on-line games and social networking platforms - They think they “still have time” to prepare for the PSLE

Observations and concerns from P6 teachers

Transition from P5 to P6

- Students have not settled down to study for PSLE yet. They are not aware of the importance and expectations of the PSLE.

Observations and concerns

Progressive learning of P3 to P6 concepts

Some pupils neglected their revision on what they have learnt in Primary 3 to 5, especially for Math and Science concepts

PSLE EXAM

Placement in course / school

‘Reality check’ in a 10-12 year

education journey

CALCULATION OF PSLE T-SCORE

Subject grade reflects a pupil’s

performance in the subject.

CALCULATION OF PSLE T-SCORE

Aggregate score shows his/her

performance in the examination.

All the 4 subjects (EL, MT, Maths & Sc)

carry the same weighting.

The mark for each subject is converted into

a transformed score .

T-Score Computation

T-score = 50 + 10(x-m)/SD

where X is the pupil’s mark

m is the average scored by all the pupils

SD is the standard deviation

( spread of marks around the average )

CALCULATION OF PSLE T-SCORE • Suppose if the paper is easy,

• Child A scored 80, average of cohort is 50 and

the standard deviation is 20,

• T-score = 50 + 10(80 – 50)/20

= 65

T-score = 50 + 10(x-m)/SD

65

CALCULATION OF PSLE T-SCORE • Suppose if the paper is difficult,

• Child B scored 80, average of cohort is 30 and

the standard deviation is 20,

• T-score = 50 + 10(80 – 50)/20

= 75

T-score = 50 + 10(x-m)/SD

75

CALCULATION OF PSLE T-SCORE

The transformed-scores of the 4 subjects

are added to give the Aggregate Score

PSLE 2014 Oral Examination

EL/FEL

CL/ML/TL

FCL / FML / FTL

Bengali / Gujarati / Hindi / Panjabi / Urdu

Foundation Bengali / Foundation Gujarati/Foundation Hindi / Foundation Panjabi / Foundation Urdu

14th & 15th August

No lessons will be conducted on 14th & 15th Aug 2014 for this examination.

PSLE 2014

Listening Comprehension

EL/FEL

CL/ML/TL

FCL / FML / FTL

Bengali / Gujarati / Hindi / Panjabi / Urdu

Foundation Bengali / Foundation Gujarati / Foundation Hindi / Foundation Panjabi / Foundation Urdu

19th September

No lessons will be conducted on 19th Sept 2014 for the morning session pupils only.

PSLE 2014

Written Examination

25th Sep to 1st Oct 2014

Website : http://www.seab.gov.sg/examCalendar/2014_ExamCalendar_PSLE.pdf Note : The full PSLE examination timetable will

be made available by 24 February 2014.

PSLE 2014

Secondary 1 Posting Exercise Timeline

Timeline Remarks

Aug Distribution of Sec 1 Posting Booklets (Part 1 – General Information)

Oct Distribution of Sec 1 Posting Booklets (Part 2 –Information on Secondary Schools)

Late Nov Release of PSLE results

Late Nov Submission of Sec 1 Option Form

Late Dec Release of School Posting Results

Introduction

DSA-Sec Exercise introduced in 2004. Participating Sec Schools have the autonomy to decide who to admit via DSA Exercise. DSA Exercise is not a centralized posting exercise. MOE HQ is performing the role as a Clearing House agent for this exercise.

Overview of the DSA-Sec Exercise

Stage 1 Selection + issuance of letters to all applicants

Stage 1 Applicants on Confirmed/ Waiting/ Rejected Lists + Ranking

School Preference Forms (to be issued to students by Primary Schools)

Stage 2 Exercise School Preference

DSA Allocation Stage 3

Results Release

Report to Sec Schools By Sec Schools By Pri Schools By PPS

Star Map - Objectives

• To provide a visual representation of a pupil’s assessment score in relation to the other scores of the class

• To help pupils set reasonable targets for their improvement and to enable them to monitor their academic progress

Class Star Map

Median for P6-01

Sam Wong

Pupil’s Star Map

Median of the

respective

subjects

MILESTONE SUCCESS TERM 1

January February February Week 8

CA1 Motivational Talk

(1st Round)

Week 7 Target Setting

March April May

Week 8

(Mid-March) Direct School Admission-

Secondary (DSA-Sec) Exercise

SA1

MILESTONE SUCCESSTERM 2

June July September August

June Holidays Study Camp

(From 4th Week of August) Preliminary Exam

(14-15 August) PSLE Oral Exam

MILESTONE SUCCESS TERM 3

Motivational Talk (2nd Round)

(19 Sep) PSLE

Listening Comprehension

Exam

September October December Nov

(1st week Nov/Dec holidays) Release

of PSLE

Results

(End Dec) Secondary

School Posting

Sept Holidays

Study Camp

MILESTONE SUCCESS TERM 4

(25 Sep - 1 Oct) PSLE Written

Exam

Department

Sharing

DEPARTMENT

2015 new EL Syllabus?

Personal response, visual stimulus comprehension?

2014 cohort (Last batch taking the existing

PSLE format)

Which PSLE format?

EXAM FORMAT (Standard) Paper Component Weighting

(%) Marks Duration

1 Situational Writing Continuous Writing

27.5 55 1 hr 10 min

2 Language Use Comprehension

47.5 95 1 hr 50 min

Listening Comprehension 10 20

Oral Communication 15 30

100 200

Note: Pupils will have for take the Paper 1 and Paper 2 on the same exam day

EXAM FORMAT (Foundation) Paper Component Weighting

(%) Marks Duration

1 Situational Writing Continuous Writing

27 40 1 hr 10 min

2 Language Use Comprehension

40 60 1 hr 20 min

Listening Comprehension 13 20

Oral Communication 20 30

100 150

Note: Pupils will have for take the Paper 1 and Paper 2 on the same exam day

Approach in teaching EL Language

- STELLAR APPROACH (Partial) 2013-2014

- Teaching using STELLAR STRATEGIES For ENGLISH LANGUAGE

LEARNING AND READING

-Complemented with language strategies for reading, writing and language comprehension

FOCUS:

Differentiated Instruction

Supported Reading

RICHES (Reading Compre)

Using Contextual

Clues

Writing Strategies

(WPC)

Ipad Apps (Oral Reading)

EL teaching strategies

Release of Oral, Listening Comprehension and Paper 1 results to allow pupils have a rough gauge of their standard, helping them to better prepare for their examinations Pupils can understand the marking expectations of 1st and 2nd markers and improve on their areas of concern

Release of results for minor components @P6

FOCUS in school

- Effective Communication (speaking clearly and confidently in class setting)

- PRACTICE PAPERS (exam style)

Components which pupils will be able to score:

1) Oral Communication (30 marks)

2) Listening (20 marks) We advise pupils to excel in these components

3) Situational Writing (15 marks)

Challenging sections:

Paper 2 - Main Paper (95 marks)

Main Paper (Challenging Components)

-Vocabulary (10 marks)

-Cloze Passage (15 marks)

-Synthesis & Transformation (10 marks)

- Comprehension (20 marks)

Paper 1 – Continuous Writing

(40 marks)

Strategies Encourage extensive reading/ STELLAR approach

• Reading of books, newspaper articles and magazines such as Reader’s Digest or National Geographic

• Get the pupils to take note of interesting phrases and vocabulary that can be used in compositions and learn to use them in context

• Make relevant applications of content materials to the STELLAR themes

• Cultivate a habit of writing (be it journals/reviews & reflections)

-Mishaps

-Crimes

-Adventures

-Heroism

-Relationships

P6 STELLAR THEMES

-Facing Fears

-Cyber-wellness

-Overcoming Odds

- Fractured tales

- Hobbies

P5 Themes

How can parents complement learning at home?

- Engage in meaningful conversations over family bonding, model good English usage and ask questions to probe thinking

- Be discerning in the selection of assessment and reference books

- Ask your child to reiterate where and why they had gone wrong in their mistakes (reinforce learning)

Supplementary and Enrichment - Supplementary Classes (Term 1- Term 3)

- Target Group Remediation (End Term 2- PSLE)

- Mass Oral Remediation (Term 3 to PSLE Oral)

- Study Camp (2nd-4th June)

- Little Red Dot class sharing (weekly)

Parental support in terms of their child’s attendance is essential for all programmes to be effective.

MATHEMATICS

DEPARTMENT

Assessment

Paper Booklet Item Type Weighting Duration

1 A MCQ 40 % 50 min

B Short answer

2 Short/ Structured

long answer

60 % 1 h 40 min

Total 100 % 2 h 30 min

Standard

Foundation

Paper Booklet Item Type Weighting Duration

1 A MCQ 50 % 1 hr

B Short answer

2 Short/ Structured

long answer

50 % 1 h 15 min

Total 100 % 2 h 15 min

Assessment

Objectives:

• Achieve a better balance between computational skills and problem solving skills

• Widen the repertoire of teaching and learning approaches to facilitate the use of investigations and problems in authentic situations

• Help students, particularly those with difficulty learning mathematics, develop greater confidence in doing mathematics.

Use Of Calculator

• Approved calculator models will be listed in Candidate’s Handbook (given out by MOE at a later date)

• To be used in Paper 2 only

CAUTION!

• Not encouraged for basic computation to avoid over-reliance

Use Of Calculator

• Math Olympiad - To stimulate and develop students’ creative thinking

and problem solving abilities - To impart to students process and visual thinking skills

that are required to solve various non-routine problem sums

• Target Remediation

Programmes and Enrichment

• Reinforce Multiplication and Division tables by working on the speed and accuracy in completing questions

• Engage in Mathematical Reasoning

math.nie.edu.sg/T3/downloads/AME Keynote.pdf

Strategies

• Relate mathematical concepts to real life

– Use of Percentage in the Great Singapore Sale

– Speed in travelling to other places

• Play mathematical games (e.g. Arithemet EQ, Sudoku etc)

Strategies

• Highlighting Key Information in questions

– Use of Model Drawing (Making a representation)

– Reinforce other heuristic skills (Working Backward, Look for Patterns etc)

• Inculcate the right attitude in Math

– Perseverance

– Time-management

Strategies

Exposure to new questions

Experiment and solve through new methods/ solutions

Exercise to reinforce learning

What is Science? Science is man’s systematic inquiry (or investigation) of the natural & physical world (or environment). Products of inquiry: concepts & theories Process of inquiry: skills & processes

Aims of the Primary Science Syllabus • Provide pupils with:

experiences which build on their interest in

& stimulate curiosity about their

environment

basic scientific concepts to help them

understand themselves & the world around

them

opportunities to develop skills, habits of

mind & attitudes necessary for scientific

inquiry

opportunities to learn how science influences man & the environment

Skills & Processes

Knowledge

(5 themes)

Attitudes & Ethics

Syllabus Framework

Cycles

Diversity

Interactions

Energy

Systems

What will be tested?

P3 topics

P4 topics

P5 topics

P6 topics

P3 topics

P4 topics

P5 topics

P6 topics

PSLE SCIENCE (Standard Stream)

Duration: 1h 45min

• MCQ-Multiple Choice Questions

• Open-ended questions

require pupils to craft their own answers based on scientific principles & concepts.

PSLE FOUNDATION SCIENCE Duration: 1h 15min

• Structured Questions:

Pupils are required to fill in the blanks.

Common reasons given by pupils for not scoring when polled:

1) Could not understand the questions.

2) Can understand the questions but do not know how to craft the answers.

3) Do not know the key words/concepts required in the answer.

Common concerns of parents:

My child has studied the

textbooks, did many assessment

books but still

cannot score.

Common Concerns of Parents

Do not understand why my child’s answers are not accepted.

Helping your Child to Learn Science

Refer to syllabus at : MOE Intranet •Stimulate an interest in science •Practise ‘doing science’

Helping your Child to Learn Science

• Learn application skills rather than drill on facts

• Focus on concepts

& how they are interconnected.

Helping Your Child Learn Science

• Be discerning in the selection of practice papers/ assessment books.

• Revise content using concept maps.

Concept Map –to consolidate learning Diversity

Great variety of living and non-

living things around us

Need air, water and food

Grow

Move by themselves

Respond to changes around

them

Reproduce

Have a limited life span

Living thingsdo

Examples of

groups of

living things

are

Non-living things

Materials

do not

are made of

Have properties that their

uses are based on

Animals Plants Fungi Micro-

organisms

Flowering/non-

flowering

Examples of

groups of

animals are

can be classified according to

Hardness Strength Flexibility Ability to

float or sink

in water

Degree of

transparency

to light

Magnetic

property

Thermal

propertyElectrical

property

Hard Soft

Strong Weak/

brittle

Flexible Stiff

Floats Sink

Transparent Translucent

Opaque

Good

conductor of

heat

Poor

conductor of

heat

Magnetic Non-

magnetic

Conductor of

electricity

Non-conductor

of electricity

Man classify them based on their

similarities and differences

Mammals Birds Fish Insects

© Canberra Primary School 2011

Methods of

seed/fruit

dispersal

Land

plant/aquatic

plants

By water By wind By

splitting

By

animals

-warm

blooded

-give birth to

young alive

-suckle their

young

-have hair

-warm

blooded

-lay eggs

-have

feathers

-have 2 legs

-cold-

blooded

-lay eggs

-have

scales

-3 body

parts: head,

thorax &

abdomen

-lay eggs

-have 6 legs

Materials

made

from steel,

cobalt,

nickel or

iron

Eg. Plastic, wood,

aluminium,copper

Good

conductor of

electricity

are also

environments

Living things Non-Living things

are made of

What we do to help each child

Concept Maps

(consolidate learning and learn the connectedness of

concepts)

Challenge File

(close learning gaps-what I have yet to

know)

‘RICHES’

(for answering Science qns)

Inquire

(Ask ‘Why?)

What does ‘RICHES’ stand for?

R Read

I Interpret

C Concept(s)

H Highlight

E Elaborate

S Sieve/

Solve

Target Remediation that caters to different

abilities(2nd semester)

ICAS Science Competition

Study camp in June

Inter-school Science Quests for

selected pupils

Programmes and Enrichment

Well-being of Your Child

How do I support my child?

Mind

Body Heart

Focused Mind

• Personal schedule

• Provide support

• Right amount of stress

Happy Heart

• Be present

• Active listening

• Recreation

• Personal space

Well-nourished

Body

• Sufficient sleep

• Balanced diet

• Regular exercise

Every child matters

Every moment in the school matters

In pursuit of Excellence

Thank you!