HIGHER MOTHER TONGUE IN SECONDARY SCHOOL
FIRST came the scrapping of the gifted programme last year. Now, another kind of streaming bites the dust.
Starting with next year's Secondary 1 intake, the Special and Express courses in secondary schools will be merged into a single Express course.
In a statement, the Ministry of Education (MOE) attributed this to 'diminishing differences between the Special and Express courses'.
Initially, the Special course, introduced in 1979, was meant for students who were in the top 10 per cent of the PSLE cohort, and who took Higher Chinese Language in the Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools.
However, the course has evolved and is no longer exclusive to students in SAP schools - currently, 51 per cent of Special Course students are in SAP schools, while 49 per cent are in non-SAP schools.
MOE has also expanded the Special course to include students in the top 10 per cent of the PSLE cohort who take Higher Malay and Higher Tamil.
The MOE added that the merger would not affect the status of SAP schools.
BONUS POINTS
Said an MOE spokesman: 'This is because MOE will continue to allow pupils in the top 30p er cent of the PSLE cohort who passed Higher Chinese Language (HCL) to be eligible for bonus points for admission to SAP schools.
'This will enable SAP schools to continue to attract top students, as these schools provide a bilingual and bicultural environment that is conducive for nurturing bilingualism in our top students.'
Engineer Yeo Siok Wei, 25, a former student of Chinese High School, said he felt the merger of the two streams was a positive thing.
He said: 'This new system won't isolate students who are supposedly better. Before, when we weren't so well informed, we thought being in a SAP school meant we were better than the rest. Now, there'll be less elitism.'
Agreeing, Ms Wu Huixian, 26, an administrator and former student of CHIJ St Nicholas Girls' School, said she felt the merger of the Special and Express courses would mean 'less segregation' between these groups of students.
One teacher at a SAP school, who declined to be named, said she felt that merging the streams would probably not have much of an effect.
She said: 'Students who want to concentrate on Higher Mother Tongue will most likely still choose the SAP schools because of the reputation these schools have built up over the years.
'I don't think merging the two courses will have much of an effect on the students' results, because the quality of the intake probably won't change that much.'
taken :
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/st...37815,00.html? 
