Singapore's Education System
A simple flowchart overview of Singapore's education system
You may click on any level in the flowchart below to see the relevant
list of recommended Singapore school materials.
From pre-nursery to university
A growing number of children in Singapore are attending pre-nursery or
playschool education before the age of 4, though this is optional. Many
children in Singapore also attend Nursery for 1 year at the age of 4,
though this is also optional. By the age of 5, most children will be
attending Kindergarten for 2 years (K1 and K2).
Formal education in Singapore begins at primary schools, starting from
Primary 1 through Primary 6, which is similar to First Grade through Sixth
Grade in the American system.
Children who pass the Primary Six Leaving Examination (PSLE) at the end
of Primary 6 will progress to secondary schools, starting from Secondary 1
through Secondary 4 (Special/Express Stream), or Secondary 1 through
Secondary 5 (Normal Stream). This is somewhat similar to Seventh Grade
through Tenth Grade in the American system.
Students who pass the GCE 'O' Level examination at the end of Secondary
4 or 5 will then have to compete for admission to either a Junior College
(2 years), a Polytechnic (3 or 4 years) or a Pre-University Centre (3
years). This is somewhat similar to Eleventh Grade and Twelfth Grade in
the American system.
Finally, students who pass the GCE 'A' Level examination at the end of
Junior College Year 2 or Pre-University Year 3, and students with
excellent results at the end of Polytechnic Year 3/4 will then have to
compete for admission to a local university, either National University of
Singapore (NUS) or Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
Singapore's school textbooks and workbooks
All school textbooks, workbooks and assessment books have to follow the
subject syllabus set by the Singapore education ministry for each level.
Due to the progressive liberalisation of the school textbook market, you
will find that all Singapore schools may be using only one textbook
package for Mathematics and English for certain levels, while they are
allowed to choose from a list of several textbook packages for Mathematics
and English for the other levels.
Singapore's school assessment books
Other than school textbooks and workbooks, assessment books also make
up a significant part of Singapore's success recipe in education.
Assessment books provide children with additional practice and drills
beyond those covered in school workbooks. Almost every child in Singapore
owns at least a few assessment books for each subject. It is not uncommon
for parents to buy dozens of assessment books for their children for each
subject. Assessment books are also widely used in Singapore schools as
part of their school curriculum, as well as tuition centres after school
hours.
Singapore Math school assessment books provide children with more
exercises, which are often more difficult and challenging, than those in
the workbooks. Some assessment books provide only topical exercises, some
provide only revision exercises, some provide only test papers, some
provide only word problems, some provide only thinking skills exercises,
and some provide a combination of two or more of the above.
The secret of Singapore's success in education
There are many ingredients in the success of Singapore's education
system. First and foremost is the efficiency, dedication and work of our
education ministry in Singapore. They are the ones who produced the
framework for our education system and our syllabi. Singapore school
books, including textbooks, workbooks and assessment books, are written
based on the above mentioned syllabi.
However, our education ministry updates its syllabi regularly to ensure
they remain relevant in the ever changing global economy. Hence, the old
editions of the Singapore books are obsolete because they are based on the
old syllabi whereas the new editions of the Singapore books are based on
the new syllabi. It is therefore very important that you buy directly from
SGBox.com Bookstore to make sure that you are
getting the correct books and the true value for your money.
The environment in Singapore is also a major important contributing
factor. A large majority of parents in Singapore are very concerned about
the education of their children, and will strive to give their children
the best in their education, including buying lots of assessment books and
getting private tuition for their children.
The competitive environment in most schools in Singapore is another
major factor. Children are assessed many times each year by their teachers
via homework, projects, tests and exams. Streaming is part and parcel of
this competition. Children are streamed into various classes according to
their academic ability, which is highly dependent on their grades. Even
our Singapore schools are ranked according to the national exam grades
that their students received each year.
There are many more reasons why Singapore's education system is so
successful, but that will take pages to write.
See also:
|
