.Sunday, May 16, 2010 ' 9:14 PM Y
In the eyes of Singaporean students, attaining desirable PSLE results is their first step to achieve success. They strive to do well for PSLE and enroll in a reputable secondary school. Parents are also concerned about their children's studies. They see a need to ensure that their child is able to score academically and believe this is the only path which leads to a bright future.
The PSLE weightage system has been in place for decades. The grades of four core subjects (English, Mathematics, Mother Tongue and Science) studied in primary school are reflected in the PSLE certificate. Recently, many parents have voiced out their opinions regarding the weightage of Mother Tongue language. The percentage allocation has always been equal for all subjects. Parents have raised concerns that their children, who come from English-speaking backgrounds, are having difficulty doing well in their Second Language, despite having done well in the other three subjects. As a result, their PSLE aggregates may not look as outstanding as what they have expected. There have been many articles published in the newspapers and forum discussions on the internet regarding this issue. Singaporeans shared personal views amongst themselves. To such extreme, petitions have been signed by thousands to oppose the reduction of the weightage of Second Language.
Despite the two differing views, in my opinion, the weightage of Mother Tongue language should remain the same. Students may either be academically inclined in all subjects or weaker in certain subjects. Not everyone is able to excel in all areas. Singapore is a multi-racial society. Although English may be our First Language, Singapore is still a bilingual society. All Singaporeans are expected to speak English and their Mother Tongue language fluently. Second languages (Chinese, Malay, Tamil) are equally important. If reducing the weightage of the Mother Tongue language will benefit those who are weak in their Second Language, how about those who are stronger in that subject? There are students in Singapore who can excel in their Mother Tongue language. The minority races also have students within their population who can score even better results in their written and spoken Mother Tongue compared to English. Why should the weightage be reduced just because there are students who cannot seem to do well in that subject? Primary level students who come from English-speaking backgounds may find the Mother Tongue language difficult to comprehend, but languages can be learnt. It all depends on the students' motivation to pick up the language and find interest in it.
What if the Ministry of Education really decides to reduce the weightage of the Mother Tongue language? Many students who previously scored well only in the three subjects except Mother Tongue will benefit and do much better in PSLE. Students who do better in Mother Tongue will be unhappy that their hard work put into the Mother Tongue language is not recognised. Many will feel that English is of a higher priority compared to Mother Tongue. Students will gradually lose interest in studying the Mother Tongue language since it is not highly valued in PSLE. Hence, by doing worse for Mother Tongue, it affects their overall PSLE aggregate. There have been many protests against the reduction of weightage and the MOE has taken them into consideration.
Just days ago, Education Minister Dr Ng Eng Hen, together with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, announced to Singapore that MOE will not reduce the Mother Tongue language weightage in PSLE. This has been a relief and disappointment to many. This 'verdict' was to my satisfaction. The main purpose of PSLE is to test students academically-wise in the four subjects. Students will study harder and add in extra effort to learn and study the Mother Tongue language since they know it is of equal weightage to the other subjects.
In Singapore, Mother Tongue language teachers are also highly valued by the MOE. To encourage students to adopt an active interest in that subject, teachers will change their style of teaching. Instead of just the usual writing of compositions or answering questions in comprehensions, Mother Tongue teachers will also use new and fresh teaching methods to engage students into learning the language. This is to increase participation during the process of learning this subject.
Final conclusion- Mother Tongue is still as important as English despite how tough learning the language may seem. Students should understand this and continue to study hard for both subjects.
-Pearlyn :D-
Labels: Singaporeans Spilt On Mother Tongue Weighting
