PSLE changes no silver bullet, but part of ‘significant reform’ to de-emphasise grades: Ong

SINGAPORE — The new Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) scoring model may not be the silver bullet to de-emphasise grades, but is part of a “significant reform” of the entire education system that will achieve this goal, Education Minister Ong Ye Kung said on Sunday (July 28).

He likened the new Achievement Levels system to the physical fitness tests in schools and the army, in which personal achievements matter more than who finishes ahead. This is a departure from the current T-score (transformed score) system — like a “national competition”, in Mr Ong’s words — which is based on how each student performs in relation to his or her peers.

Speaking on the sidelines of a constituency event at his Gambas ward, where residents voted on a neighbourhood renewal programme, Mr Ong said he has been monitoring the reactions from parents, teachers and students after the Ministry of Education (MOE) announced details of the new scoring system on Thursday (July 25).

Many had asked whether there was any real change to the previous system, given that the incoming system — to kick in from 2021 — will still differentiate students through the new Achievement Levels.

Mr Ong told reporters: “The basic principles are different. How? The old T-score system is a bit like going for a national running competition, that means you compete and run with each other… You may put in a very good timing, but if somebody ran ahead of you, you still lose the medal.”

With the new system, T-scores are replaced by wider scoring bands and will be based purely on an individual’s own performance.

Like the individual physical proficiency test (IPPT), Mr Ong said pupils are not in a competition with others, but if they meet a certain level of performance, they will get “the gold medal” even if their peers do better.

“It is two separate scoring principles and if you imagine it this way, the IPPT is much less stressful than going for a national competition.

“So I think that will be the impact, that over time, students will be able to focus on their achievements — what do I want to achieve, my target and how do I want to achieve it — as opposed to comparing with each other and to get ahead of each other in order to score a high T-score,” he said.

But it is only the scoring system that has changed, he stressed. “Under this new scoring system, the subjects don’t change, the curriculum doesn’t change, the way we teach doesn’t change and may improve for the better, and the assessment doesn’t change,” Mr Ong said.

NEW SYSTEM WON'T SIGNIFICANTLY ALTER EDUCATIONAL PATHS

Through trials and simulations, MOE educators found that from a macro view, the new system will not significantly alter the educational paths of pupils post-PSLE.

More than 99 per cent of pupils progress to secondary schools after their PSLE, and around two-thirds of them end up in the Express stream today and 1 in 5 will take Higher Mother Tongue. These, as well as the percentage of pupils entering integrated programmes, will not change with the new system, said Mr Ong.

This led to the “most dominant question”, that since the end-result appears to be similar, then “what is the big deal” with the changes, he noted.

“(They say) we need to reduce stress, reduce rote learning and reduce overemphasis on academics grades, so how is this going to solve that when everything still seems the same,” said Mr Ong.

“I can totally understand that point of view. Many parents are working and understand how industries are changing and how the modern economy is changing. And they feel it (for their children), that there is an overemphasis on grades and they are studying PSLE as if it is the do-or-die exam, when it doesn’t really help the child when they grow up,” he said.

But changes to the PSLE scoring system alone will not resolve this, and Mr Ong highlighted how it takes a swathe of other measures that MOE has announced recently to de-emphasise academic grades, such as phasing out the streaming system by 2024, introducing aptitude-based admission into polytechnics and universities, as well as lifelong learning with SkillsFuture.

Describing this as a significant shift, Mr Ong said: “This is a period in which the education system is undergoing significant reform, not by one single measure but by a whole package of measures that we have systematically implemented over time. Under this system, we will be able to better prepare our children for the future.”