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PSLE T-score not the true source of pressure

The removal of the Primary School Leaving Examination aggregate score (or T-score) and restructuring of the PSLE system according to the O- and A-Levels, announced at the National Day Rally, fall short of my expectations.

The removal of the Primary School Leaving Examination aggregate score (or T-score) and restructuring of the PSLE system according to the O- and A-Levels, announced at the National Day Rally, fall short of my expectations.

The intention is good; I applaud the efforts to respond to parents’ varied concerns. It remains to be seen, though, how effectively these measures will solve a key predicament of our pupils: The immense pressure to secure a place in a good secondary school.

Whether or not aggregate scores are present on PSLE result slips seems inconsequential. So long as secondary schools’ main criteria for selecting pupils is academic-based, there will be pressure to excel academically.

As one who sat through the A-Levels, I can say that the consideration of the manner in which my results were going to be reflected on my certificate had negligible bearing on how hard I pushed myself.

After all, the main requirement for entry into the university faculty of my choice is, and has always been, academic excellence.

The removal of aggregate scores will prevent secondary schools from nitpicking over tiny margins separating pupils with similar scores.

How much will it alleviate the stress placed on our pupils, though, if little is done to restructure the results-oriented barriers to entry into secondary education, the true perpetrators of the problem?

Furthermore, with no aggregate scores, primary school pupils would be compelled more than ever to pursue other means of distinguishing themselves from the rest.

While some see this as an opportunity for our pupils to develop holistically, this compulsion to accumulate more non-academic achievements for their portfolio would erase whatever marginal improvement the new measures would bring.

Where pupils previously chased an additional point or two, they would be pursuing excellence in multiple fields to be ahead of the pack.

It would be an exercise in futility if academic competition remains as tough and yields as much pressure as before while competition shifts to other arenas. More importantly, our pupils would be bearing the brunt of any increased strain from juggling their pursuits of excellence.

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