Some students fail to thrive on Integrated Programme scheme
Some transfer to polys or other JCs, others do poorly in A levels
Published on Dec 22, 2011
By Sandra Davie, Senior Writer
Eleven of the 54 Rulang Primary pupils who made it to the IP celebrating yesterday, PSLE certificates in hand. They are (from left, back row) Jiang Zixing, Shaun Tan, Cheng Ging Wei, Han Mingzhou, Oh Sheng Han, (front row) Gillian Yeong, Rachel Liu, Yasmin Ziqin Mohamed Yousoof, Felicia Tai, Sneha Sanil and Deng Boya. — ST PHOTO: NURIA LING
As about 3,000 students on Wednesday celebrated winning a coveted place on the Integrated Programme (IP), others already on the scheme are about to make a quiet exit to the polytechnics and lesser-ranked junior colleges.
Around 5 per cent of IP students exit before graduation, said the Education Ministry. Some transfer to polytechnics or junior colleges not offering the scheme. Of those who complete it, about 5 per cent fail to get into the local universities, the ministry added. Altogether, between 200 and 250 youngsters a year fail to thrive on the programme.
Students on the IP skip the O levels and shoot straight for the A levels or International Baccalaureate. They are expected to learn in an independent way, without being stifled by having to prepare for two major exams in six years.
But this is not necessarily the most desirable route for everyone, said the ministry. Nor is it the only path to success. ‘Ultimately, the IP should only be taken up by those who would benefit from the self-directed learning environment it aims to promote,’ said a spokesman.
Surprisingly, those who fail to thrive on the IP are not just less academic youngsters who were taken on because of their sporting or co-curricular achievements. Several entered IP schools with Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) scores well above 250, and a handful were from the Gifted Education Programme.
The Straits Times interviewed 40 students who had either left brand-name schools offering the programme – such as Raffles and Hwa Chong Institution – or stayed on but fared poorly.
Some of those who left opted to go to the polytechnics, using their school examination or O-level results. Others transferred to lesser-ranked junior colleges.
Many of those who did badly were unable to get into the local universities, heading instead to private schools such as the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) or overseas to take up degree studies.
Recognising that not all students thrive on the scheme, two IP schools – Dunman High and Hwa Chong – also run O-level classes to prepare students for the examination. They said those lagging behind are identified at the end of Secondary 2 and advised to go into the O-level class. But some students also make the switch to the O-level track in Sec 4 or even JC1.
A few who do well enough in the O levels are admitted back into the JC level in the same school. If not, they are advised to leave for the polytechnics or other JCs.
Raffles Institution said it was looking into starting an O-level class. Principal Lim Lai Cheng said that if this happens, it will be ‘to open up options’ for those wanting to go to polytechnics or abroad.
The IP started in 2004 at eight schools. It was aimed at the top 10 per cent of students, who were clearly bound for university. The idea was to provide a seamless secondary and junior college education, giving them the space to develop intellectual curiosity and other talents.
The scheme became so popular that pupils and parents clamoured to get on board. More schools responded by offering the IP. In two years’ time, 18 of them will be included in the programme, although the latest to join will also be offering the O-level track.
Parents are anxious that there will be even fewer places in top junior colleges for students who are not on the IP but hope to get in after the O levels. Some have turned to tuition centres that promise to help students excel in the PSLE.
Parents who have attended open houses at IP schools say they paint a rosy picture by publicising the stellar results of their IP students. There is no mention of their O-level class, or of those who fail.
Madam Clarissa Lim, who is considering the IP track for her son, said: ‘It is only after talking to some parents of the older kids did I realise that a fair number of IP kids actually fall through the cracks.’ The 38-year-old added: ‘The schools should be more open so that parents will have to think hard about whether the IP suits their children.’
IP students who failed to thrive are divided about the merits of the scheme. One 22-year-old from Raffles Institution, who now studies at SIM, said: ‘I didn’t do so well in the A levels, but I still won’t dismiss the IP as I felt that I gained in other ways. In my degree course at SIM, I am ahead of my classmates when it comes to research or when it comes to analysis.’
The student, who asked not to be named, added: ‘In a sense it prepared me for the university well. Ironically it didn’t prepare me well for the A levels.’
Others felt the IP had affected their academic progress. ‘As far as I am concerned, I wasted one whole year,’ said 18-year-old S. Lim, now in Ngee Ann Polytechnic. She had applied to the polytechnic after JC1. On her decision, she said: ‘I am really one of those people who need a major exam to hunker down to study.’
The ministry said that for most students, O levels will continue to be the most suitable preparation for post-secondary education. It said this is why all the seven new IP schools will offer this route alongside the elite programme, to allow students to transfer across tracks.
—–转载自海峡时报
所以没有什么事是肯定的！进入IP的学生都要加油！:victory:
A handful 是Gep的，我们连GEP都不是，更加要觉醒一点。嘻嘻。
学习是要努力的，持之以恒的事。
不能躺在过去的成绩上睡觉。
努力、努力、再努力！学习、学习、再学习。
IP的淘汰率是很高的。要时刻警醒。
教过IP学生的飘过, 的确制度还有些需要改进的地方, 因为我感觉这些PSLE的生源来说, 最后达到的高度很多并不尽如人意.
有时候那句话说得的确在理: 没有鸭梨就没有冻梨
：陈俐妃）
《海峡时报》最近登载很多“反思”直通车课程的文章，比如12月2号的《Tuition boom as kids prep for Integrated Programme》，12月14号的《The runaway IP train》和12月17号的《Stick to tried and tested O levels》。 教育部坐不住了，今天开始反击。
O levels still the best way for most: MOE
http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_747939.html
WE WOULD like to correct the perception that the introduction of the Integrated Programme (IP) has reduced opportunities for those not selected for the programme after the PSLE.
Popular schools and junior colleges have always seen more applicants than places, resulting in higher cut-off points. For example, before the IP started in 2004, the cut-off point for Raffles Institution (RI) was around 260, similar to what it is currently.
We have expanded the enrolment of the JCs offering IP. The number of students entering these JCs from secondary schools not offering IP has increased from some 2,100 previously to over 2,300 today.
These students make up about 50 per cent of the cohort in the JCs offering IP, comparable to the proportion before IP started.
The commentary (‘The runaway IP train’;Dec 14), noted that only some 500 places were set aside for O-level students entering Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) and RI at JC1. We would like to point out that prior to IP, only 400 of HCI and RI’s students (at JC1) hailed from schools not offering the IP today.
There is now greater diversity in the JCs offering IP, as they are accepting O-level students from more secondary schools. Their students used to come from some 50 schools but now almost 70 schools are represented. This is partly because students from other IP schools no longer compete for admission at JC1.
Ultimately, we strive to maximise each child’s potential, regardless of which school he or she attends.
The IP should not be seen as the only pathway to success. For the majority of our students, the O-level pathway will continue to be the most suitable preparation for post-secondary education.
Dr Cheong Wei Yang
Director, Planning Division
Ministry of Education
最近2天，我老公把最近讨论IP学校的贴子都让孩子看了一遍，大人、孩子都有个心理准备。
大人的责任是要提供一个稳定、舒适的家庭环境，保持一个健康的心态。
在孩子遇到困难的时候，永远支持他们。
做好最坏的打算，即使孩子被IP制度淘汰，也要接受，并和孩子一起应对下一次的选择。
IP制度不会取消。从另外一个层面上来讲，GEP和IP是精英制度的一种体现，只要这个制度不崩溃， IP就会继续存在。
转载这些这些文章的目的一是给已经进入直通车课程的人一个警醒 — 千万不要刀枪入库，马放南山。另一个目的是鼓励O-level体系里的孩子 — 应该把O-level考试当作一个磨练自己的好机会，只要努力学习，A-level时鹿死谁手还未可知！
昨天把这几篇文章给我儿子看了，看到效果了。。。
“国家需要优秀人才领导，而领导人有爱心才最重要，直通车综合课程把社区活动列为优先，培养学生不自私，愿意为人服务，这才重要。”
這點我十分贊同~~
其實, 直通車可以讓一些學生, 花較多的時間在課外活動或者有興趣學科的深廣上, 也是挺不錯的; 而保留O-level考試, 則可以讓一些比較晚開發的學生, 仍然有另次機會, 而不至於在小六PSLE一試定終身, 那也是挺好的.
個人實在不覺得IP的學生就會優於非IP學生(雖然我家小朋友都選擇IP, 但主要是能讓他們少一次考試壓力), 孩子在O-level前多一次試煉, 也是好事