PSLE Information For Parents: PSLE Is A Check Point, Not An End Point

Many students and parents speak of the PSLE as a very stressful event. Students get burnt-out with extra classes in school and tuition classes outside of school, while some parents go to the extent of taking a few months of unpaid leave from work to prepare their child for the examination. However, it is essential for all students and parents to recognize that the PSLE is a checkpoint, not an endpoint.  It is a gauge of the learning progress and academic aptitude of students. Here are some PSLE Information for parents so that they can help their little ones deciding how to progress after they have received their results.

What does your child’s PSLE score mean for him or her?

The PSLE score is important to your child, as it determines whether your child can move on to Secondary School.

Currently, students who fail the PSLE have 2 options: to retake the PSLE a year later or to advance to a vocational school.

Students who pass the PSLE have 3 options: to select a school that offers the ‘O’ Levels (a 4-years structured programme), to select a school that offers the Integrated Programme (a 6-years programme up to the ‘A’ Levels, offering more choices in the syllabus), to select a school that offers the International Baccalaureate (a 6-years programme up to a Diploma certification, with more project work in the syllabus).

PSLE information for parents: support your child through the results and beyond.

PSLE Information for Parents: How should parents deal with a lower than expected PSLE score?

Be a cheerleader, not a critic

Parents need to be mindful that the PSLE is sat for by their child and that they should refrain from putting their expectations on their child. The child should be motivated and committed to the preparation for the PSLE, to set his or her own expected score for the examination.

If parents set an expected PSLE score for their child and the actual results are lower than expected, getting angry or feeling disappointed with the child leads to nothing positive. Negative words, tone or usage of words, can damage the child’s self-esteem and effectively demoralize them from their personal desire to study hard and score well.

In such situations, it is recommended that parents take a breather from their child to balance their emotions and remind themselves that their role is to be a cheerleader in their child’s life, not a critic.

For students who set an expectation for their PSLE score and unfortunately obtain a lower than expected score, it is in the parents’ position to be supportive and encouraging. Praise your child fairly for the effort in preparing for the examinations and non-academic talents that your child possesses.

How can parents support their children in choosing a secondary school? What are the factors for consideration?

Parents should guide their child in their evaluation of preferred secondary school choices. If their child is swayed to apply for a particular school due to peer pressure, it is necessary for parents to lay down the disadvantages of making such a decision.

The main factors that parents and students should consider, in choosing a secondary school is the school’s values and motto, the travelling time needed between home and school, as well as the support system and resources available by the school. Decision making helps to grow a child in doing research and bearing the consequences of the decision made. 

Please read: Top Secondary Schools in Singapore, 2017 

We hope you have found this information useful – remember: support your child, regardless of the outcome!

(Featured image credit: Screengrab; The Straits Times)