Gifted or Manmade

Last two days, I had been sending and fetching my daughter and my neighbour's son to attend the second round of GEP( Gifted Education Program) selection exams. Her school happened to be one of exam centers. There were roughly 500 pupils attending the exam, which was a fiction of normal school attendance. But I witnessed the massive traffic jam which I have never experienced before.

The two way road outside school, a 500 meters stretch, both sides, were packed by cars belong to parents who were sending or fetching their children. At one stage, the road was total jam, unmovable. I certainly never see so many cars packed outside school in any ordinary school day, not even the first day of the school. It seemed to me these 500 pupils, if not all, mostly have at least one parent accompanying them to exam. The majority are from at least one "C" class.:) The usual five minutes drive from my home to school turned out to be one hour ordeal. The sight was not less spectacular than Emperor Exam in olden China. I could even sense the anxious and exciting mood of parents in the air.

My daughter, together with other may be thousands pupils, attended two days of English, Maths and general ability test. She is one of two students who have passed the first round of exam. But in my neighbour's son's (ACSJ) class, more than half of class passed the first round.

I was naturally delighted when I first heard her passed, yet, I reminded her gifted or not is not the most important matter in one's life.

It is remarkable when one child to be labeled as "gifted". But in Singapore, that line has been blurred by many men-made efforts.

One pupil who attends numerous tuition may score higher than those who don't. But it is arguable whether he/she is gifted or men made. It seems to matter more to parents than to children nowadays.

My ex neighbour's son was selected into GEP two years ago. He is the only child at home, and I know that since five years old, he has been having tuition.

After exams, I asked my daughter how was exam? She said "Hard, but fun."

She said, "I am happy if I pass, I am still happy if I don't"

Thankfulness

Recently, we switched our fourth son, Stephen, from three-hour kindergarten to a full day childcare programme.He used to attend our church kindergarten in the morning. I found, since the baby was born, it difficult to keep him occupied in the afternoon, he did not take his usual nap in the afternoon and...being an active little boy who wants do a lot,while I was not all the time available, he ended up to be left alone, or into some mischiefs.

We thought about some other enrichment programmes, but with a five month old baby, I am loath to drive around, plus, my elder son will have PSLE next year, he needs a lot of help in studies.

So we chose the little village which is just around corner of our neighbourhood. The cost of school of course is very expensive, but we felt it was out of necessity. The government gives subsidy for all registered childcare program, however, the school administer told me that only working mothers entitle the full amount of S$300, while the non-working mothers only entitle half. (*working mother, by their definition, is those who work for pay more than 56 hour per month.)

As I mentioned in my early post, this is one of classic examples which some of relevant of policies need to be challenged.

the sheer definition of working mother;

the purpose of subsidy, to whom and for what;

the underline calling or factors affect mothers'choice;....

.....

Ironically, mothers work for pay surely have more disposable income to spend for this kind of high end childcare service, while others probably have no means to afford basic needs even they want to.

That reminds me of my suspended research topic. The very reason I took up this research was to help some full time mother and foster a more family friend envirnment in this land. Due to my fifth baby's birth, I have asked for one year break.

Even after one year, my baby will be only one year old, I have four other kids need me , I am wondering "should I first practice what I am preaching?"

.........
Fortunately, Stephen loves his new school, especially many activities based learning which is suitable for his personality.

I am thankful!

That is not simply number game

From The Straits Time Forum Sept 29, 2009

Integration and immigration: Copying the US won't work

BASING our integration and immigration efforts on those of the United States, as Mr K. Kesavapany suggested last Saturday ('Integrating immigrants: Learn from American experience') may not help Singapore. Our experiences are different and based on contrasting paradigms.

Improvements to the demographic profile of the US are not due to its immigration policy but the result of some two centuries of nation building by prudent leaders who enjoyed the advantages of a large country with rich natural resources and a fundamentally strong industrial base buttressed by a critical mass of home-grown citizens.

The US does not suffer from the problem of economic migrants. Also, the comparatively small number who want to make America their home must assimilate, and not the other way round.

Singapore is different. In just 10 years, the population jumped a mind-boggling 25 per cent, to four million in 2000.

Here is the nub: The Singapore Department of Statistics in 2002 showed that in 2000, 63 per cent of all ethnic Singaporean groups aged 35 to 44 years attained only secondary level education. Can these groups compete with well-educated foreign migrants for high-paying jobs created by sophisticated multinationals? Are we creating a poverty trap for low-income Singaporeans?

My understanding of Mr Ngiam Tong Dow's commentary last Thursday ('Lest we become strangers in our own land') is that he wants to remind our population planners to rethink an immigration scheme precisely because Singaporeans face unequal competition from a massive influx of economic immigrants.

In large developed countries with solid home-grown global industrial bases like the US, economic migrants are insignificant and their function is to boost the American economy.

They cannot influence America's social system radically.

Can Singapore's economic model - based on global trade and foreign multinationals - continue to retain the brightest and the best to call this country home?

With 6.5 million people, can we integrate more than three million new citizens over one or two generations successfully through an open, meritocratic system that will not fundamentally affect Singapore's social fabric?

If we fail to integrate our new citizens, the mistake will be irreversible and we will become strangers in our own land.

Paul Chan

This letter is a good one.The population is one of core issues in Singapore policy making. What worries Singapore government is that native Singaporeans are not making enough babies, the immigration policy acts like second best remedy.

However, it is not simply number game. If not mindful,the tiny country like Singapore will be soon floored by the well educated immigrants, and I don't see why is not possible, the less clever and capable native Singaporeans to serve the "foreign Bosses"

Abdication of parents

Parenting is never an easy job.

But I believe it is more difficult in our modern society. Why do I say so? There are just too many competing interests for many parents. One of biggest woe that industrialization and globalization economy has done towards families is to take the fathers away from home, further more, to take the mothers away from home.

I read with interest Ms Charlotte Mason’s “Parents and Children” one of six of her educational series, in which she searched with deep insights what are parents’ duty,

“The rule of parents cannot be deputed. The king may rule by deputy; but, here we see the exigeant nature of the parent’s function; he can have no deputy. Helpers he may have, but the moment he makes over his functions and authority to another, the rights of parenthood belong to that other, and not to him. Who does not know of the heart-burnings that arise when Anglo-Indian parents come home, to find their children’s affections given to others, their duty owing to others; and they, the parents, sources of pleasure like the godmother of the fairy tale, but having no authority over their children? And all this, nobody’s fault, for the guardians at home have done their best t keep the children loyal to the parents abroad.

Causes which lead to the abdication of parents.—Here is indicate a rock upon which the heads of families sometimes make shipwreck. They regard parental authority as inherent in them, a property which may lie dormant, but is not to be separated from the state of parenthood. They may allow their children from infancy upwards to do what is right in their own eyes; and then, Lear turns and makes his plaint to the winds, and cries-

‘sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is
To have a thankless child!’

But Lear has been all the time divesting himself of the honor and authority that belong to him, and giving his rights to his children. Here he tells us why; the biting anguish is the ‘thankless’ child. He has been laying himself out for the thanks of his children. That they should think him a fond father has been more to him than the duty he owes them; and in proportion as he omits his duty are they oblivious of theirs. Possibly the unregulated love of approbation in devoted parents has more share in the undoing of families than any other single cause.

The love of ease, the love of favour, the claims of other work, are only some of the cause lead to a result disastrous to society- the abdication of parents. When we come to consider the nature and uses of the parent’s authority, we shall see that such abdication is as immoral as it is mischievous. Mean time, it is well worth while to notice that the causes which leads parents to resign the position of domestic rulers are resolvable into one- the office is too troublesome, too laborious. The temptation which assails parents is the same which has led many a crowned head to seek ease in the cloister, even if it be the natural crown of parenthood.”

Great Singapore Sales

Sales are ON! The ads fly around. But people DO love Free stuff!

We went to IKEA this morning for FREE preview sales breakfast, this is part of privilege of being Friend of IKEA. However, we did not get breakfast, not because we were n late, there were simply too many people (Just like us)!

The IKEA store was stormed by people. A very lively sight in the midst of recession. Many people did push the trolley full of stuff. Good for IKEA.

That reminds me an economic truth "There is no free lunch under the sun."

Cheers, happy shopping