SGReflect Education

Dear Parents, Happy New Year! You are invited to SGReflect’s final webinar in 2022 entitled “The Latest Developments in School Science”, on Friday, 30th December 2022, 7.30 – 9.00 p.m. Please email [email protected] for the meeting link. Topics: (i) Revised MOE’s Science Syllabus (Pri & Sec) implementation from Jan 2023; (ii) Divergent and Convergent Learning-Thinking Approaches; and (iii) Introduction to “Thinking Like a Science Examiner”. Dr Tan Kok Siang (https://sgreflect.com)

SGReflect School science tuition for students, professional development for science teachers and complimentary webinars for parents on teaching, learning and assessment.

Tips on Preparing for the Chemistry Exam

Preparing for the Chemistry Examination....with the year end coming nearer, students who are having difficulties with chemistry may like to know there are ways to help yourself manage the difficult and important topics. With only a few months left, you can still strengthen your content knowledge and abilities to solve problems. In the next few posts, I will share with you (i) what to remember (that will help build your confidence), (ii) how to strategize after you have turned over your question paper, and (iii) what are some of the "big items" on the chemistry syllabus you need to pay attention to first. Stay tune to my postings these few days.

Allow me to share the key learning-thinking approaches supporting the features of the latest Singapore Science Curriculum Framework. Join my Zoom Interaction Session with Parents, on Thursday 7th July 2022, 8-9 pm. Email me at [email protected] or [email protected] for the Zoom Link. [Info below is taken from the LSS syllabus 2021 - Search in Google]

About innovation and helping children to be innovative at school

As parents, we would probably have heard or read about this word “Innovation” many times at work or from your child’s school. Innovation is now the trendy thing to do at work, play and in life. But how do we explain this word to our children?

Even if the child is well read and informed, this word can be quite “heavy” in meaning and wide in scope for their limited life and work experiences to really make practical sense. The worse idea they may get is “If I am not innovative, I will lose out in school.” As a former school science teacher (>11 years) and a retired science teacher educator (>21 years), I have seen the anxieties of students, parents and teachers when they were told about changes (presumably involving innovative practices or gadgets) that they had to deal with. Instead of making Innovation a “feared assessment-related word” (for the children) we can make it sound more acceptable by emphasizing the fun and exciting elements in it.

Some possible ideas for parents to consider when helping kids who worry about not being as innovative in school:

(1) Cite the known quote: “Failure is not the opposite of Success. It is part of Success.”
(2) Helping them pick up positive and effective learning habits: e.g. being Agile and being Reflective (though not easy to define what are “innovative learning habits”, these do help children become more curious, more ready to try out new ways of doing things).
(3) Read more about how to inspire the children to become more innovative (note: the word “more” here, because we are all innovative in some ways). Here are some readings:

Tips for parents to inspire children to pick up innovative learning habits:
https://stemgeneration.org/top-3-parent-tips-for-inspiring-your-child-to-innovate/
https://kids.kiddle.co/Innovation

Innovation Facts for Kids Learn Innovation facts for kids

Assessment: Assessment for the Joy of Learning

Are examinations still valid and important in today’s Industry 4.0 's study, work and social environments?
Of course, the diplomatic response is yes. Yet, it is well known that many questions have been asked and the matter is also frequently discussed openly. Assessment is necessarily for many reasons, but what is more important to the learners (in school, it is the children) is how they are prepared for assessment than the end results of the assessment itself.

A well-prepared candidate for the examination (meaning a learner who is holistically and positively prepared – confident, competent, with manageable stress and anxiety) is probably what teachers and school leaders will want their students to become. The same expectations for parents and society, although the public would have a wider range of opinions and perceptions of assessment. It would be good if our children are well prepared for any assessment experience in life. Be it in school or public examinations, or in assessment-related events in life, like a job or scholarship interview, or even meeting and making lifelong friends and social acquaintances.

For parents, teachers and all adults concerned about our children's well-being, it would be satisfying to know our children are knowledgeable (as in being habitual lifelong learners), streetwise (able to discern logically and act realistically on what they should or should not do or accept in life) and competent (holistically, as in maintaining a healthy work-life balance and contributing to the well-being of themselves and close ones, and also to the community and the environment).

Achieving this balance, may not be entirely possible (given the various factors mentioned in an earlier post) but to work towards achieving that balance is a positive direction to take for all of us.

We do owe it to the next generation to help them face the future challenges, because they will be the ones looking after us. Let’s start preparing them.