PSLE Report 2010

The PSLE Benchmark – Crisis or Opportunity?

Everyone has heard by now the news that Madrasah Wak Tanjong has been barred from accepting Primary One students for three years from 2012 to 2014. This is because we have not met the official benchmark aggregate set up by the MOE for the 2010 Primary School Leaving Examination. The aggregate was 175 this year but MWTAI struggled at 166.

With so many people wondering why and how this has happened, it is timely that an attempt is made to make sense of the statistics, the implications and what can be done about what has happened.

This is how we performed in 2008, 2009, 2010 :

Despite the fact that we seemed to have improved and even surpassed our performances in 2009 and 2008, Madrasah Wak Tanjong Al-Islamiah has become the first casualty of the Compulsory Education Act. Under the CE Act, a madrasah’s average PSLE aggregate score must meet the PSLE benchmark to continue admitting Primary One students exempted from national schooling.

To be able to take in Primary One students, the madrasah must meet the PSLE benchmark at least twice in every three-year period. This PSLE benchmark is pegged at the average PSLE aggregate score of Malay pupils in the six lowest-performing national primary schools who take 4 Standard-level subjects.

It is important to note that the madrasah's aggregate score also includes the scores of students who have transferred out of the madrasah and enrolled into the national schools as well as students who may have been retained and thus did not sit for PSLE the year they were supposed to. Such students are given the lowest score attained for that year which they were supposed to sit for the PSLE.  

Consider for example, the case of Salmah, a student who enrolled into Pri 1 in 2004 but was retained [did not advance to the next class] when she was in Pri 4 for various reasons. Although she may not sit for PSLE in 2009 [since she missed 1 year as a result of her being retained], she will be given the lowest aggregate scored at the 2009 PSLE. Her marks will be added to that of her peers who had sat for the 2009 PSLE to form the school's overall aggregate even though she has not sat for the exams yet (she will sit for her PSLE in 2010 since she was retained for 1 year). Depending on the number of students retained, this method of calculating the school's overall aggregate can make it difficult for an individual school to meet the official PSLE benchmark for that year. In the case of a small cohort size like that for MWTAI, it leads to the school failing to meet the PSLE benchmark.

This is precisely what happened to Madrasah Wak Tanjong Al-Islamiah in 2008. We could not meet the benchmark as a number of our students had been retained along with the students who had been transferred out of masrasah and enrolled into the national schools. Retaining students for a year or two is not unique to Madrasah Wak Tanjong Al-Islamiah. In fact, it is common practice in the national schools as well which is why MOE includes the scores of these retained students when it calculates the school's overall aggregate at any PSLE. The madrasahs were not well-informed about this issue. Nevertheless, MWTAI learnt its lesson when it did not meet the benchmark in 2008 and stopped retaining students. The entire 2009 and 2010 cohort comprised of students who were meant to sit for their PSLEs in the respective years based on their Pri 1 admission. We were successful in meeting MOE's requirements in 2009 but failed in 2010.

What's Going to Happen Now?

 As Madrasah Wak Tanjong did not meet the benchmark twice in the current 3-year assessment period, it has been barred from accepting P1 students from 2012-2014 by the MOE. It will continue to take in the P1 students it has already accepted for the school year 2011. MWTAI will do its very best and more to prepare these students for their PSLE in 2016. Every student enrolled in the school is a responsibility the school is duty-bound to honour. 

What has happened to MWTAI has little implication on the overall enrolment into the madrasah education system in Singapore for the time being. According to the MOE, the overall annual madrasah intake of a maximum of 400 P1 students will be maintained. Madrasah Wak Tanjong’s quota of students will be redistributed to the other madrasahs. However, it would not be far-fetched to suspect that beyond enrolment, winds of change may blow over the other madrasahs. The other implications of MWTAI’s fate has yet to be felt over the madrasah education system in Singapore and it is premature at this stage to make any extrapolation about what they are.

What is heartening to know is that MOE promises that if Madrasah Wak Tanjong meets the PSLE benchmark in the next 3-year assessment period of 2011-2013, it can resume its P1 intake from the 2015 P1 cohort.

So does being barred from admitting Primary One students from 2012 to 2014 mean that MWTAI is a spent force? Far from it! Both teaching and non-teaching staff are committed to providing the best they can, despite the many challenges we face, to give all students enrolled in the school the necessary educational experiences they need to build a strong foundation for life.

Struggle To Excel!

Take a peek into what had been done for this year’s PSLE batch of students :

On running activities :

• Monthly Tests to track and monitor students’ progress for EMS subjects
• APEX mentoring [3 hrs every Sat, small group tutoring where 1 university undergraduate works with a maximum of 5 students]
• Term break study sessions with subject teachers on hand to help students as they self-study
• Remedials every three days a week for EMS subjects
• Weekly A-Star programme for High Performing students? Weaker students were 'adopted' by MWTAI teachers and given 1-to-1 coaching
• Study skills workshop for parents and students by Mr Suryakenchana of 4PM
• Parents’ seminars conducted by Mdm Muzaiyanah Hamzah and Dr Bibi Jan
• Parent-teacher conferences

It can be easily seen that no effort has been sparred to get this year’s PSLE cohort prepared for the PSLE. So why did the results turn out the way they did? Only Allah knows! But the teachers and students should hold their heads up as they worked hard and were made to work very hard. They have sacrificed a lot too in terms of time and energy, giving up holidays, leisure time and in some cases, their money and health.

[Back to the menu]

A Crisis is an Oppurtunity to be Seized!

It is true that in life, sometimes try as you might, you still face disappointment and failures. What this year’s cohort has achieved is an achievement born of effort. It is not a failure as everyone worked sincerely. Not meeting the benchmark is a setback and an opportunity to do better. When you are down, the only way next is - up, insya Allah! This is Allah’s test of our mettle and our belief in Him. When the going gets tough, the tough gets going. In Madrasah Wak Tanjong Al-Islamiah we have faced many hardships which have contributed to our never say die spirit.

It is that never-say-die spirit that sees a slew of efforts being launched this year in preparation for our climb up to next year’s PSLE. Among them as presented at the Dec 4th Meet-the-Parents session are :

• Primary 6 next year will be in the morning session [to extend curriculum hours]
• More curriculum time devoted to Academic subjects [English, Mathematics, Malay & Science]
• Modular system for some religious subjects.
• Some religious subjects are made non-examinable
• Continuing with monthly tests to closely track students' performance
• Engaging more external vendors to help students [e.g. Apex, Acropolis, Jack Ng, Mercu, Zenitant, Lighthouse, Brain Gym, etc.]
• Compulsory remedial & enrichment programmes from Mon to Fri, 2 – 3.30 pm
• PSLE prepration camp from 6th - 8th January 2011
• More programmes in the pipeline
• Not meeting the benchmark offers us an opportunity for renewal and improvement. So it should be handled head-on with courage. This is the time for everyone to roll up their sleeves and get down to making things better in the days ahead, not just to meet the benchmark for PSLE but to raise the bar for the rest of the school as well. As we return from the much needed respite of the Term break, let us greet the new year with new resolve, re-energised to tackle the next big test Allah has in store for