Briefing on T-score Calculation, Direct School Admission & Sec One Posting

8 April 2009

PROGRAMME / AGENDAPSLE Aggregate Score Explained (T-score)Direct School Admission (DSA)Secondary One Posting (S1 Posting)Q & A Session

PSLEAGGREGATE SCORE EXPLAINED

T-score is out of 300.English and Mother Tongue are more important than Mathematics and Science.

I can calculate the T-score of my child by added all the marks of 4 subjects, divide by 4 and multiply by 3.

PSLE A Placement ExaminationNeed to reflect the relative achievement level of pupils within their peers.

Places pupils into different courses according to their academic ability.

Enables posting to secondary schools by merit and as far as possible into a school of their choice.

What is PSLE Aggregate Score?It is a sum of the T-score of the 4 subjects.It allows pupils to be ranked fairly.

What are these scores?

Are they rawscores?

Raw Scores Are Not Usedbecause.Different subjects have different levels of difficultyDifferent subjects have different spread of marks from the average mark (i.e. different standard deviation)

Hmmm Science is more difficult than Mathematics.Well, I feel that Mathematics is more difficult than Science.

( Sallys score )

Therefore there is a need for standardisation of the raw scoresTransformed Scoreor T-Score

WHAT IS T-SCORE?It is not the mark a pupil obtains in the examination.

It gives the relative position of a pupils performance as compared to the performance of all the other pupils in that subject.

For example, a pupil who scored 70% in Science would not have performed as well if most other pupils scored higher than 70%.

How is T-score calculatedfor each subject?whereX : pupils mark for the subjectY : average mark (mean) scored by all pupilsZ : spread of marks around the average mark (standard deviation)All pupils? Thats around 50 thousand.

Example:Pupils mark (X) in exam = 80Average mark (Y) scored by all pupils = 68Spread of marks (Z) around the average mark= 14

How is the Aggregate Score calculated?By adding the T-scores of the 4 subjects.

Every subject is equally important!

T-score is used instead of the raw marks obtained becauseUse of marks obtained in the examination can lead to a wrong ranking of pupils.

To ensure that subjects are accorded equal weighting.

Helps to place pupils in the Secondary Schools and the Secondary School Course more fairly.

SECONDARY EDUCATIONINFORMATION

Secondary EducationPupils undergo four to five years of secondary education with different curricular emphasis, depending on the course they are in. Apart from the formal school curriculum, pupils should also participate in Co-curricular Activities (CCAs). These include a variety of sports and games such as track and field, basketball or cultural activities such as drama.

Courses Offered Pupils taking the PSLE will be placed in one of the following three secondary courses based on their results: Express Course, Normal (Academic) Course and Normal (Technical) Course. These courses are designed to match their learning abilities and interests.

Express Course The Express Course is a four-year secondary course. Pupils will sit for the Singapore - Cambridge General Certificate of Education Ordinary (GCE O) Level Examination at the end of the fourth year. They will study English Language, Chinese / Malay / Tamil and a range of subjects. Pupils in the top 30% band of PSLE cohort may study Higher Chinese, Higher Malay or Higher Tamil.For pupils in the 11% - 30% band of PSLE cohort, they may study Higher Chinese, Higher Malay or Higher Tamil if they obtain:an A* grade in the Mother Tongue Language or at least a Merit in the Higher Mother Tongue Language

Normal (Academic) Course The Normal (Academic) Course is a four to five-year secondary course. Pupils will study English Language, Chinese / Malay / Tamil and a range of other subjects. They will sit for the Singapore - Cambridge General Certificate of Education Normal (GCE N) Level Examination at the end of the fourth year. Those who do well in this examination will proceed to a fifth year of secondary education and sit for the GCE O Level Examination. Those who do not qualify to enter the fifth year may take up technical-vocational education and training at Institute of Technical Education (ITE).

Normal (Technical) Course The Normal (Technical) Course is a four-year secondary course. Pupils will study English Language and Basic Chinese / Basic Malay / Basic Tamil Language and a range of subjects. They will sit for the GCE N Level Examination at the end of the fourth year. This course prepares pupils for a technical-vocational education at the Institute of Technical Education (ITE).

Integrated Programmes (IP) While the O Levels serve as a valuable intermediate benchmark for the majority of our students, those who are clearly university-bound can benefit from spending the last 4 years of their upper secondary/ junior college education from Sec 3 to JC 2 engaging in broader learning experiences. The Integrated Programmes (IP) will provide an integrated upper secondary and JC education where secondary school students can proceed to JC without taking the O Level Examinations. Schools offering IP will optimise the time freed up from preparing for the O Levels to stretch students and provide greater breadth in the academic and non-academic curriculum. However, these schools will continue to have school-based assessments to measure students progress.

Integrated Programmes (IP)IP is offered at the following secondary schools leading to their respective pre-university qualifications. In addition to Secondary 1, schools offering IP may take in students at other entry points, e.g. Secondary 3.

School Programme OfferedAnglo-Chinese School (Independent) 6-year IP leading to the International Baccalaureate Diploma.Dunman High School /Hwa Chong Institution / Nanyang Girls High School / Hwa Chong Institution National Junior College Raffles Girls Secondary School / Raffles Institution Raffles Institution River Valley High School 6-year IP leading to the A levels

NUS High School of Mathematics and Science 6-year IP leading to NUS High School DiplomaTemasek Junior College and Victoria Junior College also offer the IP. The IP of these junior colleges take on the form of a four-year High School and will take in pupils at Secondary Three in addition to its mainstream JC programme.

School Programme OfferedTemasek Junior College & Victoria Junior College 4-year IP leading to the A levels

More details about the IP at the respective schools are available on the schools websites.

DIRECT SCHOOL ADMISSION (DSA)

DSA-Sec ExerciseRationale:Promote holistic education by giving participating secondary schools greater flexibility in selecting students for admission outside the centralised S1 Posting Exercise

Who can apply?Students with diverse academic and non-academic achievements and talents.

http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/admissions/dsa-sec/participating-schools/

DSA-Sec ExerciseHow to apply?Obtain information on the DSA schools check their websitescall the schoolsvisit the schools (attend parents talk / open houses)The application deadline for each DSA secondary school may differUpdated information for this year:May 2009

Selection Stage During the Selection Stage, the participating secondary schools will conduct selection exercises, which might include trials, interviews or tests, to assess applicants. By the end of this period, schools will inform their applicants as to whether they:have been given Confirmed Offer; or have been put on a Waiting List by the school; or have not been successful in their application.

Exercise School Preference Stage In late October, all students with Confirmed Offers or who have been put on the Waiting List of a school will receive a School Preference Form from their respective primary schools. The School Preference Form will clearly list down:all schools which have given the applicant Confirmed Offers; and all schools which have placed the applicant on their Waiting Lists. During the Exercise School Preference Stage, students with School Preference Forms will be able to indicate their preferences for up to 3 schools. A student who indicates his preference for a school which had given him a Confirmed Offer will be guaranteed a place in the school, provided that he is eligible for a course (e.g. Express) which is offered by the school.

Results Release Stage (late November) The results of the DSA-Sec Exercise will be released in late November, together with the PSLE results.Successful DSA applicants will be informed of the school they have been admitted to through their primary schools. Since these applicants already have a place reserved for them in a Secondary school, they will not be allowed to opt for a school in the Secondary One Posting Exercise. However, they may still indicate their interest in a foreign language programme or specify the academic course they would like to pursue where applicable.Unsuccessful DSA applicants will also be notified through their primary schools. During the Secondary One Posting Exercise, these students may still opt for the schools that had not been able to offer them a place under the DSA-Sec Exercise. Other than IP schools, 80-95% of places in DSA participating schools will continue to be available to students under the Secondary One Posting Exercise.

SCHOOL of Science and Technology (SST)Part of the FutureSchools@Singapore ProgrammeFirst intake in 2010Small class size of 20 to 25 studentsAdmitting its first batch of students through the Direct School Admission (DSA). SST is a specialised independent school that gives students an early start to Applied Learning. Their 4-year programme prepares students for the GCE O level examinations, giving them the flexibility to choose the JC or Polytechnic route to university.

Please log onto www.sst.edu.sg for more information.NEW

School of the Arts (SOTA)The primary criterion for admission to SOTA is artistic talent. Students who wish to study at SOTA must attend the Talent Academy (TA). The TA is a selection platform which includes live auditions, personal interviews and portfolio reviews with a panel of highly regarded and experienced educators and arts specialists from SOTA faculty as well as resource persons from Singapore and overseas. During the audition, a student's potential is taken into account as well as his or her artistic talent. The TA is usually held during the March and June school holidays and is open to all Primary 6 students. Students may audition in the following art forms at the TA: Dance (Ballet or Non-Ballet) Music (Instrumental or Voice) Theatre Visual Arts

All TA participants are also required to undergo a creative writing exercise.

Please log onto www.sota.edu.sg for more information

Singapore Sports SchoolAll PSLE pupils who have represented their schools in inter-primary schools sports competitions or have talent or physical attributes to succeed in the sports offered by the Singapore Sports School are invited to apply for a place in the Singapore Sports School. Applications for enrolment into the Singapore Sports School have to be made directly to the school.

Please logon to www.sportsschool.edu.sg for more information

Anglo-Chinese School (Independent)Invitation to Parents of Primary 6 boys to Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) School Presentation on Thursday, 30 April 2009 at Auditorium 2 Parents of Primary 6 boys are invited to their School Presentation on Thursday, 30 April 2009 at ACS (Independent), Auditorium 2. Presentation to Feeder Schools Parents : 4.30pm to 6.30pm Presentation to Non Feeder Schools Parents : 7.00pm to 9.00pm The purpose is for parents to know more about their school programmes and perhaps include ACS (Independent) as your preferred choice for your son's secondary education. Boys who achieved excellence in Sports and Games will have a decided advantage when they are considered for admission in their school.

Number of BPPS students admitted through DSA

SECONDARY ONE POSTING

Timeline S1 Posting Exercise (Tentative)SEPOCTNOVDECInfo Booklet Part One and TwoAugust to October AUG

Understanding the Posting ProcessPosting is by MERIT, THEN CHOICE.Students are first ranked by their T Score. The top pupil will be considered for his choices first before the next pupil, and then next, and so on.

S1 Posting Method

Understanding the Posting ProcessA pupil with a better PSLE T score who chooses a secondary school as his later choice e.g. 5th or 6th choices will NOT be put at a disadvantage as compared to another pupil who chose the same school as his earlier choice e.g. 1st choice. The pupil who has the better PSLE score will considered for posting to each of his choices first.

Understanding the Posting ProcessThe PSLE score range for secondary school are not pre-determined before posting.The previous years cut-off-point for each school is the PSLE score of the last PSLE pupil who was posted to the school.Depends on the popularity of the school.

S1 Option form & Aggregate Eligibilities LetterTogether with the S1 Option form, pupils may receive a letter to inform whether the child is eligible for Special Assistance Plan SchoolsBonus points are available for entry into these schools if the child has taken Higher Chinese in primary schoolPupils who are interested are advised to select SAP schools among the six school choices

Release of Posting Results

Modes for checking of posting results:Online (with Internet Access)- Access S1 Posting website for posting resultsInteractive Voice Response System (IVRS)SMS via applicants mobile number (if provided by applicants during submission of school choices) Going to the childs primary school.

Factors to consider when choosing a secondary schoolLast year posting aggregate ranges of the schoolShows us which schools are popularVaries from year to yearEnsure your 6 choices in your S1 option cover a spread of PSLE scoresDistance

Factors to consider when choosing a secondary schoolConsider the programmes offered by the school of your choiceIntegrated ProgrammesIndependent schoolsAutonomous schoolsSpecial Assistance Plans SchoolNiche schoolsSpecialised SchoolsNUS HighSchool of the ArtsSports SchoolSchool of Science and Technology SSTArt Elective ProgrammeMusic Elective ProgrammeLanguage Elective ProgrammeFor more Infohttp://www.moe.gov.sg/esp/schadm/sec1/programmes.htm

Factors to consider when choosing a secondary schoolConsider the awards the school has received from the Ministry of EducationSchool Excellence AwardSchool Distinction AwardBest Practice Awards in Teaching and Learning / Student All Round DevelopmentCharacter Development AwardsSustained Achievement Award in Academic Value-Addedness.

Exercising Secondary School Options

The following groups of PSLE pupils who are promoted to secondary level are eligible to participate in the S1 Posting Exercise: Pupils who did not participate in the DSA-Sec Exercise to opt for sec schools and Third Languages / Course Option eligibilities (if any). Pupils who are unsuccessful in the DSA-Sec Exercise to opt for sec schools and Third Languages / Course Option eligibilities (if any). Pupils who are successful in the DSA-Sec Exercise with eligibility to opt for Third Languages / Course Option eligibilities.

ProgrammesHigher Mother Tongue Languages (HMT) Third LanguagesArt / Music Elective Programmes (AEP / MEP)Elective Programme in Malay Language for Secondary Schools (EMAS)Regional Studies Programme (RSP) Gifted Education Programme

Exercising Secondary School Options Eligibilities Edusave Entrance Scholarships for IS (EESIS) Special Assistance Plan (SAP) Course Option

Edusave Entrance Scholarships for IS (EESIS)Awarded to Singaporeans who have performed well in their PSLE and posted to Independent Schools. Eligible pupils will receive a letter informing them that they are offered EESISEligible pupils who are interested in the scholarship should opt for Independent Schools among their six school choices.EESIS will be awarded to an eligible pupil if he/she is admitted to an Independent School either through DSA-Sec or S1 Posting Exercise.Exercising Secondary School Options

Popular Secondary schools among Students and Parents in BPPS

Popular IP/SAP Schools among students and parents in BPPS

Question & Answer

Thank you

Posting of PSLE pupils to secondary schools is based on how well the pupils do in comparison to the rest of the pupils and their choice of schools.The graph shows the distribution of marks scored by the pupils for English and Mother Tongue.

Although Sally has scored 85% in both English and Mother Tongue, she did much better in English as compared to other pupils, as her performance in Mother Tongue is very close to that of other pupils.