International Baccalaureate (IBDP) in Singapore - Parent's POV

[Mkl22]

On 5/16/2024 at 11:31 AM, Lala81 said:

I think singapore has compulsory pri school education for all singaporeans.

Once you past PSLE, can join international schools for IB. But $$$.

 

cannot. need special permission to join international school for citizens.

[Sosaria]

On 5/16/2024 at 11:44 AM, Lala81 said:

Benefits potentially

- less overall stress cos it's an international exam vs just our A levels which are of a higher difficulty level

- more holistic learning and more suited for University or actual working life

Potential cons

- less demanding on sciences/mathematics. So if u are going into hard STEM in local Uni, u maybe lagging behind initially. 

 

Overall, it's either very $$$$ or you have to be very good academically to get into the 3 above schools. 

If you want less stress of big exams at the end of schooling , might as well consider NUS High school which has it's own system. No 'O', no 'A', no IB. The graduation qualification is recognised by local and overseas university

[Mkl22]

On 5/16/2024 at 12:53 PM, Lala81 said:

my kids not like yours lah. 
Anyway not like this is not like 16 or 18 years. 
They just go where i ask them to go lol. 

Been hearing about IB on-off over the years, but never really considered.
Then spoke quite a bit to my boss wife over company lunch so just re-evaluating lor. 

 

 

i old school. in the end to me it is just a uni entrance exam. doesnt matter what you learn. 😁. things move so fast these days.

so many uni grads these days. so many white collar jobs to fill? just ask your kids what they want. get them to evaluate both. then at least when they are older they can look back and say that you have given them a choice in the matter.

[Lala81]

On 5/16/2024 at 12:57 PM, Sosaria said:

If you want less stress of big exams at the end of schooling , might as well consider NUS High school which has it's own system. No 'O', no 'A', no IB. The graduation qualification is recognised by local and overseas university

NUS high is mostly for hard STEM school bah. Only for those really inclined. 

[Kopites]

On 5/16/2024 at 12:54 PM, Mkl22 said:

cannot. need special permission to join international school for citizens.

Need write in to moe on a case to case basic. Wifey did wrote in for my boy prior his admission to local government school. Rejected.  😁

[Lala81]

On 5/16/2024 at 1:00 PM, Mkl22 said:

i old school. in the end to me it is just a uni entrance exam. doesnt matter what you learn. 😁. things move so fast these days.

so many uni grads these days. so many white collar jobs to fill? just ask your kids what they want. get them to evaluate both. then at least when they are older they can look back and say that you have given them a choice in the matter.

If the content is deep and heavy, really it becomes more of a work just prepping for the exam. 

The requirement alone stifles everything else. Of course u learn to adapt or die. 

I teach my kids myself. So I don't think it's just simple enough to say it doesn't matter. And the curriculum is more demanding than in our generation. 

We don't know what will happen in the future. Can only hone your mind and body. 

[Lala81]

I know of quite a number of my acquaintances/colleague kids in international schools at sec school and jc levels leh. 

[Tianmo]

On 5/16/2024 at 12:53 PM, Lala81 said:

my kids not like yours lah. 
Anyway not like this is not like 16 or 18 years. 
They just go where i ask them to go lol. 

Been hearing about IB on-off over the years, but never really considered.
Then spoke quite a bit to my boss wife over company lunch so just re-evaluating lor. 

 

 

If you have it in mind, and think it's a better route, just go for it. There is a reason the option is there. 

Like when we went the SST DSA- poly- uni route, many ppl asked why decide so early, but so far we are happy. 

My son told me now he sees the benefits of SST, and with many  friends in A levels, he also see how different poly teaching is, granted he is in one of the top course, so maybe a little different comparing to the other common courses. 

Traditional SG produces very high IB scores if I am not wrong, so can't go very wrong.

 

[Tianmo]

On 5/16/2024 at 12:57 PM, Sosaria said:

If you want less stress of big exams at the end of schooling , might as well consider NUS High school which has it's own system. No 'O', no 'A', no IB. The graduation qualification is recognised by local and overseas university

NUSH is worse. 

I think they take O levels at end of yr 3, and do a 3 yrs NUS in house diploma on yr 6. 

I was told all NUSH students get a guarantee slot in NUS upon graduation, that's how their system works.

Drill until all look stone stone.

 

Edited May 16, 2024 by Tianmo

[Mkl22]

On 5/16/2024 at 1:12 PM, Tianmo said:

NUSH is worse. 

I think they take O levels at end of yr 3, and do a 3 yrs NUS in house diploma on yr 6. 

I was told all NUSH students get a guarantee slot in NUS upon graduation, that's how their system works.

Drill until all look stone stone.

 

then more 听话 and end up in govt service to be commanded by scholars.

[Flying_genie]

There are 5 local schools offering IBDP : ACSI, SJI, Sports School, SOTA and a madrasah (Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah).
I won't talk about the international schools in Singapore as I have no knowledge about their programme.

I will touch first about the latter 3 schools I mentioned : Sports School, SOTA and the madrasah. I believe these 3 schools chose to offer the IBDP because it offers a more flexible time to complete the IBDP. It is slightly similar to the American college system where the students can choose to complete modules at their own time. It allows them to parallel the IB syllabus with their other activities : performing arts, sports training & competition, religious studies, etc. That's why Sports School and the madrasaah students generally complete the IBDP in 3 years instead of 2 years.
Sports School and SOTA don't offer direct entry, it is via DSA.

ACSI and SJI accept students after their PSLE results are released or via DSA. For years 1-4 IP programme, SJI fees are lower compared to ACSI ($380 vs $385.) But during years 5-6, SJI fees are higher compared to ACSI ($550 vs $500). Both schools offer entry at year 1, 3 or 5, pursuant to entry requirements.
ACSI always boast of having the world's best IB scores and indeed they do. It is probably because ACSI is very strict in choosing who to admit to their IBDP. ACSI only admit the best in order to maintain their boasting rights. ACSI also pay for the best teachers to teach their IP classes. (MGS, the sister school to ACS, conduct their own IP programme and the girls crossover to join ACSI at years 5-6).

The IB syllabus (in my opinion) is a more modern way of learning. It is based on the Swiss model. For example, in A Level, there is English and English Lit. In IB, it is called Language Arts, a combi of both. There is also a subject called Theory of Knowledge.
There are more subject options available to students too.
If the child is not so strong in MTL (Mother Tongue Language), IBDP offer an easier option. Read this link. https://www.acsindep.moe.edu.sg/departments/mother-tongue/.
The student must be prepared to work hard throughout years 1-6 as the workload is very heavy. The final A Level is a make it or break it type exam. 
Don't worry about admission to local universities as local universities have been admitting IB students for a long time now.

Do visit the ACSI and SJI schools' websites or visit the school's open house for more information.
See MOE's website for more information. https://www.moe.gov.sg/secondary/schools-offering-full-sbb/schools-with-specialised-curriculum/integrated-programme

Edited May 16, 2024 by Flying_genie

[Kopites]

On 5/16/2024 at 1:00 PM, Lala81 said:

NUS high is mostly for hard STEM school bah. Only for those really inclined. 

Gce is more subject base while ibdp tend to be more general as its covered more subjects. 

If your gal is gear toward more specific field like you in medicine, engineer etc. Gce would be better choice for her. 

If she is unsure of her career path probably ibdp would be better for her. My understanding ibdp offered two language subjects and 4 or 5 others. Couldn't remember the details now. 

Most tertiary institutions recognise both GCE and Ibdp. However depend on the course. Specialise fields the GCE would be better choice. 

Not sure which local school offered ibdp though. I remembered seeing some International school offer International A level as well which is different from GCE and IBDP. You can consider. 

 

Edited May 16, 2024 by Kopites

[Lala81]

On 5/16/2024 at 1:22 PM, Flying_genie said:

There are 5 local schools offering IBDP : ACSI, SJI, Sports School, SOTA and a madrasah (Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah).
I won't talk about the international schools in Singapore as I have no knowledge about their programme.

I will touch first about the latter 3 schools I mentioned : Sports School, SOTA and the madrasah. I believe these 3 schools chose to offer the IBDP because it offers a more flexible time to complete the IBDP. It is slightly similar to the American college system where the students can choose to complete modules at their own time. It allows them to parallel the IB syllabus with their other activities : performing arts, sports training & competition, religious studies, etc. Sports School and SOTA don't offer direct entry, it is via DSA.

ACSI and SJI accept students after their PSLE results are released or via DSA. For years 1-4 IP programme, SJI fees are lower compared to ACSI ($380 vs $385.) But during years 5-6, SJI fees are higher compared to ACSI ($550 vs $500). Both schools offer entry at year 1, 3 or 5, pursuant to entry requirements.
ACSI always boast of having the world's best IB scores and indeed they do. It is probably because ACSI is very strict in choosing who to admit to their IBDP. ACSI only admit the best in order to maintain their boasting rights. ACSI also pay for the best teachers to teach their IP classes. (MGS, the sister school to ACS, conduct their own IP programme and the girls crossover to join ACSI at years 5-6).

The IB syllabus (in my opinion) is a more modern way of learning. It is based on the Swiss model. For example, in A Level, there is English and English Lit. In IB, it is called Language Arts, a combi of both. There is also a subject called Theory of Knowledge.
There are more subject options available to students too.
If the child is not so strong in MTL (Mother Tongue Language), IBDP offer an easier option. Read this link https://www.acsindep.moe.edu.sg/departments/mother-tongue/.
The student must be prepared to work hard throughout years 1-6 as the workload is very heavy. The final A Level is a make it or break it type exam. 
Don't worry about admission to local universities as local universities have been admitting IB students for a long time now.

Do visit the ACSI and SJI schools' websites or visit the school's open house for more information.
See MOE's website for more information. https://www.moe.gov.sg/secondary/schools-offering-full-sbb/schools-with-specialised-curriculum/integrated-programme

If only have AL 6 and below grades (for acsi and mgs), and at year 4 winnow out the weaker students, sure very good grades. Not surprising. 

I'm not worried about admission as IBDP has been around for pretty long time in SG. And internationally also definitely no problem. 

My girl has no problem with mother tongue. And she should be able to adapt to wherever she goes. 
But as someone who spent so much time over the last few years on her just on PSLE level stuff, I can't think it's healthy long term for the young individual.  

My perspective is that the too content heavy aspect of local A levels worsens the student's ability to find intrinsic motivation. 
I disliked taking A levels back in my time, and I can imagine now it's even worse. 

 

Edited May 16, 2024 by Lala81

[Flying_genie]

On 5/16/2024 at 1:12 PM, Tianmo said:

NUSH is worse. 

I think they take O levels at end of yr 3, and do a 3 yrs NUS in house diploma on yr 6. 

I was told all NUSH students get a guarantee slot in NUS upon graduation, that's how their system works.

Drill until all look stone stone.

 

When I looked at the various secondary schools for my kids years ago, I also looked at NUSH. Although NUSH kids perform well academically, I quickly dismissed this school. In order for a "complete" education and growing up experience, I like to believe that there are other important things to look at other than academic : CCAs, sports, alumni, etc.
NUSH have different priorities.

[Sosaria]

On 5/16/2024 at 1:32 PM, Flying_genie said:

When I looked at the various secondary schools for my kids years ago, I also looked at NUSH. Although NUSH kids perform well academically, I quickly dismissed this school. In order for a "complete" education and growing up experience, I like to believe that there are other important things to look at other than academic : CCAs, sports, alumni, etc.
NUSH have different priorities.

CCA and other things definitely will have also, as all schools are under MOE directives. Of course, the traditional elite schools fare better in CCA, to train up in CCA, sports, etc. all need a lot of money these days and only well-to-do parents can send their kids for coaching in music, dance, swimming and other sports in order to excel and join the school teams. I have friends with kids in these types of schools and their kids can't get into the desired CCA despite interest as the focus is competitive. So the idea of holistic education is not true for all too despite getting into such schools.

That's why i still look at CCA excellence as a little bit of an "elitist" thing - it does not really help to level the playing field in the schools scene, despite what the govt is trying to do. In fact, DSA in CCAs actually make the elite school even more elitist in nature (due to the capital $ required to invest in CCA training, frequently done outside the school and not to mention the sending and fetching needs a tai-tai mother that don't need to work ).

But going back to the original question of trying to avoid the stress of major national or international high-stakes exams, then there's only NUSH. But arguably the stress is still there due to the compressed curriculum. Need to be fast learner.

Edited May 16, 2024 by Sosaria

[Sosaria]

On 5/16/2024 at 1:06 PM, Tianmo said:

If you have it in mind, and think it's a better route, just go for it. There is a reason the option is there. 

Like when we went the SST DSA- poly- uni route, many ppl asked why decide so early, but so far we are happy. 

My son told me now he sees the benefits of SST, and with many  friends in A levels, he also see how different poly teaching is, granted he is in one of the top course, so maybe a little different comparing to the other common courses. 

Traditional SG produces very high IB scores if I am not wrong, so can't go very wrong.

 

There is a huge difference in poly standards, as you mentioned, there's an unofficial ranking too, top courses and top polys. Based on the cutoff points, you will know.

Goes without saying why the jump from poly to uni is still quite difficult for science or engineering courses, because of the gap in knowledge levels, most of the times it requires a "bridging" course in science or math. But for the humanities or arts diploma, still ok.

[Ender]

NUSH is like a must succeed path. If halfway cannot cope, can drop out to O level track? Can find a sec school to accept you?

[Lala81]

On 5/16/2024 at 2:06 PM, Ender said:

NUSH is like a must succeed path. If halfway cannot cope, can drop out to O level track? Can find a sec school to accept you?

they have very strict entry requirements i think. 

For their math and science programs. 
My friend's son maybe applying DSA there as an option.