Some parents see it as a make-or-break moment. Teachers view it as a checkpoint in learning. Students experience it as their first major national exam. But behind these varying perspectives of the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) lies a more fundamental question: what purpose should this examination serve in today's educational landscape?
Should we remove the PSLE?
Over the years, Singapore's education system has progressively implemented moves to reshape how we think about learning and assessment and create more space for holistic development.
We want to:
- Reduce academic stress on young children
- Promote greater social mixing in schools
- Ensure inclusiveness across our education system
As part of these shifts in our education system, we introduced the PSLE Achievement Level (AL) scoring system in 2021 so that results are less finely differentiated and reflect students' objective performance. We hope to encourage students to focus on their own progress instead of comparing themselves to their peers.
Some have asked whether more fundamental changes are needed to better equip our students to meet future challenges, such as a through-train education system from primary to secondary school. Others have called for the PSLE to be removed or made optional, so that it would reduce our emphasis on academic achievements and create a less stressful learning environment for our students.
Let's talk about the stress issue.
Would removing the PSLE address the causes of stress?
Proponents of removing the PSLE often cite it as the solution to reducing student stress and unnecessary competition. However, if PSLE is removed and secondary school admission is based on which primary school the child is registered in, would the pressure point be shifted earlier to Primary 1 registration? Will the stress on our younger children start earlier? Will it build up even more pressure at a later examination point, such as at the GCE O-Levels?
The deeper issue lies in understanding the true source of stress. Is it the PSLE itself, or our mindsets toward exams and why we place such stakes on PSLE achievements? Are we narrowly defining "success" for students as only achieving a low PSLE score? How much attention should we pay to the holistic development of students from the primary to secondary school years? What type of school environment can better serve the different needs of students?
Moreover, eliminating the PSLE raises both the policy and practical challenge of how students should be posted to secondary schools in a meritocratic manner. If too many students opt for a preferred school, should we allocate the limited places by balloting? How then can we help students and parents accept more uncertainty in posting outcomes?
If we continue to regard examinations as a high-stakes proxy for success instead of right-siting our students for the next step of their learning journey, it is unlikely that removing the PSLE alone will address the source of stress. The root cause of stress will not be reduced. Instead, the stress will continue, build up and simply be transferred.
In fact, exams such as the PSLE serve as useful checkpoints for students to gauge their learning and progress smoothly to suitable learning environments. All exams will create some amount of pressure. Our starting point should not necessarily be to remove all stressors for our students, but to teach them the skills to manage pressure, as well as the mindset to view assessments as essential to learning and growth. Parents play a key role in cultivating this mindset, and with MOE's shifts in our education policy, it is time to stem this anxiety together.
How has education in Singapore changed over the years?
Beyond changes to the PSLE scoring system, MOE has introduced several policy moves over the years to ensure open access to schools, broaden the definition of success, reduce an overemphasis on academic grades, nurture greater joy of learning in our students, and enhance holistic development:
- Primary 1 registration framework ensures that our mainstream schools remain accessible to children from all backgrounds, while preserving strong ties to the community and culture that our schools have built up over the years.
- Full Subject-Based Banding has increased flexibility for students to take their subjects at appropriate levels throughout secondary school, based on their strengths, interests and learning needs. This aids in reducing the stakes of the PSLE as students' PSLE scores and their streams no longer constrain their secondary experience and post-secondary articulation.
- Removal of mid-year examinations for all primary to pre-university students has freed up more time and space for students to pursue their interests, undertake self-directed learning, and develop skills like critical thinking.
- Direct School Admission (DSA) provides a pathway for students to gain entry to secondary schools and junior colleges based on diverse talents and strengths that may not be demonstrated at the national examinations. The aptitude-based admissions for students applying to Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) have also been expanded to recognise and celebrate our students' diverse talents.
- Revised JC admission criteria aims to increase the scope for students to recalibrate their curriculum load by offering one fewer subject, and to use the freed-up time to strengthen their development of 21st Century Competencies (21CC) and pursue their interests.
- Changes to the GCE A-Level curriculum and Autonomous University admission, namely for Project Work to be graded as a "Pass/Fail" subject and to count the fourth content-based subject for university admissions only if it improves a candidate's score, were intended to rebalance the overall A-level curriculum load on students, lower the assessment stakes, and provide more time and space for students to develop 21CC.
Today, there are diverse educational pathways to cater to our students' different interests, strengths and learning needs. We have schools that specialise in science and technology, arts, and sports, schools that offer more hands-on and vocational learning experiences, and schools that cater to students with special educational needs.
But we should not stop here. How can we further strengthen the foundations that we have built today?
Can we be less school-focused, and be more child-focused instead?
The future of Singapore's education system is not just about choosing to keep or eliminate PSLE. It is about how we can customise learning pathways to meet the diverse abilities, needs, interests, and aspirations of future generations. It is about how we can embrace learning beyond schools and books, and help students discover the joy of learning to lay the foundations for self-motivated, lifelong learning.
We must continue evolving our systems and initiatives, while simultaneously transforming our mindsets around education and success. Parents, educators and society at large must collectively move away from asking "Which is the best school?" to "Which school best suits my child's needs?"; from "What is my child's grade?" to "What has my child learned?".
For every child, a good school; at every age, a good learner.
Our education system must constantly strive to strengthen our commitment to recognise and develop diverse talents, help every child reach their full potential, and encourage education as a lifelong journey. To achieve this, MOE will continue to pursue structural changes in our policies and programmes, but we must also collectively change our hearts and minds as a society.