Why Education in Singapore Works

AFT President Randi Weingarten travels to Singapore to learn from their successful educational system.

[@keffinsg]

From the comments here, I can tell self-criticism is a national past time in Singapore

[@nhy123123]

And this, to be honest, is what I find truly interesting about the social dynamic here. As we Singaporeans are willing to reflect and criticise the apparent flaws even in a decent-enough system, is what drives our people to improve and refine it to a greater degree. This is actually evident in the education system here, which has undergone serious fundamental changes since the 1990s, from a highly banded, elitist and draconian system that bred a 'lost generation' of students whom struggled in the class strata based on exam grades alone, to a now more holistic approach with greater appreciation for 'beyond-the-exam-grades' skills in the 21st century. And as a Singaporean, I truly am rather appreciative of this, even if serious errors and cracks remain existent.

[@keffinsg]

This is all true, it is good for us, and is critical (forgive the pun) for us to progress further. The self criticism is closely tied with our highly held virtue of modesty or humility. But my purpose is to begin conversation that we ourselves realise this tendency is not shared by many advanced nations. This becomes important when we communicate, and compete with others. Especially with Americans, they take things very literally, and they come from an opposite culture of self-promotion. Having interacted with many Americans at work and socially, it took a few times for them to mention: "why do you guys have no confidence?" before I realised this our national trait. They interpret self effacement and modesty as a lack of confidence, or a self admitted lack of quality of our products. There is a lesson in this, that while we quietly expect others to see quality inherent in us or our products, we are living in a competing world of self promotion. Our overseas efforts can be much more effective if we realise this trait, whether it be exports, or services, or just cultural influence. All we have to do is to look at the disproportionate size of Korean soft power, and we can realise this particular difference in our cultures. The South Koreans are not unique in this. If we look at Japan, Hongkong etc. we can start seeing our trait of over-modesty a little better.

[@mjd4287]

@@keffinsg constructive criticism towards yourself is ok and stuff, but I think what he's trying to say, is that you guys tend to not deliver it in a constructive way so to foreigners it looks like insulting yourself instead of over-modesty

[@HexaDecimus]

Never underestimate the Singaporeans ability to complain

[@Alas10295]

Watching this video alone makes me itch glad I was born in Africa where my father has a lot of land to feed an entire generation. Edit: Life is simple but we insist on making it complicated.

[@ichickenl2069]

Teachers just “act kind” in front of the cameras For example my teacher is so damn fierce and if a teacher comes in she acts kind

[@cringyhuman3210]

Yeah my teacher hit me when I forgot to hand in my homework

[@pepelepew1227]

aww boo hoo. i stand behind the flag every morning

[@sieandknsproductions3491]

Sec sch don't use models anymore, use algreba, they use models in early sec 1 before going into sec 1 algebra and continuing algebra

[@jeffreyyiu19]

I must point out that education in the united states differs across the country by the state and even from town to town. But one thing is true across the board: the direction in which education heads towards is fraught with political correctness and political incentives, as in Singapore.

[@sieandknsproductions3491]

Just watch all the sec sch vlogs and u will know how sec sch life is like

[@NintenGamer]

"Class, please STAND UP when teacher walks in." I remember doing that when I was growing up in Singapore. Now I live in Canada.

[@SinSnxpes]

Thank god, the Singaporean education system is really very shitty and overrated. Hope you find peace in Canada, fuck the Singapore education system fr

[@SinSnxpes]

@The Ultimate T-rex i agree its fucked lol why serve for a nation that contributed nothing for you

[@SinSnxpes]

@The Ultimate T-rex good luck, but do your research as well. don't leave for the sake for leaving. u gotta research on good places to emigrate to.

[@kunalnaroliya6358]

@The Ultimate T-rex come to India

[@pepelepew1227]

@The Ultimate T-rex left singapore yet? i heard fruit pickers are in short supply in australia and dishwashers are quitting in america.

[@MosesGTC]

"Class, we have visitor today, you ALL BETTER BEHAVE!" "YES Teacher!"

[@灵狐火]

Moses GTC lol exactly what my cher did

[@Melody-wc2xj]

Moses GTC ikr (¬_¬)

[@HaKim-gs2zb]

Yup ikr, the teachers always do that. Like when you go on a learning journey when, the discipline master will like keep reminding us about behaving well in public which is kinda annoying .

[@-vlyxx5005]

omg so truw

[@boiongoingong]

Moses GTC lmao my teacher when moe came

[@philips170t]

Singapore standards are: A = Average B = Bad C = Cannot have dinner D = Don't come home F = Find a new family

[@itsmerebecca2232]

Are people happy?

[@philips170t]

+itsme Rebecca typically yes. But Singaporean complaints a lot.

[@nhy123123]

+itsme Rebecca not that bad. We do enjoy self-criticisms though.

[@isaymamamoo9469]

not true

[@limanyi489]

Thats just Asia.

[@dylanthewindwaker]

LMFAO. Not all Primary and secondary schools have such a high budget where they can use smart boards or even laptops . Also, all students are subjected to standardized testing which if they fail they would get my supplementary classes which would be counterproductive since almost everyday the student will feel stress for the next test , homework and even projects since they will have less time to devote to these tasks .

[@clean1325]

dylan.wangs the laptops in beacon primary school are the children's oen laptop.and as beacon primary school is the first future school,of course the need technology

[@elizabethkang2447]

ikr

[@yaasin67]

dylan.wangs my school provides free printing services and laptops

[@durra9837]

Well now all students have PLDS

[@brendalittlejohn8730]

Maybe they have a high budget, but you won’t find the drug problem that we have. Try taking drugs into Singapore and you will get the thrashing of your life. America could learn from this country. Beautiful country and so clean.

[@fool1124]

BS, Singapore school is very results, exam oriented. Kids are been streamed as young as 8 years old.

[@aliciatan6417]

*10. There are foundation streams for academically weaker students to go to at 10. As if the schools have to discriminate those students at such a young age.

[@michaelhuang5315]

fuusha 99 thats my school . Whats even worse is , they force us to go for extra classes as long as 4 to 6 hours. Im lucky that shit is over . Now I just hope sutdents can have a better life than me

[@nicoleong7719]

fuusha 99 in my school the stream us when we are in p3 (9) but they put u into foundation classes in p6(12)

[@caracrabtree715]

I think the point was the main focus isn't the testing, like here the whole school year revolves around those tests, their funding depends on it, (wierd because if your not testing well, you probably need more help), and the children are no longer learning much anything beyond those tests and it's sad, I've watched the education system plummet in the past 30 yrs I've seen myself... All you have to do is follow the money and policy to see where our priorities are, we're the only advanced nation behind in many things, like paid parental leave, paid vacation sick or medical advances ,(unless you have the money. Our jobs offer things, but we take a cut in pay to receive them there for paying for it ourselves we don't show that our priorities are family, or a quality life, we spend more time revolving around our jobs, although income has been the same since the 70's although productivity raised high, we're very backwards and power greed driven in our policy and priorities, we reward power addicts and demonize haedworking people struggling to make it needing help. When businesses started giving themselves 700% raises plus huge bonuses with the profits and stopped reinvesting in the workers who otherwise the business wouldn't exist, so they could buy the products and have a healthy economy

[@kaiserbrutus730]

Yup! Just like in US

[@mimimomooxo391]

no tests? I think you guys are forgetting about the PSLE, O-levels, A-levels, and if you do badly N-levels. The teachers here are treated like shit and have to vote for the PAP or risk getting sacked. Joyful? what is that bs? A girl in my school committed suicide last year for not doing well in her end of years. Most of us go to school purely because our friends are there. Our system may have high scores, but trust me, nobody here is avtually motivated

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

Yeah, and testing is such a huge deal here, when I was in Secondary school we had tests like every week. Students get streamed at a young age of 12, and in Finland, testing only occurs every few years; they advocate creativity instead of forcing the students to do well. And most of the stuff they teach us are irrelevant anyways.

[@mimimomooxo391]

+Anon Y. Mous It's just sad isn't it?

[@mimimomooxo391]

+Anon Y. Mous not to mention the government is so freakin good at putting up a facade. They make it look like Singapore is such a perfect place. "Garden City" "best education" blah blah blah. I pity people who fall for these lies

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

+golden_music P.H.Y (Musicka) It's just like North Korea with a prettier veil covering it's dark side. But on the inside, you'll see propaganda everywhere.

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

+golden_music P.H.Y (Musicka) If I ever have children I would never let them grow up here, think of how damaging all of this is.

[@agginswaggin]

The reason why education works in Singapore, is because it's just extremely competitive. I lived there.

[@TheFactsMan]

What do you mean?

[@agginswaggin]

@@TheFactsMan bro, we're talking about 10 year olds already stressing about exams

[@nil9754]

Sry to say but, as a singaporean student, the education system is bullshit. All they care about is getting good grades. Those whose grades are hopeless are doomed to suffer in the future. The education sucks. Seriously

[@leelatiff]

I guess it so true. We cannot based on the exam oriented only. We actually have various skills and abilities.

[@jarrellkoo3619]

I agree with you, Singapore's education system is as hard as fuck

[@Ziiqing]

Jinhan Loh No it is actually depends on your mindset. Who defined NA, NT students as 'poorer academic abilities', or who defined ITE students are 'failures'? It is actually all depends on the way you think. Scoring not as well in PSLE do not determine failure/doom for the future, and I am sure you will agree with this because there are many outstanding students who did not score well in PSLE. Students who eventually went to ITE are either having problems in understanding with the knowledge taught towards mainstream students, or not bothering about their education which therefore 'limits' their choices in pursuing further education. However, if you think positively, ITE is definitely not the worst outcome. In fact, the worst outcome, perhaps, might be not having any choices at all for pursuing further studies. ITE is also one of the options for the preparation to contribute to the society, and for students who excel in ITE, they are given a chance to get into Polytechnic and eventually even obtaining a degree. We all know the fact that different people have different skills, therefore there is no such thing as 'doomed'. Because different industries, different levels of positions require manpower. What happens if there is an overflowing amount of university graduates in Singapore? Who is willing to work in the middle and slightly lower positions? Foreigners? Apparently I do not think Singaporeans are welcoming an excessive amount of foreigners to join our workforce, therefore, why are you even criticizing the education system? If you are pessimistic and conventional in your mindset, you would definitely not living happily, whether you are rich or poor.

[@SyedDanielProductions_YT]

***** true

[@cherietan1636]

Then what should it be about ? I don't understand

[@drummerxkun]

testing is such a huge deal here, you have multiple tests every week or day. especially in secondary school and junior college. its just another asian country at the end of the day after all.

[@hazteddy9037]

It depends on your school I get 2-3 tests each month and exams is on September for only 3 days

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

Sad but true, a single test result could change your whole future.

[@krollpeter]

Every week there are 2 or more tests, it is amazing. I am not capable to summarise all the points that hamper the efficiency of learning here. Yes many pupils may do well in collecting points.

[@nhy123123]

I agree with you - although it is a necessary evil as SG relies on manpower - her people as a sole resource to keep the nation relevant in an increasingly competitive global scene. Heck, just PISA will tell you Shanghai is trashing us flat, when they actually have more students that our minuscule excuse of a nation. I amuse at your analogy of us being "another Asian country" though, which is precisely a stereotype (positive one) that really makes us rather untouchably more professional than any other cultures in the world. But mind you - Asia is large. What you (assuming you're an American) might be referring to might be East Asians in particular.

[@nhy123123]

And as a JC 2 student this year (an equivalent of Year 12, High School 3rd), I am preparing for the GCSEs throughout November and it is one hell of a 'mugging' session, what we term locally as being intense studying. Tests everyday to polish our recalling abilities, weed off recurrent errors and insecurities, and just physical fatigue each day. Nonetheless, it is a process that I still can enjoy (quite masochistic, ain't I?) with the knowledge that it can lead me to a better future, at least. With a level of guarantee and security. Plus me being a little bit of an oddball unlike the large majority of Singaporeans who are 'below' me according to the highly demeaning 'bell curve' education system, tests and exams to me are just another set of practices again and again, albeit with a more serious context to them.

[@FuzzyCottonCandy]

Srsly, I just cant express how relatable some of d comments here are. This video is clearly a form of propaganda, meant to portray Singapore's education as 'perfect' when it's really less den perfect. Any student in Singapore will understand d stress they face in d importance of education results as any of these will actually affect d child's future n career. Life is just too stressful here. N I can say dat as I'm a overly stressed student dat constantly thinks of suicide n ways just to escape from stress here.

[@kriegerhelton1293]

Dont u get it. The brainwashed idiots who are parents and teachers, are infecting this comment section.

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

Yea 100% agreed. All those idiots who keep saying we're ungrateful are indoctrinated and hopeless.

[@kriegerhelton1293]

Anon Y. Mous We need an antivirus against them.

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

+Krieger Helton Let them be, when they grow up and get some generic job that requires you to work for the whole day with low pay, they'll still be happy with their lives. If they want to be robots then they can robots.

[@luckykaloo7435]

honestly idc about my grades... but I still do well on all my tests

[@nataletan101]

she didnt see the p5/6 students. shame, cause thats where all hell lives

[@faaezah3090]

Totally true

[@krislove1167]

Natale Tan Oh dear... you haven't seen IB before have you.

[@cl24591]

+Kris Low lol IB is not singapore's doing. take your garbage and complain somewhere else.

[@krislove1167]

Carole Lim woahhh ive never seen someone as grumpy as you before. And on the first day of CNY? Com' on sis. Actually it kinda is. IB is a program leading up to a diploma. Its similar to any type standardised test- be it sats, Os, As, PSLE. It is just what you make of it. IB is supposed to be a program that develops a person's character and cements their love for learning but certain IB schools in Singapore have taken the A level direction to the already tedious and strenous program - resulting into a hellpit for the students. Cheers! And dont reply

[@ebabor123]

P1-Heaven P2-Gates of heaven P3-Drop down P4-Nearing hell P5-Gates of hell p6-Hell

[@drummerxkun]

haha xD SURE!!! my teacher actually tells us how to behave when a teacher is coming for inspection xD

[@mamamememoo]

Singaporean here. My cousin queued for what many perceive as a top kindergarten in Singapore from the moment she found out she was pregnant. My sister in law signed her kids up for Mandarin tuition for a famed Mandarin tutor from when they were 3 because by the time the kids are 7, it would be impossible to get a slot with her. But those are their choices. I chose to put my kids in kindergartens that didn’t need queueing up, but where I perceived the kids enjoyed learning. My youngest was placed in MOE Kindergarten which is surprisingly good & learned to be very independent and creative as a thinker. What they learned there is very different from the kindergartens his older brothers attended which were fun but yet more academically driven. For Primary school, my experiences with the so-called top schools were bad. I felt the neighbourhood schools were more focused on student welfare and the teachers were more passionate about educating the kids. The top schools were more focused on their reputation and their ego & kids fell through the gap. Although we no longer rank schools, the culture persists. Independent sites rank them and parents still pick schools with this misguided notion that a top school is better, that neighbourhood school kids are lesser than a kid from a top school. Well, I beg to differ and will share why. Plus money and better grades does not make you a better person. My kids were bullied in top schools mainly because they are good natured and kind. Two of them went through school changes for that reason. Eldest was in a neighbourhood school nearby and was one of their top pupils. Another girl and him were the first kids in the school to be streamed to the gifted stream. He had to switch schools as a result and he chose a renown all boys school coz my dad attended it in his childhood and he is v close to my dad. Sadly, he was bullied so badly & within half a year he would lie catatonic in bed and refuse to go to school. He grew disinterested in school and life. He was an introvert who kept the cards close to his chest so he did not complain & told us nothing. God is good and a kind & concerned parent of his classmate reached out to tell me how the teacher gave him a debilitating nickname (Baby J) as he was small and cute… which caused the kids to bully him as a herd from day 1. There were many instances of bullying. He was suicidal and depressed at age 10 and we made the decision to pull the plug on his journey in the gifted education stream & placed him back in the neighbourhood school in the regular stream. It wasn’t that he couldn’t cope academically… he enjoyed that… but socially and emotionally he had been broken. We told him he is smart but not because the ministry of education said so. He is smart because God blessed him with a good mind. So we told the govt we wanted to take him out and it took a meeting with the officials, psychologist from. the ministry, the school principal and head of department for it to happen. It took intensive counselling and he healed up but I can see how it has made him angrier than before. My eldest did well and got into a good secondary school here which was part of a full school (has both primary and secondary school). My friends said the principal then was good. It is a full school (has both primary and secondary school) so we placed our younger son in it so the two older boys could be together. But the principal changed & with it, the culture changed. The parents of the kids in his class were really nice, but their kids were (sadly) spoilt and mean. We wasted no time once we felt our spider senses tingle and took our middle child out in Primary 2 and placed him in a neighbour school that many perceive to be lousy. But that I explored since our youngest’ kindergarten was located in it, and it was a surprise! The enrolment for this school was so poor because of public assumption. That meant the classroom size is small. Plus, it turned out that they have an excellent principal and teachers. The school care so deeply for their kids, the students are super happy learners and kind, class sizes are small & they teach growth mindset lessons. We placed him there because the neighbourhood school near us (that his elder brother was from) was full since we switched him mid way. It was a blessing. He is dyslexic and the school Teachers here patiently help him and they placed him in a pilot class for students struggling with Mandarin- which both of the other schools didn’t have. His confidence in the language is better. He still isn’t great at it but he doesn’t hate the subject anymore. The school he was in formerly was a SAP school which focused a lot on Mandarin. The youngest is now in the neighbourhood school the eldest was from which is a short walk away. He wanted to be with my middle child but we decided because they would only be in the same school for 3 years, it was better to place the youngest in the nearer school so that when he started attending extracurricular classes in upper primary, he would be able to come home faster and rest more. Again we were blessed coz the school identified he has issues with attention (although he can understand his lessons, he fidgets a lot) & placed him in a pilot scheme: a classroom setting where initially specialised teachers coached him in skills to communicate and focus better for two subjects, then blended him back into the main class later on in the year. He is a happy learner and is enjoying school a lot. I look back at my own education which was in one of the top all girls school here (miserable too) & at my kids’ education journey, and I can say for certain that the neighbourhood schools have given my children a more balanced and happy education. When kids are happy, they do better. Top schools and gifted education do not always mean your kids do better. Better to equip and care for them emotionally first and nurture better EQ, then build on that educationally. That way they have a better ability to cope as it gets harder and creative play helps them think out of the box & come at education with more passion and less one track mind thinking.

[@pepelepew1227]

wow im sure westerners like your comment very much. i went to a top 20 full school and in time i will strive to put my kids in similar top schools as well unless the world changes to paying more those with high eq. the day singapore adopts western complacency, the island dies.

[@ititloga]

All head knowledge and no heart in society brings out the worst in us. You know where you are.

[@actionau]

Hahaha...wish this lady came to the neighborhood school where I did a stint of relief teaching...sheer pandemonium...

[@zhongxianchong8777]

Well bk Singpore school standards are A:good/excellent/band1 B:average /band2 C:band 3/just past etc 50-60 marks. D: a failure. Anyways i live in singapore:)like if u dont or agree?

[@Kindiakan]

6:05 "You didn't hear about test-based learning" hahaha key-phrase is 'you didn't hear'. Just because you didn't hear about it doesn't mean it's not true.

[@kleemc]

I lived outside of Singapore many years and have attended schools in both Asian and the US. So i know first hand what the pros and cons are. When my children reached schooling age, I moved my family back to Singapore solely because of our education system and have never regretted the decisions.

[@kriegerhelton1293]

Good for u.

[@anantsharma7955]

Such a wonderful parent! Putting your children in an education system where stress is Paramount

[@TeeDhirav32]

Anant Sharma im mpvong to singapore fuck. I will have to prepare some stress handling pills.

[@annadalessio1821]

I did exactly the opposite. After three years in the local system, I ran away with my children to give them better education.

[@SinSnxpes]

Kevin Lee Ur a fucking idiot

[@DudeNamedDad]

1: they first develop teachers that are worthy of respect and authority. 2: they then create an environment that reinforces respect for others, community, and country. 3: now that they have established expectations and social norms, much of the friction and obstacles that inhibit learning are removed. This creates a clean canvas to learn on. Most of the differences between our education systems is behavioral rather than monetary or procedural.

[@NewmaticKe]

Allen Heiner Right and very much needed in a multiracial, multi religious country with nothing but human resources in 700sq km

[@lyricaIIy]

Lol, the Singapore education system is terrible. Taught to memorise and memorise and not to question. School daily from 8am to 6pm, forced compulsory after-school lessons, weekend lessons, lessons during so-called school holidays, tuition classes every day. And all for what? Fucking useless.

[@lyricaIIy]

Official school hours from 8am to 3pm, yes. You forget the compulsory after-school enrichment classes and whatnot. I see someone took a class on Jumping to Illogical and Stupid Assumptions. I'm actually an undergraduate student in NUS right now :)

[@lyricaIIy]

***** LOL you really should improve on your own command of English first before attempting to be a Grammar Nazi. What fun you must be! But good job, the one thing you're right about is that I should have used the preposition "at" instead of "in". Cookie for you :) -1 point for bringing up "forgot", though. Google is your best friend in this day and age, hun. Now, was there anything relevant you had to say in response to my comment? Or do you only know how to jump to farcical conclusions?

[@lyricaIIy]

***** Come back after you pass Troll 101 :)

[@lyricaIIy]

***** Oops, you should sign up for beginner-level English lessons first. One step at a time :D

[@lyricaIIy]

***** What colour is the sky?

[@joshua5g]

Hmmmm... Sure. We're really good at teaching our students in terms of reading, math and science. But what else? Most of our youth have absolutely no clue about what it means to be a politically- and socially-aware member of society. Students lack civic and social education. Ask a random Singaporean youth about global affairs and more often than not, they'll be stumped. The government and education ministry prizes economically-relevant skills above all else. Nothing else matters.

[@enkii82]

well, most Americans can't tell where is Canada on the map.

[@pepelepew1227]

those without economically-relevant skills are leeching off welfare. you think the lees will allow the complacency of a nanny state?

[@trollingisasport]

ebewan wan to be dacta. dis is why people study so haaad

[@denisesheehan9189]

I am a HKer and an Australian teacher. Australians value relationships more than achievement, hence teachers have to tip toe around if they want to tell a parent a child is under performing and often, not tell the whole truth. Parents also get upset if told their child is under performing, blaming the teacher or school, rather than get their child to work harder or wiser. These are very noticeable difference between education in Asia and Australia.

[@pepelepew1227]

i dont tell my mom that i got paddled at school. were i that stupid, i would get an extra paddling at home. parents here trust teachers more than their own kids.

[@cbaxtianful]

Singapore gets the same results that Finland but with a more stressful system. And USA is so interested. LOL.

[@mamamememoo]

I am actually jealous of the Finnish system. I prefer their system.

[@unvaccinatedAndPureBlood]

Education in Hong Kong and Singapore is just more organized and systematized for standardized teaching. It doesn't mean it is better way to teach our kids.

[@kriegerhelton1293]

Complete agreed.

[@denisesheehan9189]

The parents and kids are also more focused on academic achievement in HK and Singapore.

[@longangrysausage3495]

Agreed

[@dbm-yv1gl]

It is stressful to be a student here, even in primary school. For Primary Schoo Leaving Exam, the 6th graders are tested on what they learn from 3rd / 4th grade upwards, and sometimes the questions can be confusing, esp when it comes to Maths. And then it gets easy in the 1st year in secondary school, but in 3rd year, there was a great increase of what they learnt from 2nd yeae, but then in 4th year, there werw much more students gotta learn because there will be O levels at end of year. they were expected to capture fast in case they get left behind. If i am not wrong, O levels at end of 4th year includes what they learn in the earlier years. This can be stressful, not only with the large amount of content in each subject they have to remember, but also the number of subjects they have to handle. And the students are expected to achieve an A or at least B in all subjects.

[@Raven-wt1pq]

dbm 4794 its not so bad lah. Yes a lot of students are "kiasu" but its because they want the best in their kids. I would know, I live here and a lot of my classmates have tuition because of theor parents. But, that being said, there are multiple pathways for the students to make it. Of course I'm not disagreeing with the fact that it is very stressful during exam season with the PSLE and O/N levels and that needs to be inproved on but at the end of the day, humans are the only resource Singapore has. So of course its gotta have this stressful highly competitive environment, and honestly I'm lucky that my parents dont care whether i get A or B, they care about whether I actually put in effort to do my best so I guess that helps me out a bit in terms of MY stress level and some my friends are the same. Honestly right, my class doesnt really care bout exams at all. Joking around all the time in class and then laugh at their horrible results in SA2, SA1 you know? And I dont know whether if it happens in other schools but my school just has a bunch of stuff like lunchtime concerts every once in a while by students, like it releives a bit of stress and having a lot of fun cheering on ya schoolmates and classmates and the ccas that wanted to perform for the concert. But from my own personal life, i actually didnt find our educational system that stressful. :)

[@Raven-wt1pq]

Sorry at the beginning i meant parents are kiasu XD. Never type properly

[@stormyferntree]

dbm 4794 Well, I guess it depends on schools and parents. I personally don't find the system so stressful. Not everyone view exams as something to stress over about, especially one of my classmates who actually wanted to fail every single subject. He passed one so he was pretty upset about that. 😂

[@ANDR-gz3fn]

Haha...I felt that PSLE and Primary School was easy, but when I came to Sec 1, I started gaming and boom, my results dropped really low😂😂👌

[@sofya3033]

Just one mistake. Its called PRIMARY 1,2,3,4,5,6 and SEC 1,2,3,4,5

[@sjLoVeR66]

They didn't show secondary school students, I wondered if they would smile like how primary school students did. Me myself is a secondary school student and I would say a big NO

[@rahul8000x]

Why No?

[@deadghosts2706]

Rahul S because it Is the same as having a job with projects everyday (homework) and a deadline of 1day to 4days it Is really stressful for us students

[@chetanbehera5828]

Really? Why so? Please tell

[@Jack-hy2ki]

@@deadghosts2706 this is to get u prepared for the world. U think the adult world is full of rainbows? Strawberry gen is over. Here comes the toufu gen. Sg is doomed.

[@synryxz9870]

Secondary school students will just death stare at the camera cuz they aren’t that naive anymore and they know it’s for propaganda

[@autumnbox5290]

"Whether i like or don't like you, you just need to like me" and "don't make your problem my problem" are a few of my math teacher's favourite phrases

[@ashurdrake6461]

Just pay teachers more and get rid of standardized tests. It's not that hard.

[@eliasemanuelpoitevin9034]

Even though Singapore takes standardized tests very seriously.

[@Kindiakan]

Btw just visit a JC to understand 'test-based accountability'

[@mikhailmagaye96]

Propaganda,propaganda everywhere..

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

Just like North Korea

[@xfirefox_x]

Anon Y. Mous Oh shit dude, every country has propaganda. Not just North Korea.

[@yvonne3745]

Are u stupid?

[@c_yin]

I'm tired.. All my classmates are just getting As.. And I have to do the same T^T

[@kaiserbrutus730]

video: "We focus more on collaboration." PSLE, O level, A level, N level: "Am I a joke to you!?"

[@chortle12345]

Weingarten watched, but picked up only what she wanted to imagine she saw. Singapore has all Singaporean, well mannered children so of course it works. Whine gardener is too dense to see that this could never work in a country that values the loudest whiner over he/she who achieves, and where correcting a student's paper - AT THE DOCTORAL LEVEL- is seen as racist micro aggression..

[@tutordiary4464]

Very good education but stress

[@somuchsolittleful]

It is called Indoctrination--not education.

[@somuchsolittleful]

Don't you mean indoctrination?

[@somuchsolittleful]

That is what I thought. LOL

[@kriegerhelton1293]

+moist faucet If u wrote something out of the box, you can say goodbye to your grades.

[@xfirefox_x]

Krieger Helton Out of the box? Like how? "How did the continents move?" "Only God knows the answer." Something like that?

[@yvonne3745]

How do u know?

[@noveggiepls]

Ah well I do love living in Singapore, I don't think the studying is too stressful

[@kriegerhelton1293]

If u graduated already, attend it again and see what im talkin bout.

[@noveggiepls]

I am still in the system.

[@cl24591]

+Krieger Helton dude, get a grip. what do you get out of bashing SG's education system? a sense of accomplishment in your sad, pathetic life? maybe you should get a job that you deserve. (the one that this "shitty ass" education got for you)

[@kriegerhelton1293]

Carole Lim Dude.. Dont go around accusing people of having a sad life.. Seriously, thats not cool at all.. What the fuck..

[@kriegerhelton1293]

Carole Lim You are fucking butthurt, calm down.. As far as I remember, I dont go around insulting people unless they start doing it first..

[@mahernkamal955]

Teachers are most important person for all over the stage in our life . Straightly A to Z .

[@iironhide6209]

No parents are

[@Maple_Tachibana]

It works but the amount of stress is a lot. Furthermore these kids literally is 70% work & 30% free time, which seems awful to me. Your youth won't forever be there, once it passes it's gone. I do hope they go for 50/50 ratio but since Singapore is a country with no natural resources and have to heavily rely on Human Resources, I guess there's no other way around but to hone them to corporate workers or factory workers.

[@thegoonist]

the pressure to excel doesnt come from the education system. its from societal and familial pressures.

[@KillerGalKpopper]

Welp, all I can say is, the delusion is real.

[@sorcereh1]

But the delusion here is world class? I think you are the delusioned one :(

[@shalomaka5357]

I feel, the educational system must be judged on the basis of what kind of human beings( benovalant, creative & hardworking folks) they eventually create. As a country, it seems Japan, Denmark, other Scandinavian countries, Canada & newzealand have achieved this.

[@pepelepew1227]

top universities all over the world recruit professors & scientists from rat-race education system like china and india where meritocratic selection yield the best of the best out of billions.

[@mikeibra9301]

@@pepelepew1227 I am not sure about other parts of the world, but in the US, top universities require professors to produce a lot of meaningful scientific papers before hiring. Yes, there are loads of Asian and Indian professors, but they also make a large portion of the world population. A few years ago at my work, we hired someone from Tsinghua Uni. We processed the visa and everything, but once she joined, she showed little to no interest in her new job. Later she mentioned that she worked hard to get a job in California because it was her dream to live in LA, but once she got the job, she lost all motivation. We had to send her to another state because there was no need of her in our branch. Another Vietnamese peer got fired because he did not communicate with the other team about something very serious. The company lost a chunk of money in that project because he wanted his team to get to the target before the other team. There are many other incidents.

[@leeyanqi]

I would prefer if you people not post such negative comments. Yes, you might want to voice out your own opinions, but do not use vulgarities. Also, respect your own country, be proud that you are a Singaporean and are given a good education. There are many other people out there who do not have an opportunity to have an education. You will understand one day why teachers require you to do so much homework, you will eventually learn that it will be of benefit in the future. Be thankful and as

[@mral3023]

My country India 🇮🇳 is the worst in education honestly

[@SuperKnowledgeSponge]

Propaganda and the producers of this "documentary" bought it. You clearly haven't seen students in Singapore studying/mugging for examinations.

[@n1choletan]

Funny how those giving their opinions on the education system aren't even students. Who are they to comment, they didn't even experience the education system firsthand. Well let me tell you firsthand, it is not as good as it's cracked up to be. The stress is insurmountable, nuff said. And I'll probably get charged for writing stuff like this since freedom of speech is non existent.

[@maiachryseis]

Call this propaganda for making Singapore's education system look good and test-baseless, but the fact that Singaporean netizens themselves figured that this is propaganda shows the success of our education system. Ironic, no?

[@1973Ganesh]

Yes this is definitely propaganda

[@SuperKnowledgeSponge]

I dare students from other nations (except Taiwan, China and South Korea) to come beat us in examinations here. Here, you must outwit the system and you must think of how to beat it yourself. No one will help you, I assure you. However, money can be used to buy your way to good grades.

[@stanfron9463]

Singapore's education system is world class. Where as America's is crap. Seriously, I have lived there. Really bad the way the run their education system, ALWAYS cutting fundings.

[@1973Ganesh]

Singapore is worse

[@ShakCat]

Lol ppl who are commenting bad about singapore , did u even watch the video? I mean look at the rankings..

[@hweehong99]

Listen Canada , our education is too stressful , we are forced to study what we don't like , when w each and think differently from other Singaporean for good . They think we are crazy. We are facing competition with immigrants from countries especially china. Singapore government ban chewing gum but not casino that destroy many gamblers life ! I am sick of PAP .

[@dideoluadekogbe2984]

Nigeria should buckle up. This is what 21St century education is. Education allocation in budget should increase.

[@mikey6538]

i am impressed that they chose a very neighbourhood school. bear in mind to all critics.. this is a very real common education system that not rich children goes to.. unlike those top schools that the rich sent to. so.. yes.. very accurate assessment of the education where 80% of people had here.

[@ISH17]

It's fake they does not care about the lower grades

[@kriegerhelton1293]

This video is garbage.

[@yvonne3745]

@@kriegerhelton1293 then why don't you fuck off somewhere else and get a life

[@dojodrifter9510]

UNIVERSITY IS MUCH DIFFERENT THAN HIGH-SCHOOL AND NA TROUNCES ASIA THERE

[@tylerwells703]

This was about as bland and uninformative as you could make a video. Nice conclusions too; basically that we just need to become more collaborative and de-emphasize testing to perform more like Singapore. Certainly something that a teacher's union, who sponsored this video, would find appealing.

[@dbm-yv1gl]

Tyler Wells We emphasise too much on grades and tests. Major exams in primary and secondary school will be tested on what they learn in the previous years

[@Robert-fy1vq]

The USA used to be in the top. First of all to many children come from poor homes with parents who do drugs and other horrible things. We have far to many single parent homes. Second we have the federal, state and local governments all telling teachers what and how they should teach. Then you have the school districts telling teachers what to do. Until we get the government out of the schools they will not improve. We also need to get rid of school districts. Just have one school district per county. Then get rid of state testing. We also need to get rid of unions. Last of all get rid of common core. Let the teachers develop a curriculum for each grade that gives students time to master each subject. Let the teachers be in charge. Also we need real discipline in the schools. Today the kids know teachers can’t touch them and they run wild. With very strict guidelines we need to bring back spanking to enforce correct behavior.

[@skoolie_life3261]

I agree with all except for getting rid of teacher's unions. They will eat us alive without that advocacy.

[@hurricanessixteen]

This just makes me want to cry because its all lies.

[@MostWantedTV24]

view to Biswa Zaker Manzil Atroshi Faridpur.Zaker Party(way of peace)

[@DOPAM1NE17]

Shit lol no test?! EVERY TERM WE HAVE EXAMS AND WE ALSO HAVE PLSE,O-LEVELS AND MORE WTF!

[@anuppandey689]

India should move to this type of education teaching, not to make a student employed but smart enough to have a knowledge and make one tension free of obstacles and face it through the excitement knowledge they have........ Shreya, Hope so India would progress.

[@nhy123123]

It is heartening to see someone inspired by our system, but I sincerely feel that the amount of effort and intensity our nation puts to the system is highly demanding, and would require an insane amount of logistic cost, manpower cost, feasibility tests and all sorts of redtape and loopholes to work in India, such a colossal nation of over a billion people. It would be good to see a few cities adopt this first, albeit the concern being the insane inequality that would result from the disparity in quality of education between the cities and the villages...if India can even initiate such a pilot to begin with.

[@InMooseWeTrust]

Memorization and corporal punishment. India has those two things already.

[@rahul8000x]

Mujtahid Haque - corporal punishment is legal in singapore schools as well. It's never reported by the media.

[@user47362]

Nope singapore students are mostly only good at doing tests. True story

[@vudat189]

Anup Pandey money

[@mari-uu1by]

man i kinda regret not learning well in a sg school system

[@LastMomentMan]

It's easy to recognize that this school system based on a non human style. We are made different, but all children are waring same cloths.! are all kids with the same taste ?. It's like military, not like school system. Why children should stand when the American visitors come to class ?.

[@thesoundofthesuburbs]

Unfortunately, Singapore is a borderline dictatorship, most definitely a one-party state. It is also wildly out-of-step with its legal code relative to other Commonwealth countries and the United States of America.

[@xfirefox_x]

You mentioned USA, and that just shows how clueless you are.

[@avivyeo1277]

I Dont regret being in sg :D

[@kriegerhelton1293]

do you?

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

+Krieger Helton Another indoctrinated worshipper.

[@yvonne3745]

@@AnonYMous-mo1li how lol

[@yvonne3745]

@@AnonYMous-mo1li there's nothing uncritical about that comment. Plus you are the indoctrinated one who doesn't know how to think before typing

[@sieandknsproductions3491]

​@@kriegerhelton1293nope i don't, NT is bad but worse is retain

[@nobbynobnob4637]

I’m Singaporean, ask me anything. I’ve been thinking about getting the hell out of this country ever since i was 13(Secondary 1) and now i’m 14(15 this year). Singapore’s education system is just plain terrible, you fail one piece of exam paper and your life is in shambles, you’re not allowed to speak out, not allowed to be creative, not allowed to talk to your friends, forced to wear uncomfortable uniforms provided by the school, forced to wake up early in the morning and sit through about 6 hours of pointless teaching and psychological torture. MOE doesn’t care about the average Singaporean’s mental and physical health, they only pick out the best of the best students that constantly score the highest and leave out the less educated students for “not working hard enough” and leaving them to rot and die in the name of having more educated and “smart” people alive and working in this country to use them for interviews to get a better reputation for the education system. This is a place that creates human machines, not allowed to speak up or complain about it, anyone who does will be deemed as “whiners” and quickly ignored. I want to leave this horrible place, i’m sick of being treated like a robot, all of us are just expandables, being replaced with someone else that is smarter and educated, a cog in the machine to be removed at will and replaced with a better one. I’m tired of waking up very early in the morning only to sit through endless hours of mental torture. I’m tired of being told what to do as if i’m a dog or a robot. I’m tired of having endless hours of tuition, Academics support and CCAs, these 3 things that most of us have are just things that waste our time, most CCAs are until 6 which would result in the students being released a lot later and doing their homework overnight, it’s not healthy, same could be said with tuition and academics support and MOE never fund our schools, most if not all schools are straight up dirty and we are forced to be dependent on very old cleaners that don’t even get good pay check while they’re forced to do all the hard work in cleaning the disgusting schools in this country. Here in Singapore, we are treated like prisoners, forced to be told what to do if not you’ll get punished horribly, not allowed to speak up otherwise you would be punished as well and be deemed as whiners and forced to study 24/7 just so that we can survive. Us Singaporeans don’t study to strive for knowledge, we study so that we are able to survive in this system that’s how bad it really is for most Singaporeans, academics and studies placed as a priority than everything else, not even the students’ mental and physical health, fail one piece of paper and your dead, say goodbye to your career and life. I just want to be treated like a normal human being, not a dog or a robot. I don’t want to be judged based on my academics and results. I want to have the time and freedom to do what i am interested in doing, not studying 24/7 to live long enough only for me to get rejected from a job interview or getting extremely depressed because of this lifestyle and dying slowly of poverty or because of a rotting mental health or even killing myself. I want to leave this horrible place but i’m too young to do so, i will never achieve what i want to do in my life if i am forced to keep this kind of lifestyle up or even ever getting out of here. Thanks MOE for giving me and many other Singaporeans such a great and wonderful life, i hope all of you MOE workers burn in hell for the things you have done to us, i’m glad that Lee Kuan Yew is dead, fuck him and fuck Lee Hsien Long. I was lied to about the “good things” that Singapore has done. I can’t believe i was brainwashed into being a patriotic Singaporean at one time. Singapore has done nothing but make us even sadder people, a perfect place for making human machines and well, we can’t speak up about this problem. No one in the outside world will ever know what us Singaporeans are going through.

[@1973Ganesh]

Yes! Someone like me! I hate this system

[@ninjapirate123]

Too long so I didnt read, I live in new zealand btw

[@pepelepew1227]

thats because you dont know how to play your cards. a singaporean by default could fck the hottest 3rd world girl who would do anything for pr. heck you could get one that speaks decent english. also that passport allows you to backpack around the world sustained by simply doing odd jobs. you dont even have to earn a lot of money. just skill yourself enough for an online job and work from indonesia/philippines where that 'meager' salary is enough to live large and again ... fck the hottest local.

[@markxseng9626]

In Singapore both teachers and students are working hard, many singaporean continue to speak singlish and adulterated language

[@jongkeytaeyul]

otl the fact that I'm doing a project on education at this weird hour on Singapore's education system already hints that something is going very wrong D; idk this video seems so forced and rehearsed!

[@RokkuNoBushi]

this is not how it looks at my lil' cousin's school =/ as usual, singapore, double standards.

[@mysterioushumanoid]

For those people who say Singapore education sucks, ITE is one of the lowest tier of education. There are still poly and junior college education which beats ITE by miles

[@betty5064]

"Wow, fantastic" is a North American reaction to anything. It should be reserved for anything really special.

[@tomatoxfairy]

I agree that singapore's education system is good but what was that about test and examination fixation? LIES.

[@青の空-w9n]

To ppl commenting below, who is comparing U.S education system to Singapore education.I have no freaking idea how do you guys even derive in that one conclusion on which countries' education is the best or what not.Let me tell you this,both countries' education system have its difference,pros and cons.Fullstop.A country education system success depends on the students in that particular country.

[@chewhuisi5805]

Singapore government always believe that the key to have a developed country is to start from young means through education. Therefore Singapore government always emphasize a lot in our education. Lack of sleeps have affect our young ones health

[@kriegerhelton1293]

Indeed. Lack of sleep cripple students focus. Whats even worse is that teachers expect u to stay alert even with the underminded sleep.

[@ANDR-gz3fn]

I’m Sure in Primary School, everyone should not be having lack of sleep. Even so, in Secondary school, people complain about too “much” homework when it’s their own fault they can’t finish because they procrastinate. They will then blame MOE for not giving them enough sleep. I can understand that in order to maintain or get good results in Uni, Yo I have to sleep late every night

[@naenaylee]

Singapore don’t have natural resources of course we have to be good at something else.

[@jessz3104]

Wayang... #1

[@loverangel1]

There is really no point arguing with those ridiculous spiteful commenters. The comments only reflect the author intellect or lack of it. P.S they couldn't use a better opening tune for the video? How very stereotypically 'asian' the music is.

[@anthonywhelan5419]

It works because they beat the shit out of non conformers and non performers.

[@mikasa2272]

I lived in Singapore for 10 years and all I can say is, education is stressful. The teachers are very tough on you, PSLE's suck because they determine your life, if you fail your PSLE your ass is gonna get whooped :v My family moved to Canada in 2015 and we don't regret, the only thing i regret is the weather.. xD

[@JonMaves]

Why are the schools in Australia so suckish compared to other countries!!!

[@cancelledcancelled]

Lol Singapore in reading, we must had too much “xia” when we ended the sentence lol

[@markarca6360]

The way they teach maths are excellent and is used in the new educational system here in the Philippines.

[@GOODBOY-vt1cf]

thank you so much

[@victoriamatthews5108]

In the USA, many school systems hire younger teachers, "the Millennials aka Generation Y" from programs like America’s Choice, or Teach for America, or some other groups and develop a reciprocal partnership to get a financial, federal kick-back in funds. Why keep an experienced senior teacher making more money when they can hire an inexperienced young teacher and pay that person much less? Unfortunately, money is more important to them than cultivated education. So aside from 14th amendment violations practiced by some preferential principals, money is another motive for firing tenured senior teachers. If these senior teachers do not retire, or resign then, they are issued unsatisfactory evaluations, or their working environment is made uncomfortable. . . In other countries, experienced, senior teachers are greatly valued and respected for their knowledge. Perhaps that is the reason that “U.S. students’ academic achievement still lags that of their peers in many other countries.” www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/02/15/u-s-students-internationally-math-science/ Show less REPLY Victoria Matthews

[@yeoweehuathuat8926]

How much she was pay to speak good about Singapore education

[@arabhussain]

American Federation of Teachers president Mdm Randi Weingarten, Singapore NIE Travels to learn From their Successful educational good system. ICT twenty present apply for class room teaching in singapore system. Learn technology education and five dimentions apply padagogy. This video more information.Thanks

[@loverangel1]

the grass is always greener on the other side. unless u actually studied kindergarden and grade school in the usa, don't assume their education system is better than ours. In a fantasy world, creativity is awesome but in reality, with western countries/companies going bankrupt, it is our grades thats going to help us land a job, esp in asian companies

[@solaris5655]

watch?v=RHSR5Niv4jU watch?v=Bot9HAY1aVk Seems you guys are not attacking Dan Rather's report on Singapore Education. Take a peek at these two videos highly praising Singapore's education system. Let me know when you post there so we can "sort it out". Too quiet over those two videos.

[@solaris5655]

Why do I need to go elsewhere? People all over the world are coming here to learn the Singapore success story. This video just showed you educators all over the world are coming here to learn from Singapore. Take a lesson. I don't need to go anywhere else, maybe you need to come here.

[@solaris5655]

haha, you must be from Europe or America. What crisis? U.S. financial crisis? There are no problems in Singapore, and still the fastest growing and stable economy in the world. You have to visit Singapore to see that. U.S. is going down and you don't even want to admit it.

[@IstanbulSanchestivansoon4567]

Singapore education system is about memorisation

[@disterasd123]

Man, look at the girl recite propaganda ._.

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

They make all students recite propaganda everyday, it's called the national anthem and pledge.

[@mimimomooxo391]

+Anon Y. Mous truth

[@mimimomooxo391]

+Anon Y. Mous not to mention the history textbooks

[@AnonYMous-mo1li]

+golden_music P.H.Y (Musicka) And if you noticed, the questions they give are always something like, 'Why is the Singapore government so sucessful?' (example) and never 'Do you think the Singapore Government is successful?' This is how they brainwash the students slowly; they never encourage opposing thoughts or encourage us to think independently and have our own opinions.

[@mimimomooxo391]

+Anon Y. Mous yes I agree. We students are forced to sing praises to this political party without objection. It doesnt even end there, remember Roy Ng? I feel really bad for that guy.

[@solaris5655]

Wow, where have you been? Do you know how Singapore actually look like without the nonsense of western stereotypes "free nations"? My goodness you actually believe these nonsense. Come to Singapore and see for yourself. Don't be a fool.

[@Aegis_Narrow_One]

I works due to splitting stream. Not necessarily a bad/good thing, depends on how you look at it. Singapore follows a meritocracy system where students with better abilities are valued more than students with weaker abilities (which is normal in Asia, after all). I'm a Singaporean, feel that Finland's system is much better. However, the education system should be adapted based on the local situation. e.g. China's stressful education system would not work well in the UK, UK's slower paced system would make Chinese students not have the will to learn more (as in Chinese education system they are kind of "forced" to learn to "have a good future").

[@solaris5655]

Well that a real problem for U.S. isn't it? They think their education system is better, yet their students score worst among developed countries in international tests (where Singapore came up tops). Whose problem is that?

[@frozentenshi]

Pls lah,this is only for some sch only,in my sch,cher show u one thing like once or twice n expect u to get it.we are competitive cuz if u don't get gd grades,u go home n get in trouble with ur parents

[@vicolew]

it has to do with Confucians culture in the Sinosphere. also good government policies to support teachers .