DSA 2017

[imbblim]

ckcdm:

imbblim:

[quote=\"ckcdm\"]Anyone knows whether njc sends out the email in batches?

I know the emails for AEP was sent yesterday evening. I also didn't receive so presume it's unsuccessful as the no of students for AEP is not many. NJ only have one class 25 students per year, so students selected via Dsa could be half or less than half of 25.

Die Liao.... How do u know that the aep dsa emails were sent out yesterday?[/quote]My girl's art tuition school friend's mum told me her dd got NJ CO email yesterday evening. She informed me to check mine...but I didn't receive any. So I concluded that it's unsuccessful.

[Cantabile]

What about those who applied under NJC Sports? any replies yet from the school?

[ChiefKiasu]

kash313:

I very humbly agree to disagree.

It is not as simple and straightforward as you have mentioned. As a parent you know your child better then anyone else and I am sure all the parents want the best for their child however the definition of \"the best\" might differ from person to person.
As mentioned by you, not every one opts for DSA because its a shortcut, parents opt for DSA for various other reasons. My son's academic performance is overall quiet good but we know he would not be able to go into top 5 through PSLE bcoz of his mother tongue. His mother tongue in school is Chinese and we are not Chinese so there is a limit to how much help he can get even though he has tutor and that's the only subject he has tuition for. He gets on and average 75 in Chinese which wont be enough for his T score. Hence we opted for DSA and he got CO from the school he wanted to go to
We know he has to work hard for next 6 years and he knows it too but he thrives under competitive environment so we think he will do good.
This is just my view from my personal experience.
Have a good weekend.

Thanks for your thoughts! Of course DSA is useful if your child is strong in some academic areas but weak in others. It would be a pity for a Math genius to be denied a chance to go to RI or NUSH just because his Chinese sucked. As long as it is your child's aspiration to get into a school amongst the top 5 in Singapore, by all means support him to reach his goal. That is our key role as parents - to help our children follow their passions and make their dreams come true.

What I said earlier is just a reminder that we parents should not force upon our children what we want (eg. that they go to an elite school) even though we know that they are not ready or wish to join the school. If your child is ready and will thrive in the competitive environment, go for it!

[taurbear]

Anyone hears of situation where a child is already selected at p5 for maths and is being tutored in RI 3x a week and is given a place without going through dsa?

[smiling]

taurbear:

Anyone hears of situation where a child is already selected at p5 for maths and is being tutored in RI 3x a week and is given a place without going through dsa?

Heard 2 cases but both are NUSH. One was selected in p5 yr end (math) and one was selected in P6 yr start (science) if I am not wrong. But I don't know details. Both are TOP talents.

[ryka]

Let me share our DS DSA journey last year. We have been a beneficiary and thankful of DSA system, DS will not be in IP school if there is no DSA. He has a knack in maths, but did very poorly in CL, as our family does not know Chinese and only relay on tutor. True enough, his PSLE score dragged down by his CL result and way below cut off points for any IP school. Fortunately, DS had received 2 COs from IP school. Yes, we held both COs until the last week of preference form… the reason is we were not able to decide which schools to choose, both are good schools and if we had only 1 CO, we would gladly take it without hesitation. One school suits my DS strength and interests better but the problem, it will add his commute time daily by almost 2 hours (to and from). It means less rest and less study time with more subjects in sec school, we worried that he won’t be able to stay afloat in a school, full of smart(er) students. At the end, heart wins over logic, DS took the plunge to accept CO from the far away school. Fast forward, after 8 months journey with the school, we have no regrets at all. Yes, DS spent 12 hours away from home for 4 days/weeks, but the school is caring and he enjoys the friendship there. We came to find out that his PSLE score is one of the lowest (or even the lowest) in his class. However, our worries so far unfounded, he did well in his first semester there, even better results than some students with 15+ marks higher PSLE score than his. He still struggled in CL but at least he still managed to pass. DS eager to go to school every morning and like to do his team project works even on the school off days. Thus I think it’s very important to choose school where your child interests and strength lies…

[myteapot]

The generous sharing of the parents on this forum encouraged me to share our DSA story as well.


DS and I opted for DSA route for many reasons besides securing a place in our choice secondary school. We went for open houses starting from P5 but still could not decide on THE school for DS. Through the DSA, we wanted to have a better understanding of the schools and their culture. Through the DSA, we wanted the schools to assess if DS is a good fit for their school, since they are the "experts" with their many years of DSA experience. Through the DSA, we wanted the school to make the decision for us since we are undecided on THE school. Of course, we agreed with DS beforehand that we are open to either schools should either one offers. Through the DSA, we wanted the school to develop him in the domain he has opted for, if successful. Hence, we were very careful even in the domain we went for as it has to be one he is passionate about. As parents, we understand our DC the best. We have walked with DS in his primary school years and knew he is suited for the IP program. We wanted a school that could stretch him to his fullest potential and we didn’t want to risk it to one exam, the PSLE.

So, have we gotten all the answers we were looking for from this DSA? Not quite, as we are still waiting. But whatever the outcome, to DS and us, this DSA has been a worthwhile journey. Every test, every interview he attends, is an experience he adds to his experience bag.

[kash313]

ryka:

Let me share our DS DSA journey last year. We have been a beneficiary and thankful of DSA system, DS will not be in IP school if there is no DSA. He has a knack in maths, but did very poorly in CL, as our family does not know Chinese and only relay on tutor. True enough, his PSLE score dragged down by his CL result and way below cut off points for any IP school. Fortunately, DS had received 2 COs from IP school. Yes, we held both COs until the last week of preference form... the reason is we were not able to decide which schools to choose, both are good schools and if we had only 1 CO, we would gladly take it without hesitation. One school suits my DS strength and interests better but the problem, it will add his commute time daily by almost 2 hours (to and from). It means less rest and less study time with more subjects in sec school, we worried that he won't be able to stay afloat in a school, full of smart(er) students. At the end, heart wins over logic, DS took the plunge to accept CO from the far away school. Fast forward, after 8 months journey with the school, we have no regrets at all. Yes, DS spent 12 hours away from home for 4 days/weeks, but the school is caring and he enjoys the friendship there. We came to find out that his PSLE score is one of the lowest (or even the lowest) in his class. However, our worries so far unfounded, he did well in his first semester there, even better results than some students with 15+ marks higher PSLE score than his. He still struggled in CL but at least he still managed to pass. DS eager to go to school every morning and like to do his team project works even on the school off days. Thus I think it's very important to choose school where your child interests and strength lies...

:thankyou: for sharing. I have sent you pm hope you won't mind

[taurbear]

myteapot:

The generous sharing of the parents on this forum encouraged me to share our DSA story as well.


DS and I opted for DSA route for many reasons besides securing a place in our choice secondary school. We went for open houses starting from P5 but still could not decide on THE school for DS. Through the DSA, we wanted to have a better understanding of the schools and their culture. Through the DSA, we wanted the schools to assess if DS was a good fit for their school, since they are the \"experts\" with their many years of DSA experience. Through the DSA, we wanted the school to make the decision for us since we were undecided on THE school. Of course, we agreed with DS beforehand that we are open to either schools should either one offers. Through the DSA, we wanted the school to develop him in the domain he has opted for, if successful. As parents, we understand our DC the best. We have walked with DS in his primary school years and knew he was suited for the IP program. We wanted a school that could stretch him to his fullest potential and we didn't want to risk it to one exam, the PSLE.

So, have we gotten all the answers we were looking for from this DSA? Not quite, as we are still waiting. But whatever the outcome, to DS and us, this DSA has been a worthwhile journey. Every test, every interview he attends, is an experience he adds to his experience bag.

Fully agree with your statement, every interview they attend, is an experience he attends. The outcome is a what we hope for but the journey is hard to come by. DC grow stronger with each of this experience and puts them in better stead then when they first started the journey. Whatever reasons each parent may have, is really to allow each DC to have their potential better nurtured.

Each school is guided through the leadership of the school and hence while all schools are good, they are differentiated and may not be good fit for DC. Hence the DSA journey has allowed DC to analyse, find out from friends (seniors), be familiarise with what to expect in their secondary years. I was able to see DS mature in the process and with the DSA, we can see his passion. While there is deliberation further among the many advices and concerns, a friend shared - this could be a good time for them to be responsible if they have options. They will have to stick through their choice. As parents, the filter has been done, the job is theirs to carry on now.

[Harrychew]

Before this year, I did not think my DD should bother with DSA, as PSLE route looks appropriate for her. Then we attended several top schools’ open house and hear from the principals that DSA intake is 50% of cohort, and it hit me that DSA was the main reason why PSLE COP has gone through the roof. I recall pre-DSA days the top 5 schools COP seldom touches 260. Schools such as ACS, SCGS, Cedar, St Nic etc were usually in 240+ range. My guess is that the schools were "chope-ing" students in 240 to 270 range, hence by the time of PSLE S1 posting, the COP naturally gets bumped up by 5 to 10 points for each school.


Another clue is that top 10% of PSLE score should be around 250 - 255, so one has to wonder how does it make sense that so many schools have COP above the 10% PSLE mark?

As such, I thought that if my DD does not play this game, then we are not acting rationally. However, after hearing of DSA students’ suicide cases, my mind is very clear that if my DD is not academically within top 10% of cohort (judging by her prelim results), then she better not squeeze her way in as this will mean years of low self-esteem in her important teenage years. Coming from a top 5 schools I appreciate the pressure is unrelenting if one is not academically inclined. Even loads of cramming will not help a student who simply find it tough to internalize abstract concepts quickly, and the time spent on cramming will take away from other aspects of the child’s growth, such as social skills, which is probably not a good idea.

So I am glad that MOE is finally moving to contain the DSA monster, for it has created much more problem for everyone with very little benefits to the students. Better to go back to original PSLE posting system and keep DSA to a minimum.