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Singapore international school - good or stressful?

  1. #1
    RoxyRider is offline Registered User
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    Apr 2016
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    3

    Singapore international school - good or stressful?

    Hi parents, i have heard great things about SIS's academics and its bilingual curriculum. I believe my kids will have priority entrance to the school being Singaporeans. I am not very familiar with the school though.

    - Are there many Tiger Mums around in the school?

    - Are the kids constantly being handed homework daily since young?

    - Are there many work hard but play hard kids? Thinking the school work might compromise their play time.

    - I am a SG education system by-product, but lived out of the country for long. Are kids in SIS pilot towards being more "nerdy/geeky" or all-rounded?

    - What are the pros and cons of SIS?


  2. #2
    A student is offline Registered User
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    May 2018
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    1

    Hi RoxyRider,

    I found this thread just recently, and I noticed that there is quite a handful of parents that are worried about the academics in this school [Singapore International School]. So, before I continue to express opionion on this subject, I would like to first mention that I am not a parent but however a student [Secondary 3] in Singapore International school. So this will be an average student's outlook onto things.

    Firstly, the homework, assignments, and projects may be more than other schools. But to phrase this in another way is that even though that is true, students in this school do not feel a significant amount of pressure. This is because we more or less started like this. If we never studied at a school with less assignments, we would never felt that we have more work to do.

    Secondly, the amount of work actually helps us cope with the amount of work we will have in the future. As a student, we all know that the school helps us prep for university applications and some of the university staff come to breif us students on preview of the syllabus. Also I'm sure that the amount of 'stress' you hear from other parents are actually their point of view of things, and often forget to ask the people who are actually studying in this school. (And many times we tend to exaggerate on things)

    Thirdly, this is something most parents and teachers don't know about. We all know that in movies there are things such as 'ranks and reputaion', this happens the most in other schools like South Island, Hong Kong International and Canadian International. But because we don't do all the stuff they do (basically drugs and things there are often more sexualized), and so we are labeled as "nerdy " and "geeky".

    So first let me answer some of the questions above from my point of view.
    Q1. Of course, there are some Tiger Mums, in a school in which focuses more than other schools on academics, of course. (key work is 'more than' doesnt mean the school only focuses on that stuff)

    Q2. If you mean daily as in every day, yes from what I remember, and just like any other school, the older you get the more work (duhh). It's not as tiring as parants think it is, if the parents care less about academics like mine, just finish it in a acceptable standard and it's fine!

    Q3. Work hard play hard? Umm, if the play hard you are talking about is like climbing on school facilities and acting all 'cool' here and there then, NO. There are other things we tend to enjoy that other people in other schools do not accept as much such as japanese and korean culture. Also in the future if your kids like anime and k-pop please don't mock it, it doesnt take over our lives (like what quite alot of parents think). It helps us feel happier!

    Q4. I do not know your definition of all-rounded, but I have to say if you are looking for someone who has lived and had a life, but not in drugs and alchohol and [sexual stuff]. Yes, we are pretty balanced. Also the stereotype that students in SIS are nerdy and geeky is honestly pretty offending, just cause we don't do the 'cool' stuff doesn't mean students are all nerdy.

    Q5. Pros:
    - Most of us are good in academics, not because we are like this to being with but cause SIS teachers well (so if your kid's grades are not that great, it's okay!)
    - Similar to other International schools, we have a bilingual curriculum
    - And the largest difference that adults don't recognize are basically we develop better habits and make better decisions than to at pregnant at an age of 16

    Cons:
    - Thanks to all the parents who gossip too much, some children feel that SIS is not 'cool'
    -May not be able to catch up with workload (though it will probably help in long-run)
    -I think the school is comparatively smaller, but I don't see how it makes much of a difference

    Overall I hope many parents have relised that you have been asking the wrong people the wrong questions, like its not parants who study in the school. Go to the school itself and interview some children, they are the ones who feel this first-hand.


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