S'pore moving away from 'narrow meritocracy' that only recognises grades & paper success: Desmond Lee

As the government seeks to reform the Singapore education system, some things will be left behind, said Education Minister Desmond Lee.

For instance, Singapore is moving away from being a "narrow meritocracy that ties achievement solely to grades and paper qualifications", into one that recognises more diverse successes.

While such a system, where success hinged on grades, worked in the past, Singapore's education system has evolved to stay relevant through the years, he said.

He was speaking at the Sep. 25 Parliament during the Debate on the President's Address.

PSLE no longer 'high-stakes checkpoint'

Lee gave the example of the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE).

In the past, the system would "pit students against one another", and students were graded on a bell curve, he explained.

"It was not enough to do well. You had to do better than your peers, and this would affect how you were streamed and posted to secondary school," he recalled.

But the education system has since moved away from this, Lee emphasised.

As the focus on academics continues to soften into something broader, the PSLE should no longer remain a "high-stakes checkpoint" for students that determine the rest of their lives, he said.

To this end, the government will study how to reduce the stakes in exams.

He added:

"We want to give our students the space to learn and grow at their own pace, instead of chasing every last mark or competing with their peers."

Move away from 'arms race', inequality

Lee pointed out that in addition to being "narrow", an academics-fixated "education arms race" results in families with more resources having an edge over those with less.

"The reality is that our society has not entirely moved away from seeing education as an ‘arms race’," he said.

As such, Singapore must do more to break away from this concept, and provide opportunities for students to develop their talents and interests regardless of their starting point.

For instance, the Ministry of Education's (MOE) Opportunity Fund subsidises co-curricular development opportunities for lower-income children, he said.

Singapore must also guard against the "opportunity gap" in the education system, in which better-resourced families "hot house" their children to give them a leg up in school, while children in lower-income families fall behind.

"If we do not close these gaps quickly, they will only widen," Lee warned.

He said that the ministry will enhance resources for schools and partner more closely with parents and the community in order to better support lower-income students.

Furthermore, schools and classrooms must not be "cloistered communities", and instead be places where children from different backgrounds come together.

"We will continue to enable students from different backgrounds to learn together, and learn from one another," he said, adding that this would prevent divisions based on race or religion.

Lee stressed that while these changes to the education system are not easy and will take time to implement, "they are necessary".

He concluded by asking how Singapore can help its children succeed.

"Not by sending them to more tuition or enrichment classes, but by developing them holistically and empowering them to learn deeply, helping them be confident about their strengths and interests, anchoring them in values, and developing in them the adaptability, resilience, and determination to thrive in a world of change."

Avoiding entrenched privilege

Aside from the topic of education, Lee also spoke about the risk of a stratified society with gaps in social mobility.

“We have seen this happen in other societies, where privilege gets entrenched,” he said.

“So we cannot stand still, and must continually work against these forces that can fragment our society.”

He gave the example of schemes like ComLink+ and KidSTART, which help vulnerable families achieve stability, self-reliance, and social mobility.

One family that joined ComLink+ not only received essential groceries and milk powder, but help with their children’s development journey.

The older children were enrolled in an academic coaching programme, while the youngest son was enrolled in a community futsal programme.

“Going forward, we will provide more comprehensive, wraparound support, to uplift families,” he said.

Related story

Top image from MDDI/Youtube