MOE To Remove Streaming In Secondary Schools From 2024
Most Singaporeans would be well-acquainted with the process of transitioning from primary to secondary school.
Soon, however, the Ministry of Education (MOE) will be making changes to a key part of this journey.
From 2024 onwards, MOE will be removing streaming from all secondary schools. Students will no longer be divided into Normal Academic (NA), Normal Technical (NT) and Express classes.
Instead, students will be grouped in mixed form classes and can opt for different subject levels suited to them.
These subject levels will be termed G1, G2 and G3, with ‘G’ referring to ‘General’.
No more streaming levels for students
On Monday (7 Mar), Minister for Education Chan Chun Sing announced in Parliament that MOE will be removing streaming from all secondary schools starting 2024.
He explained that students will instead be grouped together in the same classes.
Their subjects will be divided into the corresponding levels of G1, G2 and G3, which are “broadly mapped” from Express, NA, and NT standards.
This will give students the flexibility to take subjects based on their strengths and learning needs.
Full Subject-Based Banding for all secondary schools from 2024
Full Subject-Based Banding (SBB) will be offered to more schools this year, expanding to 90 schools in 2023. By 2024, MOE intends to implement Full SBB in every secondary school.
Full SBB is a shift away from a “stream-based paradigm” to one that is more flexible, enabling students to better carve out their own learning journey, shared MOE. It was tested in 2020 and received highly positive feedback.
Speaking in Parliament, Chan noted that students in the pilot schools have become ‘more confident in themselves and their abilities’.
These students were also more empowered to pursue their own interests and befriend peers from different courses.
This year, MOE will be extending Full SBB to 3 secondary schools:
- Crescent Girls’ School (CGS)
- Tanjong Katong Girls’ School (TKGS)
- Tanjong Katong Secondary School (TKSS)
All 3 schools currently only admit students under the Express stream. By 2024, however, students admitted to these schools will have the option to take G2 or G3 subjects.
This will enable such schools to be more accessible to students with diverse learning pathways.
Under SBB, students will be able to customise their learning with more flexibility than before. However, Chan added that accomodating such flexibility in teaching styles will also require more resources.
More flexible learning journeys for students
The removal of streaming from secondary schools and the introduction of Full SBB seems like a step forward for our education system. Enabling flexible learning will surely be beneficial for students.
Additionally, increasing the diversity within schools will also help to increase social cohesion within Singapore’s society.
Hopefully, students can continue to benefit from the improvements to our education system.
What is your opinion on the removal of streaming from secondary schools? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
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Featured image adapted from MCI Singapore and the Ministry of Education on Facebook.
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