S’pore Pupils Top Tests, Score Higher In Reasoning. By: Soon Qi Wei

Singapore's primary and secondary school students remain world beaters in mathematics, science and reading, according to two international benchmarking studies released. The test scores showed that not only did Singapore increase its share of top performers, but the weaker students also moved up, improving their scores. And the way Singapore students approached the questions in the most recent tests indicates they are moving away from rote learning and applying higher-order thinking skills.

I believe that this is a very important news as it shows how much Singapore is progressing in our academics. I believe that it is essential as in Singapore, we lack land and manpower. Therefore, it is required for our people to make great discoveries and names worldwide in order to sustain our economic and other needs.  To read more, click here!!

Gifted or well prepared?

The New York City Education Department announced that it was changing part of its admissions exam for its gifted and talented programs last year. The Education Department said it would change one of the tests used for admission to public school gifted kindergarten and first-grade classes in order to focus more on cognitive ability and less on school readiness, which favors children who have more access to preschool and tutoring. The parents of various children prepares their child by using test prep and workbooks provided by  tutoring companies, working on skills like spatial visualization and serial reasoning, which are part of the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test, or NNAT 2, the new gifted and talented test.

After reading this, I feel that children in Singapore face similar challengers. In the Singapore education system, children at primary 3 would be eligible to take a Gifted Programme entry test. If they were to past, they would be attending classes which are catered to them, providing them a large platform to further broaden their perspective and knowledge. It is a real pity as some children are not truly gifted but are trained and prepared by their parents to be gifted so that they would be able to enter the Gifted Programme courses. Some parents even went to the extend to actually send them to tuition classes which trains and prepares them to be gifted and to ace the entry test. However, when these kids enter primary 4, they would start to suffer as they would not be able to cope with the gifted programme courses and keep up to pace with those children who are really gifted and better in learning. 

China officials caught spray-painting grass green in Chengdu. By Lim Kay Kiat

China officials have recently turned to green dyes to make the grass in the city look greener. The green dye, Top Green Turf Greening Agent, is said by its spokesman to be a non-toxic dye and it does not pollute the environment. Workers have been filmed spray painting grass patches over the city. This is not the first time the government has attempted to make the environment look nicer with artificial means in China.

In my opinion, i think the government of Chengdu should not be spending money to purchase these dyes. Instead the government should be thinking of a solution to solve the root of the problem, which is the badly polluted air in China. Studies show that the air in China contains many toxic gases which are harmful to all organism, this could be the cause for the yellow grass in China. I strongly feel that the government should use this money to build catalytic converters and air purifiers in the city rather than be using it on the grass.

For the full article click here!

Pampered Kids is the norm nowadays

Overview: Parents tend to give their children instant gratification and generally, refusal is treated as a taboo word. It is cases like this where children expect things to be served rather than to obtain it themselves. This is due to the simplicity of saying 'yes' preferably to 'no' as it makes the situation less complicated for parents to handle.In instances such as 2 working parents, they are inclined to feel more guilty in spending less time with their children so they assuage their guilt by lavishing them with extravagant accessories. As children turn into teenagers, they would see their peers as a new family and treats their parents with less loyalty and respect than they should. To avoid having a spoiled child, one should devote them with quality time rather than expensive materials. Likewise, one should also encourage them to work-learn the value of money- and teach them to appreciate what they had been given.

Link

Opinion: I completely agree with the author with his stand that most children are indulged and loaded with fancy goods such that they become pampered in everything they do.They are almost treated like royalty at home. Even at answering phone calls, they lack the proper manners to interact politely with strangers; at times they are indifferent in even picking up the house phone. Though critics can point out that parents want their children to feel loved which would make them feel confident and happy, it actually rids them of their moral core and compass; which is an unforseen problem. As an alternative to avoid having a spoiled child, parents at times should be stringent towards their children so that the latter would not get the better of their parents. These boundaries should be constantly reinforced so that they know exactly where is the thin line between good and bad.

Spain karate teacher gets 302 years for rape

A Spanish court handed a 302-year jail sentence on Friday to a karate champion for raping dozens of pupils at his martial arts school. Fernando Torres Banea told his pupils that sex would make them better at karate, raped and abused 40 children, some of them younger than 13. His wife Maria Jose Gonzalez was sentenced to 148 years and another karate teacher, Ivonne Gonzalez, to 126 years, after both were convicted of taking part in the abuse. The three will likely serve 20 years at most, the maximum penalty for the crimes under Spanish law.

After reading this, I felt disgusted due to the fact that a karate teacher actually tricked his pupils to have sex by saying they would get better at their karate skills. This would surely affect all the children he had abused in years to come as losing their virginity to a person they do not really know and for something they want but cannot be really achieve( Improving their karate skills) is horrific. This would surely damage their lives as it is something that cannot be erased. 

New trains for Singapore's Downtown Line.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has bought 15 more trains for the Down Town Line. The trains, costing about S$119 million, are expected to be delivered from 2015, in time for the operations of DTL Stage 2 in 2015.73 trains have already been bought for the 42-kilometre rail line that will run from Bukit Panjang through the Central Business District area to the Expo.  The additional trains will result in shorter waiting times for commuters. Six stations are progressing at different stages.

After reading this, I think this would really help Singapore in years to come with the population rising. During the peak hours now, stations and trains are all full of commuters, and this made many citizens really worried. Hence, by adding the new downtown line and more trains, Singapore’s transport infrastructure would surely be more effective as people would be able to get around faster.

Possible Nuclear war?

A pair of the U.S. Air Force’s B-2 stealth bombers made the least-stealthy flight in their history on Thursday, flying 13,000 miles round-trip from their Missouri base to fly over South Korea and drop inert bombs on a target range in the Yellow Sea. It was the latest in a steadily escalating war of nerves pitting the U.S. and its South Korean ally against the increasingly bellicose North Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un signed off on the order at a midnight meeting of top generals to put its rocket units on standby on Friday to attack U.S. military bases in South Korea and the Pacific

This news is important as a war might break out anytime. With the North Korean’s rocket ready to be launched, a nuclear war might arise, affecting people of all aspects. For example, the people working in the economy sector will be severely affected due to the bad economy. Bankers and investors will lose tons of money.