Striving for excellence or just OTT?

Singapore is a great place and there is much to love about it. It is clean, organised, safe and generally well-run. One of the things I have struggled with in Singapore, however, is the obsession with academic excellence prevalent in all the schools. Don’t get me wrong! I think it is important that children are taught well and encouraged to succeed, but here in Singapore, I think they have taken that a bit too far. Let me give you two examples, both involving our youngest daughter.

In 2012 she was 5 years old and in her first year of kindergarten. What are 5 year old kids supposed to do at kindergarten? Play, draw, make stuff, play, colour in, paint, play, eat play-dough, play...right? That’s what I thought, until we received her mid-year “report card”. The teacher’s comment, “Nina must strive harder!” Seriously? A 5 year old in kindergarten must strive harder? To do what? Colour in better, eat more play-dough, or play harder/better/faster?

She’s now 6 and in Primary 1. What are 6 year olds supposed to do in Primary 1? Play, draw and colour in (better than they did in kindergarten), learn to read and write and learn the basics of mathematics. Well, a few weeks ago Trish received a phone call from Nina (using her brother’s phone). The reason for the call...not that she was sick, hurt or otherwise needed her mother’s help. No, she was phoning to ask her mom to pray for her because she was nervous about her class spelling test. A 6 year old nervous about a test in Primary 1? You’ve got to be kidding me! 6 year olds are not supposed to be feeling nervous, stressed or anxious about tests in Primary 1 (and it's not like Nina is a stressed child - in fact, of all her siblings, she’s the most laid back).

I think it's a rather sad indictment on a society when children, who should spend the bulk of their time playing, not doing homework, and whose biggest concern should be how many presents they can expect for their birthday, are asking for prayer because they’re stressed about school work.

The only ray of hope in this story is that our 6 year old, in her hour of need (in Primary 1!) has the wherewithal to turn to God for help.

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