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SINGAPORE: Starting next year, 15 schools will host advanced modules under Singapore's new approach to supporting high-ability students, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said on Tuesday (Mar 3).
The schools are Ahmad Ibrahim Primary, Clementi Primary, Geylang Methodist School, Innova Primary, Jurong West Primary, Kheng Cheng School, Palm View Primary, Pioneer Primary, Punggol View Primary, Queenstown Primary, St Gabriel's Primary, Tampines Primary, Teck Ghee Primary, Yew Tee Primary and Yu Neng Primary School.
They were chosen to ensure a good geographic spread and are accessible via public transport, MOE said, adding that the list will be reviewed periodically.
The announcement follows Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's 2024 announcement to discontinue the Gifted Education Programme (GEP) in its current form.
Under the new approach, more students – or about 10 per cent of the cohort – will have access to high-ability school-based programmes, which are already available in all primary schools. Students who may benefit from further development can then choose to attend after-school modules at one of the 15 designated centres.
Unlike the GEP, these modules are not linked to the national curriculum, said MOE.
Students will no longer need to transfer to one of the nine primary schools that currently host the GEP. Those nine schools will cease to be GEP centres, and their teachers with GEP experience may either teach the centre-based advanced modules or remain at their own schools.
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The 15 centres will offer two types of advanced modules: weekly two-hour after-school sessions during term time in English, mathematics or science, as well as interdisciplinary modules held during school holidays.
Classes will be taught by specially trained teachers experienced in working with high-ability students in specific domains. These teachers will not be drawn from the primary school hosting the centre.
Since these modules cater to students with strengths in specific domains, more students will be eligible to take them – at least double the current GEP cohort, MOE said.
The modules are not compulsory, given that students may have other commitments or interests, and students can exit and re-enter the programme. Schools will also be encouraged to nominate students strong in multiple areas for only one subject each semester.
The modules are not intended to give students a leg up in examinations, said Minister for Education Desmond Lee in parliament on Tuesday, while laying out his ministry's spending plans for the year.
"Rather, they are designed to further cultivate curiosity, creativity and critical thinking."
The new approach marks a departure from the current GEP selection process, which requires students to perform well across English, mathematics and science in a two-stage process.
Under the new system, students do not need to excel in all areas to participate. A student talented in English but average in mathematics, for example, could still be accepted into a high-ability English programme at their school.
Primary 3 students this year will be the first batch assessed under a new standardised one-stage identification exercise in August, which will be complemented by school-based observations – such as a student's attitude towards learning and potential – using guidelines and checklists provided by MOE.
In subsequent years, schools will also be able to nominate suitable Primary 4 and Primary 5 students for the school-based programmes and advanced modules.
