June Holiday Program

★ 25th June, remember the date.★

★ We can bring that invaluable smile back. That smile you miss seeing on your child's face; a little like the one they give when they thank you for that ice-cream, but not really. All we need is one day with us for them to remember what made them happy.★

To know more, email us the following details 

and 

we can begin our little journey of happiness:

☞ Your name & mobile number
☞ Your email address
☞ Your child's name & age (4-17)

What will your child get out of this?
✔ Learn to be independent
✔ Get psyched up for the remaining school year
✔ Set a target and the road to achieving it
✔ Re live the child in them, &
✔ Experience fun that neither of you could expect happen in 1 day!

There are only 30 slots for this 1-day camp and the first 10 will get a 35% discount! (U.P. $198, Now: $128) Email us: ask@scorecampus.com

Or visit our Facebook page!

Campus Monthly: June 2015

10 MOST POWERFUL SUCCESS TIPS FOR ANY PUBLIC SPEAKING OCCASION

The Flipped Classroom: Top 10 Questions Asked By Parents

The Flipped Classroom: Top 10 Questions Asked By Parents

There has been much hype about flipped learning. Institutions from all around the world are praising and practicing this ingenious way of teaching. However, many people still do not know about flipped learning. What is flipped learning, exactly? 

After being asked countless times the same few questions, we have decided to compile the top 10 questions parents have been asking us ever since we have begun speaking of it.

Let's Flip!

Ask the question first!

Ask the Question First!
A Flip Learning article by Gabriel Suppiah

Ok. We all know that we cannot run away from formative assessments and it is also driving you parents crazy in getting them ready for these tests and exams. We have already introduced flip learning to you and for those who are not familiar with this, I suggest that you read an article on it. Flip learning does not apply just to schools, but also to how a child can study at home. 

What is the situation now?

• Student goes to school and learns
• Takes exams and achieves some result
• Parents get tuition for extra help
• Parents purchase assessment books for additional help
• Parents choose some alternative programs to add on the help
• Help is given to the point where it becomes hindrance and we hope we learn this sooner than later

This vicious cycle continues and we all think this is learning

Alright, this article is not about changing the way learning happens but changing the approach to learning. I think this will be a good start. You can practice this during the school holidays and let us know your feedback.

1.       Read the infographic and follow along

2.       Give them the test first!

3.       Let them go through the tests and answer in the ways suggested

4.       For the questions that puzzle them, challenge them to find the answers using new technology (internet) or old technology (books).

5.       Evaluate the difference

This is not Rocket Science folks. Instead of giving the assessments after reading the contents, you are giving it beforehand. This is the only thing you are changing.

Do this for all the assessments and you will see a change in the way your child learns.

+ Students show more curiosity and interest
+ They are committed to finishing the exam on time.
+ They feel that their answers are respected.
+ Grades go up!

Doesn't sound that difficult to begin the change, yes? 
Till the next article on better learning,

Gabriel Suppiah
The Dean
gabriel@scorecampus.com

10 tips to ace your PSLE

All these student performance programs are SCAMS!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My son went for the program, and the motivation died off after 1 week!

My daughter went and said that all they did was brainwash the kids!

I can’t believe they made our kids discuss personal things!

What? The price range of the fees is anywhere from SGD$2500 to SGD$24,000. Ridiculous! Nothing really works!

It is like a cult!

We have heard parents and observers say this!

WOW, WOW, WOW! People have so many things to say and have always pointed fingers outwards. Now, let’s get serious here! Who chose these programs? Who went to the previews and made an informed decision to enrol in these programs?

Now, I am not defending the programs neither am I protecting the parents. I think the fault lies on both ends. Someone sells a product understanding your desperations, and we fall for it! That is as simple as that. The question is this! Are these programs scams?

This is what I believe! No they are not. However, I do believe they are pitched badly and the agreement parents and these companies get into, are not sound. This is where I would like to take the opportunity to educate parents.

When it comes to our loving children, we need to expect more. Be clear with these companies and coaches about what you want, and see how they respond. Anyone who responds with a guarantee of some sort normally does not know what he or she is talking about. Coaching is about getting results and time is a key component.

Most of these camps can be a trigger for getting these amazing results but more time must be given. It must be done in a manner whereby the child feels like he or she has accomplished rather than us giving blind testimonials that the course what changed everything. Be grateful, not silly!

Appreciate your kids for the hard work they have done. I feel this way regardless of whether this is a camp or tuition you are sending them to.

In closing I say this! No, these programs are not scams. Secondly, let’s give the kids the credit when they deserve it. Do they need coaching? YES, 100%! But please go out and find a good one.

This Article or Comment (Long one) was written by Gabriel Suppiah and if you want to email or get in touch with him, please email him at gabriel@scorecampus.com

 

 

 

 

Being a knowledgeable parent

An Article by our developer Nalini. An amazing mom, fantastic educator and great friend.  

In this blog article, I recount a few experiences with my son.

When my son was around 7 to 8 months, he used to crawl his way around.

One day, I had taken him with me to my friend’s place and we were sitting on the floor chatting. Suddenly I noticed my son crawling to a toy vehicle which had 3 wheels and the 4^th wheel was missing. He looked around and then took a Vicks bottle lid which is also circle in shape with diameter similar to that of the wheel and tried to fit it in place of the missing wheel.

As he grew, I watched him get fidgety to sit in one place and glowing when he meddles with things around. He used to watch with absolute calmness when a mason or a carpenter or a plumber works.

As a family, we provided him as much space as possible. Of course we had to stretch ourselves to the core for it.

Just a few days back, he is all of 12 years old now and he was telling me about some motors (not the big ones, but those we got him for his projects) that he was working with and he was telling me the similarities and difference of two and then the topic moved to a particular motor which was encased in a plastic case. He told me that it gave high power o/p and also low rpm (rotations per minute). And then he explained to me how the low rpm was achieved with the help of gears.

Well, it got me thinking “why should we spend all the energy to bolster the motor and then spend effort to lower the rpm?”

I put this question this question to the rest of the family which includes engineers. They enriched my knowledge on how if rpm is not reduced, centrifugal force will play havoc and also the wear and tear.

I also understood that high rpm was needed to generate the magnetic field and hence power.

And also how modern technology is working on achieving better efficiency.

Later, when I discussed with my son, he was telling me if the rpm of the motor in the grinder is not reduced, the dosa batter would be thrown out and was demonstrating by waving his hands.

On further discussion, he used the word “centrifugal force”.

Viola ! That’s from my side as a knowledgeable parent. Do post your experiences and comments.

 

Definition of a test or an examination

This has been something I have wanted to do, and that is to define a test or an examination in a non threatening manner. I really do not feel that there is any need for enormous amounts of fear, stress or anxiety to be associated with an exam. So, we defined it!

Hope you like it and do let me or us know your thoughts

Gabriel Suppiah
The Dean

Ok, I have a request.

There are plenty of learning journeys created for various locations and you may know about what I am talking about. There are trails created for Singapore River, Zoo, Airport and places that. You can often see students walking around these areas during their learning journeys too.

During our recent findings, we have learnt that both students and teachers are not engaged in some of these journeys and they do not see a link between the experience and actu...al classroom learning.

1. What is missing and what can be done to improve it?

2. Who is responsible for the learnings during these experiences? Students, teachers, vendors, educational technology folks, who?

3. What is the real meaning of gamification when it comes to experiences like this?

4. What kind of data will we require to see the success of such an experience?

5. Are our teachers trained in creating Authentic Tasks for such experiences?

6. Who wins at the end of the day?

7. I love all of you who can take a min to answer some of these questions.

Free $5 Starbucks voucher for good answers!

Go Score!

Gabriel Suppiah
The Dean
www.scorecampus.com
 

Well, most of us have heard of Flipped Classroom, its goodness and also its multiple levels. We have also heard of Authentic Learning and its goodness along with its 9 pillars as well. We educators have proven ourselves to be right in creating these methods and scaffolding them too. We think its great.

But now, can we see the real goodness in it? The bigger picture maybe? What should learning be really like? What can flip and authentic learning do help this process? Do visit this blog when you can and let's get some good and real education happening here. Go Score!

What is the “Flipped Classroom” and is Singapore ready for it?

“Flip teaching (or flipped classroom) is a form of blended learning which encompasses any use of technology to leverage the learning in a classroom, so a teacher can spend more time interacting with students instead of lecturing. This is most commonly being done using teacher-created videos that students view outside of class time. It is also known as backwards classroom, reverse instruction, flipping the classroom, and reverse teaching.”

- Wikipedia

Education Today

We live in a most interesting time as far as formalised education is concerned. The role of a teacher is changing. Intellectual property of teachers is shared through open source learning, or at least this is what we are hoping will happen. There is self-directed learning, which means the freedom of acquiring knowledge is now in the hands of the students. Learn at your own time, own pace, anywhere. And now too, there is the flipped classroom! 

As an educator and a father, I have never been more excited about education then I am now. The flipped classroom is going to revolutionise education and the role of the teacher. Great news to teachers is that you now can go home earlier if you choose to and have a regular life. You can teach from almost anywhere and to anyone in any place. How exciting is that?

And just visualise this: the amusement park can now be a classroom. The shaded grass patch under a tree can now be a classroom. The park can be a classroom and so can the zoo. The kids are absolutely going to fall in love with these new learning methods. Flipped classrooms are going to be the way of the future and the world is finally taking a great step towards being a better place to live in, especially for kids. It may sound a little dramatic but it’s true.

Many of us have heard about e-learning being offered in schools and gradually in homes too. Parents are finally embracing e-learning at home and these are all great signs of improvements in our educational system. E-learning is not just for higher education; great steps are being taken for this to be implemented at the primary and secondary school levels too. The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and Ministry of Education (MOE) have initiatives such as future schools for this very purpose. It is still a very young industry but portals like KhanAcademy.org and ScoreCampus.com are moving fast in their bid to provide quality self-directed education for younger learners.

So How Does It Actually Work? 

Traditionally, our teachers spend much time teaching the theoretical part of any subject matter in the classroom and a serious amount of time and effort is put into the planning and delivery of these classes. The truth is that in all this, the true essence of the subject matter is so often lost and it becomes what is popularly known as rote learning. The flipped classroom addresses this very issue. Through the use of technology, the explanations of the various theories and methods are now taught online. This in turn encourages the teachers to facilitate a class in group discussion and project work to understand the concept. And there you have the evolution of the role of a teacher. The teacher becomes a facilitator and manages lively interaction and fruitful group work.

These are really exciting times and teachers will definitely embrace this for many reasons, some being:

• They get to do what they were originally trained to do. The passion will be reignited.

• Working hours can and should be dramatically reduced for the work life balance of the teachers and their families.

• Life and enthusiasm will return to the classrooms.

The flipped classroom can happen anywhere and at anytime depending how adventurous the educators want to be. The time of the global educator is now here. What remains to be seen is how the classrooms are going to be flipped. I’m looking forward to it and yes, Singapore is certainly ready for it!

Authored by: Gabriel Suppiah for Score Campus