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A huge and important announcement was made by MOE about removing all mid-year exams for all Primary & Secondary students. This is to shift focus on developing self-directed learners. Without the focus on mid-year exams, schools are able to deepen the students learning.
Without exams, students will have weighted assignments and this requires them to manage them well. In order to do that, your child needs to be a self-directed learner so that they can focus and move in the right direction.
Here are some tips that we have from our Science HOD, Mr Linus, who has developed and applied over his many years of teaching!
Discuss your child’s interest or what is going on in their day
Many things happen every day, find some time to ask about your child if they knew anything that happen that day. This can open up discussions about what is going on in the world and they may develop an interest in a particular subject
Another way to start is to ask your child questions, like why certain things are built this way. This can trigger them to start thinking and exploring more about the subject.
You do not have to schedule a time to do this, it can be done during meal times or on the way when you bring them to school or back home!!
Play games or watch videos to build curiosity
You can have a family game night (eg: on fridays / weekends) and play an educational game together. This can develop your child’s interest in the subject and you will have quality time with your child too!
Another way is to let your child watch educational youtube videos to build their curiosity on a particular subject.
When your child has a particular subject they like, they will tend to focus more on the subject, make the effort to study and research more and eventually score well!
Watch the video below to find out some board games & Youtube videos recommended by Mr Linus! The same concept can be applied to other subjects too!
If you would like to find out more about the board games that we recommend, you can check out these links below!
*Do note that these are affiliated links and we may get a commission if you choose to buy it*
Do experiments
If you want your child to get some hands-on activity, you and your child can conduct some simple experiments at home. At the same time, they can better understand the theory and the application.
Understanding the application is useful as it is required during exams. Especially for Science subjects.
For simple experiments (primary school) your child can do at home, read this blog post of ours: https://www.keynotelearning.com/science-experiments-to-try-at-home/
Do research together with your child
When your child has a specific subject that they are interested in (eg: plants), you can ask them questions relating to their interest and do online research with them.
Usually, when you or your child is curious about something, they would want to find out more. In order to make your child become an independent learner, you can teach them how to find information online. However, there are fake news and information spreading around, so you can teach your child how to find credible research.
Watch the video below to find out Mr Linus’s advice on researching online!
We hope you will find these useful in encouraging self-directed learning in your child!