KiasuParents@SG

I spent some time this afternoon going what I think is one of the most hilarious websites to date. It's aptly named KiasuParent.com.

The most entertaining bits are under 'Articles' and 'Forum'. Most of it is obsessed with the kid's education. Basically, how to prepare one's kid(s) for formal education and how to get one's kid into the preferred school. See here.

After about 20 minutes, the conclusion is as follows:

For the average Singapore to maximise the chances of getting his/her kid into the "better" primary schools,

One should either be Hokkien or Methodist, 

or better still... be both. A Methodist Hokkien.

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Live near the preferred school

Then make sure you get yourself (+ the 2 references) registered with the clan/church in time (with all nec paperwork) to qualify for the right phases of primary 1 registration. Of course, it's a sad sad day if you claim to be able to speak fluent Hokkien, but unfortunately, it's your mother, not your father, who is Hokkien.

Makes me wonder how a Singaporean, who is neither able to claim to be Hokkien nor Methodist, feels about the ballyhoo. E.g. if one is Muslim Malay. Or Hindu Indian.
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If School X produces top scorers, does it mean that your kid will do well by getting into that school? Magic dust! The focus is always on how many top scorers the schools produce. It's more important to understand the proportion of students whose scores are in the top Xth percentile and lowest Xth percentile. This gives a better idea of the school's performance.

And even so, it is not to say that the performance is entirely that of the school's credit. There are other factors such as family background which contribute significantly to a child's PSLE performance.

Unfortunately, no parent will receive a report to such a detail. All decisions are still based on misleading rankings and hearsay.

The discussion thread(s) about the Gifted Education Programme (GEP) is also a hilarious read. Has anyone read any longitudinal study reports on GEPers? Without which, this is merely a frenzy. Like a stampede during the Great Singapore Sale. Grab first, talk later.
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Lastly, the comments in the discussion forum made by ostensible parents are indeed harrowing. Going by our great leader's line of argument, such parents should stop fretting so much. No number of good schools is gonna make a difference to such problematic genes.

But it is always difficult to tell someone that he/she is not good enough to be the best. He/she likes to believe that his/her offsprings are indeed a fresh start. Tabula rasa.

This... is the root of the problem, isn't it?