ON NOV 20, the Ministry of Education released statistics on Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) pass rates. It was stated that 92 per cent of homeschooled children had been assessed as suitable to proceed to secondary school, whereas 97 per cent of mainstream children had been so assessed.

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Parents who decide to homeschool their children are depriving them of a normal childhood. These children are prevented from interacting with kids of their age group and the interaction and CCA available in a main stream school. So, unless they can produce better results than main stream school, these parents should stop homeschooling them and send them back to main stream schools.

Betterment, what do you mean by a 'normal childhood'? Do you mean being crammed into a class of forty strangers and drilled repetitively to take tests and become 'exam smart' rather than 'talent smart'? One does not have to go to school to interact with other children. Ever heard of neighbours? Ever heard of sports centres? Ever heard of church groups? Ever heard of ballet classes? Ever heard of getting together with like-minded individuals and going to the Botanic Gardens etc?

For a normal childhood, I would include spending plenty of time with one's parents. Homeschooling parents make that deliberate choice to spend time with their children. Your 'normal children' though often have parents who work many long hours and rarely see their kids.

In any case, by your own logic of better results, you will be pleased to hear that 73% of homeschooled qualified for the Express steam in this year's PSLE as opposed to only 63.5% of mainstream pupils. I am sure you will thus be the first to congratulate homeschooled pupils on their superior results.

#3, if home schooling is better than main stream school, then what is the writer complaining about? They should just continue to home school them and why bother to compare their children grades to the main stream school? If they want to reinvent the wheel and continue to live like a frog in the well, no body cares. However, if they start comparing with main stream school, and blaming MOE of discrimination, then that's where the problem arise.

Everyone has a choice of how they want to bring up their kids. Once, chosen, stop blaming MOE and comparing with others.

#3, you wrote that 73% of homeschooled qualified for the Express steam in this year's PSLE as opposed to only 63.5% of mainstream pupils.

Statistics when used properly, give good understanding of trends and results. But when used wrongly, will lead to misinterpretation. There are over 40,000 kids a year in main stream schools and only a few hundreds home schoolers. The large difference in sample size means any comparison between the two groups is statistically insignificant.

MOE is forever like that. When it launches a programme, it wants to make sure it is a success by making sure it has the necessary statistics to back up its claim. The one and only way it does so is to make it examinable and/or to crank up the pass rate/quality.

Take for example the programme to encourage 'A" level students to be able to work cooperatively. It has no idea about how to craft an interestig programme, so it went about drawing up a stupid, compulsory, examinable subject called 'Project Work' and then make it a very important if not compulsory criterion for admission to university.

This is its standard style. Ram it through by making it examinable and very importnat for moving on to the next stage. There is no hope of ever seeing the MOE come up with a programme (or 'initiative' as they like to call it) which really excites the students and their teachers.

Damn f%$#ing stupid and uncreative ministry. Probably the worst one in the whole gahmen machinery.

Betterment, the writer is not arguing that homeschooling is better or worse than mainstream schooling; the writer is simply asking for equality of treatment between two groups of Singaporean citizens. Don't you believe that Singaporeans should be treated equally?

Why don't you follow your own advice of 'Everyone has a choice of how they want to bring up their kids'? You are the one who mouthed off that you think homeschooled children are not receiving a normal childhood and criticised the writer. Who are you to judge?

Yes, the statistical comparison between the two groups has to be treated with caution. However, there is not misunderstanding about the 33rd percentile. If a child scored say 170 in the PSLE in a mainstream school then that child could progress to Normal Academic; however, the same score by a homeschooled child would be considered a failure by MOE and the child would have to resit the PSLE. Surely this is not fair? Same exam, same score.

You evidently have no idea of the homeschooling community and issues. Why are you so negative and critical about a fellow group of Singaporeans?

The cat is out of the bag.. maybe the editor should change the title of the forum to "MOE discourages homeschooled pupils by moving the goal posts"

#7, I enjoyed my school days, learned a great deal and made many life-long friends. Depriving a child of normal schooling is a severe form of child abuse. When parents decide to home-school their children, is it the parents' decision or the children's choice? Is the children given a choice to go to school or stay home and be taught by their parents? Obviously the children are not given the choice and the parents imposed their selfish ideals on their children and deprive them of a school experience which they themselves have benefited.

Anyway, MOE view is that if you choose to home school your child, then you must be able to produce better result than the bottom 33% of the main stream school. If you can't then you are a lousy teacher and better to send your child back to the professionally run main stream school. MOE is more diplomatic in their replies, but allow me to put it bluntly to these selfish parents who cannot teach for nuts.

Betterment, you have completely ignored my counterpoints to your previous mouthing.

Your latest salvo that 'Depriving a child of normal schooling is a severe form of child abuse' is plain silly.

It is good that you enjoyed your school days. Do not forget that there are plenty of children who are terribly bullied at school, and a few are emotionally scarred for life. School is not as carefree as you might imagine.

When parents decide to home-school their children, it is usually because they care compassionately about the welfare and educational outcomes of their children. Often one parent will give up a full-time job to devote him- or herself to the children. This does not sound like child abuse.

Your point about whether it is the parents' or the children's choice is a bit of non-sequitur. One could equally say that a child does not choose to go to primary school. If you ask the majority of six year olds whether they want to go to primary school, I am sure they will say no. What is different is that a major reason for home-schooling is to closely nurture the emotional maturity of the child so that the child will become empowered to make informed decisions about his or her life. I do not think the same philosophy, at least to the same extent, is behind primary schooling.

Your point that homeschooling parents should produce better results than the bottom 33% of mainstream pupils or be classified by you as a lousy teacher misses a very important aspect of why some parents homeschool. Some children have learning difficulties and are not catered well by the primary schools. Such children often need intensive one-to-one teaching. And with the best will in the world, such children might struggle to achieve the 33rd percentile.

You are entitled to your opinions. Others are entitled to judge whether you have thought through the issues and whether your intention is to enlighten.