Student's mother writes in to question the Education minister on why the PSLE has to be so difficult
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In an open letter to Education Minister Ong Ye Kung, a mother of a Primary 6 student wrote in questioning why the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) papers were so difficult, to the extent that her son and many other twelve-year olds felt demoralized.
In her letter, she shared, "The 2019 Math PSLE Exam held last Friday was so harrowing and so devastating that our 11 and 12 year olds came out of it defeated, crushed and utterly demoralized".
Explaining that her son's abilities were only average for the subject of Mathematics, she wrote, "You and I can never understand the shoes of these courageous kids who have spent their entire upper pri education practising and learning for this 1 off high stakes exam. It is unfortunate… everything they work for boils down to these" do or die" 4 days. As Singaporean parents, do we want out? YES! But do we have a choice , NO!"
Serene Eng-Yeo, the child's mother and adjunct lecturer at a local university, also said that after the exam, her son came out crushed and defeated, telling her that he was dumbfounded by every question in the Examination Paper 2. "And I know that he is not the only p6 kid who felt this way", she wrote.
"What is the point of making the paper so tough? Can MOE explain the rationale behind this?"
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Eng-Yeo also shared that in comparison, she felt that the school's preliminary examinations were "humane", and that they adequately prepared her son for his PSLE examinations.
"The paper was reasonably set and gave hope and encouragement to the kids. My son came home smiling after Prelims telling me that for the first time, he felt empowered and encouraged that he could do the paper. If the school had an inkling that this year's PSLE would be so crazy tough, they would have matched it in terms of comparability. No doubt about it" she wrote.
Her full letter:
According to those who commented on her post, many others had also questioned the disparity in terms of difficulty between this year's exam papers and those of previous years.
Along with her open letter, she also shared screenshots of some questions from the Mathematics exam paper being shared amongst parents and students.
In speaking to TISG, Serene shared that her son said the paper was "super hard" and that he was unable to do just about "every question in paper 2". When she verified this with her child's friends as well as others who told her that their own teacher-friends said so, the same sentiment was shared.
In comparing the standard of her son's prelim examination and mid-year exam papers, she said, "Are you telling me the school doesn't understand the standard for PSLE and sets one of a very different standard? If the school itself feels the (PSLE) paper is reasonable would they not tell the parents?"
Some of her fears, as well as those of other parents were that their children's fears were compounded following such a difficult examination, demoralising them and scarring them for future examinations to come.
TISG has reached out to Minister Ong Ye Kung for comment and clarification on the matter. -/TISG
Antibiotic resistance: UTI, among top 10 causes of death in Singapore, trickier to treat
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SINGAPORE: By all accounts, Sharon's (not her real name) surgery to remove fibroids earlier this year was a success.
The 32-year-old was discharged armed with information that urinary tract infection (UTI) was a risk from the surgery.
She found out during a follow-up visit a week later that she did contract UTI – an infection most commonly caused by E. Coli bacteria. As is typical for the infection, Sharon was prescribed antibiotics.
When it looked like she was not recovering, Sharon was prescribed another course of antibiotics.
"I still didn't get better. I bore with it and went for a follow-up appointment for my surgery," the civil servant told CNA.
It was then that doctors discovered that the infection had spread to her kidneys. This could have serious consequences including permanent kidney damage if not treated. Tests done by the doctors showed that the antibiotics she took were ineffective to treat her UTI. The bacteria in her body was resistant to the antibiotic.
She was immediately warded, and given antibiotics intravenously, which had a higher chance of curing the infection.
Sharon recovered, but doctors have warned her that she would need to be hospitalised if she gets another bacterial infection.
MORE COMPLICATED CASES, NUMBERS RISING
Doctors told CNA that cases of UTI which do not get cured with the usual antibiotics are becoming more common.
Associate consultant in the Department of Urology at the National University Hospital Dr Melissa Tay said she sees at least five patients with recurrent or complicated cases a week at her clinic, more than she used to. Half of them are new referrals, she added.
"In addition, there is also an increasing number of inpatient referrals for the management of complicated urinary tract infections," she said.
Her peers observed similar trends.
Dr Christopher Chong, urogynaecologist at Gleneagles Hospital, also said that it is "fairly common these days" to see patients who are not cured by the usual antibiotics, pointing to antibiotic resistance.
The growing problem of antibiotic resistance in UTI is seen in other countries as well.
Research by the New York City Department of Health in the United States showed that a third of uncomplicated UTI cases were resistant to Bactrim, one of the most widely used drugs, and at least one-fifth of them were resistant to five other common treatments.
Medical journal The Lancet provides similarly bleak statistics. Research it published last year showed that more than a third of all UTIs caused by E. Coli in Britain were resistant to "key antibiotics".
A recent Singapore study in three polyclinics also concluded that more than 20 per cent of UTI cases were resistant to antibiotics prescribed to them.
"Patients who take many courses of antibiotics are more likely to develop resistant bacterial strains," said Dr Valerie Gan, consultant in the Department of Urology at the Singapore General Hospital.
Those who have been hospitalised frequently for other medical problems could also develop resistance as they are exposed to more resistant strains of bacteria, she added.
UTI COULD BE FATAL
While Sharon recovered from her UTI infection, others are not so lucky. According to the Ministry of Health's list of principal causes of death here, UTI ranked eighth, higher than chronic obstructive lung diseases and type 2 diabetes.
The numbers showed that 2 per cent of total deaths were caused by UTI each year - more than 400 people.
Researchers warn that overuse of antibiotics could cause resistance to spiral out of control, to an "unknown tipping point" when the drugs are no longer effective. (Photo: AFP/Jorge Drikx)
According to HealthHub, in Singapore, about 4 per cent of young adult females have contracted UTI. The incidence rises with age to 7 per cent at 50 years.
Dr Chong said that to deal with antibiotic resistance, he does a detailed urine culture test that takes three days to produce results.
"If a bacterium is found, then this bacterium is 'matched' with a list of antibiotics to see which one the bacterium is sensitive to and can and should be used to treat," he said.
In some cases, when there is resistance against all oral antibiotics, the patient may have to be hospitalised so that intravenous antibiotics can be administered, he added.
ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE NOT LIMITED TO UTI
But UTI is not the only bacterial infection becoming resistant to antibiotics, said the Pharmaceutical Society of Singapore (PSS).
It highlighted pneumonia as another disease which has developed resistance to antibiotic treatment, and now typically requires higher doses of antibiotics.
The PSS also pointed to skin infections, which are commonly caused by bacteria that have been resistant to antibiotics for a long time.
It pointed to the US' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers that showed at least 2 million people get an antibiotic-resistant infection, and at least 23,000 people die as a result, to highlight the seriousness of the issue.
"Antibiotic resistance isn't just a hypothetical concept, but its impact is already being seen today and is causing significant morbidity and mortality," PSS said.
Having a runny nose? Avoid antibiotics, or we could pay a deadly price
With the rise of superbugs, the impact of drug resistance is becoming more serious. One woman tells Talking Point how it left her blind and "like a child".
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02:29
The widespread use of antibiotics has led to the rise of drug-resistant superbugs. This woman is a casualty of that worrying development. Talking Point explores the dangers of antibiotic overuse.
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SINGAPORE: It started with a fever. To fight off the infection, Madam Siti Hajar had to rely on antibiotics, as her immune system was weak owing to her diabetes.
But even when she returned to work, she did not feel any better. In fact, her vision began to be affected. So the next day, she went to Changi General Hospital's accident and emergency department.
"I only remember going to hospital and then registering and seeing the nurse, and from there, I can't remember anything else," she told the Mediacorp programme Talking Point. (Watch the episode here.)
After admission, she was diagnosed with a strain of klebsiella pneumoniae that was resistant to multiple antibiotics. That bacterial infection in 2016 left her blind and in embattled health as it spread to her other organs.
Since their discovery, antibiotics have been wonder drugs for millions of patients in the fight against diseases. But they could not help Mdm Siti, 45, who is now living with the effects of a superbug infection.
4 IN 5 WRONGLY THINK THEY CURE COLDS
Like her, one in nine hospital patients here have now been infected by superbugs, bacteria that have become invulnerable to antibiotics over years of exposure.
Worldwide, overuse of antibiotics has led to the rise of antimicrobial resistance. And in Singapore, the problem is compounded by a lack of knowledge of how these drugs work.
Research done by public health experts has found that 78 per cent of Singaporean patients think antibiotics cure infections like common colds and sore throats.
And 66 per cent also believe that antibiotics help these upper respiratory tract infections, which are commonly caused by viruses, to heal faster.
That is why a third of patients expect to be prescribed these drugs - which work only against bacteria, not viruses - when they visit their general practitioners. And if these are not given, some patients would visit another doctor.
Family physician Kelvin Goh from the Northeast Medical Group has faced such pressure from patients, some of whom may insist on antibiotics owing to a "bad experience".
"They may have seen a doctor for a viral infection. They were told (they) didn't need antibiotics and subsequently developed a bacterial infection that necessitated either hospital or specialist care," he explained.
TEST BEFORE PRESCRIBING
The way to distinguish between bacterial and viral infections, he said, is through a good clinical history and good physical examination, supplemented by blood tests and other culture infection tests.
A minority of infections are caused by bacteria, noted Assistant Professor Mark Chen from the National University of Singapore's Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, and "some doctors may prescribe antibiotics because they're worried about missing these respiratory infections".
But doctors should be more willing to take swabs and do simple tests instead, highlighted Dr Goh.
GP Dr Kelvin Goh.
"We need to educate both the professionals and the public. The doctors must gain the patients' trust," he added. "(Only then would) the patient take the advice of the doctor that … no antibiotic is needed."
If all else has failed, Dr Goh has given these drugs to patients who asked for them, "but we'll tell them clearly that (they have) a viral infection".
There are patients, he said, who obtain antibiotics online or from overseas if they cannot get them from any one of the 2,600 GPs here.
While such behaviour is not common, Talking Point did find a number of websites claiming to be online pharmacies – operating outside Singapore – that sold these drugs, allowing patients to get them without prescription.
Though antibiotics cannot be bought over the counter here, patients could still buy them on established platforms like eBay and Carousell, and have them delivered to their home.
WHEN EVEN A CUT BECOMES DEADLY
But the consequences of misusing and developing a resistance to these drugs can be "very worrisome".
For one thing, the discovery of new antibiotics has slowed in the past few years because the endeavour "is no longer profitable", said Dr Andrea Kwa, a clinician scientist and specialist pharmacist (infectious diseases) at the Singapore General Hospital.
Resistance to the new drugs occurs within two to three years now, which is "way shorter than their patent period", she explained.
"Simple procedures like hip replacement, appendectomy (and) emergency caesarean may get more and more difficult to perform, because the infections that could come about as a complication can be more resistant," she added.
It could get worse if no antibiotic will be effective.
WATCH: "It affected my whole life" (2:28)
Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, who leads the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health's Antimicrobial Resistance Programme, said:
We're concerned that … people with the simplest types of infections, like (from) a prick on a rose thorn or cuts, can die.
To prevent the build-up of bacterial resistance, the development of new drugs must be accelerated or the improper use of antibiotics must be reduced, he said, citing the example of patients with viral infections.
"We can also increase vaccination, even (against) conditions like influenza," he added. "If patients do not present (themselves) at the doctor's with coughs and colds, then the doctors won't prescribe antibiotics, so … we also reduce the antibiotic pressure overall."
To help stop the rise of superbugs in hospital, Dr Kwa has a team monitoring antibiotic use and also developing counter-strategies, such as by designing tests of antibiotic combinations if an individual drug is not useful.
As new cases start to reveal the effects superbugs can have, the war against them is likely to intensify.
Mdm Siti is already one of the casualties. "This bacterium (klebsiella pneumonia) has affected my whole life," she said. "Now I'm like a child, a toddler learning how to walk … how to carry on with life."
Watch this episode of Talking Point here. New episodes air on Mediacorp Channel 5 every Thursday, 9.30pm.
Article by The Online Citizen has 'gravely injured' PM Lee's reputation, say his lawyers
SINGAPORE - An article published by The Online Citizen (TOC) on Aug 15 has "gravely injured" the character and reputation of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, his lawyers said in court documents.
PM Lee is suing TOC chief editor Terry Xu for defamation over the article and a Facebook post, which his lawyers said contained "false and baseless" allegations, including that the PM had misled his father, the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew, into thinking their Oxley Road home had been gazetted by the Government.
Lawyers from Davinder Singh Chambers had served Mr Xu, 37, the writ of summons and statement of claim at his home in Choa Chu Kang on Thursday (Sept 5).
In court documents seen by The Straits Times, the lawyers charged that PM Lee has suffered loss and damage, and has been "brought into public scandal, odium and contempt".
The TOC article was titled "PM Lee's wife, Ho Ching weirdly shares article on cutting ties with family members".
It had referenced a Facebook post made by PM Lee's sister, Dr Lee Wei Ling, in which she set out a purported sequence of events related to the 38 Oxley Road property.
The article, which was initially removed on Sunday evening, also reappeared on the TOC website.
Mr Xu also stated publicly that he was not going to comply with PM Lee's demands.
In the statement of claim, PM Lee's lawyers said the article contained "sensational allegations", including that PM Lee had misled Mr Lee Kuan Yew into thinking it was futile for him to keep his direction to demolish the Oxley house.
This caused Mr Lee Kuan Yew to consider other alternatives to demolition, and to change his will to bequeath the house to PM Lee.
The article also alleged Mr Lee Kuan Yew had removed PM Lee as an executor and trustee of his will after it was revealed to him in late 2013 that the house had in fact not been gazetted.
These baseless allegations were "calculated to disparage and impugn" PM Lee, as well as his office as the Prime Minister, the lawyers said.
They noted that TOC's Facebook post had attracted hundreds of reactions and comments, and was shared extensively, which meant the false allegations were disseminated to a wider audience.
The article was also republished on the Internet on various blogs and websites, such as the HardwareZone forum, My Car Forum site and Under The Angsana Tree blog.
PM Lee's lawyers said they will rely on the following facts to recover aggravated damages.
First, the nature and gravity of the libel.
Second, the mode, extent and timing of the publication of the libel.
Third, malice on the part of Mr Xu, as he had published Ms Chang's letter on his website and made the article accessible again.
PM Lee is claiming damages, an injunction to restrain Mr Xu from publishing or disseminating the allegations, and costs.
Mr Xu said in a Facebook post on Friday that he will not be responding to media queries on his case.
He has eight days to file notice in court that he will be defending himself against the suit.
A pre-trial conference is scheduled for Oct 15.
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Quick-thinking secondary school girl saves traffic accident victim with CPR
SINGAPORE - A life could have been lost if not for a quick-thinking secondary school student from Temasek Secondary School, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said in a Facebook post on Wednesday morning (Sept 4).
National Civil Defence Cadet Corps (NCDCC) cadet Diniy Qurratuaini, 15, was on her usual bus ride home on July 19 when the bus knocked down a woman in New Upper Changi Road, rendering her unconscious.
The shock of the accident did not throw Diniy off her stride. The Secondary 3 student immediately asked a fellow passenger to call 995 before putting her first aid training to use, the SCDF said.
She found that the victim had no pulse and started performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the woman until she regained consciousness. She then stayed by her side until paramedics arrived at the scene.
"Diniy's quick thinking and selfless act showed that age is no barrier to saving lives," the SCDF said.
An SCDF spokesman added: "SCDF encourages members of the public to emulate the selfless actions of Diniy... This is vital because every minute could mean an increased chance of survival."
SCDF learnt about Diniy's actions from NCDCC, which had been alerted to the incident after Diniy relayed what happened to her form teacher the day after the accident. SCDF then decided to present the SCDF Community Lifesaver Award to Diniy.
Diniy said she realised the significance of her actions only much later. She told SCDF: "I continued my journey home and told my parents about the incident. Only then did I realise the magnitude of the situation."
Other students here have come to the aid of those in need of help on the road in recent years.
In January last year, the SCDF commended four secondary school students for saving a nine-year-old boy who was trapped under a car at Geylang East Avenue 1.
Together with other passers-by, they lifted the car to release the conscious but injured boy underneath.
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Bus, train fares could go up by 7% as Public Transport Council begins fare review exercise
SINGAPORE - Bus and train fares could go up by up to 7 per cent next year as the Public Transport Council (PTC) begins its annual fare review exercise.
This means fares could go up by as much as 10 cents for those who pay for their journeys by card, who make up more than 90 per cent of commuters here.
This is the maximum increase that can be allowed under the current fare formula, which came into place last year and will be in place until 2022.
If approved, this would be the highest fare increase in recent years.
Public transport operators must submit their fare applications - which should not exceed the maximum quantum that can be allowed - to the PTC by Sept 23, the council said in a statement on Tuesday (Sept 3).
The PTC said that the largest contributing factor to the potential fare hike was the double-digit increase in energy prices, which rebounded 26.2 per cent in 2017, and 32.3 per cent in 2018.
Other components making up the formula - such as the wage index, which measures the change in average wage over the preceding year, and the core consumer price index, which measures the change in inflation rate over the previous year - have also increased over the past year, the council noted.
The PTC noted Singapore's public transport had improved significantly over the past five years, with the introduction of more than 1,000 buses and 200 trains.
Rail reliability has also seen improvements over this period, with the MRT network hitting one million kilometres between delays, a sevenfold improvement from 2015.
While these improvements have come with an increase in the cost of operations for public transport, the council noted that average fares are now 4 to 7 cents lower than they were in 2015.
A dip in energy prices between 2015 and 2017 saw a combined 8.3 per cent reduction in fares during that time, though last year saw a 4.3 per cent increase in fares.
"Over the last five years, the gap between costs and fares has been widening. This gap has, thus far, been funded by the Government together with the rail operators," said the PTC.
The authorities will spend about $4.5 billion on the upgrading of Singapore's rail assets, and is expected to subsidise public bus services to the tune of $5 billion.
The PTC said in considering the fare adjustments, it would "consider the views of commuters and relevant stakeholders, and will continue to strike a fair balance between fare affordability and the financial sustainability of the public transport system".
Special attention will be paid to concession groups such as the elderly and needy commuters, it added.
The council's decision on the fare adjustment quantum will be announced in the last quarter of this year.
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Overnight camp aborted after Punggol Primary pupils suffer stomach pain and diarrhoea
SINGAPORE - A three-day camp for about 200 pupils from Punggol Primary School was cut short after a number of them suffered abdominal pain and diarrhoea.
In an online notice sent to parents on Friday evening (Aug 30), the school said some of the Primary 5 pupils fell ill during the camp held at Dairy Farm Outdoor Adventure Learning Centre, which is run by the Ministry of Education.
"In the interest of the students' well-being, the school has decided to curtail the camp duration," said the notice. It was to have been from Thursday to Saturday morning.
But the pupils were taken back to the school in Hougang on Friday night for parents to take their child home.
Parents were advised to take their child to the doctor should they feel sick in the next few days.
When The Straits Times visited the school on Friday night, a big group of parents were waiting at the school's main gate to take their children home.
Many said they were worried when told that some of the children had fallen ill.
A 45-year-old IT professional, who declined to be named, said his anxiety turned to relief when he found out his son was fine - "thankfully".
The pupils were ferried back to school in at least five buses. Parent and pupils interviewed said about 200 pupils had attended the camp.
Some of them told ST that more than 20 of their schoolmates and some teachers began having diarrhoea and stomach pain on Friday morning, but they did not know the cause.
Primary 5 pupil Janine Chia, who had stomach pain, said she and some of her schoolmates felt better after resting in the dormitory for a few hours.
"But some of them who were more ill went home earlier, from the campsite," she added.
The pupils had been told to bring their own utensils, a lunchbox and a cup for their meals, which had been catered for and laid out buffet-style at the camp.
After some of them fell sick, packets of food were bought from outside the camp for the campers, said Janine.
Her father, 45-year-old crane operator Jeffrey Chia, said the school had made the "tough but right" decision to abort the camp. He will be taking his daughter to the doctor for a check-up, he added.
Another student, who declined to be named, said he had washed his cutlery and utensils properly in between each meal, but he still had diarrhoea on Friday afternoon.
ST has contacted the school for more information.
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