Everything About the PSLE Changes Simplified for You

Ah, the PSLE. Inducing panic and creating insecurity since 1960.

Aside from the pressure of getting into a good secondary school, your PSLE scores will inevitably be compared to your peers all over the country, which is a pretty stressful thing for a 12-year-old.

However, MOE’s changes to the PSLE scoring system might change all that.

Here’s everything about the PSLE changes simplified for you.

Wider scoring bands to reduce fine differentiation

If you’re having traumatic flashbacks looking at the word differentiation, relax, there are no maths involved.

Currently, those sitting for the PSLE are graded based on a T-score system, which measures a student’s academic performance relative to his peers. So, a student may score well for his subjects but end up with a low T-score because his peers scored better.

Sounds unfair, doesn’t it? Well MOE certainly thinks so.

In the new PSLE scoring system, wider scoring bands will replace the T-score.

Each subject will be scored using 8 bands known as Achievement Levels (AL), with AL 1 being the best score and AL 8 being the lowest score. 

The ALs reflect the student’s level of achievement in the subject.

And the student’s PSLE Score will be the sum of the four subject scores.

The PSLE score will range from 4 (best) to 32. So, unlike most of your examinations, a lower score is better.

Students will qualify for the Express stream if they get a PSLE score of 20 or better.

This new scoring system aims to reflect students’ own level of achievement, instead of comparing them to their peers.

Scoring for Foundation level subjects

Changes will also be made to the scoring for Foundation level subjects.

Under the new AL system, Foundation subject grades will be graded in 3 scoring bands from AL A to C.

Similar to the Standard subject ALs, the Foundation subject ALs will reflect a student’s level of achievement, rather than how he has performed relative to his peers.

For the purpose of Secondary 1 posting, Foundation level AL A to AL C will be mapped to AL 6 to AL 8 of Standard level subjects respectively, to derive a student’s overall PSLE Score.

So, in this instance, a student’s PSLE score is the sum of the four AL scores across his Standard and Foundation level subjects.

Students taking Foundation subjects are still eligible for the Express course, as long as they meet the course placement criteria.

When will this new scoring system be implemented?

Starting from the 2020 P5 cohort, schools will present school-based examination results of P5 and P6 students in ALs (The P1-P4 and P6 students in 2020 will not be affected).

This will help familiarise students and parents with the new AL scoring system.

Eligibility for Secondary School Higher Mother Tongue Language 

Under the new system, students will be eligible to take Higher Mother Tongue Language (HMTL) in secondary school if they fulfil the following criteria:

According to the MOE, those who do not meet these criteria can still take HTML if they are “assessed to have high ability and interest in MTL and are able to take HMTL without affecting their performance in other subjects”.

Indicative Achievement Level (AL) Cut-Off Points (COPs)

Information on indicative AL COPs for the various secondary schools will be announced in the first half of 2021, MOE said.

These AL COPs will be derived from the PSLE Scores and choice patterns of the 2020 Secondary 1 posting exercise.

This provides time for the 2021 PSLE cohort to make their secondary school choices and apply for Direct School Admission – Secondary (DSA-Sec) if they wish to.

Secondary One (S1) Posting

Secondary One posting will continue to be based on academic merit. Students will submit a list of 6 schools in order of preference.

So what happens if two students with the same score are being considered for the last place in a school?

Well, it’s a fight to the death, of course, Hunger Games style.

Just kidding, the following tie-breakers will be used:

1. Citizenship – Priority will be given to Singapore Citizens, then Singapore Permanent Residents, then International Students
2. Choice order of schools – This is a new tie-breaker that will be introduced in 2021. Priority will be given to the student who indicates a certain school as a higher choice.
3. Computerised balloting – If nothing else works, a computer will decide their fate.

Why all these changes?

On their website, MOE state that the aim is to get students to “focus on their own learning outcomes” instead of comparing themselves to their peers.

They added that these changes are”part of a larger shift to better nurture well-rounded individuals”.

Many have reacted positively to the new changes.

Quoted on CNA, National University of Singapore (NUS) sociologist Associate Professor Tan Ern Ser believes it will “reduce unnecessary competition and stress among students going through the education system”.

Sitting for the PSLE is certainly a stressful exercise. So, any measures to ease the pressure and enhance a student’s learning experience can only be beneficial for both the students and the parents.

Here’s a video by MOE explaining the changes with some cute animated students.