Exempted from Naplan due to child from Non english speaking country??

[wallaby]

hi,

I would appreciate some comment or opinion on our situation. My son is a local public primary school located near Kensington area. We were told that he will be exempted from NAPLAN, the reason they gave was he is from non English speaking country.

 

We are surprised that the school did not make any effort to find out from the parents, to seek more clarification about our country's education & simply made an assumption and conclusion. The teachers know my son's standard very well, in fact, one of the teachers is vice principal.

 

We had explained to them that English is our first language and medium of teaching in Singapore. Well, despite they might have granted him to take the exam, we are disappointed in the way they handled the matter.

 

In fact, my son finds it bored to attend the lessons in school as he has learnt most of the topics in Singapore.

 

Can I check if there is any other better public or private primary school which is able to offer a curriculum which suits his level? Do schools normally provide assessment tests to gauge a new foreign student's standard before placing him in a level which better suits his ability?

[NicF]

Which school does your son go to? There is nothing to stop you from putting your child in a different primary school that you think would suit his needs. I haven't heard of any schools that assess a child before determining the year level they should be placed in but a good school will continually assess the situation and provide additional work to stretch the child. I am also surprised that the school is exempting your child from the Naplan tests due to not having English as a first language. I'm pretty sure the school my son goes to does not do this with the kids that do not come from English speaking backgrounds. I suspect the primary school is looking out for it's Naplan results. Have you tried speaking to the school about your son? I would suggest arranging a meeting with his class teacher in the first place and talk to them about your concerns and see what they have to say.

[Tamara (Homes Down Under)]

OMG I am sure that this should be sorted out at school level.

I have a Swedish family staying at one of my houses. They are here for a year and their two children couldn't speak a word of English. I could understand a NAPLAN exemption in their case but it sounds odd when your son is obviously not in this category. I also get many South African families stay with me and many children only have English as a second language. The local primary school (Port Noarlunga) were so understanding and helpful. I would see if there is someone at the school that's more open to your issues.

[Lazy Cow]

We were told that he will be exempted from NAPLAN,?

 

The decision to withdraw a student from participating in NAPLAN is supposed to be the parent's, not the school's.

 

I'm guessing there's been a breakdown in communication, so I'd go in and speak to your child's teacher.

 

If you don't get the response you want, then contact the Department of Education, on 8226 2470, and speak to Brioney Hirst.

 

I don't know when NAPLAN tests are being held in primary school, but our high school is running them next week, so hopefully you still have time to get it sorted to your satisfaction.

 

LC

[flossybeth]

NAPLAN tests are next week for primary too - I've got all 3 of mine doing them (actually they're not at all bothered by them - my son was worried that it might impact his choice of secondary or that he'd have to repeat Y7 but when we reassured him it was more for the school than him as an individual he's been fine since).

 

I'm not sure now OP quite what you can do but I'd certainly let the school know you weren't happy with their decision and try and work with them to find something that suits you all - otherwise have a look at a few other schools in your area and see what might fit you better.

[wallaby]

hi all,

thanks so much for your replies and advice. We have spoken to his teacher cum vice principal. He said he would discuss with the principal. No reply so far.

 

Yes, we are indeed not happy with them, but not planning to switch school for him until we both find jobs. I am not sure, is it true that private school is better than public?

[wallaby]

Does Singapore really sound like backward country?

[Bailey]

Hi

 

I live close to you - I have some knowledge of the local schools in your area as well as private ones...I will send you a PM with my details so that you can make contact with me.

 

Fiona

[NicF]

hi all,

thanks so much for your replies and advice. We have spoken to his teacher cum vice principal. He said he would discuss with the principal. No reply so far.

 

Yes, we are indeed not happy with them, but not planning to switch school for him until we both find jobs. I am not sure, is it true that private school is better than public?

 

At primary level I don't think private schools are any better than public. Even at senior level in the area you are in to get a private school that is better than the public schools (in terms of results gained) you would be looking at spending $20k a year in fees. Rostrevor college, for example, achieves similar learning outcomes to Norwood Morialta and Marryatville and Glenunga do better than Norwood. The best school for your son though is the one you feel offers him the most options for his skills and interests.

[DougM]

I lived in Singapore for over 2 years back in the 70's. Even then, their education system was by far the best, thanks to Lee Kuan Yew and his foresight. Kids went to school in pristine white uniforms, 2 shifts per day and now they're among the worlds leaders in industry. Unfortunately, my daughters attended a forces run school and came out less well educated.

Wallaby, have your son tested and put in the appropriate class level, he's probably a year or two advanced in others his age.

[wallaby]

I lived in Singapore for over 2 years back in the 70's. Even then, their education system was by far the best, thanks to Lee Kuan Yew and his foresight. Kids went to school in pristine white uniforms, 2 shifts per day and now they're among the worlds leaders in industry. Unfortunately, my daughters attended a forces run school and came out less well educated.

Wallaby, have your son tested and put in the appropriate class level, he's probably a year or two advanced in others his age.

 

nope, he wasn't given any tests. I am not at a loss. I can't put him in private school coz fees is too costly. We both r jobless...aimless...feel hopeless...

 

our boxes still left unopened everywhere at the hse. We plan to go back if still couldn't find any job for the next 6months. Adelaide is nice place...too bad...

 

After reading some posts here, we lost our hopes completely. After all, we r Asian, I believe our job applications shld be threw right at the bottom or ended up in dustbin. I faced racism being volunteer in my son primacy school, I can foresee what kinda problem I would face in workforce.

[Tamara (Homes Down Under)]

nope, he wasn't given any tests. I am not at a loss. I can't put him in private school coz fees is too costly. We both r jobless...aimless...feel hopeless...

 

our boxes still left unopened everywhere at the hse. We plan to go back if still couldn't find any job for the next 6months. Adelaide is nice place...too bad...

 

After reading some posts here, we lost our hopes completely. After all, we r Asian, I believe our job applications shld be threw right at the bottom or ended up in dustbin. I faced racism being volunteer in my son primacy school, I can foresee what kinda problem I would face in workforce.

 

I'm sorry that you feel this way. It's important to keep in mind that there are many viewpoints on a public forum. There has been an enormous amount of negativity lately but that doesn't mean that many families are not moving, getting work and settling...it just means that you aren't hearing about it.

I am surprised that you feel this way about an undercurrent of racism. I don't want the north / south conflict to ever resurface but I would have expected that it might be a little easier in the northern suburbs due to the fact that they are more racially mixed than the south.

I have had Egyptian families, British Asian families, New Guinea families stay with me and they have settled fine in the suburbs around me. This includes getting work and children being accepted at school. I am very aware of racism (you can pm me and I will tell you why) and I have to be honest and say that it has never appeared to be an issue. People have been very accepting and accommodating.

If the work situation gets sorted you'll have a chance. I have experienced what you are going through...and with other families.... and although easy to say, it's important to get yourselves out of that negative zone. Negative opinions / experiences on here don't help i'm afraid. It's not easy but you need to take every opportunity to get out and meet people...network...and someone will open a door somewhere...that's the way things work.

[NicF]

Kensington is not North. It's East. I suspect the OP has encountered snobbishness rather than racism per se.

[coolerking]

Hi, sorry to hear of your situation; hope it improves very quickly.

 

In relation to NAPLAN, have a look at this.

 

All the best,

Cooler

[deryans]

Kensington is not North. It's East. I suspect the OP has encountered snobbishness rather than racism per se.

 

We lived in Kensington, and there is just as much chance that racism, bigotry and myopia exists, the snobbish factor is quite hilarious and upsetting if you cannot let it glance off, and whilst it does exist, a Singaporean Chinese or a HK Chinese will be looked at differently and have a much harder time, some of it is just ignorance, some of it is well, plain myopia.................

 

I'll leave it at that, as you all know my opinion, save to say, if she's in Kensi, then the school that our kids went to would be extremely unlikely to exclude on the basis of non english speaking as they have a new Principal, however if the previous clown was there I'd say a dead cert that she's being discriminated against (previous clown principal was performance managed out of her position and has since left).

 

How do I know ? I was the project manager for Trial NAPLAN online last year with ACARA and over 60 SA schools, no there were no Kensi schools doing the trial.

 

What I do know is that Aberfoyle Park is a cracking school with a fantastic "work the problem, not the person" Principal, so too Christies Beach, Yankalilla, so too Berri, so too a few up north, what is disappointing is that a number of Independent schools (thats' private to you and me ) were just not up to the scratch, and we're talking about a number 2-3 level Girls school, that could not complete the NAPLAN online because they said their IT people could not get it to work (liars) and that's why you pay 6K for a girls school just south of greenhill road

 

Aberfoyle park had no problem ?

 

funny that.

[wallaby]

Hi, sorry to hear of your situation; hope it improves very quickly.

 

In relation to NAPLAN, have a look at this.

 

All the best,

Cooler

 

thanks so much for the info

[wallaby]

thanks for all the replies & advice.

 

Well, Kensi is a nice suburb & we have friendly, helpful neighbours.

 

Wrong guess..My son is not in Marryatville PS.

 

I was volunteering in my son's school, that was when I encountered some racism.

 

I am not referring the incident about my son is rejected from Naplan. As NicF mentioned, that was snobbishness rather than racism.

[wallaby]

Having worked in HP/Agilent/Siemens for almost 10yrs, I had enjoyed good & happy working relationships with American, British, German...I thought I will have no problem mingling into oz society. I am wrong....

[NicF]

Having worked in HP/Agilent/Siemens for almost 10yrs, I had enjoyed good & happy working relationships with American, British, German...I thought I will have no problem mingling into oz society. I am wrong....

 

Don't write the Aussies off just yet. It might just be the area, or people you have come across, rather than all Australians. I live just a couple of suburbs north east of you and I don't get that same sense at all. Obviously you haven't said which school your son goes to so your experience may well be from the area I live in but I really hope not. The school my kids go to has a lot of kids from all different racial and cultural backgrounds and they all seem to mix nicely. I don't have a lot to do with the other parents but when in the playground it does not seem to me that parents from particular backgrounds are excluded in any way. The office I work in also contains a mix of different races and I have not had anyone complain of racism whether they are from Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia or anywhere else in the world.

 

I know you have another thread about the difficulty finding work and I do think that is another issue altogether that a lot of migrants face and nothing to do with where you are from. I really hope things start looking up for you soon.