Teenagers

[Roonuz]

Hi, I'm 16 years old and am on the virge of moving as my dad has taken a job that was offered to him in Singapore.
Can anybody help me find a school that does A levels?
What is it like for teenagers living in Singapore?
Do any of you have any teenage children if so could you share with me what teenagers do to socialise etc????
Cheers Joe [/quote][/u][/i][/b]

[Sonus]

Hi, I'm 16 years old and am on the virge of moving as my dad has taken a job that was offered to him in Singapore.
Can anybody help me find a school that does A levels?
What is it like for teenagers living in Singapore?
Do any of you have any teenage children if so could you share with me what teenagers do to socialise etc????
Cheers Joe

[/u][/i][/b][/quote]

Hi Joe, below are some listings of schools doing A' levels. You might want to contact them for more details.

http://www2.moe.edu.sg/schinfo/director ... =on&JCI=on

[patriotic me]

hi! i'm 16 this year too and am planning to move on to JC. Have u moved to singapore yet? here's the list of JCs with their information contained in this website. ignore the section on secondary and primary schools.
[web] www2.moe.edu.sg/schinfo/default.asp[/web]

waiting eagerly for your reply.

[christopher]

I'm a product of the 'A' lvl system here in Singapore.

I also moderated at a Hong Kong forum populated largely by teenaged International School kids (14-19), getting to know and meet many of them.

Some opinions:

1) Doing your 'A' lvls is largely a waste of time if you're planning on going to an American university. The 2 (possibly 3) years that you spend doing them could just as easily be spent doing community college - which in turn could lead to a shorter time in university. Earlier graduation = quicker transition to workforce. Of course, some UK univs require 'A' lvls - if you plan to go there, knock yourself out doing them then.

2) 'A' lvl schools here in Singapore (Junior colleges, or 'JCs') are nothing more than rote-memorisation factories. You'll (by and large) be competing with kids who can memorise a dictionary back to front and recite the textbooks backwards. Of course, there will also be time for fun, but it WILL be a pretty tense and packed schedule. Side benefit = getting in touch with the local population and immersing yourself in the culture. BTW: I've taught at 2 of the higher-end JCs here so I know a little about what I'm speaking of.

3) With only a few exceptions, the 'International School' kids here are just as 'insulated'. They tend to hang around in their own little groups. Living in Orchard Road, I've seen many international school kids in their groups; and have even had the odd conversation with them. Not one of them has impressed me, in terms of open-ness or flat-out intelligence, so far. of course, this opens me up to accusations of bias. Some will also also point out that I'm unfairly comparing the students here with the kids I knew back in HK. The HK kids were largely more outgoing and eager to mix in with the locals; but that's because a large percentage of them ARE HK-born kids whose parents prefer to send them to International Schools.

The curriculum, in a Singaporean-based international school (if anything like the HK ones) would be infinitely more interesting and varied. There would be just as much chance for you to explore practical work/study as participate in a more 'open' learning environment.

In JCs, the teachers are uber-lords and no dissent or differing opinion is entertained. Live with it.

Pluses and minuses. But there's nothing to prevent you from 'adapting and overcoming' to make the best of it, whichever system you get yourself into.

chris