Today I had a discussion again, which really does get up my nose, I have been accused of being always right, and i ask them accusing me why am I always right, I am not but most of the time in Singapore I am, my character is to be a sparring partner , I do not care about right or wrong, I care about minimising risk and that's how my mind works, and believe me, i mean from a basic survival mode, for me it is instinctive!
I find it quite annoying that people slag me off to my face because I am right, because i am using logic and experience above an IQ rating. My theory is that they fail because of a lack of application and experience. There is no doubt that they have been straight A students, they have the proof in education ...all i have is a couple of Heinekens because it's weekend. No this is not an advertisement!
But I think it is a very interesting discussion, that may shed light on other reasons, for being knowledgeable, when those with education are far from correct and lack knowledge.
For example I started map reading at the age of 14 in the army cadets, I learned all what I should learn, and there is much to learn. Map reading for those that have never learned is duite detailed in aspects of magnetic variations for you to be correct, if you are walking from A to B and the legend, contours and much more needs to be understood....My wife thinks it is to pick up the map in a car, and follow the route, which she cannot do either.
Okay I have also spent 10 years in the air and have studied navigation, but my point is, that I can use my knowledge and experience to get me from A to B without having a map, I can also service and look after my own vehicle and know when I should call for assistance and many other day to day routines tasks, that skilled labour calls for.
Today I went fishing with my Singaporean brother in law, just to see how he would react, So I informed him of the thread we had been following about Singaporean IQ and also children education and we discussed the UK system too.
I was expecting him to reply in a negative tone about the UK and I agreed with his perception that Singapore was better, because the UK does have in general a weaker system, for a reason.
The reason is politics, and they sell out the childrens education for votes, by guaranteeing no failures . Education is always flexible so that it suits the education minister and not the people, where votes count. Children on the other hand have lots of practical survival instincts and are street wise in comparison to Singapore kids.
Singapore there are no votes, so all children must memorise, because that is the only way to learn Chinese, not Malay or Indian but Chinese, and it's easy to understand why Chinese is much more difficult.
The English alphabet is from A to Z and the Chinese Alphabet doesn't exist, we have to deal with syllables and tones and for every character, there are 4 tones and literally I have 1400 characters, that i am supposed to learn myself.
So memory is actually an asset and a talent that serves a purpose of passing exams only by memory, all that is required for Singaporeans, is the practical experiences that western people are exposed to in the job market, DIY market and so on to broaden their scope. Not many bother, because they feel that their career path is more important.
I can actually sit here, just reading posts and analyse those with abilities to be competent enough, to gain my respect, and that is without knowing them. Unfortunately I have yet to identify this asset in a Singaporean post, and I am very sure it has nothing to do with class or education, but a fact of being capable of delivering a message that makes sense.
Nice post!
