General Advice

[x9200]

This is a culture driven by the need of public success and I would not be surprised at all if the system is now being engineered such way to accomplish the high rate of the Olympiads winners. I believe this still can be learnt similarly like you can enhance your IQ score by a proper training as the tests are pretty standardized. Unfortunately I still see the problem around with the new generations of the uni students. Their knowledge is very selective and nobody triggered in them this natural curiosity that is a part of out-of-box thinking. I had a student last year, 2nd y, material sciences, brilliant guy who could easily follow my process calculations I do routinely. At the same time he did not know what ordinary glass is made of. Countless examples like this of the current uni students, regular, PhDs no difference, top ones or above the average in their years. Is it still the old generation? I know that they can be "fixed" within a few years of a right exposure so something seems still wrong.

[sundaymorningstaple]

In accounting it usually knows as a W.I.P.

"Work in Progress" I wonder how other countries looked after only 44 years of nation building?

[sweetgazebo]

Anytime!

BTW, I did a quick wiki'd on 'exercise physiology' / exercise science. It says exercise physiology is the 'study of the acute responses and chronic adaptations to a wide-range of physical exercise conditions. In addition, many exercise physiologists study the effect of exercise on pathology, and the mechanisms by which exercise can reduce or reverse disease progression. ...... Furthermore, exercise physiologists range from basic scientists, to clinical researchers, to clinicians, to sports trainers.'

This gym manager chap I know looks at advising gym patrons on improving their exercise regime based on their health, health risks past and present, diet and although not exactly a sports trainer, he's trained athletes in the past to improve on their performance.

Thanks Sweetgazabo, you answers were very informative.. Only one thing, exercise science is worlds apart from PE /gym teachers !! Most call it exercise physiology and there is a push to remove the exercise science name

[sweetgazebo]

If the US education is confirmed to be inferior then why adopt the Singapore education system?

Public education in Singapore is of inferior, if not good, quality. And there's always a school near the HDB flats[/color]

Is that why their maths curriculum is being adopted by California and a host of other US states now, seeing that the US style of maths education is been confirmed to be inferior? Methinks you need to review your data sources.

[sundaymorningstaple]

It doesn't say the US education is inferior, it says the SINGAPORE education is of inferior quality. You might want to reread it.

[x9200]

They have accomplished a lot and I am a strong believer and admirer what the gov is doing. But then hardly anybody questions this. What is contested is the excellence of the educational system and IMHO it is not really close yet. It can not be. There is no way as there are hardly any teachers that could do the job. Afterall many of them belong to the affected generation.
I believe an expat kid may do just fine in the local school but probably will require more work and attention (on the parents side).

[sundaymorningstaple]

Well, I for one have always been a strong proponent of parents taking an active part in the education of their children. A teacher, with 30 kids in the classroom, cannot devote the necessary time to the individual student that would be required in order to accomplish that. x9200, my time has past, your time is coming....

[sweetgazebo]

So which part of my data needs review?

Public education in Singapore is of inferior, if not good, quality. And there's always a school near the HDB flats[/color]

Is that why their maths curriculum is being adopted by California and a host of other US states now, seeing that the US style of maths education is been confirmed to be inferior? Methinks you need to review your data sources.

[poodlek]

So which part of my data needs review?

Public education in Singapore is of inferior, if not good, quality. And there's always a school near the HDB flats[/color]

Is that why their maths curriculum is being adopted by California and a host of other US states now, seeing that the US style of maths education is been confirmed to be inferior? Methinks you need to review your data sources.

I think perhaps you need to look up the definition of inferior.

[x9200]

Yeah, my time is coming indeed but it was more about having some counterbalanced opinion to a bit, in my feeling, overoptimistic voices.

[ecureilx]

.... At the same time he did not know what ordinary glass is made of.

Years ago, when I was temporarily putting up with a local family, the owner of the house used to put all vegetables immediately in to the fridge even to the extent of stuffing the fridge till it was jam packed..

When I asked her to keep the fruits I bought outside, she was like it is WRONG .. TOTALLY WRONG ..

I asked her why not and she went "well, veg and fruits comes in fridge / cool boxes, and must be kept there .. " and when I asked her back what difference will a few hours outside the fridge will have to carrots and fruits, considering they grow 'under the sun' .. she was in a 'thinking' mode .. and she went like "oh, I never thought so .. " and then "so you think it is not really necessary to put fruits in the fridge ?"

Well, she, as a single mother, then was heading a private company, and .. graduated with top scores from them UM (Universiti Malaysia) .. but never thought to figure out simple things.

Oh, another time when I escorted some kids to Qian Hu Fish Farm, I noticed that the fish farm guys display a few goat and chicken, as a side attraction .. and the tour guide was going "well, children, this is how a real goat looks like .. " and more than a few kids were not convinced that the same goat only becomes burger and so ..

Well, just last week, a colleague of mine asked what is the meaning of Ghee - as I passed to her some Indian instant cook sweets .. and contents read "GHEE" and I said "well, butter become ghee" .. she thought for a moment and went "how do they make butter" and I was like ... "oh, from milk" and she was a bit pissed when I said back home, we make our own butter and ghee .. and yoghut .. and she insists that home made stuff is BAD ..

And an hour later she was still miffed about the transformation of Milk to Ghee .. or Milk into Butter ..

And a german colleague of mine is held i awe by a few colleagues for his 'expertise' and when he moved to our dept, i figured out that he is not trained in most stuff he pokes his finger in .. he is like "have google, will survive" and it is true .. unlike most other engineers, who, when they hit some obstacle, they 'escalate' or drop the project, our friend searches and finds the solution, like I do .. and that's his secret for being an 'expert' in stuff he has never been trained too .. unlike the 'natives' (no offense to the natives but .. that explains a lot)

And more often, knowing that I do my own trial and error and don't fear the unknown, when I mockingly ask him for help, unlike his response to others, he will be like "ah, you figure it out yourself .. " and the natvies are sometimes annoyed that this german FT doesn't help me, as he is expected to, considering his seniority .. until it has become our little joke when we have a boring day .. I walk over and ask him and he says "please DYI" and the rest are peeved about the whole issue ..

I been seasoned here enough, to not insult natives or refer them Google .. or even have learnt to wipe the amused look from my face ..

Education can teach you what is written, but cannot make you think on your own .. or become street smart .. or rather as my colleague says "to figure it out on your own .. "

[x9200]

ecureilx, I believe your example belong to the category: "people take many things as an obvious part of their life without giving them any deeper thought" while my category is "Even if you are a great architect you are still expected to know that some buildings are built from bricks". I am afraid you are also very wrong about the education but I will rest my case here.

[sweetgazebo]

So then .... why adopt Singapore education system if US' 'confirmed to be inferior'?

So which part of my data needs review?

Is that why their maths curriculum is being adopted by California and a host of other US states now, seeing that the US style of maths education is been confirmed to be inferior? Methinks you need to review your data sources.

I think perhaps you need to look up the definition of inferior.

[poodlek]

So then .... why adopt Singapore education system if US' 'confirmed to be inferior'?

So which part of my data needs review?

I think perhaps you need to look up the definition of inferior.

Again, you've answered your own question.

[sweetgazebo]

Right .... I should have used the word 'superior'

So then .... why adopt Singapore education system if US' 'confirmed to be inferior'?

I think perhaps you need to look up the definition of inferior.

Again, you've answered your own question.