Exams Board to review procedures after mistake in PSLE
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SINGAPORE : Parents and students are asking how the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board could have made a mistake formulating a question in the PSLE Mathematics paper.
While apologising for it, the Board said it would review processes and introduce additional checks to prevent any recurrence.
The Board has been setting PSLE papers for more than 20 years.
But a wrongly formulated question in this year's Mathematics paper has upset many parents and students.
One of the questions - question number 13 - required them to calculate the area of Rectangle C - based on given area of Triangles A and B.
The mistake lies in an inconsistency between the dimensions of the rectangle and the areas of the two triangles.
Based on this data, "it is mathematically not possible to draw such a figure."
The Board is awarding two marks to all students, irrespective of their answer.
But most parents are not satisfied.
"It is not simply that one question, it will affect them, put a lot of stress on them, and affect the rest of the questions that they are going to answer."
"They are the Ministry, they should have gone through the question with a handful of teachers."
Students in top schools said awarding two marks to everyone was unfair.
"I do not think it is fair because those who got it correct, actually it will still be the same with the others. They don't deserve it and maybe we do."
"A lot of people might have spent a lot of time on that question and not have time to check on the other questions but then everyone gets two marks. 89 is an A1, 91 is an A star so there is quite a lot of difference."
But others were happy with the arrangement.
"I'm very very happy that they are giving us two marks."
"If they don't make the mistake I won't get two marks."
The Board said it carried out at least five rounds of checks in the setting of examinations.
The checks are done by teams of experienced moderators and examiners.
The Board also assures schools, parents and students that every effort will be made to ensure error-free examinations in future.
Meantime, parents have been writing to Channel NewsAsia saying this year's PSLE Science paper was "exceptionally difficult" and are asking the Examinations Board to check whether the paper has any mistakes in the questions. - CNA/de -
5 rounds of checks and nobody spots the errors?
A lot of people have not been doing their work, it seems.
Or are they just going through the motions?
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Originally posted by sbst275:
In Soviet Singapore, marks dont make mistakes, mistakes make marks.
[b]
"I do not think it is fair because those who got it correct, actually it will still be the same with the others. They don't deserve it and maybe we do."
"I'm very very happy that they are giving us two marks."
"If they don't make the mistake I won't get two marks."