This guide is released to assist parents who have no prior experience in Integrated Programme matters, but have a child enrolling into an Integrated Programme stream.
1. The difficulty of the syllabus is enhanced. Using the traditional O-level textbooks or workbooks may not be sufficient to help your child in tackling the IP syllabus. The formula sheets, or timing of the papers may not be the same as the O-level. It is not uncommon for IP schools at the secondary level to teach beyond the regular syllabus, by including either JC topics/concepts or questions that may be very fringe/out of syllabus. If you are looking for good books to use, I suggest using those O-level textbooks with express/special stream in their titles. Those books are usually better for IP students as they involve deeper concepts and tougher questions. IP exam papers are very difficult to find online or in most bookstores, and there is no standardized textbook for reference due to the fast changing nature of IP syllabus.
Examples of tough IP questions which use concepts that are beyond their own level:
2. CCA is demanding. Your child will need to balance between studying hard and training for CCA rigorously. During competition periods, your child might miss some lessons and that will affect their grades. A consistent effort throughout the term is necessary for them not to fall behind, together with eating and sleeping well. Some schools even require students to take up more than one CCA in order to demonstrate their potential for leadership. Ultimately, this assists them in making their report book presentable for scholarships.
3. IP schools have graded project work. This is to prepare them for Y5 and Y6 as they would be required to take H1 project work. If your child is quiet, they have to learn to speak up, in order to score for presentation. A lot of time has to be dedicated to research, as well as preparing for presentation and a written report. Ultimately, this helps them in their H1 project work as they have 4 years of project work experience prior to JC. The research skills gained from project work will help them eventually in university as well.
4. The workload for homework is heavy. On top of CCA, and project work, there is still a lot of homework to clear. Besides the traditional worksheets issued for homework, there are still homework like lab reports, book reports or essays. These are all part of their continual assessment, and doing well in these modes of assessment requires your child to be very competent in the basics of all their subjects(e.g. Science lab reports can involve deep Mathematics concepts) Questions can seem very open ended as they are testing your child for their critical thinking skills.
This post is compiled by the IP tutoring team at Singapore Learner, based on our personal experience studying in an IP school or teaching in an IP school.
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