MY INTENTION in writing this letter is not to lodge any grievances about the recent Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), but rather to seek clarification on the following matter with the Singapore Examinations and Assessment

Board and other relevant authorities. My son scored well for the PSLE this year: He received three A* in total for English, Mathematics and Science, and even managed to clinch an A for his weakest subject, Chinese.

He was overjoyed until he saw his aggregate score of 244. Most of his friends who managed 3As and a B have better aggregate scores than him.

I called up the customer- service centre at the Ministry of Education to enquire if the grades reflected the raw score or the transformed score, or T-score.

It was confirmed that it is the latter, which is derived through a complicated process.

However, what I do not comprehend is this: If his 3A* and 1A as reflected in his result slips are his T-score, why is his aggregate score so low?

My son is not disappointed, but is just as confused as I am. I would very much like to seek clarification on this matter so as to seek closure for a son who did not ask for a single reward for his good results.

All he wants to know is why, and he will then move on.

Ms Chow Chai Foon

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