Result is just a number, it doesn't determine child's future

It is encouraging to see the Education Ministry taking another step towards reducing the stress that comes with the Primary School Leaving Examination ("PSLE results won't show highest or lowest scores"; last Wednesday).

Education Minister Heng Swee Keat is right to point out in a Facebook post that "the PSLE is not the be-all and end-all. Whatever the outcome, if you work hard, you can always do better. You must never judge yourself or your friends by a number".

Of course, there are parents who go online to search for the highest and lowest PSLE scores.

It will be difficult to change parents' mindsets overnight. These parents have the mistaken notion that only pupils with good academic results will be able to get into the top secondary schools and the best local universities, thereby securing their prospects of getting good jobs.

In other words, parents are the ones guilty of influencing children into thinking that their future is decided by the PSLE.

However, this is often not the case. My cousin did not score well in the PSLE, but is now the managing director of a large and well-known real estate company in Hong Kong.

Hopefully, in time, parents will come to accept that the PSLE result is just a number and does not decide the future of their children.

Li Dan Yue (Ms)

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