Median T-scores of PSLE Students Broken Down by Household Income Quintile and Impact of COVID-19 School Closures on Academic Performance of Children from Lower Income Households
Ministry of EducationSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the median PSLE T-scores by household income quintile and the impact of COVID-19 school closures on the academic performance of lower-income students. Minister for Education Lawrence Wong clarified that data is primarily collected for Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) students, whose median score has remained stable at 164 compared to the national median of 207. During school closures, the Ministry of Education loaned 20,000 digital devices and 1,600 internet dongles to students while allowing vulnerable children to use school facilities under teacher supervision. Teachers also provided remediation, coaching, and well-being monitoring to ensure learning continuity for those requiring additional support. These policy interventions aimed to minimize academic disruptions for students from lower-income households during the implementation of home-based learning.
Transcript
28 Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song asked the Minister for Education (a) in each year from 2011 to 2020, what are the median T-scores of students who sat for the PSLE, broken down by household income quintile; and (b) whether school closures due to COVID-19 disproportionately impacted the academic performance of children from lower income households.
Mr Lawrence Wong: The Ministry of Education (MOE) does not collect data on household income of students, except for Singapore citizen students who apply for the MOE Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS), where the income criterion is set at about the bottom quintile of the national household income. These students on MOE FAS score a wide range of PSLE T-scores. Over the past decade, including for 2020, their median PSLE T-score has been stable at around 164. Likewise, the median PSLE T-score of the entire PSLE cohort has remained stable at around 207 over the past decade.
During the implementation of Circuit Breaker in April 2020, teaching and learning continued via Home-based Learning. Schools reached out to students without access to digital devices and internet access, including those from low-income families. Over 20,000 digital devices and 1,600 internet dongles were loaned out to ensure that students were able to continue learning.
To further support students' learning, schools invited and welcomed students to use the school facilities with teacher supervision during the Circuit Breaker, and established channels and processes for students to ask teachers for coaching and help with their assignments. Teachers monitored the well-being of vulnerable students and engaged them via various platforms such as regular phone calls and video calls.
When in-person classes gradually resumed, teachers took stock of students' learning progress and provided those who needed additional support with the necessary remediation and consultation. These efforts have contributed to ensuring that even our most vulnerable students were able to continue learning during the period of school closure.