Value addedness (Part 1)

I received an sms from one of my ex-pupils who is in Sec 2 this year. He thanked me and shared with me that his score for a recent Composition test was the third highest in his class. He mentioned that he had used the vivid phrases that I had taught him when he was in Primary 6.

I was happy for him as he was able to apply what he had learnt in school. However, at the same time, I felt a little sad. Some of you must be wondering why I felt sad. Shouldn't I be happy when my ex-pupils are doing well in secondary school?

The truth is I felt sad that there was little value addedness to my pupil's learning at this stage. It's true that when I was teaching in school, I had always exposed my pupils to phrases that were beyond the P6 standard. I am not one who believes that we should limit a child's learning. Even though the boy and his classmates were in an average ability class in school, I did my best to expose them to a number of vivid phrases and writing techniques that I usually teach my high ability classes. I was heartened to see the improvement in their writing after one year of hard work. Hence with their foundation, I am sure more can be done to add value to them at this stage of their learning journey.

I have always prayed that my ex-pupils will be in a school environment that will continue to add value to their learning. This is not the first time I have heard of comments from some of my ex-pupils who are in secondary school that they are still relying on the phrases that I taught them in primary school. What has gone wrong? I am not sure.

All I hope for is that my ex-pupils will be as fortunate as I was when I was a pupil. I have met numerous dedicated and inspiring teachers who had added value to me. Perhaps that is why I always reminded myself that it is important to add value to my kids in school when I was an MOE teacher. It is still my philosophy now even though I am a tutor.