A SMART start to PSLE preparation

Parents can consider setting specific, measurable and relevant goals with their PSLE-aged child to manage expectations about the upcoming national examination

- Wong Sher Maine

Teenager Kaelyn Goh set goals for the PSLE with her parents Regine Lin and Peter Goh at the end of her Primary 4 year. Now 13, she says the exercise helped her think though issues such as where and how to improve during her preparation for the examinations. ST PHOTO: HESTER TAN

(HESTER TAN)

As primary school teachers, Mr Peter Goh and his wife Regine Lin felt that it would not help their daughter Kaelyn if they simply told her to "do well in the PSLE" or "score as best as you can".

Says Mr Goh, 47, who teaches Chinese in a primary school: "If we don't sit down with our children to set goals and manage expectations on both sides, leaving them to figure it out on their own and having broad expectations to 'work hard and do well' is too abstract and might actually stress them out."

Mr Goh and his wife started setting goals with his elder child Kaelyn at the end of her Primary 4 year, before she took her PSLE in 2025.

"We know that as children move from Primary 4 to 5, there is a significant shift in the complexity of content and difficulty. Setting goals early helps them with this adjustment," says Mr Goh, who also has a 10-year-old daughter.

While they had an early start, it is never too late for parents to begin the goal-setting process.

Ms Nicole Glisson is head of positive psychology and director of academic affairs at The School of Positive Psychology. She says that while some children thrive with a more flexible approach, most 12-year-olds benefit from structured conversations about expectations and aspirations.

This is especially since the PSLE is a major exam and they are also going through a complex period of growth.

She says: "For PSLE-aged children, a collaborative approach works best: shared conversations, child-led choices and realistic steps supported by parents."