Entering into secondary school, life could be smooth sailing for some students but not all. There are many occasions where a secondary student need to make an appeal to the school for better study opiton. For example, a Sec-1 Normal stream student may want to appeal for transfer into express class when he enters into Sec-2. At Sec-3, the most common appeal is for admission into certain subject combination, such as appeal for admission into double maths class instead of single math.
Secondary School Posting Appeal
To some students and parents, appeal starts even before the first day of Secondary School. Secondary school posting appeal is known to be one of the most common appeals in Singapore secondary schools. Some schools claim to have received more than 200 sets of appeal form after the announcement of secondary school posting. This is due mainly to the common practice among parents to want to send their child to a school of higher cutoff point. Some parents even make appeals to multiple schools so as to boost their probability of success.
Under Singapore education system, academic performance is always the most important consideration in all appeal cases. An appeal stands better chance if the academic qualification of the student is not too far from the entrance. In the case of secondary school posting, a student with Cutoff-point (COP) of 234 stands good chance when appealing to a school of COP 235 or even 236.
Preparations For Secondary School Posting Appeal
Generally all appeals are approved only by the Principal and Vice-Principal of the school. Any other staff or prominent individual, such as Head Of Department (HOD) or member of school Board, are not involved in the decision making process. There has been known case of school Principal rejecting appeal made by parent who is sitting in the school board.
Besides academic compatibility, a student appealing secondary school posting must be ready to take part in the CCA (Co-Curriculum Activities) that the school is strong in. When an appealer is called up for interview, he would normally be asked how much he knew about the school CCA and how he could contribute to make it better. For this reason, the appealer should conduct prior research on the CCA that the school is strong at, such as the different awards won by the school, name of the external coach engaged by the school, values instilled and expectations of the students who join the particular CCA. During the interview, the student must show enthusiasm, even if he is unfamiliar with the CCA. This is possible if he focuses on non-sporting CCA, such as Choir, Band and uniform groups.
Successful Secondary School Posting Appeal
For parents who wish to help their child to succeed in the appeal, it is important to show respect and sincerity to the school when checking status and making request for interview. Some wealthy parents may think that they stand better chance if they can convey to the school principal their willingness to sponsor a particular CCA or a particular school project. While some schools may politely express appreciation to such gesture, others may show shockingly strong adverse reaction, taking it as an insult to school integrity.
In short, sincerity and enthusiasm shown by a student and their parents are the most important quality that will impress the school of the genuineness of the appeal. From the point of submitting an appeal to subsequent follow up calls and personal visit to the school to enquire on status, the student and their parents must maintain a sincere attitude towards the office staff and school teachers. These are the most important factors to ensure success in secondary school posting appeal.