Education Systems: Canada and Singapore
Education is not about having colleges and universities but rather about the capacity of the education system in question. While some systems advocate for student free will in school, other systems urge for teacher dominance in the learning environment. Similarly, some systems encourage learning for understanding rather than pass examinations while others do the opposite. Identifying which method is most suitable and in what situation becomes cumbersome, especially in less developed countries. Nevertheless, countries like Singapore and Canada have implemented very different systems with surprisingly positive results for each country.
Singapore’s education system gets ranked fifth in the whole world by several studies. Like many other Asian countries, the system places a high emphasis on test-taking to measure its education capacity. The pressure is placed on students to perform excellently in international and local assessments. In turn, tutors (private and tuition) and classroom teachers are pressured to prepare the students even better. The system applies Eastern and, to a limited extend, traditional western pedagogies that focus instruction on curriculum delivery. Teachers lead students to understand established knowledge through practice and repetition until they answer questions competently. Furthermore, education testing in the country begins at the lowest ages of around three or four. This early initiation I to the system ensures child adapt their behavior to tests from an early age enhancing their psychological preparation. Despite its focus on assessment, the Singapore education system has shown significant success, especially in math and sciences.
Singapore’s education system can be traced back to the Singapore Institution, founded by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles. Throughout the years, its purpose changed from Chinese, British to the current Singapore system. After world war two, the backlog of students necessitated a survival-driven education system in preparation for self-governance. This system was more focused on quantity over quality. A need to reduce the many students and train a massive workforce for the then robust economy are the core reasons for this redirection of the education system. Education also helped integrate the new nation with the education of children from all races. In the late nineties, the system revamped into an ability-driven system. The schools became more autonomous and focused on aspects such as ICT, creative thinking, and national education. This ability driven system is still in existence today.
Canada, in contrast with Singapore, has a more western education system. Schooling in Canada is approached scientifically, with emphasis on knowledge, creativity, aesthetics, morality, and scholarly attitudes. This system is focused on developing life skills for the students so that they become self-sustaining citizens. Canada’s bilingualism makes it necessary that the skills taught are applicable anywhere in the country regardless of region. Canada’s four hundred years of education history varies per region. Quebec and Ontario have complexities of culture and history, making their examination harder. The account gets divided into four eras, i.e., the 1700s to mid-1800, mid-1800s to the late 1800s, the early nineteen hundreds, and mid-1900s to date. Therefore, unlike Singapore’s system, Canada’s system is student-based, with student outcomes taking priority. Teachers are more focused on helping students achieve personal enlightenment and stability rather than understanding already established concepts and knowledge.
While Singapore’s system is more efficient, its sustainability is cumbersome. As more students go through it, they become mechanized, limiting creativity and innovation. This trait makes it more difficult for improvements in the economy and institutional knowledge. Canada’s system, on the other hand, has a deficiency in applications, considering it needs well-trained teachers and innovative students. Therefore, determining the better of the two systems is near impossible.
References
Tan, C. (2018). Comparing High-Performing Education Systems. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351238724
Steyn, H. J., & Wolhuter, C. C. (2008). Education systems: the challenges of the 21st century. Keurkopie.
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