PW & H3

It is certainly unfair – such a huge disparity. If I were one of them, I would be making noise too. It was lucky of me for being a Hwa Chong student, to be among the 85% of the cohort getting an A for Project Work. While I am certainly happy and satisfied of my grade, the debate over the percentage of students getting an A among the local JCs have set me thinking of a similar problem, a problem that I foresee will generate a similar furore sooner or later. It is about the H3 modules.

For the benefit of those unfamiliar with the H3 system, allow me to briefly introduce it. Several options of H3 modules are available to JC students – guided research programmes, university modules and MOE modules. While each H3 typically has its own syllabus and framework, no common grading standard exist between the different modules. It is understandable that it may be difficult or even impossible to come up with such a common standard. However, the discrepancies are huge – students taking university modules can easily score near full-marks or even perfect scores; guided research projects have the added advantage of being able to be used to participate in project competitions; while those taking MOE modules often struggle to even pass their tests.

Unfortunately, I belong to the last category. Granted, it was out of my free will and decision that I chose to attend this course, and thus courted my own miseries. However, I have to clarify one important point: when I had to make my choice last year, I only had partial information – mine was the first batch to take up these courses, and I have no seniors’ experience to refer to. Neither were the teachers of great help, because they too, were unfamiliar with the new courses. Hence, it could be said that we were the guinea pigs – we waded into murky waters without knowing the dangers – or rewards, waiting for us at the other end.

Nobody is to blame in this case – the system is new, and needs a few more years to be perfected. Nonetheless, some actions have to be taken to address the huge disparity that currently exists – it is simply unfair to all those taking H3. Perhaps a bell curve system can be adopted in the grading? Or perhaps some form of moderation and standardisation can be done to minimise the discrepancy?

Be it Project Work or H3, both will ultimately be reflected on the final certificate, and both can potentially affect the future prospect of a student. Nobody will be willing and happy to put in so much effort only to earn a disproportionate reward, or to see other people gain much higher rewards by putting in much less effort. Certainly, those discrepancies in grading have to be addressed, and they better do so before we see another round of debate in the press next year, again by our batch.