Forum: Create environments for children to learn skills for the future
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The Ministry of Education’s announcement that it is reviewing the PSLE is timely ( Exam difficulty, use of PSLE results being studied by MOE to lower exam stakes: Desmond Lee
Singapore has always valued rigour, discipline and meritocracy. High-stakes examinations created ranking and competition, while also enabling social mobility and building a competent workforce.
In that context, systems like the PSLE served Singapore well. When scarcity is real and resources are limited, sorting does promote efficiency, and competition can accelerate some forms of excellence.
However, the world our children are growing up in today looks very different. The question then becomes: Is winning alone enough to prepare children for the realities they will face as adults?
Despite our relative prosperity today, we continue to pit children against one another through comparison, sometimes without equal attention to whether they are learning to collaborate, accept differences, and remain open to change and adaptation.
While literacy and numeracy remain essential foundations – and benchmarks for them still matter – what may be increasingly valued today are purpose, curiosity, emotional regulation and the ability to care for others and the environment responsibly. These are often labelled “soft” skills, but in practice they function as the infrastructure that supports learning, creativity and lifelong adaptability. Without them, academic rigour often becomes brittle; with them, learning becomes transferable and lasting.
Singapore has always been pragmatic and forward-looking. The next phase may be less about success at another’s cost, and more about building resilience, cohesion and well-being in our society.
We do not need to choose between rigour and humanity. Nor do we need to remain anchored to what worked in the past, as we will face different headwinds in the future. With courage and innovation, we can create learning environments where our children embody thoughtful thinking, care and the ability to work well with others in a shared future. The future needs education that builds humanity, not just winners.
Tan Hwei Min
