I would like to share a
well-written and thoughtful post that I came across in the KiasuParent.
The author, AdvancedAcademia, talked about the topics that are acceptable in
the PSLE as well as those that are taboo.
Those who want to read the
original post, please click here.
I would summarise his (or
her?) points and add my own thoughts about them.
Firstly he categorised the
taboo topics into four broad categories:
1.
Crime
2.
Fantasy/Horror/Flights of Imagination (which I
shall shorten to Flights of Fantasy/Horror)
3.
Race & Religion
4.
Morality & Ethics
1. Crime
AA: Crimes such as
mass murder, terrorism, kidnapping, white collar-crime and identity theft are
not encouraged because the pupils are too young and do not have the necessary
knowledge to write a convincing story.
But others like
robbery, snatch-theft, vandalism and the occasional murder are okay.
I agree mostly with him except
that kidnapping is a topic that I feel many Primary 5/6 children are able to
handle. Sometimes, it depends on whether the topic has been taught in school.
For example, in the mid- to late 2000s, terrorism was a popular composition
topic in school (due to the Mas Selamat saga) although I can’t remember if it
ever came out in the PSLE. But I did topics such as kidnapping and terrorism
with the pupils and they were mostly able to handle it. The key is that the
pupil must have done the topic before and is familiar with the chain of events
that could unfold in such cases, and also the vocabulary associated with such
incidents.
2. Flights of Fantasy/Horror
A definite no-no. AA’s
rationale is that no rules govern these themes and so if they are allowed, it
might encourage rampant memorisation of compositions to be regurgitated during
exam time.
Totally agree. Fantasy is
completely out. Talking animals, witches flying on brooms (ironic considering
that JK Rowling made a huge fortune writing about this), fairies and elves are
out. Any appearance of these in the story will result in a failing or
near-failing mark.
Horror is generally also not
advised. Not because it is outright banned, but because most children don’t
write it well. Blame Mr Midnight.
An
effective horror story is one that sends chills down your spine. I have seen
first-hand pupils’ unguided attempts at writing horror, and it’s not a pretty
sight. Such stories tend to degenerate into victims running around screaming
for no good reason and caricatures of horror figures.
That said, I have also personally seen a PSLE script
that was almost awarded full marks despite the fact that it was a horror story.
And it got the marks it did because it spooked the examiner! However, that is more
the exception than the rule, so pupils are generally advised to give horror
stories a wide berth.
[For those who are really keen
to explore horror stories, a hint: In your ghost story, the word ‘ghost’
shouldn’t appear at all. No one has ever proved the existence of ghosts, so
don’t go around shouting ‘Ghost!’ in your story. A successful horror story is
usually presented as a chain of inexplicable and eerie events that points towards one
conclusion — the presence of the supernatural, but you can’t say conclusively
that that’s the case, you can only suspect. And the story may just end that way
— an unshakeable suspicion that you had had a brush with the supernatural, but
it’s only a suspicion. Another way to end a horror story is to have the
narrator be confronted by irrefutable evidence that he was indeed haunted, but
this approach is riskier in the PSLE, because you actually end at the climax,
and more conservative teachers would not accept such an unorthodox story
structure.]
3. Race & Religion
No value judgments.
That means no racial stereotype. Same goes for religion. Also don't criticise any race or religion.
But if you do not
make judgments about race or religion, and use the tension between races or
religion as a trigger for conflict between characters, then it should be okay.
This is new to me. I’ve never
done this with my pupils, but now I’m certainly inspired to do so. These topics
would be great fodder for stories with emotional growth. You could for example
have a story about a girl growing up with certain stereotypes but through an
incident learnt that her mental pictures were false.
Such stories, if handled
properly, would be able to score well for content because they are really rare.
From experience, I would say that above average pupils would be able to handle
such topics. Even for pupils who are not so academically inclined, such topics
tend to stretch their critical thinking and would be more likely to trigger
their interest than yet another birthday story.
4. Morality & Ethics
The main point here
is whether you could have the villain in the story winning and the hero losing.
Writing as an artistic endeavour embraces such stories; they reflect reality.
But in the PSLE, it
is generally frowned upon because of the fear that such stories would carry the
wrong lessons. Hence in the PSLE, pupils are encouraged to punish wrong-doers
and reward the good.
I agree. It is a huge risk to
go against the grain of the conventional story in which the hero overcomes the
villain. If you want to do something different and interesting, save that for
an exercise in class or fan fiction.
Other thoughts
1. No stories about rape or
molestation or any other sexual offence. Mostly for the same reasons as (1).
And this genre has the additional danger of offending the more conservative
teachers. So don’t go there.
2. No waking up and it was all
a dream. Marked out of point instantly because instructions are very clear.
Picture does not depict a dream. Neither does given scenario.
3. No UFO or science fiction
either. Mainly for same reasons as (2).
4. Stories in which the first-person narrator ('I') dies are also discouraged. How about the death of an important character? This is a grey area. The conventional wisdom is 'no' because the pupils at 12 are not mature enough to handle the idea of death in a sensitive and touching manner. But there are always exceptions and some rare 12-year-olds are capable of writing heart-wrenching stories. My advice is to avoid it unless you've done it before and a qualified person (your teacher or tutor) told you it was a commendable effort.
Acceptable Topics
So we’ve covered the
composition topics that should be avoided in the PSLE. What’s left to write
about?
As a quick run-through, these
stories are fine for PSLE examination purposes:
•
Crime
o
Robbery
o
Snatch-theft
o
Vandalism
o
Burglary
o
Scams
o
Underage smoking
o
Kidnap (if you don’t want to write a full
kidnap story, you could turn it into a scam)
o
Gangs
•
Animal-related
(mostly about being attacked by such animals)
o
Upsetting a beehive
o
Chased by a goat
o
Hurt by a crab
o
Drenched by an elephant
o
Snake (common topic in school, but not sure if
it came out in the PSLE before)
o
Dog (has not come out yet in the PSLE, but I’ve
always thought it’s a distinct possibility given the reports of attacks by wild
dogs in Punggol, and the number of
pets gone rogue)
o
Helping a distressed animal
•
School-related
o
Cheating
o
Being late for school
o
Bullying
o
Fights
o
Accidents (breaking window, banging into
someone in the canteen, falling down, cutting oneself during Art & Crafts, laboratory
accident etc.)
•
Accidents
o
Drowning
o
Fire
o
Road accidents
o
Dropping an ice cream on a passer-by in the
mall
o
Falling into a hole in the park
o
Tripping over unseen stumbling blocks
o
Splashed by passing vehicles
•
Home-related
o
Scalded at home
o
Hurt by iron
o
Sibling rivalry
o
Broke something fragile
o
Cuts (by knives, scissors, broken glass shards)
o
Special occasions (birthdays, festivals, etc.)
•
Others
o
Trapped in the lift
o
Graciousness (giving up one’s seat on the
bus/in the MRT, helping elderly cross the road, helping a friend in trouble,
etc)
o
Mischief (pelting eggs at innocent passers-by,
raiding neighbour’s fruit trees, scribbling on sibling’s homework)
o
Animal abuse
o
Conflicts between friends, neighbours, etc.
o
Trips (zoo, beach, airport)
o
Caught in the rain
o Suicide
The list is not exhaustive. If
you can think of any topic that has been left out, either acceptable or taboo,
feel free to drop a comment below. It would be greatly appreciated. Cheers!
