No Exams in Primary One: How Your Child's Progress Is Measured Now

Quick answer: since 2019, there have been no examinations or weighted assessments in Primary One and Primary Two at Singapore's national schools. Teachers still check what children understand through class work and short tasks, and they still give feedback. Progress is reported using descriptions rather than marks, and the report book no longer shows class or level positions. For parents, it means the early primary years are a time for children to build habits and confidence, with no ranking attached.

If you went through school in Singapore yourself, you may remember Primary One with a very different flavour. Many parents recall exam papers, marks out of a hundred and a position in class from the first year. So it is natural to feel a little uneasy when you hear that none of that applies any more. How will you know if your child is keeping up?

This piece explains what changed, what has stayed the same, and how to make sense of your child's progress in those first two years.

What MOE changed

In 2018, the Ministry of Education announced that from 2019, all weighted assessments and examinations for Primary One and Primary Two students would be removed. That included the Primary Two year-end exam. The ministry said that assessments teachers still carried out would not be counted towards any overall mark or grade.

At the same time, it changed the way progress is reported. Schools were guided to use qualitative descriptors for these levels, so the report book describes how a child is doing in words rather than numbers. Academic indicators such as class and level positions were removed from the report book.

The announcement also covered Edusave awards at the lower primary levels. Instead of academic scores, selection now recognises learning qualities such as diligence and curiosity.

Over the following few years, MOE also removed mid-year exams at several other levels, among them Primary Three.

Why the change was made

The aim was to shift attention away from marks and comparison at an age when children are still settling into formal school. Six- and seven-year-olds vary enormously in how quickly they develop, and a child who is behind in September can be comfortably on track a few months later. A ranking at that stage reflects many things besides ability.

Without exams to prepare for, teachers have more time for the foundations that matter in these years. Fluent reading and a solid understanding of number are easier to build without the pressure of a test date. So is the less obvious skill of learning how to be a student.

What has not changed

It would be a mistake to read "no exams" as "no standards". In Primary One your child will still:

• Follow a structured curriculum that includes English and mathematics, along with their Mother Tongue Language.
• Do regular class work and, usually, some homework.
• Take short checks of understanding, which teachers use to plan their teaching.
• Receive feedback on their work, often written on it.
• Have a report book that describes their progress.

The difference is that these checks are tools for learning, not scores that add up to a grade.

How to tell how your child is doing

Without marks, parents need to look in different places. Some ideas:

Look at the work that comes home. Exercise books and worksheets show what your child is practising and where the teacher has added comments. Look for patterns over a few weeks rather than reacting to a single page.

Read the report book properly. The descriptors are written carefully. If a comment says your child is "developing" in an area, that tells you where to focus gently at home.

Talk to the form teacher. Parent-teacher meetings are the best source of information. Ask specific questions, such as how your child reads aloud or how they manage in group work. Our guide to getting the most from a parent-teacher meeting has some useful questions.

Listen to your child. The things they talk about tell you a great deal, especially what they find hard and what they are proud of.

What helps at home

The best support in the early primary years looks a lot like good preschool support.

• Read together every day. Let your child read to you, and keep reading to them as well. Stories build vocabulary and comprehension far beyond what a child can yet read alone.
• Talk about numbers in daily life. Counting change at the hawker centre or working out how many stops are left on the MRT all build number sense.
• Build routines. A regular homework time, a packed bag the night before and an early bedtime help a child cope with the longer school day.
• Be careful with extra drilling. Assessment books and tuition can be tempting when there is no exam to show progress. For many children, more worksheets simply make learning feel like a chore. If you are worried about a specific gap, talk to the teacher first.
• Praise effort and strategy. "You tried three ways to work that out" is more useful than "you're so clever".

Signs worth raising early

Teachers keep a close eye on how each child is doing, and parents often notice things first. Talk to the teacher if your child:

• Still finds it very hard to recognise letters and sounds well into Primary One.
• Avoids reading or becomes upset when asked to read aloud.
• Struggles to follow simple instructions in class.
• Seems anxious about school most mornings.

Teachers would much rather hear early, and schools have support available.

How preschool fits in

Children who arrive in Primary One with strong foundations in language and number, along with the independence to manage their day, find those first months much easier. At Shaws, our five- to six-year-olds work on multiplication and division and story sums. They practise composition and penmanship too, and read at a higher level. Project work and life skills classes are also part of the K2 year. Children also learn to concentrate and to ask for help, which are skills the early primary years build on.

You can read more about our approach on our curriculum page and in the skills that matter more than reading before Primary One.

Shaws Preschool has prepared children for primary school across the East Coast and Serangoon since 1989. Come and see what K1 and K2 look like with us: book a tour.