Exams

I almost freaked out when I saw her message book the other day. The note from the teacher stated that the exams will be held from 6 – 8 May. She’s taking 6 subjects : Bahasa Malaysia, English, Mandarin, Maths, Science and General Knowledge. Enclosed with the note is a stack of sample exam questions to guide the parents with the revision.

My first thought was to put her on a revision mode right away. But then I looked at the innocent face looking at me expectantly, waiting to see my reaction.

DD actually looked excited when she showed me the message book. Before letting my competitive nature rear its head, I decided to ask her how she felt about the exams. She nonchalantly said that she was not worried and proceeded to explain to me that the questions are going to be on the things covered in her books.

I decided then that I was not going to push my 5-year old to slog it out just yet. It is so easy to let my competitiveness rule and succumb to the pressure to compete with other parents. But I remind myself that though grades are important, it is more important for her to learn and actually enjoy the process of learning. Sure, the grades will be a reflection of the amount of learning that she’s done but they are not the only indicators. At this age, I feel that it is more important for her to develop other ‘skills’ such as interacting with other kids, sharing and developing her self-confident. Having said that, I do appreciate the teachers’ efforts on academic learning. It’s just that I don’t want her to feel that getting a string of As is all that matters.

She’s only 5 and all I want is for her to enjoy her childhood while developing a positive attitude towards learning.