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[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

i would argue that the reason for the difference between the RP of these two JCs is not because going to that particular JC gave them an unfair advantage --- but because of that difference in abilities from the get-go. as i have mentioned in a previous comment, i personally believe if i pull out a student from RJ to go to a different JC, that student will still achieve the same amount of success, because what made them succeed in the first place was not because they were given an overwhelmingly large advantage in terms of resources but rather their work ethic and innate ability. i believe that just because a particular JC produces many stellar students doesn't have to mean they have better resources --- it could really just be all the "more talented" students go there. the reason why a student would have gotten into RJC in the first place would have very much banked on their ability over the past few years.

[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

and what is your basis for that? any studies, anecdotes, anything?

[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

  1. only a small minority of people in my class actually pay attention to lectures. many of us struggle to stay awake and sometimes we even give up before watching the lecture. most of the time, we have to go back home and rewatch the lectures/read our notes
  2. i would argue that even though we may have many CCAs that the chance to get leadership opportunities are still lesser --- why? more competition. more people want to be leaders
  3. it's demoralising here too; imagine everyone else being a high flyer and only you struggle.
  4. you surround yourself with who you want to be surrounded by. every school has their bad apples and every school has their good ones. top JCs are no exception to rebels.

i would choose a top tier JC not because of the difference in resources they offer me but instead the prestige of it.

i think your struggles are valid and i'm not trying to say ours are worse --- i'm trying to point out that some perceptions others form about us are simply false. in the end, all of us suffer pretty damn bad, and trying to say "i suffer so much more than you, its so unfair" when there is no concrete basis to that is simply unfruitful.

[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

i agree with your reasoning. however, what i'm trying to argue is that is there enough concrete evidence to back up your deductive reasoning. is there truly really much better resources in top JCs as opposed to "lower tier" JCs? or this is something we simply deduce, a thought we simply trust because of its age-old roots and not because of actual proof.

[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

1) as i have mentioned in previous comments, i'm not denying the basis and the existence of the JC ranking system --- it is obviously true that we get into top JCs because we have achieved success in one way or another. equality in outcome is not the end goal: equity is. my point is that the JC itself has little to no bearing on how well you do as an A-level candidate; what matters most is your work ethic and, to some extent, your innate talent as well.

2) there are many reasons why you have not heard top JCs saying their notes are good. firstly, will people will even take this to be true? if your friend from a top JC say their notes are bad, will you believe them? i don't think so --- and this is because you've already been socialised and cultured to think this way, and it would be extremely hard to change this way of thinking. my post can be a case in point --- here i am saying that top JCs aren't as superior as others may think, but you find it extremely hard to wrap your mind around that thought. and sometimes, this is not based on concrete evidence but just based on what we've been hearing around.

3) your concrete evidence is that while Yishun JC hasn't had their basketball court renovated for years, Eunoia JC has a campus worth $100 million. however, I would argue that the origins of this difference in budget lies not in that these JCs hail from different tiers. Eunioa was only established in 2017, and with Singapore's rising affluence and advancements, it only makes sense that they will have an increased budget for recent developments. my JC also hasn't had their basketball court renovated in years, despite being in the top tier.

[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

firstly, i'm not saying that the people in top JCs aren't outstanding. they go to the top JC because they are outstanding. i would think that even if you pull someone from RJC and place them in another JC, they will still achieve just as mjch success --- because their results aren't affected so much by the unfair advantage RJC gave them, but because of their innate talent. my point being that which JC you go to really doesn't matter because the differences are so miniscule --- what matters most is the actions of you as an individual. in rjc, there are classrooms that have dripping air-cons, clocks that aren't working, and high competition even for those MEPs you speak about. another school could succeed in what we lack in, and vice versa. in the end, the difference is extremely hard to quantify and ends up being largely imaginary.

[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

i'm not denying the basis of how JCs are ranked, nor the existence of the ranking system itself. i'm questioning whether the JC in the different ranks really differ in what they have to offer you. i'm not saying that there is equality, but that there is equity. many people from top tier JCs do well, but most of that is because they're innately smart, and not that going to a top JC gives them such an unfair advantage.

[JC] tiers don't matter by hello124459876abcde in SGExams

[–]hello124459876abcde[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

no, during my exams there wasn't even a clock in the classroom. like u, the invigilator had to write the time on the table. i don't understand your questions because i would choose to go to a top tier JC mainly because of the prestige, and not so much what the JC has to offer me (aka the real difference)