Guts feeling. How many of you make decisions based on guts feeling vs logic?
For the past few months, I have been thrown into the crucial decision-making path again. This time, the decision is related to my eldest daughter. This year will be her final year in primary school. In 2.5 months' time, she will be sitting for her first major exam - the UPSR. I will have to make a decision on which secondary school to register her into. Registration for secondary school starts in July through September.
Being a chronic worrier, I have a jillion what ifs to worry about for each school that I have in mind for Alycia. I have 3 schools in my selection bag -- School A, School B and School C.
School A - I worry that if Alycia goes to School A, she will have to spend a lot of time on the road traveling to and from school daily. Traffic to and from school can be horrendous. I am not in favor of precious time wasted on the road everyday. School A is extra-curricular centered.
School B - this school is one of the best independent Chinese schools in the Klang Valley and I worry that Alycia would not be able to survive in the environment and will eventually have to opt out. Well, I actually had this unfounded fear many years ago before I registered Alycia in her current primary school, which is also a high prestige school (SBT status school). School B is very academics and exams driven. The school is well-known for churning out scholarship recipients and historically, only 'good students' are accepted into the school. Yes, part of me is attracted to the scholarships! $$ :D
School C - this is a small private homeschool (housed in a shop lot) and they follow the Cambridge syllabus. School fees is about RM920 per month for the first 2 years, which is still affordable. I am pretty open to home-schooling for my girls. But I know that to change the hubs' perspective on home-schooling, well... the mountain would have to move a mile in a day!!
I was all for School A as I know that it would suit Alycia best. School A is more sports oriented vs School B which is academics oriented. However, in order to get into School A, one has to get straight As in the UPSR exam. School A is in PJ and we stay in KL. KL students must obtain straight As to be accepted into School A. Priority is given to students residing in PJ areas. Alycia has no confidence in getting straight As in her UPSR exam just yet, especially in Chinese Writing. She is in favor of School A but all her favorite buddies are going to School B. So she is in a dilemma as well. Alycia has been tossing a coin to help her make a decision and the coin keeps referring to School A!
I wouldn't have to go through all these unnecessary stress if hubs and I can afford spending RM2k a month on each of our girls, making it RM6k a month just on school fees. Private or international school will definitely be our vote. I guess we can forcibly do that and this would mean forgoing all the little luxuries that we have now and even much more. Plus, hubs and I would have to work a hundred times harder to find the dough! Life for us will be a torture if we choose this path! Nope, I can't do that. I love my health too much to have to put it through stress and more worries to earn more money.
Somehow, I just have this guts feeling that School B is the best option for Alycia though my head tells me that School A would suit her character more. Many times, most of my fears and worries are unfounded. My biggest worry would be Alycia would not be able to cope with the stress of academics and stress of exam should she be sent to School B. Some subjects will be taught in 3 languages, ie. English, Chinese and BM. The number of exams in School B are also more than a Kebangsaan / Government school. Exams will be in both UEC and PPPM syllabus. Biology and Chemistry will be using Cambridge University Press textbooks and lessons conducted bilingually in Chinese and English.
Hubs was telling me not to underestimate Alycia. She has proven to us that she has more sand in her life than we thought and have many times proven to us her mettle.
Yesterday hubs and I had a long discussion. He is only rooting for School B and no other schools (yes he can be obstinate in certain departments). Monthly school fees at School B for Junior 1 is about RM400 a month. With tuition, hubs would have to allocate around RM800 or more for Alycia. But he is not complaining. As I mentioned earlier, once hubs has made a decision, the mountain would have to move a mile in a day for him to change his mind. So I guess that School B it is for now. And we will have to get ready all the documentation for registration in July.
Wish us lots of luck!
Health Freak Mommy ~ The Joys And Throes Of Motherhood
3 comments:
Hi! I just want to give you my two cents here, while alycia is very smart i think which ever school she goes too she will excel in them.
I have a friend that went to Kuen Cheng and she really hated the system. She's very smart. she got full scholarship to US school she even has a PHD paid for (scholarship) how ever she told me that she hates kuen cheng and she didn't really benefit anything from there except stress and learning to memorize everything. She rather learn and know how to apply and understand the fact then just memorizing the book. She chinese school likes this only know how to memorize. just thought i would share what my friend told me thats all.
Jia you Alycia! And mama too. Studying for exams to get into a good school can be very stressful. Hope you all can find a good balance between study and leisure. I had gone through that back in sg days. Like what anonymous above said, those are still my nightmare every night. But looking back, even though many ppl think you have to study really hard for uni, many of my not very good friends still ended up in some uni in the end.
Hi Anonymous, I will feed your feedback to my hubby. Thanks for your comment!
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