Nearly, 40% of the questions in a PSLE science paper requires pupils to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of scientific facts, concepts, and principles. However, scoring an A needs more work, as children need to tackle the remaining 60 % of questions that require them to apply concepts and principles to new situations. 

Let us take a look at what makes educating science so tough that parents find it difficult to tackle:

Fluency in English :

The first hurdle that children need to overcome is to be able to read and comprehend exactly what the questions are. Secondly, they must know how to arrange their answer sensibly, in a logical sequence, and with the correct scientific keywords. Science is based on facts, inferences and conclusions must be expressed in a concise, coherent manner.

Scientific methods of observation:

The scientific method is based on the process of formulating a question, coming up with a hypothesis, making predictions, running tests, and then analyzing the results. Science also involves the skills of making relevant observations, recording those observations (as in drawings, tables, or graphs), and applying knowledge to new scenarios.

Children can learn such scientific skills, but these take time to teach. They need to be trained to attain these skills. With the acquiring of these skills comes the ability to understand and answer science questions. However, because there is usually not enough to teach such skills, kids don’t understand the intent or expectations of certain questions, leading to inaccurate or incomplete answers, and the tendency to take the easy way of memorizing model answers.

Knowing what each question requires :

Understanding whether a question requires a simple fact as an answer, or a longer explanation takes practice, students need to gauge how much to write based on the number of marks as well. Knowledge of the scientific method also helps here to follow a set thinking routine. 

Help your children learn to think scientifically :

Talk to your children about what they did in science class every day. Help them feel comfortable in talking about what went right and what went wrong, especially with test questions. Ask yourself what your child missed out, and why that was important. There are primary science tuitions available to help your children inculcate better knowledge about PSLE science.

Seek the help of online science tutors from the best science tuition :

Online science tuitions work with the best science tutors who can help your children to connect better with the subject. Take a lot of their online assessments and their feedback can help you attain good results. Online tuitions even have digital platforms where parents and children can both track the learning progress