Republic System.
REPUBLIC POLYTECHNIC
- GOOD OR NOT?
Most misunderstood question of all time.
WARNING.
*The post is made based on my opinion and strongly discourage you to read it if you find it offensive in any way.
This is going to be quite dry, but read on if you're interested to know about Republic Polytechnic.
In Republic Polytechnic, we have 7 schools.
STA - School for The Arts.Courses that are related to Art, Music, Theatre.Example : New Media, Arts Management, Game DesignPotential Jobs : Theatre management, Music IndustryCCC - Centre for Culture & CommunicationCourses that are related to Media, CommunicationsExample : Mass CommunicationsPotential Jobs : Media, WriterSAS - School of Applied SciencesCourses that are related to Chemicals, Sciences, Physics.Example : Biotechnology, Pharmacy SciencePotential Jobs : Pharmacist, Doctor, NursesSHL - School of Sports, Health & LeisureCourses that are related to Sports, Health.Example : Outdoor adventure learning, Sports and Exercise science.Potential Jobs : Physical Education Teacher, TrainerSOH - School of HospitalityCourses related to Service and Hospitality.Example : Customer Service, Hospitality & TourismPotential Jobs : Hotel Managers, Front lineSIT - School of Information TechnologyCourses related to most of the technologyExample : Business applications, IT service managementPotential Jobs : Anything related to IT, IT consultantSEG - School of EngineeringCourses related to designing, planning, calculationsExample : Aerospace, Micro & Nanotechnology
In year 1 semester 1, the 7 schools would be split into 3 main category when allocating classes.
In a class of 25, we will have classmates from other schools but they will fall under the same category as you.
Category 1 - CCC, SHL, SAS, STACategory 2 - SOHCategory 3 - SEG, SITCategory 1 - CCC, SHL, SAS, STAThese schools will take the same modules thus being in the same class.Modules :CommunicationsScienceMathsCognitiveEnterpriseCategory 2 - SOHThis is the only school with its own specially tailored modules for the semester 1.Modules :CommunicationsScienceMathsCognitiveOrganization BehaviourCategory 3 - SEG, SITThese are the schools that programming has to be part of the module.Modules :CommunicationsScienceMathsCognitiveProgramming
Since i am from CCC, which is also category 1, i will have classmates from CCC, SHL, SAS, STA in semester one.
In Year 1 Semester 2, CCC has its own unique modules tailored. Therefore, in Semester 2, all my classmates would be from CCC. Since the school, CCC, has only one course under it, which means, all my course mates would be in the same class as me next semester and the 2 more years after.
A question asked in FormSpring, would i stick to my current CCC clique (The friends i met in orientation who are from my course but is not in the same class for semester 1) Or would i be more open to new friends...
My answer came almost immediate, I'll be open to more new friends.
Why?
Because cliques may change, people have differences and maybe when school reopens, i can find some nice friends?
A question followed saying that CCC has a lot of bitches.
Although i have heard a lot about it, but i guess i don't have the right to judge yet.
I haven't met all of my course mates and we'll see when i reach semester 2.
Speaking of which, the other day i when i attended SC meeting, they raised the issue that people think that Republic Polytechnic is not a good polytechnic and is not recognized in the industry.
Well, lets review it.
Republic Poly is opened in 2002. The newest government polytechnic in Singapore till date.
Because it is new, RP's cut off points for about half the courses are 24,25,26. RP's grading system consist of PBL classroom style everyday, Daily grades and 3 Test to determine the Semester's grading.
Daily Grading system.Everyday, students go to school and would be given a grade at the end of the day (A,B,C,D,F). This grade would be part of our GPA. If our lesson starts at 8.30am, we have to reach before the time and if we are even 1 minute late, our daily grade gets deducted by 0.5GPA. As one module has 15 lesson, the school will take the best 13 grades out of the 15 and calculate into our GPA. The grading system is graded based on class participation, research work, etc.Why is this good?This shows that RP is actually training students in a working environment. Do you think you can be late at work? I don't think so right? & Even if you are late at work, don't you get any warning or feel bad about it? What would your colleagues think about you? How would your boss think about you? This system would encourage students to plan their time management more efficiently so that they would not be late and risk a damage in their results.Why is this not good?As this is based on punctuality and openness, students who are shy and timid may suffer in this aspect. They may be very hardworking but quiet in class and the facilitator may "assume" that they are not active in participating in class and therefore their grade would be affected. Students who are often late would have their grades affected too if they do not change their habit. That is why RP is very strict on punctuality. However, this is an encouragement for students who are quiet to speak up if they care about their grades. Speaking up is good and it trains students because in the working world, do we want to be quiet in front of our boss and dare not to speak up about our opinions and ideas?Therefore, there are different things different people look at in order to determine if the grading system is going to be good for them or not. Its subjective.
Team-work basedAs in RP, it is team work based, everyday we will have 5 people in a group and we do the research and solve the problems together.Why is this good?Teamwork is one of the most important factors of having a successful project. With teamwork, it means there would be more resources coming from different points of view. Not only does it challenges our own ideas, it enables us to think further and question the other parties points if it is deemed questionable.Meeting people of different personalities and different leadership styles may be a way to prepare RP students for the working world.Why is this not good?While teamwork may be the thing that would produce good quality work, it may also backfire if the team members are not the people you want. In human nature, there would always be a black sheep in the herd and if the team does not work well together, the results produced will also not be the best. We will meet different type of people with different working style and personalities and if they are not the type of people that will work well with the team, it is going to be quite hard.
What is PBL. (Problem Based Learning)Every morning in class, we will be given a real life situation to solve. We would have to research on our own with only little guidance from our facilitators and this will enhance our independency. After our solving of problems and researching, we are expected to present it with our group to the class to show our understanding of the problem.Why is this good?This will drastically improve our presentation skills. Why is presentation skills important? Because when we look for a job and go for an interview, would you rather you being able to present yourself and your abilities than to have no idea how to present yourself in the manner the interviewee would prefer? Besides being presentable and confident about ourselves with this type of training, we also learn how to be independent and research for ourselves rather than always relying on resources like the boss to give orders to the specialist to handle it.Why is this not good?As above, quieter students would be at a disadvantage for this but looking on the bright side, this will prepare them for the working world to be more confident about themselves. Would you rather they learn only when they start working or looking for a job?
UT1, UT2, UT3Understanding Tests. For UT 1, it test us on 1/3 of the module, UT 2, it test us on 2/3 of the module. UT3 test us on everything we learnt for that module.Why is this good?Well, exams are good for us, no? UT3 has the highest percentile among the 3 of them.All UTs add up to 50-60% of our total GPA (Depending on your course). Daily grades take up only 40%Why is this not good?Failing our UT means the possibility of getting a low gpa would be high. But its the same for all schools.
RP has already moved on from an 100% PBL system to a flexible system that consisted of practicals, PBL, outdoor learning, etc.
Why is it always a misconception as it being a lousy poly?
It depends on how you look at lousy. I am a very vocal person and i am extremely active. I do not prefer lecture styles as i know i will fall asleep and besides, so many students in a lecture hall, how much attention can i get from the lecturer? I am not an independent learner and i will not study on my own, so if i fall asleep during lectures, i will lose out. But in my case, i love being in RP because in a class of 25, if there are any questions or doubts i can ask my facilitator immediately and this ensures full attention from a mentor.
I feel that people that are not from RP that are badmouthing RP are really pathetic. They know SHIT about the school and they assume that RP is lousy because "it is". Strangely, no justification was given and when asked for a reason "Lousy loh, got why one meh" Is that a reason?
RP is extremely strong in IT and Sports, this is a claim that can be justified by quite a lot of companies. Where do i hear it from? From forums. (Not the online forums) From dialogue sessions.
There is no rotten basket, only rotten apples in the basket. Do not because you only hear from one rotten apple, assuming that all apples in the basket are rotten. If you are the type of person who makes assumptions just by hearing one rotten apple, then you yourself is almost as worthy as being a rotten apple.
I hate it when people got rejected from RP says "Nvm loh, RP so lousy anyway"Oh yeah? Why did you even apply in RP in the first place if we were so lousy, can even get rejected some more. Does that make you even lousier?! RP is a school based on merit enrollment and is seldom accepting appeals unless the qualifications are good. I understand that there are other schools that accept students based on appeals because they do not have enough students. It is not a bad thing, but why do students get so angry when they got rejected from RP. Like seriously?
Anyway back to my question. Is RP good or not?
My answer is, it depends on the individual. If you are more suitable for lecture style, then no, RP is not for you. But if you want to prepare yourself for the working world and reality, then RP is the right choice as it has all the necessary skills and rules to get your started as a responsible young adult.
Its your choice anyway.
Diana Choo, CCC
Republic Polytechnic
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