Students to take NAPFA test in alternate years from 2014 - 07Nov2013

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• published: 07 Nov 2013
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SINGAPORE: Singapore students will go through the National Physical Fitness Award (NAPFA) test once every two years instead of annually, from next year. This is one of the changes the Education Ministry is making to its assessment of physical fitness in schools as it prepares to implement a new Physical Education (PE) syllabus over the next three years. NAPFA is an annual physical fitness test which assesses their ability in activities from sit-ups to long-distance running. But from next year, only those in Primary 4 and 6, Secondary 2 and 4 or 5, and Junior College Year 2 will take the test. The idea is for students to have more time for other activities, instead of just preparing for NAPFA. Muhammad Aqil Dany, Primary 4 student at Yio Chu Kang Primary, said: "I like playing games during PE because you get more exposure to your friends, you get to know your friends better in sports, and most of all, you get to exercise on your own." Educators are not worried that students' fitness levels will fall behind. This is because this new change complements the new PE syllabus, which will pack more games and outdoor activities into PE lessons. Jasni Mahmood Jasmin, head of department for PE/CCA at Yio Chu Kang Primary, said: "The children, they really run a lot during the lesson - of course meaningfully. So because of that, it helps to build their stamina." With the new syllabus, MOE will also use new assessment methods that it says are more holistic from 2016. Instead of getting graded from A to F, students will get descriptive feedback on their performance during PE lessons. The six areas the assessment will cover are: students' participation level in PE, attainment in range of physical activities, demonstration of values and attitudes during PE lessons, performance in NAPFA and Body Mass Index, and students' self-directed physical activities with their family and friends. In the last area, students will give an oral report to teachers what physical activities they have been taking part in with family and friends - in hope of getting them to take ownership of their own physical fitness. In the case of NAPFA, students will be given performance bands such as "Outstanding Performance" and "Needs Improvement" instead of getting grades A to F. Ong Kim Soon, deputy director at Ministry of Education, said: "It helps to motivate the child towards self-improvement as well as improvement in various components of fitness, rather than just looking at whether (they) pass or fail NAPFA." MOE hopes parents can do more to help their children develop active and healthy lifestyles - for example, by bring their children outdoors more, encouraging healthy eating habits and paying attention to what their children are learning during PE lessons. www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/students-to-take-napfa/877932.html