GEYLANG METHODIST SEC SCH 4E SS PRELIM 2019

HUMANITIES (SOCIAL STUDIES, GEOGRAPHY) HUMANITIES (SOCIAL STUDIES, HISTORY) HUMANITIES (SOCIAL STUDIES, LITERATURE IN ENGLISH) Paper 1 Social Studies 2272/01 2273/01 2274/01 4 Express 5 N(A) Additional materials: Writing Paper 1 hour 45 minutes 28 Aug 2019 Setter: Mr Cheong Kim Gin READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST Write your name, index number and class on all the work you hand in. Write in dark blue or black pen on both sides of the paper. Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid. Section A Answer all parts of Question 1. Section B Answer both parts of Question 2. Write all answers on the writing paper provided. At the end of the examination, fasten all your work securely together. The number of marks is given in brackets [ ] at the end of each question or part question. Begin your answer to Section B (parts (a) and (b)) on a new and separate sheet of paper. This document consists of 7 printed pages and 1 blank page. [Turn over Geylang Methodist School (Secondary) Preliminary Examination 2019

GMS(S)/CombHum/2272/73/74/P1/Prelim2019/4E/5NA 2 Section A (Source-Based Case Study) Question 1 is compulsory for all candidates. 1 LIVING IN A DIVERSE SOCIETY Study the Background Information and the sources carefully, and then answer all the questions. You may use any of the sources to help you answer the questions, in addition to those sources you are told to use. In answering the questions you should use your knowledge of the topic to help you interpret and evaluate the sources. (a) Study Source A. What does the source tell you about social mobility in Singapore ? Explain your answer. [5] (b) Study Sources B and C. Do you think both politicians in Source B would agree with the cartoonist in Source C? Explain your answer. [7] (c) Study Source D. Are you surprised by what the Minister said? Explain your answer. [6] (d) Study Sources E and F. Both sources are from the United States. Does this mean that they are useless in understand ing meritocracy in Singapore ? Explain your answer. [7] (e) ‘Some are born great, some achieve greatness.’ Using the sources in this case study, explain how far you would agree with this statement. [10]

GMS(S)/CombHum/2272/73/74/P1/Prelim2019/4E/5NA 3 Is meritocracy an effective mean to manage socio-economic diversity in Singapore? BACKGROUND INFORMATION Read this carefully. It may help you to answer some of the questions. Meritocracy is an important governing principle in Singapore. The nation tries to equalise op portunities and allocate rewards based on an individual’s merit or abilities. Everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed. Social mobility was largely brought about by meritocracy in the past . Today, Singapore is a developed nation and competition at the top is fiercer than before. A large middle class is the result and upward social mobility is harder, though equality of opportunities has been largely unchanged. Some people agree that the principle continues to serve the country well. Yet some argue that meritocracy has failed and that the system of governance needs to evolve beyond meritocracy to address the growth of inequality in Singapore. Study the following sources to explore whether meritocracy can continue to close the social gaps in Singapore. Source A: From a report by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation an d Development (OECD), October 2018. Singapore ranks among the top in the world when it comes to upward mobility in education, with nearly six in 10 adults attaining higher qual ifications than their parents. Across all age groups, those with more qualified parents are likely to end up better educated than their peers. The social gap in Singapore has shrunk considerably over the years. In the 1950s, someone born to parents with only upper secondary education stood a less than 20 per cent chance of completing tertiary education. Now, such a person has about a 60 per cent chance of making the grade. For those born to at least one parent with tertiary education, the figure has grown from over 70 per cent to more than 90 per cent.

GMS(S)/CombHum/2272/73/74/P1/Prelim2019/4E/5NA 4 Source B: From TODAY, a local newspaper, dated 11 July 2018. Meritocracy remains the right approach for Singapore and its education system, though there is a danger that it is becoming a “dirty word” because it may have given rise to unfairness in the system, said the Education Minister in Parliament. Still, banning tuition or redistributing resources from popular to less popular schools — as suggested by some sections of the public — is not the way to go, he stressed. Offering several examples on how children from low -income families were at a disadvantage, a Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) said their performance in school could be affected by personal circumstances that do not allow them to study at home – such as cramped living conditions or having to care for younger siblings – despite assistance. Source C: A cartoon from Zaobao, a Singapore Chinese newspaper, dated 23 July 2016. The cartoon depicts two babies born into two different families. Life’s starting line

GMS(S)/CombHum/2272/73/74/P1/Prelim2019/4E/5NA 5 Source D: From a Minister’s speech to the Singapore Government scholarship recipients in a ceremony on 21 July 2018. Our promise to each and every generation of Singaporeans is this, that so long as you are capable and committed, our country will provide you with the best opportunities possible for you to fulfill your potential. I believe such a system will continue to attract the best to serve the nation. Some of our scholarship recipients come from challenging family and personal circumstances. That they have done so well shows their resilience and determination - qualities that are as vital as high in tellect and academic excellence. Source E: From The New York Times. The author reports regularly on the issue of equality in Washington DC (USA), dated 13 June 2019. The debate over meritocracy has been intensifying. Is it a good thing? A bad thing? Do we want it or don’t we? From a positive vantage point, meritocracy is a political system in which economic goods and/or political power are vested in individual people based on talent, effort and achievement. Viewed negatively, such a system discriminates against the less highly educated and those who perform less well on ability tests. At the same time, meri tocracy privileges arrogant and complacent elites with the money, the resources and the connections to jump to the head of the line. Source F: From The Washington Post “How Singapore is fixing its meritocracy” by Kenneth Paul Tan who is an associate professor of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public P