FAQ

General Information

1. What is the indicative score range of BPGHS based on the 2023 cohort?
Ans:
Posting Group 3: 7-11
Posting Group 2: 21-22
Posting Group 1: 25-26

2. Should I select BPGHS as one of my choices if I just met the minimum requirements of the indicative score range?
Ans: The indicative score range is calculated based on the range of PSLE score of the 2023 cohort. It should be noted that the Cut Off Point (COP) varies from year to year. One way to go about choosing a school would be to list down schools that you are keen to join and check whether their COP is near your PSLE score. You can then put these schools down in your application in descending order of their COP. That should put you in a good position to get into a school that you are keen to join.

3. My child qualified for Posting Group 3, can he/she apply for Posting Group 2 in BPGHS?
Ans: Your child will not be able to apply to join a Posting Group 2 course in a Secondary School.

4. What are the daily school hours at BPGHS?
Ans: School starts at 7:30 a.m. and ends at 1:30 p.m. / 3:00 p.m. for Monday to Thursday and 12:30 p.m. on Friday. Students will be expected to stay back after curriculum hours on some days for after-school activities such as CCA, enrichment activities and remedial / supplementary lessons. As announced by MOE in 2020, all secondary schools will be implementing regular Home-Based Learning (HBL) by 2022. Students will not be required to report to school on a specific day every fortnight, and will be learning from home instead. More details will be communicated at a later date.

5. Will there be any physical Open House this year?
Ans: Yes. The Open House will be held on 16 November 2024.

6. What is the duration of recess and lunch?
Ans: The recess is 40 minutes long and lunch is 30 minutes long.

7. What is the average price and variety of food sold in the school canteen?
Ans: A typical meal (without drinks) in the school canteen costs between $2.50 and $3.50. The canteen comprises 4 Chinese food stalls, 2 halal food stalls and 1 drink stall.

Academic Matters

8. How many assessments will a student have for each subject for a year?
Ans: As announced by the Ministry of Education (MOE) in Sept 2018, all students will not have more than one weighted assessment per subject per school term. In BPGHS, for Secondary 1 – 3, there will not be any Mid Year Examinations. Students will have 1 weighted assessment in each term for Term 1 – 3, and an End of Year Examination in Term 4. The school also monitors the academic progress of students using other non-weighted assessments, such as project work and presentations.

9. Are students expected to purchase a laptop for learning?
Ans: On 28 June 2020, MOE announced that every secondary school student will be equipped with a personal learning device by the end of 2021 in an effort to raise the country's digital literacy. All students in the school will be using devices of the same model and the purchasing of the devices will be done in school. A separate briefing will be conducted on this at a later date.

10. How does the school support students to cope with the demands of the academic programmes?
Ans: Support structures such as remedial lessons and consultations are provided for students when necessary.

11. What is the arrangement for students doing subjects at a more demanding level under Subject-Based Banding?
Ans: As far as possible, the school will arrange for this group of students to have their lessons together with their peers from the other stream to encourage more interactions among students across different streams.

12. Will students be allowed to switch to a more demanding stream if they do well after they join the school?
Ans: Students may be allowed to switch to a more demanding stream if they meet the criteria at the end of the year of study. They must have scored at least 70% for English, Mathematics and Science, and also attained an overall average score of at least 70%.

13. What is the percentage of express students eligible for JC?
Ans: Typically, our Express stream students do well in the O level examinations, and about 90-95% of them are eligible for Junior College after their O levels.

14. Does the school organise any overseas trip for students?
Ans: We do have internationalisation programmes organised for our students every year, mainly catered for the Secondary 2 & 3 students. The trips organised range from academic trips (e.g. Geography) to non-academic/ student leadership / CCA trips.

15. If my child does not take higher Mother Tongue in primary school, can he/she take higher Mother Tongue in secondary school? What are the requirements?
Ans: If your child did not take Higher Mother Tongue (HMT) in primary school, (s)he may still be offered to take up HMT in secondary school if (s)he fulfils the requirements:

• An overall PSLE Score of 8 or better; or 
  

• An overall PSLE Score of 9 to 14 (inclusive); and attain AL 1 / AL 2 in MTL

16. If a student is enrolled into BPGHS via DSA Malay, what activities will (s)he be expected to participate in? Must (s)he join Malay Cultural Society CCA and take Malay Literature subject?
Ans: If a student enters our school via DSA Malay, (s)he will take Higher Malay Language (HML) as a subject and be part of a comprehensive Elective Programme for Malay Language in Secondary Schools (EMAS), just like other students taking HML in our school.

In addition, the school will be preparing the DSA Malay students for the Malay Language Elective Programme (MLEP). The programme aims to nurture promising students to attain a high level of language proficiency in Malay, enhance their understanding of Malay literature and develop academically able students to become effectively bilingual so as to better serve the needs of our nation. The 2-year programme (Secondary 3 and 4) is for students who offer G3 Literature in Malay, in either full or elective. MLEP activities include language and cultural camps, overseas immersion trips, language symposiums and enrichment workshops on creative writing, drama script writing, public speaking, translation and journalism.

17. Does BPGHS have Applied Learning Programme (ALP)?
Ans: BPGHS is an Autonomous Secondary School so we do not offer ALP. However, all our students attend our signature Interdisciplinary Project Work (IPW), which focuses on Environmental Sustainability.

Student Well-being

18. How does the school support students’ social and emotional well-being?
Ans: The school has a student development team comprising Year Heads, Assistant Year Heads, Allied Educators (Learning and Behavioural Support) and a School Counsellor working closely with the Form Teachers to look into the social and emotional needs of the students.

Co-Curricular Activities (CCA)

19. Is CCA compulsory in secondary schools?
Ans: CCA is compulsory in secondary schools. Students can choose a CCA from one of the 4 categories: 
1. Uniformed Groups
2. Sports and Games
3. Performing Arts
4. Clubs and Societies (only as a second CCA)

20. How much time does a student need to spend on CCA each week?
Ans: The frequency and duration of the CCA sessions vary from one to another. These are likely to increase when the students are preparing for competitions. Generally, students can expect to participate in 1 – 3 CCA sessions every week, with approximately 3 hours for each session.

21: How is CCA allocated to each student?
Ans: CCA allocation is based on students' choices and talents and available vacancies.

Discipline

22. What is the policy of the school on mobile phone usage in school?
Ans: Students are not encouraged to bring their PEDs to school. If they choose to do so, they are personally responsible and accountable for the safe-keeping of their PEDs, to prevent loss, damage or theft. 

Students are not allowed to wear smart watches to school to prevent distraction during lessons.

The school is a place set apart for conducive learning to take place. Students should respect the place provided by upholding the rules and guidelines that allow each and every student to learn effectively. Hence, they are expected to adhere to the following rules and guidelines:

• PEDs, especially handphones, must be switched off immediately the moment they step into the school and kept out of sight of everyone.
  

• PEDs can only be used at the following venues at all times: canteen and café. This means that no PEDs are allowed in the classrooms, study corners, corridors, library and any part of the school compound at any part of the school day, unless instructed by teachers for academic/ CCA purposes. Also, PEDs should not be carried around in the hands, or seen lying on or under the study table.
  

• Students who wish to use their PEDs can only use them during recess and after curriculum time, either in the canteen or café. 
  

• For more details on mobile phone usgae and other rules and regulations, please click here.

Parent Support Group

23. Where can I find out more about partnering the school in the PSG or other events?
Ans: You may refer to the details here.