Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is Zhenghua Secondary’s cut-off points?
   For the current 2019 batch of Sec 1s:

1. My Child wants to enter this school but was not offered a place during the Sec 1 posting exercise. How can I appeal for a place?

You can register your appeal by approaching our staff in the General Office, and your child will be put on our waiting list. In the event there is a vacancy and your child meets our school’s cut-off point, we will contact you as soon as we can.

1. I am a Returning Singaporean, how can i apply for a place in Zhenghua Secondary School?

The School Placement Exercise for Returning Singaporeans (SPERS) was introduced to facilitate the school admission of Returning Singaporean (RS) children who are Singapore Citizen or Permanent Resident, returning from overseas and wish to join our mainstream schools.If your child has lived and studied overseas and do not have a place in a local secondary school, you may sit for the SPERS - Secondary to seek admission into Secondary 1-3 in the following academic year. In view that the Secondary 4 is a national examination year, we would generally not encourage Returning Singaporeans to seek admission at this level.

1. What is the criteria for Direct School Admission into Zhenghua Secondary School?

   We take in promising Primary 6 students with strong leadership qualities and/or outstanding contributions to their uniformed groups, CCAs or school through the school’s Direct School Admission (DSA) exercise. Further details can be found on our DSA page here

2. What is the criteria for my child to transfer to Express from NA, or to NA from NT?

The student has to score a minimum of 70% in the combined score in every subject at the end of the year in order to qualify for lateral transfer.  However, while it is possible for these students in NA and NT to transfer to Express and NA respectively, the school will only allow for such a transfer if the child’s form teachers and subject teachers are confident that he or she can cope well in the higher stream. As a school, we would rather the student excel in his or her current stream, rather than find himself or herself struggling to keep up in the higher stream.

1. What is the school’s stand on outside tuition?

We do not recommend our students to go for tuition except in exceptional cases.  The students should instead approach their teachers for help.  We also put in place several remedial measures to help our students succeed.

1. Are handphones allowed in the school? What can the school do to prevent excessive handphone usage?

Handphones are not allowed to be used during curriculum time unless allowed by the teacher for teaching and learning purposes. Students are only allowed to use their handphones before school, during recess and after school. We do not ban the use of handphones as we would rather educate our students to use their personal devices responsibly in a world that is increasingly dependent on technology. We thus conduct cyber-wellness lessons and workshops for such a purpose.

1. Will teachers use Facebook or other social media and Whatsapp to communicate with the students?

While we do not encourage our teachers to use social media to communicate with students, we do recognise that technological platforms can be a useful platform to encourage student online discussions and collaborations.  Hence, unless it is for educational purposes, our teachers will not use social media platforms to communicate with your child.We also recognise that online communication apps like Whatsapp are effective ways to get in touch with students. However, teachers do recognise that not all students have smart phones or data plans and that Whatsapp only serve as an additional form of communication on top of those we already have in class and in school.

1. When my child is sick, can I just write a letter instead of providing an MC as they have medication at home?

We seek your kind understanding to always get a doctor to look into the health and well-being of your child when he or she is sick and to obtain an MC if he or she is unable to attend school. We accept parent letters only after establishing with you the situation that your child is in.

1. If we want to apply leave for my child, what must we do?

If your child is sick, please consult a doctor to obtain an MC. If there are other forms of emergencies (e.g. bereavement of a family member), please write a letter to inform your child’s form teachers about the duration which your child needs to be away.  We seek your understanding to not take your child out of school for holidays during curriculum time as this would have an impact on his or her studies.

1. Who can opt for Higher MTL and where are the lessons held?

Students who offer Mother Tongue Language (MTL) (i.e. Chinese/ Malay/ Tamil) or Higher Mother Tongue Language (HTML) (i.e. Higher Chinese/ Higher Malay/ Higher Tamil) at the PSLE and

• are ranked among the top 10% of the PSLE; OR
• are in the top 11% - 30% band who meet the language criteria (i.e. an A* grade in the MTL or at least a Merit in the HMTL), may opt to study HMTL at secondary schools. They may offer English Language and HMTL in the GCE ‘O’ Level Examination at the end of Secondary Four.

Students eligible for HMTL will be invited to apply for these programmes immediately after the release of the PSLE results.

Higher Malay Language course will be held in Bukit Panjang Government High outside curriculum time and Higher Chinese Language course is held in the school.

1. My child does not meet the above criteria to offer HMTL, can my child still opt for HMTL in Secondary School?

The school has the flexibility to allow students who do not meet the above criteria to offer HMTL, if they are assessed to have exceptional ability in MTL in the mid-year examination and are able to do HMTL without affecting their performance in other subjects.Students who obtain a grade of A2 and above in MTL in the mid-year examination with an overall average of 60 will be offered HCL in semester 2 in secondary one in our school.

1. My child is taking Tamil language. When and where are the classes held?

Students who are offered Tamil will study at the Tamil Language Centre, Teck Whye Secondary School outside curriculum time. For 2019, depending on the level and stream, Tamil classes will commence at 3pm on the following days:

1. My child takes part in a competitive sport on a regular basis (e.g. gymnastics, swimming) but this sport is not offered in the school. Can it be counted as my child’s CCA?

In order for the child to achieve an excellent grade in CCA, the child must take part in a CCA that is offered by the school, and have attended at least 75% of that CCA’s activities during his or her time in the school. The child’s involvement in outside activities such as competitive sports can help the child achieve higher attainment points in the CCA grading system known as LEAPS. The school can also help to de-conflict the child’s CCA in school with his or her outside commitments if need be.(For questions on specific CCAs, please contact any of the CCA teachers-in-charge or our HOD/PE&CCA Ms Sherlyn Goh.)

Additional FAQs can be found at:

• Student Admissions
• School-Related Matters
• Finance Matters
• National Examination Matters
• CCA Matters
• SLS Matters

For specific questions related to Zhenghua Secondary School, please contact the school at 6763 9455 or  email us at zhenghua_ss@moe.edu.sg