Assessment & Exam Matters (Examination Policy)
Read the full examination rules before your exam. Know what to bring, what is banned, and how to avoid losing your results.
Examination Policy
Examination Regulations
What you should do:
Before the start of the examination
1. Be on time for all examination papers. You will not be given extra time to complete the examination paper if you are late. You will not be allowed to sit for the paper if you are late for more than 30 minutes after the start of the paper.
2. Bring all necessary materials needed for the examination. They include pens, 2B pencils, erasers, rulers, sharpeners and mathematical instruments that you need for the examination.
3. Read carefully the instructions on the question booklets.
4. Raise your hand if you have any questions to ask the invigilator.
During the Examination
5. The duration of each examination paper includes the time for reading the questions, writing and/or shading your answers on the OAS, etc. No extra time will be given.
6. Write your answers legibly in blue/black ink or ball pens. If you need to change your answers, cross them out and re-write the answers.
7. Use a soft-lead pencil (i.e. 2B) to shade your answers for the multiple choice questions (MCQs) on the OAS provided. Answers that are written on the question booklets will not be marked.
8. Do not fold the OAS or make any other marks on it.
9. Use a soft eraser if you wish to change your answers on the OAS. Erase the shaded oval completely before shading the new oval.
10. Read all questions carefully. No marks will be awarded for information that is not asked for in the questions.
11. Good time management is important. Do not spend too much time on a few questions, leaving no time for the others.
12. If you are not feeling well or if you need to go to the washroom urgently, remain seated and raise your hand to inform the invigilator.
At the end of the Examination
13. Stop writing immediately when told to do so by the invigilator.
14. Remain seated until the question booklets / answer booklets I OAS have been collected. You will be instructed by the invigilator to leave the examination room when all the question booklets / answer booklets / OAS are collected.
15. You must comply with the following regulations during the examination:
Do not cheat or assist in cheating.
Do not bring your bags, books, papers, notes, mobile phones, computerised wrist watches or other unauthorised personal belongings (such as MP3 player, digital camera, scanning device, etc) into the examination room. Place them outside the examination room or a place identified by the examiner or invigilator. Any candidate found to be in possession of any unauthorised material is liable to the same penalty as those who are caught cheating during the examination.
Do not talk or communicate (verbally or non-verbally) with other candidates during the examination.
Do not leave the examination room even if you have finished the examination paper before the given time.
Do not remove any used or unused writing paper, question booklet, answer booklet or OAS from the examination room.
Do not eat or drink in the examination room.
16. Cheating and Misconduct during the examination
If you cheat, attempt to cheat or assist in cheating during the examination, you may be expelled from the examination room and not allowed to sit for subsequent papers. Your examination results may be forfeited.
17. If you misbehave or do not follow the examination regulations during the examination, you may be expelled from the examination room and not allowed to sit for subsequent papers. Your examination results may also be forfeited.
EXAMINATION FORMAT
USE OF DICTIONARIES IN THE EXAMINATION
18. You are allowed to use a dictionary for the Mother Tongue, Higher Mother Tongue and Non-Tamil Indian Languages (NTIL) Paper I (Composition).
19. You are also allowed to use a hand-held electronic Chinese Language dictionary for the Chinese and Higher Chinese Paper I (Composition)
20. Dictionaries and electronic dictionaries must conform to the following requirements:
i. All dictionaries in printed form must bear the school stamp;
ii. Only monolingual dictionaries are allowed;
iii. Dictionaries used must not have any annotations on any of the pages. Annotations include tagging pages with stickers, highlighted text and/or written text;
iv. Electronic dictionaries must be silent and battery operated. The ear-pieces are not permitted in the examination room.
v. Only approved dictionaries that are listed on page 10 and 11 may be used. For candidates offering Non-Tamil Indian languages (NTIL), they can bring in any dictionary as long as it is monolingual with no annotations on any of the pages. No list of dictionaries will be provided.
21. You are not allowed to borrow any dictionary from other candidates during the examination.
22. You are advised to bring along a spare set of batteries for your electronic dictionary as no extra time or allowance will be given if your dictionary fails to function during the examination.
23. If you have brought along a dictionary that has not been stamped by your school on the day of examination, inform your teacher or the invigilator before the start of the examination.
24. Any unauthorised dictionary found in your possession during the examination will be confiscated.
USE OF SCIENTIFIC CALCULATORS IN THE EXAMINATION
25. You are allowed to use a scientific calculator for Mathematics/Foundation Mathematics Paper 2.
26. The scientific calculators used should have the following features:
a) four arithmetic operations (+, —, x, ÷) including the order of operations and use of brackets;
b) fractional function which retains the fraction in the form ‘a/b’ and ‘a b/c’;
c) square root ( √ ) and cube root ( 3√ ) functions; and
d) value of Pi ( π )
27. The following guidelines are to be adhered to in the use of scientific calculators in national examinations. The calculator must be silent, with a visual display only.
a) The working condition of the calculator is the responsibility of the pupil and a fault in a calculator cannot be used as a reason for seeking special consideration for the user.
b) Calculators must not be borrowed from other pupils in the course of the examination for any reason.
c) External storage media, e.g. card, tape, and plug-in modules, must not be in the possession of pupils during the examination.
d) No unauthorised materials, e.g. instructions leaflets, formulae printed on the lid or cover of a calculator or similar materials, must be in the possession of pupils during the examination (where the instructions cannot be removed they should be
securely covered).
e) No programmable calculators are allowed.
f) No calculators with permanent features of a programmed kind are allowed, e.g. calculators capable of numerical integration, numerical differentiation, and/or expressing in irrational number form.
g) No calculators with special communication features are allowed, e.g. calculators with the capability of remote communication via infra-red or blue-tooth with other machines.
h) No calculators with capabilities for storing and displaying visual and verbal information are allowed.
28. The use of any calculator with unacceptable features or for retrieval of information/programs during the examinations is an infringement of the regulations.