Full Subject-Based Banding (Full SBB)

Full Subject Based Banding (FSBB)

1. Subject-Based Banding (Secondary) [SBB (Sec)] was introduced in 2018 to provide greater flexibility in subject offerings, to cater to the strengths of students in different subjects. S1 Students from the Normal (Academic) [N(A)] and Normal (Technical) [N(T)] streams are offered English, Mathematics, Science and Mother Tongue Languages at a more demanding level at the start of the year if they meet the PSLE eligibility criteria, or after the S1 Semester 1 and 2 assessments if they meet school-based criteria. Students may also offer the remaining subjects at a more demanding level at upper secondary.

2. As part of MOE's ongoing efforts to nurture the joy of learning and develop multiple pathways to cater to the different strengths and interests of our students, MOE announced in 2019 that Full Subject-Based Banding (Full SBB) would be introduced in secondary schools. Full SBB aims for students to

• have greater ownership of their learning according to their strengths, interests and learning needs;

• develop a growth mindset and an intrinsic motivation to learn for life;

• have more opportunities to interact with peers of different strengths and interests; and

• have more options for post-secondary pathways, while ensuring that they have strong fundamentals, and can thrive in their chosen pathway

3. Full SBB thus enables secondary students to customise their education at the subject level rather than at the stream level, allowing them to learn each subject at the level that best caters to their overall strengths, interests and learning needs.

4. Under Full SBB, Express, N(A), and N(T) streams will be phased out, and students will be in mixed form classes at lower secondary where they can interact with peers of different strengths and interests. To facilitate sustained interaction amongst the students, six subjects at lower secondary will be delivered via the common curriculum. Following figure provides an overview of key changes under Full SBB.

For more information, parents and students can also refer to Full Subject-Based Banding (Full SBB) ↗ (opens in new tab) for more information.

Secondary school experience under Full SBB (For 2024 S1 Cohort)

Starting from the 2024 Secondary One cohort, Full SBB will be implemented in Guangyang Secondary School. Secondary One students will benefit from the Full SBB experience, which provides greater customisation and flexibility for each student’s learning.

Removal of Express, Normal(Academic) [N(A)] and Normal(Technical) [N(T)] streams

The Express, N(A) and N(T) streams will be removed. MOE will post students to secondary school through three Posting Groups – Posting Groups 1, 2, and 3. The PSLE score ranges for the three Posting Groups will be mapped from the existing N(T), N(A) and Express streams respectively. Posting Groups will only be used for the purposes of admitting students into secondary school and to guide the initial subject levels students can offer at the start of Secondary One.

Mixed form classes

Once students enter secondary school, they will be grouped into mixed form classes comprising students from different Posting Groups and will have opportunities to interact and learn with peers of different backgrounds, strengths, and interests.

Common Curriculum subjects

In their mixed form classes, students will spend around one-third of their curriculum time taking a set of six common curriculum subjects:

These subjects give students more opportunities to interact and learn with classmates of different strengths and interests. Teachers will adopt a range of teaching approaches to meet the different learning needs and pace of their students in the same form class.

Subjects Offered at G1, G2 and G3

English Language, Mother Tongue Languages, Mathematics, Science, and Humanities subjects will be offered at G1, G2 and G3. Students will be grouped in different classes based on their subject level for each subject.

Offering subjects at a more demanding level

At the start of Secondary One

Eligible students can offer English Language, Mother Tongue Languages, Mathematics and Science at a more demanding level based on their PSLE Achievement Level (AL) for each of these subjects.

Offering subjects at a less demanding level

At the start of Secondary One Students will generally start with subjects at a subject level based on their overall PSLE Score, or at a more demanding level based on their performance in individual PSLE subjects. In some instances, students may have flexibility to offer some subjects at a less demanding level from Secondary One.

For more information on how GYSS will be implementing FSBB, you can contact us at gyss@moe.edu.sg