Overview of what Secondary 1 students (2024 cohort onwards) will experience under Full Subject-Based Banding (Full SBB) at secondary school:
- Removal of Fixed Streams
The traditional Express, Normal (Academic) and Normal (Technical) streams are abolished. Students are no longer placed into one of these three “tracks” for their entire secondary education. - Posting Groups Replace Streams
• Students are assigned to one of three Posting Groups (1, 2 or 3) based on their PSLE aggregate.
• These Posting Groups correspond to the old N(T), N(A) and Express ranges respectively, but only determine initial placement and subject-level recommendations at Secondary 1. - Three General Subject Levels (G1, G2, G3)
• Across all schools, every subject is offered at three levels—G3 (most demanding), G2 (mid), and G1 (foundational).
• At Secondary 1, students start most subjects at the level aligned with their Posting Group (e.g. Group 2 → mostly G2). - Flexible Subject Moves
• Throughout secondary school, students can move up (e.g. from G2 to G3) or down (e.g. G3 to G2) for individual subjects, based on:- Their performance and readiness in that subject
- A holistic assessment by the school (to ensure manageable workload)
- Mixed Form Classes & Common Curriculum
• Form classes are no longer streamed by ability—students of different Posting Groups learn together.
• Six “Common Curriculum” subjects (Art, CCE, D&T, FCE, Music, PE) are taught in mixed classes, with differentiated instruction to meet varied learning paces. - Post-Secondary Pathways Based on Subject Levels
• Admission to JCs, polytechnics, and other ITE programmes will depend on the combination of subjects and levels students take (e.g. L1R5 computed from G3 subjects for JC).
• A fifth year option remains available for those who wish to pace their learning and take more G3 subjects to open up further pathways.
What this means for students
Under Full SBB, every student tailors their learning journey—choosing the level that best matches their strengths, refining it as they grow, and keeping doors open to all post-secondary options based on subject-level achievement rather than a fixed stream label.