Author: guanyinmiao

A man of knowledge lives by acting, not by thinking about acting. Carlos Castaneda.
Man in business suit

Student expectations to earn S$3,000 to S$4,000 from their first jobs: Contextualising expectations with reality

Posted on by guanyinmiao

Scholarship portal BrightSparks conducted a survey of 3,215 university, polytechnic, and junior college students, and news outlets ran with the provocative headlines “1 in 5 students in Singapore expect starting salaries of S$4,000 or more, survey finds” (Nov. 21) and “Three in four students in Singapore expect more than $3,000 from their first job” (Nov. 20). Unsurprisingly, the headlines drew derisive criticisms against young Singaporeans characterised as being unrealistic or too demanding with their inflated salary expectations, even though results of the Ministry of Education’s Graduate Employment Surveys (GES) show that the expected starting salaries – especially that of potential university graduates – are very much in reach.

Two blue chairs

Singaporean preparedness for retirement: Holding research publications and indices to higher standards (in the media)

Posted on by guanyinmiao

A persistent trend in this “What it might have been?” section – with reviews of newspaper articles referencing research or data – is that articles often lead with eye-catching headlines of the research findings, yet disappoint with thin exposition of the research methodology. TODAY’s (Dec. 4) coverage of an index ostensibly measuring retirement readiness, in that familiar pattern, dove into the main findings without examining how they were derived, and in addition the supplementary information provided was inadequate.

Classified newspaper page

“Reluctant Editor”: More answers, but even more questions

Posted on by guanyinmiao

Whereas Cheong Yip Seng’s “OB Markers: My Straits Times Story” was a more extensive account of “The Straits Times” (ST) – from the perspective of its former editor-in-chief – P. N. Balji offers a more succinct account of his stints as chief editor of “The New Paper” (TNP) and “TODAY”. His interesting editorial, journalistic, and political nuggets which shed light on the five different newspaper newsrooms of which he was a part were made even more readable by the fact that “Reluctant Editor” is explicitly not a self-aggrandising memoir.

Kindle on bed

“The relationship among screen use, sleep, and emotional / behavioural difficulties in preschool children with neurodevelopmental disorders”: Generalisability and external validity

Posted on by guanyinmiao

Whereas TODAY ran with the headline “Children exposed to digital devices at an early age may have emotional and behavioural difficulties” (TODAY, Nov. 12) – summarising a research study which sought to understand the relationship between screen use, sleep, and emotional or behavioural difficulties (EBDs) – the actual publication specified that the sample was pre-school children with neuro-developmental disorders (NDDs), not Singaporean children in general.