Student Response 1 RACE & INTELLIGENCE Disclaimer :

The ideas you are about to read may still be raw, but have not been edited in any way

Please leave a comment, especially if you have any clarifications that you would like to make.

These reflections were planned for and aligned with a series of activities to develop some understanding on performance gaps between countries (Guns, Germs & Steel video), communities (Race & Intelligence video, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom book) and even between individuals (Outliers : The Story of Success book) with the intention of encouraging further reading, discovery, thinking and constructive action.

Student Response 2 RACE & INTELLIGENCE Ee Joo wrote :

The documentary on Race and Intelligence challenges the claims that intelligence is directly proportionate to race. IQ tests have deviated from their original purpose of identifying weaker students to help them, to identify stronger students to further nurture them, and prevent the dumber people to breed. It has also been claimed that Asians were the cleverest, followed by the whites and the blacks at the bottom. The arguments to this theory are that either it is environment that affects intelligence or the genes. There are arguments that the quality of life, whether they belong to the middle or lower class for examples. The statistic shows that migrants into the white mens land grew considerably more intelligent. However, it was shown that environment may not be a factor, as evidence shows that intelligence may be ingrained in a person, as twins who grew up apart had similar habits. Also, the coloured migrants intelligence seemed to have a cap on it, and their intelligence on the whole, did not surpass the whites. Orientals, who migrated, however, made up a large percentage of university students. In Singapore context, it suggests that the fairer race is more intelligent than those with darker skin, that the Chinese, Eurasians in Singapore are better than the Malays or Indians. Seeing how Singapore is a multiracial country, it points to the fact that there will be a higher percentage of Chinese in the various higher education levels. At a glance, we do indeed see a majority of students per class being Chinese. However, by looking at the details of Singapores population by race, the Chinese takes up a larger percentage, and by ratio, it seems justified that there are more Chinese in each class. In terms of income of the family, it seems that it depends more on nurture than the environment. While it is true that some poorer family have kids that may be disadvantaged in studies, there are quite a rising number of income disadvantaged students who strive harder due to their upbringing, to do well in their studies. It may be supported by the documentary, as the documentary states that the reason behind the East Asians intelligence is due to their selfless hard work and betterment through education. Yet however, we see another flaw in that theory. The documentary has clearly placed East Asians as a blanket term. East Asians consist of more than Japanese, Koreans or Chinese, but also the Malays, Vietnamese etc. Thus, it is inaccurate to claim that the sayings of Confucius is the driving force of all East Asians as some race may not follow to his sayings. However, I feel that to place such arguments in Singapore context may be unrealistic as Singapore is a multiracial country and is rather inclusive.
I dont even know what Im saying anymore.

Student Response 3 RACE & INTELLIGENCE Racheal wrote : According to calculations, the East Asian cluster (Chinese, Japanese and Koreans) has the highest mean IQ at 105, followed by Europeans (100), Inuit-Eskimos (91), Native South East Asians (87), Native American Indians (87), Pacific Islanders (85), South Asians & North Africans (84), subSaharan Africans (67), Australian Aborigines (62), and Kalahari Bushmen & Congo Pygmies (54). (Source: Wikipedia)

In such sensitive cases of dispute about whether race plays a role in the intelligence of the individual, especially in the multiracial country that is Singapore, assumptions made and conclusions gained have to be very tactfully and carefully handled, lest sparking an interracial dispute that could end with dire consequences. Singapores population consists of mainly Chinese, Malays, Indians and Eurasians, most of which are not native to Singapore. Most Chinese come from China (East Asian cluster), Malays from Indonesia (South Asians, South East Asians and Pacific Islanders), Indians from India (South Asians). If we were to all assume the stereotypes as deemed from the calculations above, there would be much discrimination of the Malay and Indian community, and would create intense animosity amongst races. In the past, such animosity and racial tension reiterated to racial riots that caused much harm and destruction to the country- not only costing lives and causing injuries, but also damaging much property. I believe that no matter what the calculations above state, the environment of upbringing, which the young of any race grow up in, is extremely important for their development. If one grows up believing that he or she is inferior to another because of the difference in race, it is already implanted in their mind that they will always be second best to their counterpart of a different race. This will lead to discrimination, hatred and tension between different racial groups, and will cause much animosity. Therefore it is extremely important to always keep in mind that, no matter what these calculations or statistics show, all should be treated equally no matter what racial group, or skin colour one comes from or has.

Student Response 4 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Darren wrote :

The video has total relevance to Singapores context due to our society being a multi-racial one. Though many may argue that each race is different in terms on their intellect, we must remember that this should not affect how each student is treated in school. There are many academicallyinclined students of all races here in Singapore and we must not forget that. If there are indeed intellectual differences between races, we must not start separating each race like what was stated in the video. We are fortunate that such arguments have not occurred here and we must learn not to stereotype people just because of certain trends that people have spotted. Each person must be given a chance to shape his or her future, not some hypothesis. The phrase do not judge a book by its cover is telling of what we should do.

Student Response 5 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Daniyal wrote :

The video Race and Intelligence covers a rather radical aspect of psychology. Its main feature contains the notion that the Intelligence of a particular person could be pre-determined by the race this particular person was born into. After all the statistical evidence both supporting and debunking the claim of this particular notion, the video comes to a rather interesting conclusion: that intelligence could indeed be pre-determined by race, however, it is not by any biological or psychological means, it is just by the fact that each of the different races do have different attitude towards education, thus attitude towards intelligence. This is in evidence by the fact that the proportion of Asian students in the University of California (Berkley) is on the rise after the admission of new freshmen into the college was based on what was equivalent of the IQ test. Surveys have also shown that most of these Asian students formed their own self-study groups outside of curriculum time. This illustrates the fact that Asians places education, in indirectly intelligence, high on their list of priorities. So, how do we link these lessons learnt to the case of a multi-ethnic Singapore? As the main focus of the lessons learnt is the fact that the Intelligence level of a particular race is determined by hoe hardworking and admirable the students are towards their studies, Singaporeans need to know that just because you were born into a particular race, it does not necessarily mean that you would be of a higher intellect. Also, is you are born into a race and you find yourself being not well-to-do, you should know and understand that, with hard work, you would move up the social ladder and find yourself with a high amount of intellectual skills. In Singapore, it is important to note that race should never be a discriminating factor at any of lives juncture. Thus, the lessons that the video shows is that, with hard work, any degree of success is possible. The prosperous multi-ethnical Singapore is built upon the hardwork of its pioneers. Thus the lesson of working hard, learned from the video Race and Intelligence could clearly be applied to the context if Singapore.

Student Response 6 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Amanda wrote :

An argument raised by the documentary was that intelligence was based not on race but on caste. The reason the average IQ for the black community was that they belonged to a lower caste. Their parents, not being doctors and lawyers, did not focus on education. This lack of emphasis meant that they were not involved in their children's schooling and thus did not help their children adapt and mature to suit the standards of the IQ test. If this logic stands, it means anyone can have a high IQ if groomed in the right way. Singapore can thus help all the children, whatever race they may be, to have high IQs by forcing parents to be actively involved in their children's education. Even the parents of lower employment must take part in their children's education so that their children can have better futures. Singapore must then ensure that all parents understand the importance of education so that the community can produce citizens of high IQs.

Student Response 7 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Nicole wrote :

Singapore is a culturally diverse society, with a variety of different races and religions present within the small nation. The key debate that the film Race & Intelligence manifests is a controversial one; the myths behind the Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and its link to races, and importantly, how thrown together, could possibly be the main root of the problem in racism.

According to Professor Richard Lynn and others who think in-like, they have established theories based on statistical data and opinionated derivations of factual evidence, all leading towards a belief that races are genetically modified to only allow a set IQ range in their brains. Even if an inferior race, such as the Sub-Saharan African, were to grow up in a European country from birth, he or she would only reach an IQ so far, still remaining comparably shy of an IQ belonging to an ordinary European person of descent and of same age.

The idea of genes versus upbringing is then brought about into play. Is it really the genes inherited in a certain race that withholds the person from reaching a higher IQ, or is it the environment, family, and surroundings that shape and mould a person into a world that mentally stimulates the individual to achieve a higher IQ? In a multi-cultural society like Singapore, it is almost common to see a mix of any kind of races anywhere. In a macro view, Singapore thrives harmoniously as one, but a society is never safe from racism, as long as there is more than a single, sole race present. Zooming in on the more miniscule matters, just like the Sub-Saharan Africans and inferior races alike, Singapore has their own inferiorities. The Indians, Bangladeshi, Philippines, Thai, and various other races in Singapore are most often found working in occupations that usually require menial, labourious work, or sub-standard and minor jobs. A few examples are cleaners, construction workers, road sweepers, and rubbish collectors. Jobs considered undesirable, in general.

But more importantly, is why do they hold these jobs, if racism is considered insignificant in Singapore? The prime consensus that one would reach is that they are considerably less educated compared to other races, hence having to serve these jobs. But this gap of education is exactly the primary issue in question the race gap of intelligence, existing between the inferior blacks and the superior whites. It can be applied to the race gap present in Singapore as well.

Student Response 8 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Zoea wrote :

The arguments presented in the video exhibits the fragility of bonds between the different races in Singapore as a result of the nature of the society here. The video serves as an evidence that though not outwardly expressed, prejudiced feelings are inevitably existent within individuals, and these sentiments would cause grave consequences if not properly dealt with. As seen in the video, humans seem to be susceptible to the negative effects of racism. These negative effects include concluding false assumptions of another race without consideration of the environment they have been raised in, this would in turn exacerbate the relationships between the races and would pose unnecessary adversities to multicultural societies such as Singapore.

Student Response 9 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Teresa wrote : In Singapore's multicultural and multiracial society, the existence of discrimination will be a question to wonder at the back of everyone's mind. Are the Indians and muslim community any less smarter than the Chinese - genetically - or do we all start off from the same platform before using education as a leveller to gauge our intelligence? Do we really live in a racist society? We see heavy stereotyping here in Singapore, where Malays are deemed as people who are poor and not capable of earning much and Indians seen as construction workers or people who don't have much to do. This is also because we see an influx of these two groups of races in a particular job industry - which normally is not very well paid. This points back to the question on intelligence: Malays and Indians are not as clever and cannot get a better diploma or degree hence their low-paying jobs. Whereas for the Chinese, general stereotypes would mainly be on their personality; they are selfish and unfriendly. The Caucasians in Singapore would be the ones people generally 'look up' to - people who are naturally smart and have good looks. With just this superficial and surface view on the society we live in, it is not difficult to see how the arguments presented in the video is inter-linked. However, I see that even with some shortcomings, with the meritocracy system, the arguments cannot fully be applied in this context, because at the end of the day, most places or companies employ workers based on their talents. This is a culture Singaporeans have grown up to know - if you want to do or get something, you have to work hard and prove others your worthiness. We are not taught that a particular race would have lesser advantage over the others, vice versa. We do not normally see this too, as we see a mix of different races in almost every job that is available, each individual with their own strengths. We have an Indian as our president and we have Malays like Mdm Halimah Yacob as a member of the parliament, which shows that intelligence based on races is a flawed argument. You are who you want to be, and as long as effort is drilled in, anything is possible. Also, we see acceptance here, where you do not witness any racist-related activities or comments. The culture, as mentioned earlier, has also taught us to love one another despite of the difference in skin colour. In Singapore, regardless of race and religion, we aim to build a democratic society where all voices (if not most, the majority) are to be heard.

Student Response 10 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Eswara wrote :

The correlation between race and intelligence is an absolutely controversial topic. Though many famous scientist have suggested that different races have varying Intelligence Quotients (IQ), such a hypothesis is damaging to social fabric. One particular argument which caught my attention was that on East Asians excelling in foreign universities. The scientist claimed that this owed to the emphasis and focus East Asians placed on education. Thus, this allows them to capitalise on their IQ through, hard work. For example, it was stated that usually Asians students occupied most of the universitys study venues for tuition, after school hours. This shows proves how much work East Asians put in to achieve grades. Therefore, the emphasis placed on education acts as the catalyst for Asian students to excel abroad. In my opinion, this could possibly be one of the main reasons why the African community is deemed as one of lower intellect. Even if, there is scientific evidence to back the theory up, such claims can aggravate different communities. Drawing parallels to Singapore, hard work is indeed one of the pillars for our success. Therefore, in Singapore work ethics claims a higher rank over intellect. In Singapore we are primarily made up of Malays, Chinese and Indians. If such claims are really true, they need not be a determining factor to our countrys harmonious existence. Intellect alone does not serve as the sole factor to success. Success can be considered as an equation. Intellect coupled with hard work serve paves the way towards success. Even if race does actually determine intelligence, it is necessary to bear in mind that exceptions do exist. There are countless individuals who demonstrate amazing intellect but go unrecognised due to their race, which causes people to undermine the value of their statements. We should strive to knock down such stereotypes. Everybody should be offered an opportunity to prove themselves before snap judgements which mould from common notions, are passed. This applies to Singapore, particularly when we consist of many different races. Accepting one another regardless of our intellects and helping one another to improve with the betterment of the nation in mind would ultimately allow us to function as a harmonious and successful nation.

Student Response 11 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Sulynn wrote :

The issue of race and intelligence is not largely true in my society. As scientists that argue this believe that certain races have a lower IQ value than others, it is arguable that it is an issue of upbringing. These scientists make such statements on different races by countries and continents where there are different levels of development. In Singapore, we live in a multi racial society, there is a diverse mix of culture and races yet we grow up in the same environment. There are equal opportunities for all, in school, no one race has a majority or no one race is given better opportunities. Everyone goes through the same education. As Singapore is a first world country and is highly developed, there are no signs of poverty or people who are unable to go to school. Even the less fortunate are funded through many foundations and government subsidies. Thus, the issue of race and intelligence being co-related is not true in the context of my society.

Student Response 12 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Rayson wrote :

From watching the documentary show of race and intelligence, I would feel greatly disturbed by the fact that people expressed such concerns and waste manpower trying to uncover a hypothesis that I would say is impossible to prove true. They start the show with the issue of intelligence being related to DNA, upbringing then genes followed by race itself being inferior.. All of which I find not trustworthy to determine how each human IQ is classified. And thus, it is entirely redundant for this show to discuss how IQ is actually determined by race.

Student Response 13 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Nia wrote :

Based on the documentary, I was able to fish out few issues regarding the topic of Race and Religion.Based on few confrontational scientists of the past, it was believed that intelligence is actually influenced by the race. However, in my society which comprises of people of various cultural and religious backgrounds the information gathered is rather useful as to debunk this perceived statement of which intelligence is measured based on the race. In countries like Singapore and Malaysia, this notion is clearly perceived as each and every citizen of the country has to put in effort to develop their nation. Hence, we cannot merely judge that it was mainly due to the X-race (an example) that the country is developing. In Singapore, the national pledge clearly emphasises the importance of integrating into the multicultural society by putting aside the race, language or religion. Hence, it is simply myopic to discriminate the people based on race and intelligence. It could lead to even more complications in the long run as, for an example, if students of distinct races were to be separated based on intelligence and race, there would not be any integration among the society which brings us back to the old times before independence where the multicultural society was not living in an integrated manner with each other. Hence resulting in racial riots such as the one in Malaysia at 13 May back in the old days (cant remember year 19.) Although there was some information that could be used to justify why there are some races that are inferior in intelligence mainly because of the geographical state of the people. A very good example would be the people of Africa, because of the poor living conditions they would have had difficulties in consuming a well balanced or helthy diet hence leading to a lower IQ if compared to the people form the US. However, the people of Africa might not pose much IQ but when it comes to survival skills they are able to sustain the worst living conditions as they know how to manipulate their surroundings. In other words, IQ test for intelligence is not a reliable piece of analysis as its scope of analysis is fixed to a certain topic but doesnt focus on other topics such as music, art and etc. Therefore, in countries like Malaysia and SIngapore, it is simply moronic to apply such methods to discriminate people of different races based on intelligence. In other words, not everyone are the same, talents, intelligence and skills does differ from each another but that doesnt mean that this results in one being inferior to another. Instead it means that each individual posses a specific talent or skill that has to be integrated for the upbringing of the country.

Student Response 14 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Alif wrote :

One of the prominent arguments put forth in "Race and Intelligence' is that the term 'intelligence' can be easily measured and weighed by the intricacies of an IQ test. But it is not so! In Singapore too we see all too clearly that intelligence, future prospects and your chances of surviving in life is determined by one's O level and A level scores, as well as a respectable university degree. However how does this notion apply itself to Singapore's multi-cultural society? One merely has to look around him/her and see that, as much as our government stresses that we are all equal, it is painfully clear that some racial groups are falling behind. It is obvious that the Chinese in Singapore are pulling ahead of the pack in the race towards a better life, while the Indians and Malays are left behind in the dust. The Chinese do better in every term of the word, monetary or otherwise. In school they have the best scores, at work the best jobs and even if our first president was rightfully Malay, his successors have been for the most part Chinese. At the same time the Indian and Malay societies are lagging behindforever in the need of financial assistance and forever presenting the most social problems. However how does this fit in with the theory that race has got anything to do with intelligence? It is the fact that all this racial competition in the highly competitive Singaporean environment stems from the basic idea of education. In other, developing countries, no education equals no life. In Singapore, since education is compulsory, a less fruitful education equals less of a life, and the Indians and Malays are getting the worst of it here. Now i know not if i digress, but i say these with no animosity or hard feelings toward the Chinese. They work hard for what they have and must be lauded for that. But the question must be asked- has their naturally high racial intelligence levels given them an advantage over the other minority groups or is it merely their reputation for hard work that stands them in better stead? It is hard to decide on the matter.

Student Response 15 RACE & INTELLIGENCE

Ranamita wrote :

The argument that racial hierarchy is present when it comes to intelligence is pretty much applicable in Singapore.Looking at the latest statistics on education,lifestyle and income,we can deduce that there is definitely some relation between the many races living in Singapore and their intelligence.

Firstly,judging on the basis of recent statistics such as PSLE passes by races,it can be seen that 99% of Chinese,93.5% of Malays and 96% of Indians passed their PSLE.For 'O' levels, 60% Malays,86% Chinese and 73% Indians had 5 or more 'O' level passes. When all these statistics are compared,it can be seen that the Chinese are performing much better and some may argue that this proves that they are the most intelligent race in our society.However,this may not be true as the PSLE and "O' levels may not neccesarily be the appropriate tools to measure intelligence just like the IQ test.Hence,the argument that racial hierarchy is present in relation to intelligence may prove to be dubious.