Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar asked the Minister for Education whether the Ministry will consider centralising the training of pre-school teachers to standardise their quality and qualifications, just as primary and secondary school teachers are centrally trained in the National Institute of Education.

Mr Heng Swee Keat: Currently, training for pre-school teachers is conducted by private training agencies and three of our Polytechnics, namely, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore Polytechnic and Temasek Polytechnic.

Dr Intan suggested that the training be centralised to standardise quality and qualifications. There are already processes in place to ensure the quality of training. All training courses administered by private agencies and the Polytechnics must be accredited by the Pre-school Qualification Accreditation Committee or PQAC, jointly chaired by MOE and MCYS. The PQAC is assisted in its work by an Academic Advisory Panel which comprises representatives who are specialists in early childhood education.

The PQAC reviews the standards for accreditation regularly. Since January 2009, all training agencies are required to put in place quality assurance systems to ensure effective delivery of their courses. The course content has also been enhanced with a corresponding increase in the number of training hours.

The PQAC is currently reviewing the standards for accreditation to keep pace with recent developments in the field of early childhood care and education, and to further raise teacher training standards. The revised standards will be implemented in 2013.

MOE regularly monitors the training standards of the courses accredited by PQAC. We recognise the important role that pre-school teachers play, and will continue to study how best to improve the training of such teachers to ensure consistent quality and standards.

Written Answers to Questions

Page: 551