SUPPORT PLAN FOR SPECIAL-NEEDS STUDENTS AT TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS

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SUPPORT PLAN FOR SPECIAL-NEEDS STUDENTS AT TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS: 10.

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng asked the Minister for Education whether he has plans to develop a more structured and consistent support plan for special-needs students in tertiary institutions such as the ITEs, polytechnics and universities.

The Senior Minister of State for Education (Mr S Iswaran) (for the Minister for Education): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Ministry of Education (MOE) has, in recent years, strengthened the support for special-needs students at the primary and secondary levels. Those who are admitted into the post-secondary education institutes (PSEIs) are provided with support services which are customised to their needs at each of the institutions.

This is generally done through a three-step process. The first involves the identification of students and their special needs. Students who declare their disabilities are put in touch with counsellors who would find out more about their needs and customise arrangements for them. For example, wheelchair-bound students are allocated classrooms that are wheelchair accessible.

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Second, as far as possible, students are given extra-curricular and pedagogical support to better support their learning. Academic staff members are notified of the students’ needs so that they may either provide extra help or modify their teaching methods appropriately, for instance, by providing extra notes or by speaking while facing a student who may need to lip-read. In addition, the PSEIs pay close attention to the needs of these students during examinations, for example, by providing scripts with larger fonts for the visually-impaired, and for cases where specific physical disabilities affect writing, students are allowed to use computers to type out answers in examinations. Students can also be granted extra time to complete their examinations.

Lastly, steps have also been taken to equip faculty and academic staff with the necessary skills to handle special needs students. For instance, ITE has been working with NIE to conduct training on "Teaching Adolescents and Adult Learners with Special Needs".

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng (Jalan Besar): I thank the Senior Minister of State for the response. I have witnessed in developed countries professional, systematic, consistent support plans for students with special needs in universities, polytechnics and even high schools. I ask MOE to consider studying some of these models. I also have evidence from the ground – in fact, just this morning, I have been to one of the institutions – that there is no consistent or structured support for these students. I am not just talking about students with physical disabilities. As a result, it has led to greater stress on the part of both students and staff, and, in fact, more importantly, the under-optimisation of the potential of these students with special needs.

In view of this, this is a logical gap to plug. Since these students are able to

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study and get on to tertiary institutions, I would ask MOE to consider addressing this issue, coming up with more consistent, systematic support plans and audits and, hopefully, also to do so by the next Committee of Supply.

Mr Iswaran: Mr Speaker, Sir, I thank the Member for her suggestions and timeline. I would like to re-emphasise the point that, currently, our post-secondary education institutions, whether it is ITE, polytechnics or universities, leverage extensively on their internal resources to try and accommodate the needs of special-needs students. As I explained, they identify their needs and render the extra support as it has been assessed to be required, and they also train their faculty and staff members to manage those needs. But I want to assure the Member that MOE and the institutions are prepared to consider further measures to assist such students, if necessary. She pointed out the examples in many parts of the world, in developed countries, and suggested we study their models. Indeed, MOE agencies are working together with the post-secondary education institutions in order to deepen our outstanding and see where the gaps are. Take the example of ITE, MOE's Psychological Services Branch is helping ITE with the needs assessment study to systematically identify the gaps that exist today in ITE's provision to special-needs students. ITE would then take steps to bridge those gaps. Whether that entails a specific allocation of resources or a more systematic response, as the Member has suggested, I think will depend on the kind of needs that have been identified and the extent of those needs.

I would also like to assure the Member that if there are any specific instances that she cited, like she feels that the support rendered is insufficient, then she should really highlight it and we will see what we can do to address that.