HEAD K - MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

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[Mr Speaker in the Chair]:

ESTIMATES OF EXPENDITURE FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 1ST APRIL, 2008 TO 31ST MARCH, 2009:

(Paper Cmd. 2 of 2008): Order read for consideration in Committee of Supply [5th Allotted Day].

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]: Head K - Ministry of Education -

The Chairman: Head K - Ministry of Education. Dr Lily Neo.

Educational Policy

Dr Lily Neo (Jalan Besar): Sir, I beg to move,

That the total sum to be allocated for Head K of the Estimates be reduced by $100.

The fundamentals of our school scheme are sound. However, there are four areas in education which I would like to highlight in developing our young. First, preparing our young for the future. People are our only resource. All individuals in our society should therefore be given the opportunities to develop to their fullest. Our students have diverse ability and interest. There are now special schools for sports, arts, mathematics and science to cater to students' unique strength. Does MOE intend to keep up the momentum to cater to diversity of students further?

The continued success of Singapore lies in our people's ability to compete in

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this globalised world and to meet the challenges of the future. The present economy requires methods of doing things, that are increasingly mobile and dynamic. We are all aware that creativity, flexibility and innovation are the key tools we need to survive and compete in this knowledge-based economy. How does MOE develop our young to be innovative individuals of the future? What are the programmes in place to develop creative and critical thinking of students? Are such programmes being reviewed periodically? Should there be more entrepreneurial skills development programmes being introduced?

It has been said that Singapore's education system is grade oriented. The examination focused attitude has the effect of taking out the fun of studying. It brings me to my second point of lifelong learners of the future and encouraging a learning society. It has become necessary to modify the role of education in just equipping the basic faculties. Education can no longer stop after one leaves school. Individuals must take it upon themselves to constantly improve and upgrade themselves. MOE can prepare our students to be lifelong learners. In our human resource dependent country, the success of which will depend on how well the next generation can take advantage of globalisation. In an increasingly faster changing world, it is essential to have a society that is nimble to transformation in order to underpin our national competitiveness. Could MOE therefore modify our education system and steer our students to be lifelong learners of the future and encourage a learning society?

Third, is about opportunity for disadvantaged students. Education is the best way to level up in society. There is a greater challenge for children from lower-income families to participate in the education process. Many dropouts are

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from low-income families. Our poorest populations, numbering some 90,000 to 100,000 households, especially those with young children, need special attention. We need an integrated approach of assistance. Many parents of these children may lack parental motivation and, therefore, parental guidance and counselling, financial assistance and other referrals may be necessary in order to get better educational support and attitudes towards schools for these children. Therefore, we should have comprehensive assistance - social workers assigned to families and counsellors to target at factors not just schools but also families and communities, extra tuitions and career guidance. Continued monitoring and follow-up over time are necessary to ensure the well-being of these children.

Latest available figures show that some 5% of each Primary 1 cohort of about 42,000 has not attended pre-school at all. Latest research on brain development demonstrates that a child's environment and experience in the earliest years of life are critical for cognitive, physical, social and emotional development, and have profound lifelong benefits. It is urgent for us to try our best to give children from disadvantaged backgrounds the better chance in life in education. Could MOE target and actively assist the children from this group? We need a scheme that is able to systematically identify these families to ensure that no child is deprived for whatever reason. Could MOE cooperate with MCYS on this issue? These children need early intervention assistance for better outcome. A holistic approach may have to be taken for each family as they may need the varied assistance. Could MOE have an automatic assistance package once such needy children are being identified and these children are being followed-up till secondary schools to prevent future dropouts? I agree with Straits Times ' Senior Writer, Chua Mui Hoong, when she

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wrote last week, and I quote, "Singapore being such an organised, close-knit society, it is well within its capability to weave a tight social safety net for low-income children to ensure that they have the means to go to school and stay there for character refinement."

How we bring up our young at home and teach them in school will shape Singapore in the next generation. We must strengthen our emphasis of character building in students. We should produce not just "A" students, but individuals who are gracious, civic conscious and benevolent. There is lament in many developed societies that their citizens are becoming more self-centred and uncaring towards their fellow men and even towards their own elders. We must ensure we do not follow this slippery path. Could MOE assure that we do not end up with a future generation with ugly social fall-outs; where we have ungracious citizens, where children do not practise filial piety and the most disadvantaged of our society are ignored? Could MOE have educational curriculum with more emphasis on character development and social etiquette?

Maximising Students' Potential

The Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan): Sir, I am a mother of three school-going children bound together by blood but each with a different learning style, aptitude and capacity. One is reasonably bright and who might arguably make it to the upper echelon of the educational cohort, while another is mildly dyslexic and has to work harder to keep up with his classmates.

Consequently, I am delighted that our education system is now multi-faceted and, in recent years, has been redesigned to provide multiple pathways up the education ladder. As a parent, this greatly reduces my anxiety that my children's opportunity to further their education will

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be limited by how well they fare at various milestones, such as PSLE, "O" level and "A" level examinations. The options are now many: Through Train programme, the Sports School, Arts School and the NUS High School of Mathematics and Science as well as the many other schools that offer various advanced elective modules and the new "O" level subjects in applied discipline such as digital media at the secondary level.

I have a friend who would have been greatly stressed about her son's PSLE performance, if not for the fact that she knew he had a good chance of entering the Arts School, as he was musically talented though not so academically inclined. The son is now among the first batch of students in the Arts School and in fact did reasonably well for his PSLE, probably due to the fact that he has less pressure from the mother. There are also many parents who are keen to send their children to the NUS High School of Mathematics and Science. The increasing emphasis on learning by doing projects and through the Learning Journey programme is also encouraging. My youngest daughter who is in secondary school describes the group projects and the Learning Journey programmes as "cool". The creativity of a teacher plays a large part in this reception. But the educational framework set by the Ministry provides a matrix for creativity to flourish and enrich the learning experience.

Sir, the attempt to inject greater choices and diversity in learning is, in my view, a step in the right direction. As it maximises the opportunity of every individual to find his niche and develop his talent to the fullest, it is difficult to predict the type of jobs and skills that will be in demand in future, suffice to say a growing population, a maturing economy yields more varied career and lifestyle options that require a wider base of educational opportunities.

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Further with the premium on creativity and innovation in our workplace, we need to equip our young with a range of skill sets and the ability to apply knowledge to solve real world problems. The outcome requires teamwork and people with different skill sets and perspectives. The highly successful iPod is not just a fancy technological gimmick but also the result of smart design, aesthetic and marketing powers. Nonetheless, the number of such niche schools as well as those offering electives is still limited. I would thus like to urge the Ministry to further enrich this current dynamic educational landscape even further by injecting more learning options so as to allow even more students to benefit from them.

Teacher and School Appraisal

Mr Low Thia Khiang (Hougang): Sir, the recent change in the details of the appraisal to the teaching profession causes concern. It has created a stressful environment that is not conducive for learning, maturing and teaching. Teachers are appraised and graded not just for what they do inside the classrooms, but outside as well.

In a Straits Times' report on 29th December 2007, it was reported that a teacher resigned after six years at a primary school because she felt that the school was more interested in getting her to organise events, something she felt interfere with her ability to teach. There is a fear that the pursuit of excellence and higher ranking by over zealous principals and teachers will come at the expense of the weakest students. Going by what has happened at the beginning of 2008, this fear is not unfounded.

In a Straits Times' article on 12th January 2008, "Sec 5 class advised: Go to ITE instead", a group of 27 girls in a Secondary 5 class in a mission school

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were advised by their principal to transfer to the Institute of Technical Education on the first day of the school. It was reported that the principal even displayed the student's detailed N-level grades and stressed that she only wanted 100% passes in her school. In some other schools, students were told that they are liable to be barred from taking certain subjects at "N" or "O" levels, if their school projects are found to be unsatisfactory. Parents of these students were made to sign an acknowledgement of the consequence for poor school work and an undertaking to monitor their children's progress. This again happened at the beginning of a school term.

Sadly, some educators and teachers no longer look at the student's F9 grade as a room for improvement case, but a reason to drop the subject case as such result will lower the mean subject grade, or MSG, for the class. MSG is computed as an average grade of all the students in the class. Understandably, a lower MSG is no good for the school.

Teaching a class of 30-40 teenagers is already a stressful job. In addition, our educators have to worry about the weakest students pulling down the ranking of their school, job performance appraisal and of course their financial rewards since their pay is now linked more closely to work performance. How can one teach effectively under such an environment? The recent appraisal and school ranking system had diluted the good intention of many principals and teachers, many are unwittingly being transformed into technocrats crunching and manipulating numbers to achieve a desired target either to make a personal goal or a national objective.

MSG in school is just like monosodium glutamate. It enhances flavour but is unhealthy in the long run. MSG has a high sodium content which contributes to hypertension. Is this why some principals

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and teachers are looking so flushed at the beginning of the school year?

The Chairman: Mr Chiam See Tong is not here. Dr Ong Seh Hong.

Character Building

Dr Ong Seh Hong (Marine Parade): ( In Mandarin ): [For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A.] Last year, during the Budget debate, I urged the Government to look into the character building of our next generation so that they can have a " yin yang hu ji, wu xing xiang fu 阴阳互济，五行相辅" which means to cultivate a harmonious and balanced character. Those words are still ringing in my ears. But I have read a news article recently and it makes me very worried. According to the newspaper report on 28th February, some schools have organised Total Defence Day to raise the level of Total Defence awareness among the students so that they could experience their parents' hardship during the Japanese occupation. So these students ate sweet potatoes and drank tap water. There was no electricity, no fan, no lights, and no air conditioning. And this was just for one day. But the students kept complaining. They said that it was too hot, too dark, the water was not cold, and they did not want to eat sweet potatoes. It was also reported that a 10-year old student refused to go home after the school bus fetched him back. He refused to go home because the maid was not around and there was no one to carry his school bag. So, I am worried about the next generation. Are they too weak? Are they overly protected? They are like flowers in a green house.

I feel that the factors affecting their moral character are, first, the self. Students are immature at the developmental age, emotionally and psychologically. Their moral character is not well formed and their value system is also not

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properly formed. Therefore, they are easily influenced by external factors.

Second, the family factor. Some parents have distorted values. They emphasise on their children's results and they are overly concerned about money and materialistic pursuits. Therefore, they do not let their children do any housework. They only want them to concentrate on their studies.

Third, the school. Some schools only focus on academic performance rather than on the personal aspects, such as character building and moral development.

Fourth, the social factor. The society talks about materialism and utilitarianism. All these will cause people to emphasise on money and materialistic pursuits. Internet access can also erode the moral values of our young. Recently, the sex photo scandal of Hong Kong actor Edison Cheng is an example to illustrate the distorted values and lifestyle of the modern generation. Therefore, I would like to urge the Government and parents to look into this problem so that we can strengthen the character building of our young.

First, we can strengthen the family unit. Parents need to have proper values, and be a good example to their children. Their world views, outlook and moral sense will all affect their children. Therefore, at home, parents should not emphasise too much on their children’s results. Rather, they should let their children participate in house chores so that it will promote greater interaction among parents and children.

Second, the school should emphasise on three aspects, ie, moral, intellectual and physical, and not be overly concerned about academic performance but to stress more on the character and moral development of their students.

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Third, to create a good social environment for the young, so that we can create a good learning environment for them. Therefore, I would like to ask MOE for its comments regarding the psychological and character building of our students. How does MOE appraise the schools in this area? How do the schools engage parents and the community to nurture our next generation with better character development?

*Cols. 2031-2034.

Deliverables of Education

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng (Jalan Besar): Sir, I have six suggestions for the Minister to continue in the good work that MOE has started.

(1) Ensure a clearer line of sight between MOE's desired outcomes of education and its performance measures. The desired outcomes of education as stated on the MOE website are: young Singaporeans who are able to seek and apply knowledge, gracious, global yet rooted, morally upright and who embrace lifelong learning. Looking at the some 20 performance indicators in the Budget Book, it is unclear which indicators are linked to the desired education outcomes. The most celebrated and well-known performance indicators in our country still remain academic results and CIP hours. Sir, it is timely for the Ministry to update its list of performance indicators to reflect its priorities and value-add.

(2) Clarify the list of available education options to the public. In recent years, many exciting new school models have surfaced, eg, the Sports School, the Arts School, the NUS School of Science and Maths, the Northlight School, Pathlight School and the revamped ITE. This trend supports the Prime Minister's vision to provide multiple pathways for

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students with different talents and abilities. I ask the Ministry to develop a matrix that describes the target groups for which the different school models are developed and how they all fit in the landscape. This will clarify the options available to students and also highlight if any segments of the student population are over or under-served.

(3) Urgently enforce a tiered quality assurance framework for all MOE-registered schools and education centres not falling within the mainstream sphere. Sir, the wave of negative publicity on the appalling standards of private schools does not augur well for Singapore. Even special needs therapy centres are advertising themselves as MOE-registered centres to clients. One such centre is even mentioned in the MOE website. There is little due diligence on these MOE-registered organisations, and our Singapore brand equity in education is at high risk of being tarnished.

MOE must urgently put in place a tiered quality assurance system for all private schools, special schools, special needs intervention centres and even tutoring agencies. At entry level, minimum standards must be compulsory, not voluntary. The bar must not be too low. After compliance with minimum standards, these non-mainstream centres can then be encouraged to achieve higher levels of excellence, very much like the six-star system in the hotel industry.

(4) Encourage the shared services model amongst like-minded special schools run by voluntary welfare organisations (VWOs). Special schools run by VWOs are sometimes criticised to be developmentally delayed themselves in the past. Quality is inconsistent and dependent on leadership capability, the type of staff that they are able to attract, and available resources. Out of the three sectors in the landscape - private, public and the people sectors - it is the people

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sector which can least afford to attract strong leadership and technical talent.

The status quo need not remain. Like-minded VWOs who want the best for their students should be encouraged to adopt what is called the shared services model in the corporate sector. VWOs can put aside their territorial instincts and join forces in functions, such as HR, hiring and training, management systems, curriculum, pedagogy, therapy and psychology support. This model is already manifested recently with the collaboration of the Autism Association of Singapore and the Autism Resource Centre to adopt the shared services model to run the special needs schools under them. Sir, more can be done in the sector.

(5) Deploy MOE staff to Special Schools for at least one to two years to install education fundamentals. In trying to help to level up the special education sector, what is required is not simply more governance. Many fundamentals, such as management systems and curriculum, are not yet in place. More thinking hands need to be deployed for execution work on the ground. Visionaries and critics are aplenty, but co-labourers in the field are scarce and overworked. Send the MOE staff out to work in the field.

(6) Urgently clarify the roles of MOE and NCSS in the running of Special Schools. School leaders now have to answer to at least two parties, ie, the MOE and the NCSS. The overlapping administrative reporting performance evaluation systems, meetings and numerous surveys required by the two agencies can be reduced, so that schools can stick to the core business of education.

In conclusion, Sir, I used to volunteer at a residential home for the disabled. There, I discovered that many of the adult residents were leading lives very much below their potential. Their lives could

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have been of a much higher quality had they received earlier and more effective education. Sadly, however, they were born in the dark ages of special education when expectations of them were very low and expertise to help them was very scarce. Sir, we must not let another generation of special needs Singaporeans pass us by without getting to their potential that they are given. Many need not end up disabled.

Lastly, Sir, I wish to thank and congratulate the Minister prior to his departure from the Ministry for having boldly led MOE in transforming our education landscape very positively.

Moral Education

Er Lee Bee Wah (Ang Mo Kio): Sir, in our quest for academic excellence, we must not overlook the need for character building and moral values. We have read about a nine-year-old who became pregnant, as reported in February last year. Crime statistics also show that 4,135 youths were arrested in 2007. A Health Promotion Board survey among 3,000 students shows that four in every 100 students have had sexual intercourse. The same survey recorded 19% of them had tried smoking before.

With these numbers and a rampant littering habit, not giving up seats for elderly and pregnant women in trains and buses, need I say more on the need to devote more resources to providing a higher degree of moral education?

The Chairman: Dr Loo Choon Yong is not here. Mr Hri Kumar.

Integration in Schools

Mr Hri Kumar Nair (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Sir, in the first few days after I entered junior college, I attended a CCA - then called ECA - briefing. Behind me were two boys I did not know from a prominent

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Chinese school. During the briefing, they exchanged remarks in Mandarin making fun of me, particularly my race. They did not know that I understood Mandarin, or at least enough of it to know what they were saying. Then the teacher came up to me and said that she saw from my records that I took Mandarin as a Second Language. The look on the boys' faces was priceless. We later got to talking and I asked them what I had done to offend them. They said that, throughout their lives, ie, about 16 and a half years, they had never known a person of a different race. Having me in the same ECA group therefore put them a bit off balance. I am glad we had that conversation. We became friends after that. I still keep in touch with one of them and, recently, visited him and his family during Chinese New Year.

Sir, I do not think my experience is exceptional in any way. It confirms what we all know about human nature - that we tend to fear and distrust things we do not understand. Despite the great strides we have made in racial and religious integration, our mission will never be accomplished. We have to remain vigilant, particularly nowadays, when there are forces at work to divide us. We all know about the uproar caused in respect of the incident at Boon Lay Gardens Primary School. MOE acted decisively in overturning the principal's policy. But one thing that remains uncertain is how this incident has shaped the views of the students in the school on racial and religious matters. Has anything been done to assess the impact of the incident on the students? We will no doubt encounter more incidents, some innocent, some less so, which will test the strength and depth of our inter-racial and religious relationships. We cannot anticipate what form these will come in. The only real defence is for us to ensure that our relationships stand on strong foundations. And the best

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place to start is in our schools. If our children are unable to integrate in schools, then there is little hope that they will do so when they grow up. And part of that process must be to demystify issues of race and religion to our children and encourage an understanding and appreciation of their fellow schoolmate who appears different from them.

In this regard, I am told by several teachers, particularly from neighbourhood schools, that there is still a tendency for students of different races to stick together when in school. I would therefore like to ask the Minister what steps will be taken to promote racial and religious integration in our schools. I know that schools organise events, such as cultural or racial harmony days or occasional trips to the mosques or temples. Are these really effective? Should we not have a more structured and sustained programme to help our children understand the issues, not just theory but real interaction? Further, what are schools which are under-represented or have no representation of minorities doing to ensure that their students have the opportunity to interact meaningfully with them?

The Chairman: Mr Alvin Yeo is not here. Mr Shanmugaratnam.

The Minister for Education (Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam): Let me thank the Members who have spoken so far for their comments and questions. My response will focus on two issues. I will first address Dr Lily Neo and Dr Amy Khor's questions on what MOE is doing to prepare our young for the future and provide them with options which bring out their unique strengths. I will then address the range of issues raised by the other Members - Dr Ong Seh Hong, Ms Denise Phua, Ms Lee Bee Wah, Mr Low Thia Khiang and Mr Hri Kumar - which touch in different ways on how we can continue to provide a quality education, and keep

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improving how we achieve the outcomes that we desire in schools. Different angles that the questions took, but they all come down to the question of how we can keep improving, how we can achieve the outcomes we truly desire in schools.

There were also some other specific and valuable issues raised - whether it was on special education, what more we can do to help our disadvantaged children, and on the regulation of the private education sector. These are issues which my colleagues will also talk about later.

How do we prepare our young for the future, and especially for a future of innovation, as Dr Lily Neo put it?

First, keep doing the basics right, and hold all our schools to high standards. That is how we come up with the highest average scores internationally in Mathematics and Science, and now even in English, where our primary school students have emerged amongst the top in reading literacy, despite the fact that more than half of our students come from non-English speaking homes. It came as a surprise to the British and Americans, because they found that the average Singapore student does better in English reading literacy than their average students. And if there was an international test on bilingual competence, I have no doubt that Singapore students will come out amongst the top internationally, if not the top.

It is only possible because we have good schools across the board, not just a few good schools at the top. That is the real strength of the Singapore system compared to others - committed principals and caring teachers, spread across our schools, so we can uplift every child.

Doing well in the basics, however, is not going to be enough. It distinguishes us from most countries when we look at

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what they achieve on average, but it is not enough to distinguish us in the league of leading cities. These are cities which attract the best from a broader population canvas, and also have a way of throwing up individuals with a special edge and passion in what they do. We must do the same.

We know our future has to be in innovation, in every field we engage in, whether it is media and design, financial services, or precision engineering. It requires a whole team of people, focused on continually improving and seeking a competitive edge through innovation.

But it also requires a special cut of individuals, those with a special passion for what they do and the urge to keep going beyond the ordinary. These are the ones who think in original ways, do things differently, and keep the leading cities spinning differently.

12.30 pm

It does not mean that we shake up our education system. It is working very well by any international standard, giving all our students the chance to stretch their abilities, move on to a good post-secondary education and keep upgrading once they enter the workforce. What we are doing is to open up new pathways and different approaches to learning, around a well-functioning mainstream system. We need these new and different pathways, because if we do everything the same way in education, we will not produce the individuals who are capable of breakthroughs. We will not be capable of peak performance as a city.

I want to highlight two features of these new pathways that we have been creating, which Dr Lily Neo and Dr Amy Khor spoke about. First, the numbers of students entering these new pathways will not be large, but they will very likely have an impact on Singapore that goes beyond their numbers. The three new

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Specialised Independent Schools - in Mathematics and Science, in Sports and the Arts, currently take in just 230 students in each cohort, or barely 0.5% of cohort. They will eventually grow to over 800 or about 2% of cohort, which is still small. Around 6% of cohort are also enrolled in our Integrated Programme (IP) schools. Some of them too are being groomed in quite different ways compared to before – many more opportunities to explore their interests and do their own projects. And we are also nurturing a different breed through several of our mainstream schools, which are developing niches of talent in a range of fields. Not a large number in each school, or even when you add them together. But these new pathways to learning will help us bring out the individuals with a passion for what they do and who want to go much further than the norm.

The second feature of these new paths is that they are recognising a broader range of Singapore talents. We are recognising and nurturing diverse talents, besides the academic. The Direct School Admissions (DSA) process now reinforces this - schools are looking out for different strengths among our young besides the academic, and teachers and parents are encouraging their children to take these seriously. The students who are offered places in the new secondary pathways also come from a whole range of primary schools. The School of the Arts (SOTA) made offers to students from 126 primary schools when it opened. At NUS High School of Maths and Science (NUSHS) – although the competition to gain entry is highly competitive, as Dr Amy Khor mentioned - students currently come from 150 primary schools.

So these are small pools of students, but varied in their talents and drawn from across the island. It all amounts to a broader meritocracy, and a livelier one.

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More free-play for students with special talents, around a common foundation that helps every Singaporean stretch his potential. And more Singaporean talents being discovered and nurtured, besides good talents in regular academic fields.

This increased free-play around a central core in Singapore education will give us the best chance for the future. It gives us the best chance of seeding the innovative teams that we need, as well as the individuals who want to do exceptional things. They will help keep us in the league of top cities.

One of the new approaches that we have been developing in several of our schools is in applied learning, which Dr Amy Khor spoke about. A whole range of schools, from neighbourhood schools like Bishan Park Secondary and Tanglin Secondary, to our Integrated Programme schools like Raffles Institution and Hwa Chong Institution, have partnered the polytechnics to offer electives to their students in a variety of disciplines, like Media & Design, Engineering, Business and Information Technology, and so on.

The feedback has been very positive. Students find that the 'real-world' learning that they encounter is interesting and engaging. It motivates them to go further. It also allows them to discover strengths and interests they never knew they had until they tried it.

We will take this a step further. MOE will establish a fourth specialised independent school, a School of Science and Technology (SST), which will open in 2010. It will offer a new option for students who are likely to be university-bound, and who want both a solid academic foundation and immersion in real-world applications. They will be able to learn by experimenting, tinkering, and by taking a project through all its stages – from concept to design to building the models. But the exposure to real-world

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applications will not be aimed at getting students to specialise early in any particular skill. The real aim will be to nurture students with inventive minds, people who keep looking for a different way of doing things.

The SST will be different from other schools in several respects. I will explain this very briefly, as MOE will be releasing more information on the new school.

First, the four-year curriculum of the school will offer both academic subjects and new Applied Subjects like Biotechnology, Design, Media Studies, Environmental Science and Technology. All these subjects will all be part of the Singapore-Cambridge 'O' level examination framework. The SST will also be different from the NUS High School in this regard, which offers a six-year programme including JC. The School of Science and Technology will offer a four-year route for capable students who want to keep open the option of going to either junior college or polytechnic, before they eventually go on to university.

Second, the teaching methods in the SST will give students greater exposure to practical and real-world application of concepts. This will also require that class sizes be kept small so as to facilitate learning through experimentation - generally about 20 to 25 students per class, so that the students benefit from closer supervision and interaction with their teachers. The school will also house special facilities and laboratories to help its students in their learning, and also make use of specialised facilities in Ngee Ann Polytechnic and NTU. The SST will also be one of our FutureSchools, which means that it will leverage fully on ICT in its activities.

Third, the SST will have strong partners in our tertiary institutions. It will collaborate with Ngee Ann Polytechnic and Nanyang Technological University

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(NTU), and tap their expertise. It will also work with leading companies, such as IBM and Creative Technology, to provide additional learning opportunities and internships for its students.

Fourth, just like NUS High School, the SST will have full flexibility on its student admissions – it will be able to select students based on interviews, their track records, recommendations from their teachers, and the like. Like the other specialised schools, we expect it to attract talents from all across the island.

MOE will be appointing Mr Chua Chor Huat, the current principal of Ngee Ann Secondary School, to head the SST as principal from June this year. Chor Huat is one of a new generation of strong school leaders, who has distinguished himself in all his appointments to date. Sending him to SST is the first signal we want to send on the importance of this new school. The school leader is critical.

We will also have Dr Su Guaning, the President of NTU, as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the SST. He needs no introduction. Dr Su will help the SST grow its capabilities and networks, and lead a board comprising others from industry, academia and the Government.

The new School of Science and Technology will, I am sure, become another peak in our landscape. It has the promise of nurturing a new breed of inventive young Singaporeans who will help us sustain a high-value economy. We do not know where the next Sim Wong Hoo will come from, but these different ways of learning from young will enhance our chances of throwing up the Sim Wong Hoos of the future.

Let me now turn to the comments raised by Ms Denise Phua, Mr Low Thia Khiang and the others which, as I mentioned, are related because they all touch on how we keep improving quality

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across the board, and how we keep track of how well we are achieving the outcomes we want to see in education. How do we keep track of all this and what are our assessment systems and measurement systems to ensure that we have got the right balance in education?

We have a system that works well because we identify and develop people who can be strong school leaders, and we give them sufficient autonomy to run their schools in the best interests of their students. That is our basic approach. This way, schools and teachers develop ownership over what they are doing, and it is ownership that drives the improvements that we are seeing. It is ownership that is driving the quality that we are seeing in our system.

But with increasing autonomy on the ground, the question posed by Ms Denise Phua becomes important. How do we define our Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that help us track whether we are achieving the outcomes we desire in education? If we look at the indicators in the Budget book, they are, in fact, fairly comprehensive. Not many indicators, but there is a lot that underpins each of these indicators. Some of them are systemic indicators, the obvious ones, like education attainment rates for the latest cohorts, and the average number of years of schooling. There are also indicators that reflect how well our schools are doing - how many of them have achieved key performance benchmarks. The benchmarks go beyond just academic achievement. They are holistic, and try to capture whether our schools are doing a good job in developing their students all round.

MOE's School Excellence Model (SEM) is essentially our quality assurance framework for schools. It helps schools identify areas of improvement, both

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through self-appraisal and external validation. We have spent many years refining and improving it, and it is, in fact, now seen by many other countries as a model worth studying and emulating.

The SEM focuses on the key processes by which schools deliver holistic education to their students - how effective their teaching is, and how well they develop strength of character, teamwork and leadership skills among their students. Character building and moral education are important tasks in education, as Dr Lily Neo, Dr Ong Seh Hong and Ms Lee Bee Wah have emphasised. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Masagos will be talking more about this later.

Some of the key performance indicators in the Budget book therefore reflect the number of schools that have achieved key benchmarks under the School Excellence Model. While they are recognised by way of awards when they do so, the aim is not for us to measure the number of schools achieving awards, but the number of schools who have got that whole set of processes in place that underpin the achievement of these performance benchmarks. There is no quota on the number of schools who reach these benchmarks or obtain the awards. These are what are called criterion-referenced awards rather than norm-referenced awards, to use the technical language. So they are meaningful indicators of the level of quality that we are seeing in the system, and how it is rising over time.

I agree, nevertheless, with Ms Denise Phua, that we should take a fresh look at our KPIs from time to time, make sure they match our desired outcomes. And we can also look at how we can refine our Budget book indicators which reflect some of our KPIs but not all of them. For instance, we could include indicators that capture how well our schools have

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engaged the students and enthused them in areas such as national education. But we must bear in mind that the real outcomes of education are observed over a much longer period of time, well after a student has left school. For example, an important outcome has to be the spirit of lifelong learning that shows up later in life, as Dr Lily Neo has pointed out.

Sometimes, even the outcomes in school are not directly measurable. For instance, Mr Hri Kumar raised the issue of racial integration. It is an important priority for our schools and tertiary institutions, but we cannot measure our success directly. We survey students for their views and attitudes, but we can never be sure if we are capturing real thoughts and feelings, or how they will really react in a crisis. What we nevertheless know is that this is important work, and continuous work for our schools and tertiary institutions. Minister of State Lui will speak more on the issue reply later on.

We must therefore keep a sense of balance in defining our KPIs in education. Some of the most important things we want to achieve cannot be measured. We want schools to focus on aims and values that cannot be measured, as much as they track the indicators which can be measured. This is why MOE looks at the school holistically and qualitatively - we do school visits, we do surveys and we get feedback from parents, industry leaders, and even other educators, to get a holistic picture of a school. I think the work we have put in over the years - by our educators as well as our MOE HQ administrators - has been well worth it. This is a system where quality is being driven from the ground because we have given schools autonomy, we free them up, but we assess them over time and reward and recognise those who are achieving higher quality, so that the rest can see what they can emulate, and the good practices spread across the system.

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That is how we keep raising quality across our system.

12.45 pm

This brings me to Mr Low Thia Khiang's question on how we assess our schools - both our school leaders as well as our teachers. We do not appraise principals on the basis of the ranking of their schools or the number of awards their schools win. And neither do we assess our teachers simply on the basis of either the results of their class or the things they do outside the classroom. It is a more holistic assessment. It has been carefully worked out over the years with lots of two-way feedback. The current system is called the Enhanced Performance Management System, introduced a few years ago. It is working quite well, working better now than when we first introduced it. Again, it is something which other countries look at with great interest, because they are also trying to do the same thing - assessing schools, not with a very close and direct hand, but assessing them in a way which gives them leeway to do their own thing but, nevertheless, recognises those that are doing better than others, recognises the more competent, capable and caring teacher from the others. That is how the system stays dynamic, that is how quality keeps rising.

Our teachers are assessed on several competencies. It is not simply how well their students do in their tests, neither is it simply a matter of what teachers do outside the classroom. It boils down to their passion and commitment in nurturing the whole child. That is what we call the core competency, and we state it as such, that there is a core competency that every teacher knows is the first thing and the most important thing we look at - their passion and commitment in nurturing the whole child. And the rest follows from that. We look at whether our teachers are able to teach creatively and effectively,

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whether they go out of their way to look after the needs of their students, whether they contribute to the capabilities of their colleagues, contribute to better team work within their department of the school, and so on.

These are not new criteria. They are not new factors that we look at in a teacher's performance. They have always been there. What is new about the Enhanced Performance Management System is that it is now transparent; it provides explicit feedback to the teacher each year on how he or she is doing, and what he or she could pay more attention to and what he or she could get more help in developing new competencies. And it also enforces discipline on the part of each supervisor, to be honest about his or her subordinates, recognise the things that they do very well, and identify those who need help in order to realise their full potential as teachers.

Mr Low mentioned an example that was reported on recently about a principal who had given a stern talk to Secondary 5 Normal (Academic) students. When that came up, the first thing I did within the Ministry was to take a closer look at what the school was doing, what they have been achieving, and look at the data as well. We looked at the Normal (Academic) data - successive cohorts of Normal (Academic) students in this school. The first thing that struck us was that almost all their Secondary 4 Normal (Academic) students moved on to Secondary 5, a very high transition rate. The second thing that struck us about this school was that their Secondary 5 Normal (Academic) students did better than most other schools, not just in absolute terms but value-added. Consistently, under the same principal, the school has done better than comparable schools in raising the level of performance of its Normal (Academic) students - better value-add. And that

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must count for confidence. It is now understood from research all over the world - true confidence comes from true achievement and the joy of achieving.

Different schools have different methods, different principals have different methods. I as the Minister for Education, and the Ministry, try not to scrutinise everything they say, everything they do, as long as they have not committed a serious offence. Let them do their own thing and let parents judge the character of the school. In fact, the same school, not many years ago, had a requirement that every girl wears a petticoat, not a MOE stricture but that was the practice of the school. Parents knew what the school was like. They sent their girls to the school because they liked the ethos. So, let parents choose and, over time, we will know which school's methods, which principal's methods, work better than others. And individual principals too will learn over time - tweak here, improve here and there, because no one is perfect.

We have to find a balance between affirming children and challenging children. That is the craft of the school principal and the teacher. That is the key craft - affirming and challenging. In some countries like the US, there was a whole wave starting from the 60s about making children feel good about what they are doing. The idea sounded good and the literature looked good. But if we simply do that, I am not sure we are going to keep achieving what we have been doing, and I am not sure Singapore is going to stand out the way it has. In fact, studies in the United States over the last decade have come to the view that it is not just a child's confidence that matters. What really matters is how well trained the teacher is, how effective his or her teaching is, and the willingness of the child to put in some hard work. That is what really matters. And when children finally achieve, that is when true

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confidence comes, and that is the more enduring confidence.

In fact, there was a study done by the Brookings Institution quite recently of the international results in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). A whole lot of countries take part, from Africa all the way to the States. They found that students from Africa, the Middle East and the United States were the most confident about their ability in Mathematics. And students from East Asia, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore were the least confident about their abilities in Mathematics. But the results were exactly the reverse. The students from countries who felt that they were the least confident did better than the students who felt they were the most confident. Specifically, they found the least confident Singaporean child did better than the most confident American child. They highlighted that in their report, "the least confident Singaporean child does better in Mathematics than the most confident American child."

This is a complex matter. Confidence is important, motivation is important in learning. We do not want to defeat a child. So some affirmation is necessary, starting from primary 1 all the way up, some affirmation of every child's strengths. If the child is weak overall, try and find a strength that we can affirm. That is important. But we also need to challenge them. We also need students who keep coming late to school to buckle down and get working, because the "N" levels examination is not many months from now, the "O" levels is not many months from now, and so on.

So, finding that right balance between affirming and challenging is something the schools have to find their own way of doing; principals have to find their own way of doing. The Ministry should not intrude in specific decisions unless something goes completely wrong. And,

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over time, I think we will tell which schools are doing better and which schools are not doing so well, and lessons will be shared. That is our approach.

At the end of the day, let us keep this system, where we keep identifying good people to join education, identify people with leadership capabilities early, train them up, develop them, put them at the helm of the school, and then keep sharing lessons across the system, and resist the temptation to question everything they say. That is how we ensure ownership on the ground, and that is how we will see quality continuously rippling across our system.

University

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, our Government has committed to increase subsidised university cohort participation rate to 30% by 2015. How does MOE plan to do this? How does MOE ensure that the forthcoming university is relevant to the present economic needs and not duplicating the present three universities?

I am concerned about the affordability of university fees to lower income families. Even with the CCC and university bursaries, students may still need to find more than 50% of funds to cover their basic degree course. Could more assistance be given to those bottom 30% of households? Could MOE ensure that the financial difficulty of these students will not deter them from pursuing their tertiary education? Will these students be assured of student bursaries, financial assistance and student loans?

University Education

Ms Sylvia Lim (Non-Constituency Member): Sir, last month, our three universities announced tuition fee hikes for the coming intake. The universities justified the increases on rising manpower

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and operating costs. Specifically mentioned was the need to hire staff to keep up standards.

In 2005, the MOE Steering Committee on University Autonomy, Governance and Funding had recommended that tuition fee increases for NUS and NTU be kept at a maximum of 10% per year. The recent hikes by each university were on a cohort basis, with the next fee fixed for the cohort for the duration of their course. I agree that the principle is good. However, I would like to clarify whether the 10% cap is still relevant with a cohort lock-in system. For example, in the case of the NUS law course, if one is to conclude, that one-time fee rise of 20% for four years works out to less than 10% a year, and hence it is within the cap.

As the world continues to pay a higher premium for such talent, we can expect our universities to face even higher wage bills for academics. Since students have to co-pay 25% of the cost of university education, does the Ministry foresee that the cap on tuition fee increases will be higher than 10% in the future, especially in courses where academic expertise is very expensive? While the policy to enable universities to charge realistic fees to keep up standards makes sense, this could work counter to affordability and potentially affect social mobility of poorer students. Universities are required to submit proposed fee increases to MOE for approval. What considerations does MOE take into account to decide whether fee increases are to be approved? Based on the Finance Minister's Budget Speech, I wish to conclude that so long as bursaries and loans are available, course fees can escalate. Does the Ministry monitor the level of student debt, and how many years the graduate would be in debt upon his graduation?

University Education and Private Educational Organisations

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Mr Lim Biow Chuan (Marine Parade): Sir, recently, in February 2008, NUS, NTU and SMU announced fee hikes of between 4-20% for undergraduate courses, and this came after a fee hike of about 3% barely two years ago in 2006. I understand that manpower and operating costs have increased. I also appreciate the efforts of the three universities to provide more financial help and scholarships. But the reality is that not everyone is eligible for the financial help, and not everyone wishes to apply for financial help. As some of these students are from middle income families, they do not feel that they should rely on Government bursaries to pay for their education. Some students may also have to depend on their parents to stretch their income to pay for the increased fees. I spoke to some students who will be entering university next year, and they said that they would have to give more tuition, and some have said that they will take on part-time jobs to finance their students.

Sir, I was once such a student many years ago. When the university fees were increased, I had to give tuition to help cover the increased costs. I felt terrible having to stretch out my hand to my parents and ask them for that little bit more money. I know how hard my parents had to work just to earn that extra few dollars. But, honestly, Sir, it also never crossed my mind to check whether I was eligible to apply for a bursary.

University education is not like any other commodity where if the price is too high, we can seek alternatives. For many Singaporeans, a university education is a way to a brighter future. So I would urge the Government to consider increasing the education grants to universities, so as to reduce the impact of the increase in their costs. The universities would then have less pressure to increase fees at such regular intervals. Better still, Sir, if we can freeze all fee increases, as with other Government fees that we have just frozen.

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Sir, I also read in the newspaper last week that Stanford University will not charge tuition fee to students from families earning less than US$100,000. Princeton is also reported to have given grants to families with annual incomes as high as US$200,000. The budget for Education is the second highest after Defence. Surely we can improve on our financial support for our students as well.

Sir, I also call on the universities to do more to promote the availability of bursaries as well as to consider ways to reduce costs.

I have seen several full-page advertisements in the newspapers recently, advertising the merits of the universities. I wonder at the need to incur such costs to advertise in Singapore where there is more demand for places than available places.

1.00 pm

Sir, students who have benefited from a low cost university education are able to pay back to the State the subsidies which they have taken, through their payment of income taxes. In addition, many of these students would then feel a stronger affiliation to their alma mater because of the goodwill generated when we provide a low cost university education. I believe our students will remember the benefits they had derived from studying in Singapore. They will return to provide support for the universities where they came from, once they have achieved success in their lives.

Sir, let me turn now to Private Education Organisations (PEOs). Last week, there was a spate of reports on the extremely low standards amongst the PEOs. The Straits Times wrote a scathing report on these PEOs as well as on CASE which administers the CASE TRUST for PEOs.

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As the Vice-President for CASE, I would like to state that CASE took on the role to accredit the PEOs under CASE TRUST, which is under the Education Excellence Framework. This was at the request of EDB in 2004. There is one primary focus - which is to protect students' fees. Under the CASE Trust Student Protection Scheme, the fees paid by students to the PEOs are protected by an insurance scheme or by depositing with an approved bank.

It is not possible for CASE to check on the academic credentials of the teachers of these PEOs or whether they are degree mills. CASE is not a Government agency and simply does not have the ability or resources to carry out such checks. The guiding principle must be caveat emptor and students who desire to pursue higher education must surely do their own homework to check that these PEOs are of the desired quality, especially if they want to pursue a university education.

But many of these complaints, Sir, are valid and it is only right that students studying in these PEOs are given more stringent protection against dishonest or inept management who do not run a proper school, who have dubious lecturers or degree programmes or who do not wish to provide sufficient protection for the fees paid for by their students. I would thus urge MOE to take up the task of monitoring and regulating the PEOs to give better protection to the students. Sir, this call has been made by CASE previously and I would urge MOE to respond quickly before further damage is caused to Singapore's reputation as an education hub.

Fourth University

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (Mr Teo Ser Luck): Sir, I

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graduated from the School of Accountancy, NTU, and during my time, which was not too long ago, it was only offered in one University (NTU) and there were about 700 graduates per year. Now, all three publicly-funded universities offer them. The three universities position the same course differently. One makes it seem more entrepreneurial; one offer Double Degree, and the other one makes it more corporate-governance focused. I do not mind this packaging, and I think competition is good. But is there a market big enough for another player offering the same course? That is my question for the fourth university. Would we see a duplication of courses, curriculum and specialisation? Or is it adding more slots of similar courses or creating different platforms for success? Would the fourth university complement or compete with the other three in the overall landscape of the university education in Singapore?

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: Sir, I was sorely disappointed and I am sure many others felt the same when the proposal for a fourth university was abruptly dropped in 2003 when this idea had already been mooted since the 1990s. Many, including myself, are surprised that just after about four years, a short span of time in the planning horizons of economists and policy-makers, there is now yet another U-turn on this issue, although I must say that I do welcome this resurrection.

I had always supported the idea of a fourth university, given the growing number of polytechnic graduates who flock to overseas universities each year because of the limited places in our three publicly-funded universities. Many of them do exceedingly well in the top quality universities abroad and some eventually do not return to our shores. One of the key concerns for being hesitant to open another publicly-funded university has

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always been that we do not want it to be seen as a second class university for those who cannot qualify for places in the existing publicly-funded universities. I believe that with each cohort, the batting average is increasing.

More and more widespread tertiary education can only be better for the workforce and the nation as a whole. Furthermore, experience from SMU has shown that standards can be maintained with careful differentiation strategies. Additionally, a survey of universities around the world reveals, as the most recent study team led by Minister of State Lui Tuck Yew has found, the diverse shape and scope of these universities. They range from technical and applied universities in Europe and US, like the Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands, to the Liberal Arts Colleges of the US, such as Amherst. Each has enormous standing that is undiminished by its size.

There is thus clearly scope for this fourth university to be distinguished from the three existing universities. A technical or applied university with emphasis on practical skills and knowledge for industry would be more suited for the many polytechnic students who form the largest cohort of potential students for the university, although this does not preclude other students from the more traditional routes to apply. I believe, Sir, that polytechnic education is no longer deemed as second rate. Indeed, many bright "O" level students opt for a polytechnic education, instead of the traditional "A" levels route. Why should a university that caters to these students be treated differently?

Sir, I also believe that there is a place for a Liberal Arts College since such colleges are typically small and the cost for this has been significant. But because the cost of setting up such a Liberal Arts College is significantly higher, it might be

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more sensible to set it up as a niche campus of an existing university such as the NUS, so that the college can tap on the resources and expertise as well as the reputation of the former.

Mr Michael Palmer (Pasir Ris-Punggol): Sir, I fully support the Government's plans to enhance the university sector by establishing a fourth university in Singapore. This has been a long time coming. I look forward to the report that is currently being prepared by a committee chaired by the Minister of State, Lui Tuck Yew. With the establishment of a fourth university, the cohort participation rate, which is the number of students in Primary 1 that will receive a subsidised university education, will be increased from 25% to 30% by 2015. This means that almost one in three Primary 1 students will go to one of the four universities. This clearly fits with our efforts to ensure that we have a highly skilled workforce at all levels.

I mentioned that the fourth university was a long time coming because in December 2000, a similar committee was formed and chaired by then Senior Minister of State, Mr Peter Chen, to consider various matters including possibly establishing a fourth university. In its interim report submitted in July 2001, Mr Chen's committee said that Singapore needs a fourth university with a strong practical and technical focus. This was reaffirmed in its final report submitted in February 2002.

Following that, a new inter-Ministry panel headed by then Minister of State, Dr Ng Eng Hen, was formed to review the proposal for a fourth university. In January 2003, Dr Ng's panel dropped the idea of a fourth university. It instead proposed that NUS and NTU be expanded. Could I ask the Minister why there was this change in direction? What has changed between then and now so that a fourth university is back on the table?

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Could I also ask the Minister to update us on the progress that has been made by the committee chaired by Minister of State Lui?

There has been much speculation with regard to the positioning of the fourth university. Minister of State Lui has been quoted as saying that it could include a Liberal Arts College, whilst Minister Teo Chee Hean has said that the fourth university should lean towards being science and technology based. May I ask the Minister:

(a) Whether a Liberal Arts College is still on the cards?

(b) If so, will it be part of or separate from the fourth university?

(c) Whether the Minister feels that Singapore is ready for a Liberal Arts College given that it may espouse radical views and ideas, some of which may be highly critical of our society, politics and philosophy?

Tertiary Education for Athletes

Mrs Jessie Phua (Nominated Member): Sir, it is important to give opportunities to all students and cater to their different needs. If you make the effort, we will help you to do even better and give you every opportunity to get ahead. Our Prime Minister, Mr Lee Hsien Loong, said this at the launch of the Lee Hsien Loong Award for special achievements two weeks ago. As a Singaporean and as a parent, I can tell you how heartwarming that message was - that we are sincerely working towards being an inclusive society. It is wonderful that efforts are being made to work towards helping to level up the academically less-inclined Singaporean students, hopefully, this being the first of many to follow.

Whilst on the subject of students, I would like to take this opportunity to

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bring to the attention of this House the cry for help by another Singaporean student group: the student athletes for the tertiary education. Whilst there is in place some semblance of assistance in our education system to help athletes manage books, sports and studies at the tertiary level, these efforts are often sporadic, limiting and not embracing enough.

Let us take a look at what is available in Singapore. For the Singapore Sports School students where a through train system is in place to assist student athletes, only a diploma option is available with either the Republic Polytechnic or the Auckland University of Technology (AUT). While students can offer any courses at the Republic Polytechnic, what is not readily available is a dedicated athletic counsellor to assist with the scheduling of classes for semester if training or competition is in the school term and only sports science courses are available with the AUT tie-up. Like the rest of the school system in Singapore, the final stop station for the through train is at the Junior College or diploma level. If this specially tailored assistance plan for the Sports School students is the best scheme we can put in place to help students whom, from the word "go", have been put on a different education track from the age of 13, I cannot help but feel things cannot be better for other athletes from the mainstream schools.

Now, let us look at how adequate is our current support system at the local universities. What recognition mechanism is in place at NUS, NTU or SMU? To give our nationally carded athletes a little bit more consideration for admission, how flexible are we to help these athletes gain entry into the faculty of choice? Topping athletes' list of concerns is the school timetable and scheduling. Yes, some level of leeway is available now but we can

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definitely do better. Talk to any undergraduate athletes and they are only too willing to share with you the nightmares of applying for time-off for training and competitions, and how the process often leaves them so disheartened, disillusioned and tired out. For faculties like medicine or law, athletes suffer even more as their courses are not modular, which means that they cannot just simply take an extra semester to make up for what they have missed because of competition. They pay the higher price of having to skip a year if they miss a semester. Admittedly difficult, but lucky medical student and national bowler, Valerie Teo, is a fine example where the support and help of understanding professors can make the difference. Her example proves that it is very do-able if we have our hearts in the right place. Can we replicate what the US colleges have to offer? A support system built up to ensure that athletes get to be students too, where athletic advisors are available to directly address the special needs of student athletes.

Another area of concern for this student group is funding for scholarship. Other undergraduates can reduce their parents' financial burdens by taking on part-time jobs or giving tuitions but athletes have no such opportunity. Cost of sporting equipment and travel can be quite substantial too. Taking a five-year modular course against a three-year course also means more school fees involved. Offering financial aid not only gives these athletes some peace of mind, more importantly, it is a morale booster to know that your country is behind you. Assistance with university admission, choice of faculty, athletic counsellor and financial aids - all these are so crucial towards building that nurturing environment for our student athletes to shine in both arenas. The question is whether Singapore is prepared to go the extra mile to put in place a fully integrated system

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for this group of Singaporeans. If we do nothing to address this, we may lose these students to overseas colleges and run the risk of losing them to the international job market or not returning home at all. The ball is in our court. How inclusive do we strive to be?

The Minister of State for Education (RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew): Sir, let me first thank Members - Dr Lily Neo, Dr Amy Khor, Mr Teo Ser Luck, Mr Michael Palmer, Mr Lim Biow Chuan, Ms Sylvia Lim and Mrs Jessie Phua - for their comments and questions all related to changes in our university landscape.

During his National Day Rally address last year, the Prime Minister announced the commitment to increase the number of publicly-funded university places for Singaporeans. By 2015, 30% of each cohort will benefit from a subsidised university education. A Committee was formed to determine how best to provide these additional places and also to sketch out what Singapore's longer term university landscape will look like. Before I provide an update on the preliminary recommendations of this Committee, I would like to touch briefly on the plans of our three autonomous universities (AUs).

These three AUs are the cornerstone of our university sector. NUS and NTU have grown and matured over the years and today they enjoy an enviable international reputation. They were corporatised in 2006

and this has given them a higher degree of independence in staffing, academic and financial matters that will position them well to further grow the quality and spectrum of their programmes to benefit their students. SMU is a young institution but already it has established a distinctive niche and has delivered on its brand promise to produce graduates who are confident, resourceful and strong team players.

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1.15 pm

Our universities will continue to build up their quality in undergraduate education, and seek to develop new peaks of excellence. In the medium term, NUS and NTU have indicated they wish to maintain the size of their current undergraduate intakes, improve the quality of their undergraduate programmes, especially by improving student-faculty ratios, and further develop their postgraduate and research programmes. SMU would like to expand its annual undergraduate intake gradually to about 2,000 students from about 1,600 yesterday through additional programmes, while enhancing its postgraduate education offerings and further strengthening its research capabilities.

Let me first address Mrs Jessie Phua's question on student athletes in our tertiary institutions, and I will confine what I want to say to what is happening in our universities. Let me first say that sporting achievements are taken into consideration in the discretionary admission frameworks of both NUS and NTU. SMU considers sporting achievements as part of its broad-based admission process. Since 2000, SMU alone has admitted about 40 applicants whose exceptional performance in sports was the key factor in their admission, and after admission, of course, they compete for courses based on merit. In the universities, the Deans of the various faculties will work closely with student athletes to try and help find a right balance between excellence in their sporting and academic pursuits. Student athletes do have some flexibility, though admittedly not as much as they would like, but they have some flexibility to adjust their academic timetables to accommodate training and competition schedules. I will say a little bit more on this when I come to the Fourth University.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan mentioned briefly the importance of values, how they are

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taught in the universities. Our universities recognise the need to and believe strongly in nurturing well-rounded graduates.

They take a holistic approach towards the inculcation of values in their students. Because they are largely dealing with adults, the universities strongly encourage the students to take the lead to find meaningful ways to contribute to community and voluntary organisations. So this will cultivate in students a greater consciousness of service to community and country. A number of them also have the opportunity to participate in humanitarian projects outside Singapore with some support from the university.

To strengthen their sense of belonging to Singapore, the universities engage the students through multiple avenues on broad trends and challenges facing the country, and encourage them to reflect on the roles that they can play to help build a better Singapore.

Before I proceed to elaborate further on the preliminary findings of the Committee, let me first touch on two issues that are of immediate interest to university-going students and their parents. These are, firstly, the number of university places that we will be offering in the next few years, and, secondly, the recent fee increases implemented by our universities and this was also brought up by Members like Mr Lim Biow Chuan, Ms Sylvia Lim, Dr Lily Neo.

In recent years, we have increased the number of places in the three autonomous universities to provide more students with a subsidised university education. We will continue to do so judiciously. I am pleased to announce that MOE has worked closely with our three publicly-funded universities to achieve the target for 25% of each Singaporean Primary 1 cohort to receive a subsidised university education by 2008,

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ahead of the original target that was set for 2010.

In 2007, we increased the number of university places significantly due to the large cohort size. For 2008, our universities will provide the same number of places as for 2007 - about 14,700. As the size of the cohort in 2008 is significantly smaller than 2007, this will enable slightly above 25% of a cohort to obtain places this year, compared to 23.5% last year. For 2009, we will provide an additional 900 places to cater to the larger cohort in that year, in order to maintain the participation rate for the cohort at 25%. Beyond this, we will scale up the number of places accordingly as we move towards the new participation rate of 30% by 2015.

Let me touch briefly now on university fees. Mr Lim Biow Chuan asked the Government to increase education grants to the universities so that they would not have to increase fees. He also compared our universities with Stanford and Princeton in the US which waive tuition fees and provide large grants for some students. Let me clarify why this is not an accurate comparison.

Princeton and Stanford are private institutions with significant endowments, and it is estimated that they have more than US$15 billion each and they are institutions that charge high fees. Their student population is small, about 5,000 to 6,000 students each. They draw some of the best students from across the United States and the world. Students in need of financial support are funded to a significant extent through proceeds from the endowment, and not from the federal, state or local government. It is a noteworthy effort, but overall it benefits only a very small percentage of students from the United States.

In comparison, our three universities provide a high quality education to about

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25% of each student cohort. The student population in NUS and NTU number more than 20,000 each. Their endowments are small but growing slowly. Their primary source of funding is from the Government, from taxpayers. Government invests heavily in our universities and provides substantial subsidies at 75% of the cost of educating each undergraduate. We have increased the amount of financial aid available to students over the years. Approximately $120 million of financial aid comprising bursaries and loans was given to students in the 2006 financial year, compared to about $81 million in 2003. The Government has recently announced that bursaries will cover up to the 66th percentile of households by income. For those who are outside this income group or prefer not to take up bursaries, there are other financial assistance schemes available. In terms of scholarships, students have a wide range to choose from, offered by the Government, universities and many by the private sector. I think this is evident from the countless scholarship advertisements we find in our local newspapers.

In response to Ms Lim’s question, let me say that as the major source for universities, the Government monitors carefully to ensure that fees are set reasonably. We work closely with the universities on any proposed increase in fees to assess its impact on affordability.

Our universities are cost conscious and fiscally prudent. They are required to put in place appropriate internal controls and procedures to ensure proper accountability of their financial resources, proper budgeting and financial reporting systems. These are all subject to regular audits, including audits that are commissioned by the Ministry of Education. They take active cost control measures which include reducing administrative staff headcount, bulk tendering of goods and services, outsourcing non-core activities and leveraging on IT to

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improve productivity. The universities are incentivised to do so and benefit directly from such measures as they can keep the surplus and use it at an appropriate time to fund new activities.

The largest component of universities' expenditure, approximately 70%, goes towards manpower costs. Our universities must pay competitive wages if they are to compete effectively against global competition to attract and retain top quality faculty. This is necessary in order for the universities to uphold the quality of education they provide.

From time to time, tuition fees will have to be raised in accordance with the higher costs of providing a quality education. In doing so, the universities will provide students and parents with more certainty with regard to the financial outlay required for a university education. Starting from this Academic Year, all three universities will adopt a cohort-based fee-setting approach which means that universities will maintain a student's fees at the level set during his or her first year of study, for the entire duration of the programme. Students, who were admitted prior to 2008 will continue to pay fees set at the 2007 level.

Most students entering NUS and NTU in 2008 will face a one-off fee increase of 4%, and this is equivalent to about $250 per year compared to the existing students. Because their fees for subsequent years are fixed at this level, this translates into an annualised increase of about 1.6% over a four-year course of study. Ms Sylvia Lim mentioned law students. I think they are a very small number of them and they will face fee increases of about 20% which over the four-year period works out, I believe, to about 7 1/2% per year.

I would like to reiterate that the Government and the universities remain committed to ensuring that admission to

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university remains needs-blind, and that no able student will be denied a university education because of cost.

Let me now move on to provide Members with more details on my Committee's deliberations thus far. Apart from developments in our existing universities, we have looked into how the university sector should be expanded and positioned in the long term.

The university sector has served our economy and people well. The graduates they produce are held in high regard, find gainful employment both at home and abroad and make meaningful contributions to the country both economically and socially.

Our economy is growing well and the demand for university graduates is expected to grow across all sectors in the years ahead. Our companies have taken up the clarion call to expand their footprint overseas and this will bring new opportunities and challenges. We need graduates who have strong academic fundamentals, yet are bold, prepared to take calculated risks and possess an entrepreneurial spirit. They must be adept at operating in new and unfamiliar environments, able to seek out and exploit new opportunities.

In terms of demand for university education, more students aspire to do so. As they continue to benefit from improvements made to the primary, secondary and post-secondary education system, more will be equipped to benefit from a university education. Hence, there is a need to grow the university sector, carefully and judiciously, to provide more students the opportunity for a high quality, high value university education in Singapore.

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With an expanded university sector, we can also afford to take in more outstanding foreign students to pursue their undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Singapore. Some of them will remain after their studies, sink roots, contribute to our society and eventually add to our population as citizens and Permanent Residents.

To provide for an increase in target participation rate for each cohort from 25% to 30% by 2015, we will need approximately 2,400 additional university places each year.

As Dr Amy Khor and Mr Michael Palmer have pointed out, the Government had previously considered establishing a Fourth University. The decision was eventually taken to leverage on the reputation of NUS and NTU, and expand these to meet the additional university places required to increase the participation rate then from 21% to 25%.

The situation then was different. First, NUS and NTU still had the capacity to expand. NTU, for example, did so by broadening its disciplinary coverage to become a more comprehensive university. Today, NUS and NTU are large, even by international standards. Going forward, it would be detrimental to expand the undergraduate intakes for NUS and NTU much more as we risk eroding the quality of their programmes and the experience in university for our students. SMU plans to gradually increase its undergraduate intake by about 500 but this will not be sufficient to meet the additional places required. That was the first reason.

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Second, SMU was then a fledgling institution. It was set up as an independent university, it had its own mission and governance, charted its own course and we now know that it has

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successfully become a differentiated and well-regarded institution within a few years of its establishment. As Dr Khor has rightly observed, the experience with SMU shows that it is possible for a new university to build up its reputation, and to be accepted by the public and employers within a reasonable period of time.

All these factors, taken together, tell us and give us confidence that a new university will be needed, it will be a viable and well-received addition to our university sector. Setting up a new university that is independent of our existing universities offers the best chance of creating an institution that will develop its own unique identity, character and model of education to add real diversity in educational approaches. Doing so will also limit any dilution of management focus at NUS and NTU at a time when they are determined to move up in quality and standing.

With the increase in the number of university places, we can provide proportionately more polytechnic students with subsidised university places than is the case today. The number of students with good O-level results choosing a polytechnic education has increased over the years. At present, fewer than one in six polytechnic graduates proceed to one of our autonomous universities. Over time, this can improve to better than one in five.

In providing more subsidised university places, we will also make our university landscape more diverse, provide our students with more pathways that encourage and allow more peaks of excellence to emerge. To achieve this, my Committee envisages two new institutions, a new publicly-funded university and a small Liberal Arts College that will add new options and diversity to our overall landscape. On this note, I would like to thank Dr Amy Khor and Mr Michael

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Palmer for providing their views on the new university as well as the Liberal Arts College, much of which is aligned to what we are currently thinking about.

First, let me provide the Committee’s preliminary recommendations on the new university, and may I emphasise that these are still preliminary recommendations. The Committee considered the shape and needs of the economy in the years to come, consulted widely with industry leaders, parents and students and looked at possible models and approaches to university education in the US and Europe. We have distilled the research and feedback to suggest some features for the new university that we believe will give it a distinctive character and position it to produce graduates who are well prepared for the challenges of the future. Rather than catering primarily to polytechnic students, the Committee envisions that the new university’s innovative approach to education would appeal to students of various educational backgrounds, including both A-level and polytechnic graduates.

The new university, in terms of its approach, can consider adopting an integrated, inter-disciplinary approach to learning. Many universities currently have inter-disciplinary programmes that aim to bridge the divide between faculties. But, for many of them, pre-existing conditions, such as organisational structure and culture, budgeting and manpower allocation sometimes limit the extent of such programmes and how much they can achieve.

The new university will start with the advantage of not having to fight against such legacies. Instead of the traditional rigid boundaries around disciplines, its programmes can be formulated so that there is significant integration from the onset, between areas, such as engineering and design or engineering and business. Graduates will have a sound

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fundamental knowledge of engineering, design or business - here, I am giving them as examples - but will also recognise and appreciate that it is at the boundaries of the traditional disciplines that the most exciting learning will take place.

To bring greater focus to such learning and collaboration across disciplinary boundaries, the new university could set up inter-disciplinary centres focused around specific themes. For example, centres could be established focusing on future urban environments and sustainable development, bringing together students from disciplines, such as design and architecture, engineering and business, to work together in multi-disciplinary project teams.

So, apart from emphasising inter-disciplinary learning, the new university could also emphasise real-world experience that would require students to apply their classroom learning in a practical context. They could compete for long-term internships, each lasting about six months, in a wide range of companies where they can be fully immersed in the working world. Through these experiences, all students will develop important skills like communication and teamwork, while also having the opportunity to gain a significant amount of working experience even before they graduate. CEOs we have spoken to have affirmed this approach as it will give companies and undergraduates an opportunity to size each other up, and would produce graduates who were more work-ready when they step into the workforce.

Entrepreneurship should also be a key feature of the new university's core curriculum. However, entrepreneurship is not something that is best cultivated and developed within the confines of the

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classroom. The new university could encourage this entrepreneurial spirit by offering students the flexibility to disrupt their studies for a year or two - just as they will offer this to other students as well for other purposes - in order to start their own businesses. Should they choose to, they can then come back to university at a future point in time to complete their degrees.

While elements of integrated learning, real world experience and entrepreneurship already exist in our three autonomous universities, the new university could consider how to best integrate these elements and take them further. These should be supported by high quality teaching and close interaction between students and faculty in smaller group settings.

The new university could also focus less on basic research but more on solutions-directed research that aims to provide practical and effective answers to problems that industry and companies face in the near and medium term.

On the disciplines and academic programme to be offered, this will have to be studied and determined in due course by the management of the new university. But it is worthwhile to share the feedback that we have received from students and parents on the areas they were most interested in and areas that they felt were under-served. We also heard from different industry sectors on the areas they think could offer significant growth opportunities in the years to come. Feedback coalesced around the interplay between the fields of design, engineering and business, which is why I offered them as examples. This interplay of disciplines could also focus on areas of growth, such as clean technology, sustainable building design, and tourism and hospitality.

It was felt that a combination of such programmes would support the new

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university's integrated, inter-disciplinary approach, and would provide rich opportunities for learning and collaboration. For example, its engineering students could practise design thinking and principles to help them come up with creative solutions and products that are attuned to users' needs. They would also be well-versed in the business aspects of engineering that will help them develop strong project management and entrepreneurial skills. Such a combination of disciplines, brought together under an inter-disciplinary approach, has been successfully demonstrated in overseas institutions, such as Stanford University’s Institute of Design. The synergy between these three disciplines can also be seen at the industry level when we consider products, such as Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch, because combine superior design with sound engineering and savvy marketing to create merchandise that unlocks new value and markets and which a whole generation raves about.

My Committee envisions that this new university would have an eventual intake of between 2,500 and 3,000 students. It will take a few years to get the new university started, and the initial intake will have to be smaller, say, at about 500 students. We believe that the new university will complement our existing universities and, at the same time, inject a new approach and a fresh element of competition into the university sector.

Let me now turn to the subject of a liberal arts college. What sets a top liberal arts college apart is a broad-based multi-disciplinary education that may encompass the natural and social sciences, mathematics and humanities, and even engineering for some of them, and a small student intake of between 200 and 300 each year whose calibre is comparable to the best in the Ivy League universities. Their intake size allows for intense interaction among students and with faculty to create a stimulating environ

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ment. It is an attractive model of education that will offer a valuable and intellectually invigorating alternative for a small number of our brightest students, as well as draw top foreign students from the region.

An independent, privately-funded liberal arts college, which is the norm in the United States, would, I believe, not be viable in Singapore at this point. As Dr Amy Khor had rightly pointed out, such a liberal arts college is very costly to set up. As students and parents are not sufficiently familiar with the benefits of the liberal arts model of education, they are unlikely to pay the high fees that such a college would charge. Instead, my Committee’s preliminary recommendation is to establish Singapore’s first liberal arts college as an affiliate to one of our existing universities, similar, for example, to Barnard College which is affiliated to Columbia University. As an affiliate, it will benefit from being able to leverage on the branding and resources of the parent university.

NUS has carried out an in-depth study and submitted a proposal to establish a Liberal Arts College as a self-contained autonomous entity similar to the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory or the NUS-Duke Graduate Medical School. SMU is also considering ways in which it could offer a liberal arts education to its students as it expands its disciplinary coverage. We will study these two proposals further before we make a recommendation.

On this topic, I would like to thank Mr Michael Palmer for his question on whether the Government is prepared for radical views that could come out of a liberal arts learning environment. One of the purposes of establishing such a college is to develop future leaders who are thoughtful, with independent ideas and robust views sharpened through the cut and thrust of daily intellectual discourse. Tempered by the experience

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and mentorship of their professors, these students will be well placed to become leaders working for the betterment of society.

In addition to the new university and the liberal arts college, we will increase the number of collaborations between our polytechnics and specialised institutions offering degrees in niche areas. This will allow more students across a wider selection of disciplines to benefit from the subsidies that the Government provides to those enrolled in these programmes.

But in the longer term, beyond these collaborations, my Committee feels that we should also study the possibility of extending subsidies to a pre-defined number of students taking high quality degree programmes offered by other reputed institutions in Singapore, including in niche areas, such as the Arts. This would add more diversity to our university landscape and open up additional avenues for our students to pursue a subsidised university education.

Finally, as the Minister for Finance has mentioned in his Budget Speech, we will also co-fund working adults who are citizens and PRs seeking their first university degree through the Continuing Education and Training programmes at UniSIM and our autonomous universities. We estimate that about 8,000 adults will benefit from this scheme each year.

Let me conclude. My Committee envisions that Singapore's publicly-funded university landscape in the longer term will comprise:

(1) Two large universities, NUS and NTU, each offering a comprehensive suite of high quality undergraduate programmes and with a strong focus on postgraduate education and research;

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(2) Two mid-sized universities, SMU and the new university, each offering a focused selection of degree programmes;

(3) There will be a number of quality institutions offering degree programmes in niche areas, either independently or in collaboration with the polytechnics; and

(4) Part-time degree-level CET programmes offered through local universities to provide working adults with an opportunity to obtain a subsidised education at the tertiary level on a part-time basis.

The increase in university participation and proposed additions to this sector will require a corresponding increase in funding for the higher education sector, and I hope you will all support this in due course.

Based on current estimates, it is projected that the expansion of the university sector will require an increase in the annual university sector budget and MOE's budget of up to 0.2% of GDP. With these changes and new elements, I am confident that Singapore’s university sector will be well-positioned to serve both the needs of our economy and the aspirations of our young people in the years to come.

Private Education

Mr Yeo Guat Kwang (Aljunied): Sir, I raised the same cut last year to urge the MOE to put in place the necessary measures to ensure that our reputation as an education hub will not be affected by the malpractices of the increasing number of errant private education organisations.

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The CaseTrust

for private education launched in 2005 just aims to protect the student as a consumer, and the Student Protection Scheme only serves to protect

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the students' fees in the event a Private Education Organisations (PEO) is unable to continue operation due to insolvency or regulatory closure. The dispute resolution mechanism defined by CaseTrust also enables foreign students who have enrolled themselves in PEOs which did not provide what the PEOs have promised to seek refund under the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act.

Today, there is still widespread misuse of the MOE registration status by many of the PEOs. Many PEOs are advertising themselves as MOE-registered organisations giving the impression that the quality of their courses is certified or endorsed by the Ministry of Education and therefore meet a set of required standards. The public does not know that MOE registration does not ensure the quality of the academic staff and the education service provided by the PEO and it is therefore misled by such claims made by the PEOs in Singapore.

Our CaseTrust scheme does not cover academic excellence. However, there is an urgent need for us to enhance the academic delivery of private schools in Singapore. I have highlighted this several times before and I have proposed the setting up of a mechanism for certifying academic excellence by having qualified personnel to conduct the courses and deliver accredited education programmes in the private schools.

MOE should also review the registration of the PEOs. Today, the registration of PEOs is valid indefinitely and there is no system where the PEOs are periodically checked for compliance with the registration requirements for qualified trainers or lecturers. Certain PEOs tie up with foreign universities to offer tertiary qualifications that might not even be recognised by their country of origin. However, many students from other countries assumed that having a licence granted by MOE to operate in

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Singapore means that there is recognition of the foreign degrees. Contrary to such expectations, a licence granted by our MOE means nothing.

Sir, the Government needs to address this issue and introduce measures and regulations to ensure that PEOs are able to deliver on their promise. Objective and credible assessments with regard to the curriculum offered by the PEOs should be carried out before they are allowed to provide their services locally. I will continue my speech in Mandarin.

( In Mandarin ): [For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A.] Sir, some of the educational institutions just want to make money and do not care about the quality of education, and so long as they can stay in business, they think it is okay. Therefore, MOE should increase the surveillance and screening of all PEOs so as to prevent all these unethical institutions from tarnishing our reputation as an education hub.

*Cols. 2035-2036.

Accreditation of Private Education Sector

Dr Ong Seh Hong: Sir, our stated objective to have a thriving education hub of 150,000 students by year 2015 is on the way. In addition, the private educational sector is growing rapidly in meeting rising demands. We have about 1,000 private education centres operating in Singapore offering various types of courses and conferring degrees of a multitude of importance.

Globally, it is estimated that there are about three million students going overseas for studies annually. The top three sources of foreign students in Singapore are from China, India and Vietnam. It is a growing market of economic importance. We have about 80,000 foreign students of whom about half are studying in a private education sector. A student doing a degree course is

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estimated to spend about $20,000 a year in fee and living expense. Over four years, they are expected to spent a total of about $80,000. The money they bring into our economy suggests this is no small sector.

In choosing where to go, it is a complex and confusing picture to potential students aspiring to come to Singapore. The Singapore brand name certainly is one of the deciding factors for them because foreign students believe that all our private education institutions are of a high standard because of our excellent private education system.

However, the reality is that the only accreditation system of private education centres is CaseTrust. CaseTrust does not accredit a private school's core competency in the academic standard. Rather, its main concern is on the school's refund and compensation ability and system. This has been alluded to by my fellow Members, Mr Lim Biow Chuan and Mr Yeo Guat Kwang, just now. So the consequences of the lack of proper accreditation and regulations of private school have been illustrated by the recent newspaper report. This unfortunately is tarnishing our Singapore brand name.

Sir, we should ensure that, in addition to good education, these foreign students should return home with fond memories of Singapore. They will then become our ambassadors.

Sir, I have in this House asked for the setting up of an accreditation system to benchmark private schools in terms of providing quality education. And this year, I would like to urge the MOE to reconsider my call. We need to ensure that private operators are not degree mills and just out to take advantage of innocent overseas students. Accreditation would mean that it would also directly protect Singapore

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image as a place where education excellence is assured.

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Quality Private Education

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: Sir, it is estimated that there are currently some 1,200 operators of private schools in Singapore offering courses ranging from English language and computer classes to diplomas and degrees. Private education is now a significant business sector with some 37,000 foreign students. The implications of this sector on the economy, efforts to promote Singapore as an education hub and the integrity of the Singapore brand, are quite obvious. It is none too soon that the Education Ministry will be putting in place tighter measures to ensure minimum standards in the private education sector.

Singapore's reputation for its high quality public education system has laid out many foreign students to our shores but the reality is that these private schools are of very uneven quality and strength. Presently, an aspiring school operator only needs to register the school with the MOE and those who want to enrol foreign students need only to have the CaseTrust education mark. But there are no measures to ensure minimum standards in the teaching and the quality of courses offered and there are still many schools with questionable credentials preying on the unsuspecting students. Reports are rife of private schools who put out misleading advertisements about their facilities, the quality of their teaching staff and the courses offered.

Some, as my colleagues before me have noted, are de facto degree mills which give out degrees to students who do little or no academic work. It was even reported in the press that two school owners are actually involved in the running of karaoke, KTV bars and night clubs. If proven true, this is indeed a shameful state of affairs. Many of them

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also advertise themselves as MOE registered centres, giving the public the perception that they are endorsed by MOE.

Sir, Singapore's brand name will certainly be ruined if this state of affairs is allowed to continue. It is not enough to rely on the industry's self-regulation or intervention by Case since these are reactive measures. Hence, I welcome MOE's move to set some minimum mandatory standards for these private institutions. That said, as the schools offer a diverse range of courses, it will not be easy for MOE to require some minimum standard of quality for the courses offered, the teaching staff, the management of the school and its facilities. To do this, the MOE would have to put in resources and manpower with relevant expertise. Perhaps the MOE could also enlist the help of the relevant professional institutions and our existing publicly funded polytechnics and universities to help accredit the diplomas and the degrees offered. The oversight of these private schools to ensure minimum standards must be comprehensive and should cover the adequacy of the facilities and infrastructure provided, the school's administration and management structure and practices as well as the quality of the courses offered and the teaching staff.

Private Schools

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, I have raised the quality of our private schools, numbering about 1,200 of them, before, and was told that it was under study. May I ask the time frame in implementation on the accreditation of private schools? Could MOE also look at the credibility of student agents numbering about 100 of them?

Private Institution

Mr Teo Ser Luck: Singapore has a world class education system. We have also attracted many private education

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enterprises to set up their operations in Singapore. And many correspondence programmes and distance learning programmes are also available. It is important that we ensure the quality of such programmes and there are more and more people enrolling for further and continuing education in private institutions, so it is important to look at what kind of quality of education they are providing.

How do we maintain the quality of the delivery of these private institutions and would the Ministry consider regulating these institutions, as what many of the Members have raised in this House?

Degree-Level Continuing Education and Training

Mrs Josephine Teo (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Sir, the Minister for Finance announced in the Budget speech that the MOE will subsidise part-time undergraduate degree programmes offered by the NUS, NTU, SMU and UniSIM starting from academic year 2008. This is a welcomed move. It will enable working Singaporeans who did not have a chance to fulfill their aspirations of getting a university degree to do so with greater financial support.

Sir, a working person has to make significant investments of time and effort to acquire formal qualifications, whether these are skill certificates or degree programmes. However, typically, degree level courses are going to be more costly and of longer duration than skill-based courses. For example, a three-year part-time degree programme in Business at the UniSim costs around $24,000. In contrast, a eight-week programme leading to a certificate in Real Estate Management and Maintenance costs $5,130, so there is a great difference. While we recognise that there are some who just want to get a degree, most working adults do hope that their degree qualifications will open up career development opportunities that will

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lead to better jobs and better lives. In other words, it should not be just a paper chase.

However, in some cases, the pursuit of a degree turns out, in fact, to have been just a paper chase with no real returns. On one of my house visits in Toa Payoh, I came across a young resident in her early 20s. When I asked her what work she did, she told me she was studying for a degree on a part-time basis. When I asked her what she has been doing before this, she said that she had been working as a sales person after dropping out from ITE without finishing her Nitec course. I asked her whether she had considered other options, such as courses offered by the Singapore Institute of Retail Studies. She said she did not know that it existed. I am not sure what sort of a degree the young lady would be getting and whether her career prospects would improve. It certainly makes me wonder whether she and others like her had received proper counselling before paying her deposit for a degree course. Did anyone help her to assess her strengths and inform her of the various options available to her?

It would be a poor use of resources when Singaporeans start a part-time degree programme lured by attractive marketing and now a substantial subsidy, only to realise a few years later that there were other options that might have been more suited to him or her.

Therefore, I would like to ask the MOE if its role in degree level and continuing education and training extends to ensuring the improved employability of graduands. How does it intend to fulfill this role and what kind of career opportunities does it see opening up for such graduands? In addition, I would like to ask the MOE if it plans to coordinate with the MOM to provide proper career counselling to potential students on part-time degree

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programmes. For example, if a potential student approaches any of the universities to apply for a part-time degree course, could MOE please ensure that there be career counsellors on hand to inform the students on the alternative CET options, leading to other qualifications besides a degree. Likewise, the MOM-funded training providers should also have a good working knowledge of part-time degree options.

Sir, I would like to ask how the MOE can help to make this happen. I also would like to ask the MOE to take steps to ensure that the relevant pages on the Ministry's websites are hyperlinked so that anyone doing an online research on CET options in Singapore will get a holistic picture. Another important step is to equip career counsellors, whether they are at the universities, polytechnics and ITEs with the necessary information. They should be familiar with the CET master plan and how degree-level CET fits in the bigger picture. So it is critical that proper advice and counselling is given to potential students, especially if these students are working adults for whom this is a very important second chance. I call on the MOE to take on this task seriously and to aim to help all aspiring graduands make well-informed choices.

Dr Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim (Marine Parade): Sir, today, many Singaporeans are taking graduate and postgraduate external degree courses, both in Singapore and overseas, to meet their aspirations of attaining the desired education qualifications and upgrade their skills to enhance their competitiveness

in the job market as part of the life-long learning journey. I have met both young and old Singaporeans who have spent much of their resources in seeking opportunities to pursue their educational aspirations. Singaporeans are fortunate to be able to make the choices from the wide options available to them. However, these wide choices also present them

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with the challenge of having to select the right and appropriate courses and institutions. This, coupled with the good marketing slant companies selling these courses, makes the selection process more challenging for someone who wishes to undertake a course. As a result, I have received feedback - the excitement Singaporeans felt - that upon completion of their courses, they realised that their courses and overseas institutions that they selected are not highly regarded, or not perceived to be good degrees for employers when they seek job opportunities, and local tertiary institutions when they want to pursue higher degree programmes in Singapore.

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Sir, let me share with you two examples of Singaporeans, who having obtained a good diploma from a local polytechnic, pursued a degree course overseas. One Singaporean completed his degree course within one and a half years, due to the exemptions he obtained for the relevant modules he had undertaken during his diploma studies. Upon graduation, he faced problems with regard to the perception of his degree by his employer and local tertiary institutions when he wanted to pursue a higher degree in Singapore.

Another Singaporean took an external degree programme from a commercial school in Singapore, which advertised that it was an institution that was registered with the MOE. However, he later found that the external degree was from a university which is a very small institution overseas that is not even highly regarded in its home country.

These Singaporeans wished that they had more avenues to seek for independent references or advice during the selection process. In view of Singapore's aim of becoming an education hub, in particular private education hub, I would like to

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suggest that we improve this process to benefit Singaporeans who are thinking of pursuing an external degree in Singapore or overseas.

Sir, I would like to suggest that MOE develop a framework that will provide a reference point or advice for students who wish to pursue an external degree. The role of professional bodies could also be enhanced in improving this process. I would like to know how the MOE plans to improve the current state to assist Singaporeans to make an informed choice in the selection of courses in overseas universities to pursue their external degrees.

The Chairman: Mr Gan, there are five more replies to be given within 1 hour 20 minutes. I suggest we leave some time for the others.

The Minister of State for Education (Mr Gan Kim Yong): Yes, Sir. The Government recently launched a 10-year Continuing Education and Training (CET) Masterplan. Under the Masterplan, we will work with our post-secondary educational institutions and credible private players to establish a number of high-quality CET institutes to support our manpower needs. The Ministry of Manpower, with MOE's support, is planning to quadruple CET capacity within just two years, from training 22,000 workers last year, to 80,000 workers by 2009.

In line with our efforts to encourage life-long learning, MOE announced last year that the Government would subsidise part-time Advanced Diploma and Specialist Diploma programmes in the polytechnics, which are aimed at adult learners. We have now extended our funding support to part-time degree programmes as announced in the Budget Speech this year. These are significant moves towards our objective of creating a learning nation.

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I thank Mrs Josephine Teo for her support for the Government's efforts to improve accessibility and affordability of CET. I agree with Mrs Teo that it is important for Singaporeans who further their education or training with the aid of Government subsidy to derive meaningful value from the investment. This is particularly so for degree courses, as the cost in terms of time and money is considerably higher. While the Government cannot influence how employers pay CET degree-holders, as this is really up to the market to decide, there are two things the Government can do and has done so as to ensure that our part-time degree programmes will add value to the students.

The first is to ensure that the programmes we subsidise are of good quality. This is why MOE is making funding support available only for part-time degree programmes in the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore Management University (SMU) and SIM University (UniSIM). We have selected institutions of high repute, which we are confident will continue to uphold their standards and requirements pertaining to admission, progression and completion. MOE has established a Quality Assurance Framework for NUS, NTU and SMU. UniSIM is the only private institution to date that MOE has assessed as being of sufficient quality to be accorded university status and to award degrees in its own name. With the Government now funding its programmes, MOE will put in place a process to ensure that UniSIM upholds the quality of its publicly-funded degree programmes.

Second, we will continue to monitor industry and economic trends, and provide the information to workers who wish to upgrade themselves. MOM recently launched the Career Compass 2008,

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which can be downloaded from MOM's website. Career Compass provides students with a better understanding of opportunities in the job market. It covers industry and manpower trends, as well as occupational information, such as skills needed, employment conditions and wages. MOE will work with NUS, NTU, SMU and UniSIM to track their CET students' progress after graduation. This will enable the universities to further improve their part-time degree programmes.

In addition, the universities themselves provide counselling and advice to potential applicants. NUS and NTU conduct pre-application briefing sessions as part of their admission exercises for part-time degree programmes. These sessions can help to address students' questions about industry demand and the relevance of the degree programmes. UniSIM also organises regular Open House events to advise potential applicants on the appropriate choice of part-time degree programmes, depending on the applicants' employment background and career aspirations.

Also, as I mentioned earlier, the universities have stringent admission, progression and completion criteria. This ensures that only students who can benefit from a part-time degree education are admitted, and are allowed to continue and eventually graduate. These measures on the part of the universities help guide workers with different aspirations and aptitudes to choose the appropriate CET option for their career development.

Dr Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim raised the concern that some who enrol in degree programmes may later on find that their degrees are not well-regarded by employers or by local universities for the purpose of postgraduate studies.

MOE-registered private schools are allowed to offer external degrees awarded by bona fide universities which are

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recognised in their home countries. It is in the interest of these universities to ensure that the schools offering external degrees bearing their names are of acceptable quality to protect their own standing and reputation. As these foreign universities are recognised by their own governments, MOE does not grant any further recognition or accreditation for their degrees. However, even among these bona fide universities, there are wide variations in reputation and standing. If an external degree programme has undemanding admission and coursework requirements, it should come as no surprise that its value to the students is correspondingly low.

I can understand students' desire to obtain a degree. However, I would urge them to be selective and find out more about the programmes and the institutions before making a commitment. They should consider carefully the rigour of the programmes and the track record of the institutions offering the programmes to ensure that they will benefit from these programmes.

MOE is also not in a position to influence employers on the recognition of qualifications, as each individual employer has its own requirements and criteria. Employers will determine which qualifications are most relevant to their needs, and how much value to accord to different qualifications. The assessment of a job applicant will also take into account his or her own ability and aptitude, not just academic qualifications.

As for admission to postgraduate degree programmes, the local universities will consider all applicants who meet the eligibility criteria, regardless of where their qualifications were obtained. NUS, NTU and SMU do not rule out degrees from any bona fide foreign universities. The universities will undertake a holistic assessment of the applicants' aptitude and suitability for postgraduate studies.

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They consider applicants' transcripts, recommendation letters, personal statements of academic and career objectives, standardised test scores such as GRE and GMAT, and work experience, where relevant.

Sir, let me now move on to the issue of strengthening Singapore as an education hub. I would like to thank Mr Yeo Guat Kwang, Mr Lim Biow Chuan, Dr Ong Seh Hong, Dr Amy Khor, Dr Lily Neo and Mr Teo Ser Luck for their comments and suggestions on the regulation of private schools. I agree with the general thrust of their views and I will address their well motivated questions.

Let me first set the context. The private education landscape in Singapore has evolved rapidly over the years. The number of private schools registered with MOE has grown exponentially. It doubled in the 10 years between 1987 and 1997, from 150 to 305. It then quadrupled in the next 10 years between 1997 and 2007, from 305 to 1,200 private schools. The number of full-time foreign students enrolled in private schools also grew four-fold, from 9,000 in 1997 to 37,000 last year.

With such rapid growth in numbers, it is inevitable that the private schools' standards differ considerably. The problem of students affected by lower standard schools has also grown more acute. In the last two years, a number of private schools have closed down, leaving many students, mainly foreign students, stranded. This has tarnished the Singapore Education brand.

Given the significant evolution of the landscape, we need to adapt our approach to meet the changing circumstances.

Over the years, Singapore has forged a reputation for excellence in its public education system. Students from all over the world are attracted to Singapore on

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the strength of our mainstream schools and world-class tertiary institutions. To strengthen Singapore's position as a global education hub, the private education industry should further develop to compete on quality, rather than faster time or ease of obtaining a degree.

MOE announced during the last COS that we would study the issue and explore ways to enhance regulation of the sector. After considering various options, we have decided on a three-pronged approach to enhance regulation and improve standards over time. Firstly, MOE will set up an agency that brings together the right expertise so as to provide greater focus on the industry and effectively implement the regulatory framework. Secondly, to ensure basic threshold quality standards in private schools, we will strengthen the existing registration framework and enhance its enforcement. Thirdly, we will introduce a quality certification scheme to allow better private schools to differentiate themselves, as well as to enable students to make informed choices. I will address each of these measures in turn.

Firstly, MOE has considered if it is best placed to perform the regulatory function for the private education sector. After all, MOE's core focus and expertise still lies in the mainstream school system and the publicly-funded education sector.

The private education industry is a highly diverse one. Private schools offer a wide range of programmes at all levels, in myriad subjects and for various purposes, including enrichment, full-time study and continuing education. The regulatory body should have the right expertise so that it can effectively address the regulatory needs of a wide spectrum of operators.

After careful consideration, MOE has decided to establish an independent

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Council for Private Education to oversee the regulatory framework for the private education sector. The Council will also promote best practices in the sector.

The Council will be chaired by Mr Lin Cheng Ton, who was the former Principal and CEO of Nanyang Polytechnic. Mr Lin needs no introduction among Singapore educationists and business leaders. Under his visionary leadership, Nanyang Polytechnic was the first educational institution to attain quality awards, such as ISO 14001, Singapore Quality Class, and Singapore Innovation Class. Mr Lin was the architect of a distinctive pedagogical model that has been emulated widely in regional tertiary institutions, including China.

The Council members will be drawn from highly-regarded individuals with expertise in education, quality assurance and business. Government agencies involved in developing Singapore as an education hub, including the Economic Development Board and Singapore Tourism Board, will be also represented. The Consumer Association of Singapore or CASE will also be represented.

MOE will remain responsible for setting policies for the private education sector, but it will empower the Council, with its specialised expertise, to decide on all applications for registration and quality certification. The Council will also direct investigative and enforcement actions to be taken against errant private schools, where appropriate.

Secondly, we will enhance the registration framework. Under the existing Education Act, private schools are required to obtain one-off registration with MOE before they are allowed to operate. Going forward, MOE intends to impose a validity period for registration by the Council and make it renewable, subject to certain requirements. This regular renewal process rather than a one-off registration

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will encourage private schools to consistently maintain their standards.

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We will also strengthen our capability in enforcement of the registration requirements. Currently, a private school can only be de-registered and only under extreme circumstances. To better deal with schools that violate the conditions of registration, MOE will introduce graduated penalties, including fines, for errant private education providers. This will allow the Council to impose penalties that are in proportion to the severity of the offences. It will serve as useful deterrence against poor standards or behaviours, while giving errant schools opportunities to rectify their violations.

The third component of the enhanced regulatory framework is a quality certification scheme called EduTrust to incentivise private schools to raise their standards and to enable students to distinguish the better quality players.

EduTrust will build on the improvements in standards that have been achieved through CASE’s CaseTrust for Education scheme. CaseTrust for Education focuses mainly on protection of fees paid by students. EduTrust will introduce new requirements over and above those required under CaseTrust, including minimum standards of academic processes. After EduTrust is implemented, CASE will cease to offer CaseTrust for Education.

Under EduTrust, private schools will be required to satisfy certain academic, financial and student welfare requirements. Examples of academic requirements include having qualified academic supervisors and teachers, as well as well-defined structures for programme development, assessment, progression and performance review.

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EduTrust-certified private schools will also have to demonstrate their financial capacity. Private schools that are unable to demonstrate adequate financial capacity will be required to make precautionary arrangements for their students to transfer to equivalent courses in other schools, at no extra cost to the students. These arrangements will only be effected in the event of the school’s closure to ensure that students can continue their studies.

In terms of student welfare, EduTrust-certified private schools must protect students’ fees by depositing fees into an escrow account or purchasing student insurance. They will also be required to have clear fee and refund policies, effective complaint resolution procedures and adequate student counselling and support services.

Industry players can choose whether or when to be certified, according to their own assessment of readiness and their choice of business model. However, as with the existing CaseTrust, EduTrust will be mandatory for private schools that wish to enrol foreign students.

That said, it is important to understand that risk cannot be completely eliminated. It can only be mitigated. Neither enhanced registration nor EduTrust can guarantee total student satisfaction, completely avert school closures or prevent regulatory infringements. What we can do is to reduce the likelihood of closures and violations.

The introduction of EduTrust will allow private school operators to differentiate themselves and enable students to choose better-quality schools, which in turn will provide some protection against adverse developments. By stepping up enforcement, private school operators will be more mindful of their statutory obligations and take positive steps to constantly improve themselves.

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However, I must stress that ultimately, students themselves must exercise care in making a decision to study in a private school. They must find out more about the institutions and the courses they intend to pursue, understand the risks involved, especially when choosing the less established schools, and take the necessary precautions to protect their interests.

To establish the Council for Private Education and to enhance the registration system as I have outlined, new legislation will have to be introduced. MOE will be drafting a new Private Education Bill for this purpose.

The Bill will establish the independent Council for Private Education and empower it with effective regulatory and enforcement powers. The Council will be the approving authority for registration of private education operators and will administer the EduTrust certification scheme to incentivise private schools to improve their quality. To support the Council in carrying out its role, MOE will increase our capacity to inspect, monitor and investigate private schools.

The new Bill will enhance and clearly spell out private schools’ statutory requirements to meet baseline standards required for registration. It will make registration renewable, clearly stipulate what constitutes offences, and provide for graduated penalties for different offences.

MOE aims to introduce the Private Education Bill in Parliament by the end of this year. The EduTrust scheme will be launched by the Council for Private Education in early 2009. We will consult the public and industry stakeholders before finalising the Bill and the implementation details of EduTrust.

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To assist private schools to transit smoothly to the enhanced regulatory framework, MOE will allow for a transition period and work closely with industry associations.

Sir, to sum up, the enhancements to the regulatory framework will better protect the interest of students. In consultation sessions with private school operators, we also found that students are not the only ones who welcome tighter regulation. Genuine and serious private school operators, too, collectively incur reputational damage whenever there are negative incidents that tarnish the Singapore Education brand.

The approach of tightening the mandatory registration system, stepping up enforcement and introducing quality certification is a balanced approach that will seek to ensure a baseline of quality in the industry while preserving a marketplace that allows for student choice.

Over the next few years, MOE and the Council will focus on the effective implementation of the enhanced regulatory framework, ensuring baseline standards across the board and incentivising private schools to improve their standards.

To succeed in developing Singapore into a Global Education Hub, a strong regulatory framework alone is not sufficient. We need the support and collective ownership of all stakeholders, including the private education operators as well as the students. Private schools must realise the need to constantly upgrade themselves to meet the increasingly competitive international landscape and the rising expectations of students. Students themselves must be more discerning and selective in deciding on their educational pathways. They should carefully assess the choices available and be especially cautious about organisations promising degrees in short

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duration, with minimal admission requirements and less rigorous coursework. Only when we work together, can we keep the learning experience in Singapore an attractive and enriching one.

School Dropouts

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, what are the steps taken to reduce school dropouts, and what is the time-frame to achieve this target?

Could MOE simultaneously tackle present attrition problem, and at the same time adopt a preventive approach?

Could MOE therefore assist students from vulnerable families earlier on to prevent future dropouts? Should there be a sustainable and holistic scheme available?

Is there cooperation between MOE and MCYS to prioritise the children of families that seek financial assistance from MCYS? Could MOE design a comprehensive assistance scheme for these children with hands-on approach by social workers and a good follow-up? And, lastly, could MOE also ensure that this assistance available target at all the contributing factors of school dropouts?

CCA

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for National Development (Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman): Sir, the MOE website on CCA notes, and I quote: "The Co-curricular activities play a key role in the holistic development of our pupils." It went on to state, and I quote, "... the CCA framework is one that is committed to developing character and sustaining core values in pupils."

These are indeed wonderful visions that present great promise for our younger generation. However, as with other aspects of our education system, while

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MOE sets the guidelines, much is left to the schools for implementation. My concern is that the pursuit of excellence may be driving some schools to implement the CCA in a manner that may have detrimental effects on the mental health of their students.

Sir, while I was attracted to the word "holistic development", associated with CCA, two other words seem to take the CCA centre stage - "auditions" and "trials". In some schools, students have to go to audition to determine if they have a particular talent to be in that CCA, eg, the choir, the dance, or the drama groups. Similarly, they have to go to trials for sports CCA. In a school that I know, Secondary 1 students were told that unless they have represented their primary schools in a national competition, they would not even be considered for that sport as a CCA.

Sir, what does this suggest? Elitism? Pursuit of excellence?

In yesterday's Straits Times , a Ms Lee Shu Sian wrote about how her former secondary school decided to scrap gymnastic which is her CCA, because the sport is not winning enough awards and glory for the school.

Sir, not every child has a talent to sing, dance, act or play tennis or swim for the school, but the child may be interested in one of these activities, and through it learn more about himself and be motivated enough to try his best. Yet, he may not even get a chance to pursue his interest. What happens to such a child? Going from one room to another to audition only to be told that he is not good enough. What happens to his total and holistic development if he is made to feel that he is not good for anything? At least, we hope that he is good in his studies. What if he is not good in that either?

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To what extent does the Ministry monitor such practices in schools and whether the guidelines given to the schools can be further reviewed to ensure that the schools' pursuit of excellence does not lead to elitism, leaving behind students who do not fit?

It is always impressive to see buntings and banners outside schools displaying their accolades - their SYF gold award, and better still, the SYF gold with honours awards. But what about the ugly ducklings?

Has MOE assessed the psychological and emotional effect of such practices on these children? Has MOE communicated closely the implementation of CCA system and its outcomes? Is there a relationship between CCA involvement or non-involvement and attrition rates? How is CCA component of total development of the child measured in school with its over-emphasis on CCA excellence and awards? Has MOE assessed the effects on the child's esteem and self-worth, even for those who managed to be in the CCA but not selected for the A-team?

I hope MOE will not compromise holistic development in the schools' pursuit for excellence in CCA.

Financial Assistance Scheme

Dr Lim Wee Kiak (Sembawang): Sir, no Singapore students should be denied of education because of financial difficulties. Opportunities for students of needy families to excel and to develop their full potential is paramount.

I think with the MOE financial assistance scheme - I just received one from my children last night when they came back from school - that has helped many of the needy students to carry on their education.

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With rising costs of living, households that are not even low income, just the middle as well as the lower middle income with school-going children and elderly sick, are the most affected. Will MOE review and increase the current household income guidelines of $1,500 for MOE financial assistance scheme, especially those with elderly sick at home too? Will MOE also consider including per capita income rather than just household income in their assessment of the family for the FAS scheme? I hope it is not too intrusive. Will MOE also consider enhancing the FAS scheme now to include transportation costs, school after-care services, pocket money as well as a 100% waiver of national examination fees rather than just 75%?

Apart from financial difficulties, what are the other reasons for non-attendance and dropouts in schools? What is MOE doing to address these particular issues?

The Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Education (Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M): Sir, a few Members have raised some questions on how MOE can help to keep our students stay engaged in schools. I will first start by addressing Dr Lily Neo’s issue on how we have reduced the attrition rate in schools, followed by an update on MOE’s character development programmes which Dr Ong and Ms Lee Bee Wah alluded to. I will then talk about the role of CCAs in child development raised by Dr Maliki, before coming to the issue of financial assistance raised by Dr Lim Wee Kiak.

But, first, a short preamble in Malay.

(In Malay) : [For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A.] The number of students who dropped out of school was small and getting lesser among all levels and races, for the last few years. The rate of our dropouts has been significantly reduced, from 5.3% in 1997 to 3.6% in 2002. Since we implemented

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some initiatives, following PM Lee's announcement to reduce the drop-out rate, the current rate of dropouts has gone down to 1.6%.

Presently, around 0.15% of a cohort dropout occurs at the primary level. Around 0.45% dropped out when they are transferred from primary to secondary schools. The biggest group of dropouts comes from those in secondary schools. They represent 1% of the current cohort, compared to 1.6% two years ago. Most of these dropouts leave school at the upper secondary level, especially in Secondary Three and also those from the Normal (Academic) and Normal (Technical) courses.

*Cols. 2037-2038.

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( In English ): The number of students who drop out from school is small and has been decreasing across all levels and races over the years. Our dropout rate has reduced significantly from 5.3% in 1997 to 3.6% in 2002. PM Lee had announced in 2006 that MOE would be studying how to further reduce the attrition rate in schools. Since then, we have put in place several initiatives and schools have developed ways to reduce the number of dropouts, the attrition rate is now 1.6%. While our dropout rate remains very small compared to many other countries, we want to do everything we can to get as many students as possible to attain at least 10 years of education, so that they can subsequently get a post-secondary education. This would help equip them with useful skills and knowledge, and prepare them well for the workforce.

The work and oversight of the Committee to Reduce Attrition (CRA) and the effort and programmes put in by our schools will continue to be important not only to reduce dropout rates and maintain the low dropout rates in our schools, but also to address those with some form of

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risk of dropping out which students can develop at any point of their time in school. The small attrition rate in fact belies the tremendous effort and comprehensive systems put in place by the schools and community to keep it in check.

Currently, around 0.15% of the cohort drops out during primary school. For this group of students, we have implemented the Learning Support Programme, which we enhanced recently and had improved outcomes, to help Primary 1 and 2 students who are not school-ready by providing them with dedicated assistance. The introduction of compulsory education for primary school since 2003 has further reduced the number of children not attending school or dropping out over the years.

Another 0.45% drops out during the transition from primary to secondary school. To address this group, we have established NorthLight School in 2007 to provide them with a customised vocational curriculum that focuses on their socio-emotional needs and character development. Last year, for students who have been posted to a secondary school after their PSLE but did not report to the secondary school subsequently, we have also put the onus on their former primary schools to contact them and counsel them to enrol in a secondary school.

The biggest improvement in attrition rate comes from those who drop out during secondary school. This is 1% of the cohort currently, compared to 1.6% a year ago. This drop is largely due to the many initiatives undertaken by the schools themselves following PM Lee's announcement on the formation of the CRA. About 70% of the dropouts leave school at the upper secondary level, namely, Secondary 3. In addition, about 90% of the secondary dropouts are from the Normal (Academic) and Normal (Technical) streams. We will continue to

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focus more efforts and resources on this group of students to help them stay in school.

Why do students drop out from the school? They drop out due to many different factors, not just financial difficulties. Some have family problems, while others may find difficulties coping with their studies, are more keen to work than study, or lack the motivation to learn, especially after mixing with bad company. There are also students who experience a combination of these factors. Consequently, they become disengaged from what is happening in school.

To address these factors, MOE has implemented various initiatives over the years to strengthen students' engagement through programmes such as Education and Career Guidance and CCAs. Education and Career Guidance allows students to determine their educational and occupational pathways based on their interests, abilities and aspirations. When students have clear goals to work towards, they become more motivated in their studies. Likewise, CCAs provide opportunities for students to develop interests and bonds with peers outside of academic pursuits, and help to keep them engaged in school.

We have implemented a revised Normal (Technical) curriculum with a more practical orientation, to better engage our students in their learning. Three schools, namely, Bedok Town Secondary, Si Ling Secondary and Shuqun Secondary have begun piloting new approaches to the N(T) programme by introducing new subjects and pedagogies developed in partnership with ITE. The introduction of Elective Modules and Advanced Elective Modules has also created greater engagement and enjoyment in learning for students due to the more practical hands-

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on approaches. We have also enhanced the Student Re-admission Policy in 2006 by putting in place a responsive process to facilitate the re-admission of school dropouts. As a result, the percentage of students who have successfully applied for re-admission has increased from 65% in 2005 to 85% last year.

Let me now talk about the time-out programmes schools have initiated to provide enhanced guidance and support for students with disciplinary, behavioural and academic problems. These programmes provide them with a time-out from their normal school environment and routine so that they can sort out their thoughts, redirect themselves and prepare to get back on track with their learning again. Twelve such time-out programmes involving 44 schools were initiated last year, and with much success. For example, of the 17 Secondary 3 Normal (Technical) students who participated in Chong Boon Secondary's time-out programme last year, 16 of them are still attending school regularly.

One such programme was the Centre for Supervised Learning (CSL). This programme helps students with behavioural problems from Bukit Merah Secondary School, Outram Secondary School, Gan Eng Seng School and St. Theresa's Convent embrace positive learning attitudes, so as to ensure sustained learning when they reintegrate into the classroom. During the four-week programme, students were taught social and emotional competencies and character development besides study skills for core subjects. Chee Wei Rong from Outram Secondary School was one of the students who participated in the programme in July 2007. Before that, he had been absent from school for more than a year, due to a lack of motivation for learning. Through the customised programmes and close interaction with teachers, Wei Rong became aware of the need for a proper formal education to

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achieve his career goals. At the end of the programme, Wei Rong returned to school, topped his Secondary 2 class and was promoted to Secondary 3. He is now a good role model for other students in his class. We will continue to support schools in these programmes by providing specialists to offer advice on programme and evaluation design, and toolkits to study their impact on students.

Now, let me describe to you the further steps we are taking to reduce attrition. Although our dropout rate is very low, maintaining it at this level and improving it further will require more work over time, given that our students continue to be exposed to different influences and distractions outside school. Building on our existing efforts, MOE will adopt the following three measures to further reduce attrition, especially among students in the high-risk groups.

First, we will provide additional resources for schools. The small rate of attrition also implies that the students who actually drop out are at high risk of dropping out and are not addressable with more of the same thing. In fact, most need to be individually case managed. As of January this year, we have assigned Full-Time School Counsellors to all schools to identify potentially at-risk students, design programmes and provide counselling support for them. These FTSCs have been very effective in engaging students who are at risk of dropping out of school. Over the next few years, MOE will be providing a second FTSC and an additional Operations Manager to 70 schools with higher proportions of at-risk students. The Operations Manager will follow up with the students at-risk to ensure that they are participating in all aspects of school life and are meaningfully engaged in school programmes like CCAs.

Second, we will support earlier intervention through identifying and

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monitoring at-risk students. Currently, often work done for a child at risk, even when documented, does not get passed on properly for continuous monitoring and subsequent intervention as the child moves up from class to class. This is important because not all problems can be resolved quickly or within an academic year. This systemic problem is exacerbated when the child moves from school to school. We will be developing tools to identify students with literacy, behavioural or social communication difficulties early, so that we can provide timely support to them and plan the best pathway for intervention. We will also be developing data management tools to provide useful information on individual students for teachers to facilitate the monitoring of their development even as they move from school to school and from class to class. These tools can help teachers design appropriate learning structures and processes to improve their quality of learning.

Third, we will strengthen further our partnerships with other Ministries, non-Government institutions and self-help groups to provide comprehensive and holistic support for these students. For a start, we are consolidating programmes currently offered by self-help groups, and will be disseminating them to all schools so that they can tap on these programmes where appropriate. We recognise the self-help groups have been providing intervention and prevention programmes for a long time. With their experience and access, MOE will work together with them in areas where our synergy will make their effort more effective and contribute to reducing attrition in schools.

On character building, Dr Lily Neo, Dr Ong Seh Hong and Ms Lee Bee Wah have asked for an update on what MOE has done to improve the character building and moral values of our students. It is not only important for our society but for the students themselves. I agree with them

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that the school is not only about academic learning but is also not solely responsible to develop character in our students. However, having said that, MOE has always regarded character development as one of our key areas of focus in the education system. We have developed many platforms in the formal and non-formal curriculum. One of these platforms is Civics and Moral Education, or CME, where students are taught to live by certain core values in order to guide them to make appropriate choices, and determine their behaviour and attitudes towards themselves and to others.

Apart from CME, there are other programmes and activities in the non-formal curriculum, such as National Education, Community Involvement Programme and Co-Curricular Activities that provide students with opportunities to practise making value-based choices.

We have also introduced the Character Development Award in 2006. This award recognises and motivates schools' efforts in character development, and provides a structured framework to guide schools in their character development efforts. Over the last two years, 139 schools have attained the CDA.

On CCAs, Dr Maliki has concerns regarding the effect of CCA trials and auditions on students. Schools plan their CCA programmes taking into consideration their students' interests, available resources and niches. While students prefer the CCAs they would like to participate in, there may be inadequate resources to meet the students' choices. This problem exists in all instances when demand exceeds supply or when supply cannot or should not be expanded for good reason. There are however complementary alternatives. Besides the formal CCAs which have a 30-week programme, schools have adopted other

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innovative ways to engage their pupils in their activities of interest, such as inter-house activities and modular CCAs. MOE has been working with the Singapore Sports Council since last year to provide all schools with a dollar-for-dollar Sports Education Programme of up to $10,000 per school. Using this fund, schools can run sport programmes for students, such as sports clinics, instructional courses and even modules where students learn skills in organising, teaching and refereeing sports and games. To date, more than 140,000 students from 311 schools have benefited.

While getting the preferred choice of CCA may be a problem, just like getting the preferred choice for schools, we should recognise that CCAs remain a great engagement framework to keep students in school.

CCAs help to expose students to different experiences, and encourage them to explore and cultivate diverse interests. Chua Mui Fan from Mayflower Secondary is an excellent example. As a quiet and introverted girl, Mui Fan entered the Normal (Technical) stream with an aggregate score of 98. After taking up sailing as a CCA, she gradually built up her confidence and perseverance through the sport. With her strong leadership skills, she became the captain of the sailing team, and led her team to clinch second place at the 2004 National Inter-Schools Sailing Championships. Mui Fan subsequently became the top NT student in her school and progressed on to ITE to take Multimedia Technology. She is now in Temasek Polytechnic doing a course in Mechatronics. She attributes much of her success in studies to the skills she had acquired in her various CCAs.

Despite Dr Maliki's concern, our surveys show that our students are indeed satisfied with the learning experiences provided in CCAs,

and recognise the value of participation in

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them. We will continue to review the structure of CCAs to allow students to better discover their interests and strengths, build up their confidence and engage them meaningfully in school.

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Let me address Dr Lim's query on the income criteria for MOE's financial assistance scheme. This is relevant to address families who are at risk of pulling their children out of school because of financial issues.

General education is almost fully subsidised by the Government. For students in Government and Government-aided schools, parents are required to pay a token amount of the fees to instill in them the sense they must be responsible for the education of their children. Even when this token amount is not affordable, parents can apply for the MOE Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS). The income criteria were raised in 2006 from $900 to $1,500 for families with one or two children, and from $1,050 to $1,800 for families with three or more children to target the low-wage families. As a result, the number of recipients increased by almost three times from 15,000 in 2005 to 44,200 in 2007. But we will continue to review the FAS so that the income criteria keep pace with the changing income profile of the population.

The current income criteria for the MOE FAS provide a higher income limit of $1,800 for families with three or more children, in recognition that larger households would need a higher level of income to pay for their expenses. Of course, for families that do not qualify somehow or at the margins, the schools would provide their own financial assistance or help them to obtain assistance from other community organisations.

I would like also to thank Dr Lily Neo for her suggestion for MOE to coordinate

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with MCYS to provide a comprehensive assistance scheme. We will continue to work closely with MCYS to develop programmes that provide the necessary support and guidance to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. For example, students from families on MCYS' Public Assistance Scheme will automatically qualify for MOE's Financial Assistance Scheme and receive a 100% subsidy for examination fees. However, we should not go too far in making all forms of financial assistance automatic, as this could create an entitlement mindset amongst some parents. We want parents to stay engaged and play an active role in their children's education, rather than passively waiting for handouts to be given to them automatically.

In conclusion, reducing attrition and, thus, ensuring our students finish at least 10 years of school with an opportunity to pursue some form of post-secondary education or skills training is one of many ways we can level up society. Every child we keep in school is one child less in the street and one child less for the underworld to prey on. Every child from a dysfunctional family with adequate schooling and subsequently a good job will be two less dysfunctional families in the future. These students are not the easiest to help nor inspire. I acknowledge and thank the schools, teachers and community leaders who have put in a lot of effort, time and thought in addressing this issue. These are the areas where results come slowly and sometimes packaged together with heart-breaks and setbacks. But for every starfish somehow abandoned on the shore that we put back to sea, the " Wei Rongs and Mui Fans ", it is a starfish we saved, worthy for itself and for society.

Inculcate the Value of Thrift

Mr Chan Soo Sen (Joo Chiat): Sir, in a consumer society, we have every

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opportunity to spend. In fact, if we look at some of those very nice glossy magazines which talk about very attractive people and we ask them, "What is your passion or hobby?", it is "To shop until I drop." It sounds very cool. To shop until I drop makes me a hero of a consumer society. But what if I drop and I cannot get up again? I become a martyr of the consumer society. While we want to have heroes, we must avoid having martyrs to spend and spend and spend until one drops. From being cool, it will become cold. And if this value becomes a national value over time, when more and more of our young people get used to the concept or idea of spending until they drop, then it can eat into our usual good habit of having prudent Budgets and building up our national reserves, and our country's future will go from being cool to cold.

Sir, do not get me wrong. I am not against spending. I am not trying to pitch a value of "miser-y". I am just appealing to the Ministry of Education to do something concrete to explicitly inculcate a value of thrift. For me, thrift does not mean not spending. Thrift does not mean not giving. To me, thrift means spending in a sustainable way, spending for value-add, as well as building up a reserve for emergency and old age, because all of us want to live long. All of us want to continue to spend, and all of us also want to retire early. Sometimes, the three do not add up. It is only through prudence and the inculcation of the value of thrift that we can do all three together through to our good old age.

Sir, of the three basic principles that I have mentioned, ie, to spend in a responsible way, to spend for value-add, as well as to build up the reserve for emergency, allow me to just emphasise on the words "spend for value-add". It is spending that adds value to the society and self. We

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spend on upgrading ourselves for self-improvement. Since the Minister of State had earlier mentioned that private and continuing education is going to be more strongly regulated, this will give us better value for money. Also, give to the worthy causes that help the less fortunate in society, that help to promote social cohesion in the process of helping the less fortunate, and give generously to the patronage of arts. These may be habits of spending, but these are spending for value-add. It is important for us to distinguish between the amount of spending as well as the value we get back, not only dollars and cents, but also values in the case of heartware.

Could I ask the Minister to outline whether the Ministry has any plans to explicitly reinforce and inculcate the value of thrift?

Compulsory Environmental Education / Activities in Schools

Er Edwin Khew Teck Fook (Nominated Member): Sir, the education provided by our schools and tertiary institutions in Singapore is one of the best in the world, as we have kept our curriculum relevant and have systems in place to ensure that students of all capabilities are being catered to.

As the environment and climate change are becoming a major issue worldwide and Singapore strives to be a model eco-city, would the Minister consider providing an Environment Education budget for schools to teach and be actively involved in educating their students in all expects of the environment, how it affects our daily lives, and how we can safeguard it for future generations - in short, what sustainable development and global warming are all about?

Understanding climate change, global warming and sustainable development is, I

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feel, today a must, especially, when as a nation, we are trying to put a number of major initiatives into place, like energy efficiency, recycling and developing Singapore into a clean energy centre. More importantly, Singapore needs more technicians and trained engineers to cater to the renewable and energy efficiency businesses that we are developing and attracting to come and set up in Singapore. Early influence and understanding of this subject will hopefully give us the trained manpower required by this very lucrative sector.

Sir, on this subject, I would like to enquire whether the Minister will consider providing engineering and technical scholarships or bursaries with short-term bonds so that more students would be attracted to take up these scholarships.

FutureSchools@Singapore

Dr Fatimah Lateef (Marine Parade): Sir, in 2007, we had seen the pilot of the FutureSchools@Singapore taking off. This is in line with our plans to develop an enabled nation through infocomm. How will MOE plan to extend this programme and how will the schools be selected? Will there be collaboration with IDA to evolve the programme for a tie-up with the Wireless@Singapore system? And will the selected schools be allocated additional funding and grants?

The Chairman: Order. I propose to take the break now.

Thereupon Mr Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House.

Mr Speaker: I suspend the Sitting and will take the Chair again at 3.20 pm.

Sitting accordingly suspended

at 2.55 pm until 3.20 pm.

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Sitting resumed at 3.20 pm

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]:

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]: Debate in Committee of Supply resumed.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Head K (cont.) -

RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, let me first start with the issue of integration of students. I agree fully with Mr Hri Kumar that this is really something very important - bringing together students of different races. We have structured programmes in Social Studies, Civics and Moral Education, platforms like Learning Journeys, and Racial Harmony Day. I just want to assure him that we are always on the look out for new, different and especially better ways to bring across the learning points to our students.

Our view is that structured programmes must be supported by everyday opportunities for meaningful interactions. When children work and play together, they share common goals and aspirations. They gradually come to know and appreciate one another deeply. Our view is that CCAs provide the most natural platform for this to take place, as they stand shoulder to shoulder and train side by side. Students come together because of common interests and these activities allow students to spend long hours together through intensive and fulfilling interactions.

Let me give a couple of examples. Several of our schools - including Hwa Chong Institution, a Special Assistance Plan (SAP) school, Greenridge Secondary, Telok Kurau Secondary, West Spring Secondary and Zhenghua Secondary - jointly organise a Harmony Cup Soccer Competition. The students compete in teams with members from different schools and ethnic groups. This is an excellent way to develop real friendships beyond their usual circle of friends through sporting endeavour and achieve

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ment. At Xinmin Secondary School, for example, many non-Chinese students take part in the Chinese Opera. At Raffles Girls' School, many non-Malay students take part in the Angklung Orchestra and in Malay Dance. Such activities that bring together students of different races are increasingly common across our schools.

With time and opportunities for such interactions, I think these children can form deep friendships. Based on our latest National Education survey, we found that around 90% of students are comfortable with having friends from different racial and religious backgrounds. And this is encouraging.

Mr Chan Soo Sen talked about the importance of thrift. This is an important value, not only for children but also for adults. Often, we are tempted to buy things we do not need, with money we do not have. Through Civics and Moral Education, students are taught the basis for thrift, to safeguard the future for themselves and loved ones through proper management of finances. They learn the importance of appreciating what they have, living within their means and exercising responsible decision-making in financial matters.

In Social Studies, our students have the opportunity to pick up practical financial management skills. They are taught how to save money and to invest wisely. We have also worked with external organisations to deliver the MoneySENSE programme to schools. Primary schools, in particular, have access to a performance on financial literacy education called "SAVING - the Sensible Habit".

Our schools will continue with efforts to help our children acquire the awareness and the skills to make the right choices in this regard. But as he has so succinctly

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pointed out, these efforts to inculcate the right values of thrift and hard work must ultimately be reinforced and supported by parents and the community.

Mr Edwin Khew asked about efforts to educate our students on the environment. We agree it is an important issue with wide-reaching and long-lasting consequences. Let me share briefly what we are doing.

In the formal curriculum, in Social Studies and Civics and Moral Education, we promote care for the environment and responsible behaviour. Subjects like Geography and Science teach our students about climate change, pollution, resource depletion, environmental management and sustainable development. Through the informal curriculum, many students participate in waste minimisation and nature conservation through the Community Involvement Programme. Schools also have Environmental Clubs where students undertake projects such as recycling and activities like the Clean and Green Week and Earth Day.

Resources are provided to the schools to carry out these activities as well as special projects and, if necessary, they can tap on additional funds in MOE. The National Environment Agency also provides funding to schools to run their Environmental Clubs and to conduct environmental programmes and activities.

NUS and NTU already provide scholarships for various engineering courses, including those that are relevant to future careers in environment-related industries. In addition, the National Research Foundation provides the Clean Energy Scholarships, which aim to develop technology and industry leaders in the Clean Energy industry in Singapore.

Dr Fatimah Lateef asked about the extension of the FutureSchools@Singapore programme. Today, we have

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selected six schools as the pioneer batch of FutureSchools, including the recently announced School of Science and Technology.

In line with IDA's 2015 Vision for Education and Learning, we plan to develop up to 15 FutureSchools by 2015. We will start the selection of the second phase in 2009, with a view to implementation in 2010. We have adopted a phased approach so as to apply the lessons learned in the earlier phases and to ensure that the technologies that are applied will always be up to date.

On top of funding that MOE provides to all schools, each FutureSchool will receive a project grant from the National Research Foundation (NRF), IDA and industry partners over four years. The NRF will contribute about one-third of the project grant while IDA and industry will contribute two-thirds.

Successful models that are developed in these FutureSchools will be cascaded to the rest of the schools, so that the benefits of the programme will eventually be extended to all schools.

Let me just add and echo the words of the Minister that our schools are doing good work across a range of different areas, not only in the academics. The schools are going out of their way to nurture different types of talent to their full potential to provide our students with strong fundamentals to inculcate enduring values and to help them develop habits which define character, and character which determines the man and woman that they will grow to become in the years ahead.

The Chairman: Mr Chiam See Tong is not here. Mr Yeo Guat Kwang.

CL Teaching and Learning

Mr Yeo Guat Kwang: ( In Mandarin ): [ For vernacular speech, please refer to

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_Appendix A _ *.] The Chinese education reform has been carried out for a number of years. I would like to ask the Ministry how effective is the reform and whether the Minister can provide us with an update.

The Singapore Chinese Teachers’ Union informed me that MOE’s Curriculum Planning and Development Division has played a supporting role by implementing a variety of efforts such as training which includes teaching philosophy, teaching method, action research and also teaching methods in Chinese reading and video recording techniques, etc. However, we would like to propose that MOE come up with some plans to establish a systematic way of training our teachers, for instance, to develop a method that is similar to the curriculum appraisal process, so that we can have measurable objectives to facilitate evaluation or to promote alternative evaluation methods, so as to provide support for our “Teach Less, Learn More” initiative.

We are happy to note that the MOE’s Curriculum Planning and Development Division has stepped up teaching research last year. With support from the Chinese department and master teachers, they have achieved preliminary results and organised a nation-wide sharing session on knowledge exchange. This year, they have continued to make persistent efforts to broaden the scope of teaching research, including teaching foreign students, to study differentiated teaching strategies and learn how to create a professional profile for teachers, etc.

With strong support from MOE and schools, the TLLM Ignite! initiative has received good response from primary schools and the organiser has selected six proposals for research and funding. These schools will enjoy a plethora of MOE’s support, including education training for the school’s research activist, guidance and support from MOE’s master teachers.

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We hope that MOE will work with the school management to garner their support for education reform, as the distribution of teachers’ resources is very important. The allocation of additional teachers for the schools is a timely help from MOE and, as such, the schools should allow teachers to be fully involved in teaching Chinese and not other subjects. So we must make full use of these additional resources provided by MOE to strengthen the effectiveness of teaching the Chinese language.

Singapore is a multi-lingual society and we face a complex learning environment. Our bilingual education policy has been implemented for many years and we have accumulated vast experiences in teaching, appraisal and teaching materials. Our experiences are different from China. We should develop our competitive advantage and share our experiences with other educators around the world. From what I understand, some schools in the US have already adopted our preschool Chinese curriculum. In this regard, I hope that MOE will continue to promote research in teaching, curriculum development and training of teachers, etc, so as to contribute towards the learning of the Chinese language around the world.

*Cols.2039-2040.

Learning Dialects as Third Languages

Mr Baey Yam Keng (Tanjong Pagar): ( In Mandarin ): [For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A.] Singapore is a multi-racial society. I suggest that MOE compile a new set of teaching materials in order to enhance the interest of knowledge and understanding among all the races. Just to give an example, like the Chinese saying, “The same rice feeds a hundred types of people”. For example, our Malay nasi lemak , Indian nasi bryani and Chinese yang chow fried rice, all these are a dazzling array of food culture.

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Through our dialects, we can also learn about the Chinese culture. There is no need to expect our students to master these dialects as a subject, to ask that they can understand, read, or use the dialect in writing. But, at least, we need to teach them, to address uncles and aunties properly, according to seniority within the family, and not just use the generic terms.

Even the local opera can become our teaching material. For example, Teochew and Hokkien opera, even their costumes, hairdo, makeup, musical accompaniment are part of our culture too. Other customs, such as the customary wedding ceremony, folk songs, names of our streets, for example, Teochew Street and Canton Street - these are part of the culture too. If we do not expose our young to our culture, one day all these will be lost. People will think that Hokkien people are just those who sell Hokkien fried noodles, and the Hainanese people are those who sell chicken rice. So it need not be too elaborate, just briefly will do, and make it more lively so that it can stimulate and develop our interest towards other races, and enrich our understanding and promote harmony among the races.

*Cols. 2041-2042.

Mr Gan Kim Yong: ( In Mandarin ): [For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A.] Sir, I thank Mr Yeo for his interest in and comments on the Review of Chinese Language. The CL Review recommended a flexible curriculum to enthuse learners of different backgrounds and abilities as well as help them achieve their fullest potential in CL.

MOE developed and piloted the new Primary CL curriculum at Primary 1 and Primary 2 levels in 2006, and at Primary 3 level last year. The surveys conducted during pilot implementation yielded encouraging results. They indicated that the new curriculum, with its modular approach and active-learning pedagogy,

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provided students with greater flexibility to meet their diverse CL learning needs.

The modular curriculum is now being implemented in all schools at P1 to P4 levels. This will be followed by P5 next year and P6 in 2010. Structured training was provided to CL teachers to ensure that they can implement the new curriculum well. In addition, a 70-strong team, comprising Master Teachers, curriculum planning officers and teachers from the pilot schools provided curriculum support to the non-pilot schools. Resources such as teaching guides, assessment guidelines and digital resources were also provided. To implement the modular CL curriculum, all primary schools were given one more CL teacher last year. A second additional CL teacher will be given to primary schools by June this year.

MOE announced recently that a learning roadmap for all Mother Tongue Language (MTL) teachers would be drawn up to guide them in their professional development. We will provide more development opportunities for our MTL teachers. These include courses on action research, pedagogy and assessment.

In this regard, MOE has also set up the Committee to Promote Chinese Language Learning to garner community support for promoting the use of CL beyond schools. The committee comprises Members of Parliament, educators, publishers and representatives from CL Community Organisations and professional bodies. Mr Yeo is a member of this committee. Over the past years, the Committee has actively facilitated reading programmes, events targeted at pre-school children and other initiatives to promote the use of CL beyond schools.

Mr Yeo also suggested that Singapore can develop into a CL hub. I, too, believe that Singapore has the potential to become a centre of excellence for the

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teaching and learning of CL. In particular, our unique bilingual environment offers conducive conditions and gives Singapore a competitive advantage in teaching and learning CL as a second language. We will explore ways to leverage on the strong foundation we have built.

( In English) : Mr Baey Yam Keng suggested introducing a new syllabus module on Singapore's multi-cultural aspects. MOE consciously exposes our students to Singapore's multi-cultural heritage through subjects such as Mother Tongue Languages as well as Civics and Moral Education. For example, in the Chinese Language curriculum, students are exposed not only to Chinese but also Malay and Indian traditions and customs. Through Civics and Moral Education, students gain insights on harmonious living in a multi-racial society.

Mr Baey will also be glad to know that some of our schools also provide activities that are related to ethnic culture. Poi Ching Primary School, for example, has Teochew opera classes for its students, and Chung Cheng High School offers Nanying, a special musical instrument of Chinese ethnic origin. Students also get to explore and experience various cultures at first-hand, including ethnic cuisines, through learning journeys to Chinatown, Malay Village and Little India.

These curriculum and school activities help strengthen students' awareness and appreciation of Singapore's vibrant cultural diversity. Learning about each other's cultures helps connect students of different backgrounds and nurture their respect for each other's traditions and beliefs.

Ms Denise Phua also spoke about children with special needs earlier. MOE shares her vision of helping special needs children to realise their potential to the fullest.

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Ms Phua suggested a shared services model for SPED schools. I agree that this is a useful approach in optimising resources and enhancing professionalism. MOE will study this further.

Ms Phua also asked if MOE could send good officers for attachment in SPED schools. I am glad to inform her that MOE officers may request for secondment to SPED schools, and that such requests are usually supported. Last year, there were 30 MOE officers on secondment to special education schools, including three principals. MOE officers may also seek to be attached to special education schools under the work attachment programme for a shorter period, and 10 officers have done so last year.

We are also developing a Quality Assurance Framework for special education schools, and we will take Ms Phua's feedback into account. I would like to reaffirm that MOE and NCSS are committed to continually improve support for education for children with special needs.

*Cols. 2043-2044.

Pre-School Education

Dr Ong Seh Hong: Sir, pre-school education is getting its due recognition and emphasis world wide. It is crucial to the laying of foundation for a child's education. Many countries see it as investment for the future. I am glad that, in Singapore, we are no different. About 97% of children here receive pre-school education. The Education Ministry has, over the last few years, put in concerted efforts to improve the quality and the participation rate in pre-school education. This is especially true among students from low-income families attending pre-school.

Sir, we should continue to strive to improve on the quality of pre-school. We

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should ensure that not only each and every child attend pre-school but also our pre-school education is of high standard. This requires more resources from the Government. Currently, the subvention given to eligible pre-school centre is dependent on the number of trained pre-school teachers each centre has. This system, although it has helped to raise the quality of eligible pre-school education centres, does not take into consideration the number of students each centre has. It is also in deference to the students' families' socio-economic status. I urge the Education Ministry to relook this issue and work out a more equitable system of allocating subsidies for pre-school education centres, and favour those with more children from lower-income families.

Of course, MOE should still set standards for centres to be eligible for MOE's subsidies. The criteria should include minimum educational requirement of the teachers, the teacher-student ratio and the classroom resources required, etc. Once eligible, the centre should then be subsidised based on the number of pupils, and with higher funding given to those pupils from lower-income families. As a result, the centre with more children from lower-income families could then maintain charging a lower fee while maintaining a high standard of pre-school education.

Mrs Josephine Teo: Sir, like several parliamentary colleagues, I had also spoken during last year's COS to call on the Ministry of Education to improve the consistency of quality among pre-school providers in Singapore. I had argued that the current standards for kindergartens, which the MOE had put in place, was insufficient. This was because many parents do not know that the standards exist. Even if the standards are good enough, and even if they did, it is not realistic to expect parents to be able to assess pre-school providers according to the standards. Parents would welcome a quicker and simpler way to help them

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assess the quality of pre-school education providers.

I had argued also that the MOE was best placed to provide the quality assurance as it had the people with the relevant knowledge, expertise and credibility. If MOE is concerned that having a quality assurance programme would drive providers out of business, why not make it voluntary? This will also give parents a choice to decide if they are willing to pay more for a provider that makes the effort to meet the standards of a quality assurance programme.

I would like to ask the MOE if it could give an update on the possibility of a quality assurance programme being put in place. And if yes, when could parents expect its introduction?

In addition to a quality assurance programme, I would also like to suggest that the MOE consider ways to improve further the teacher quality among pre-schools in Singapore. Last year, as part of an effort to gain insights into the expectations of parents, a small task force was formed by the PAP Community Foundation Executive Committee. The task force conducted a survey involving some 1,600 parents of kindergarten and childcare students. Among other things, the survey showed that parents ranked staff quality as the second most important consideration after distance for choosing a pre-school provider.

Given the importance that parents place on staff quality, I would like to ask the MOE what plans it has to further improve the quality of teachers in our pre-schools. I urge the MOE to move decisively on consistency and quality of pre-school education. The reason is that the children soon grow up. There is not a day more that we can afford to lose to give them the best possible headstart in life.

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My third area of concern was also brought up last year. In terms of affordability, pre-school education costs a lot more than primary or even secondary school education. At PCF kindergartens where fees are amongst the most affordable, the monthly cost of around $100 is still more than 15 times that of fess at most primary schools. I understand that improving quality will require further investments, and this could put further pressure on the fees to be adjusted upwards. May I ask the MOE what plans it has to improve affordability and, at the same time, enhance the consistency and quality of pre-school education?

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: Sir, most children entering Primary 1 today have some level of numeracy and literacy skills. Thanks to the enthusiastic parents who start them from as young as two-and-a-half years old in all kinds of play school and early learning programmes. I understand that a number of these schools even charge fees higher than the undergraduate programmes in NUS. But middle and upper class parents generally spare no expense to give their children a headstart. Because this is so widespread, it might even have caused the primary school curriculum to be consciously or otherwise level up to cater to the higher level of preparedness of the cohort entering Primary 1.

Unfortunately, we have a segment of children in each cohort, about 5% or less, who do not attend pre-school at all. These children have difficulty keeping pace with the syllabus once they enter primary school. What these children need is a right start to their educational journey. I urge the Ministry to consider deploying a team of social workers to identify such children and counsel their families, show them ways to resolve their problems and motivate them to send their children to pre-school. To nip the problem of future

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low education, low skills and low income workers in the bud, we must tackle this problem aggressively and thoroughly and early enough. Half-hearted efforts relying on untrained volunteers, while their efforts are certainly deserving of praise and appreciation, will be simply insufficient.

The other issue is that of uneven standards of our kindergartens. Last year, the Ministry informed this House that almost 90% of our kindergartens have adopted the kindergarten curriculum formulated by the Ministry. Would the Minister give us an update on how many more kindergartens have adopted this framework? In addition, how does the Ministry ensure that our kindergartens maintain the standards set by the framework? Do we have a reliable evaluation method and consistent audit?

Given the importance of pre-school as foundational learning for all children, the MOE should ensure that the quality of pre-school education, their teachers, curriculum and resources conform to some minimum standards. I am thankful that the Government has set minimum requirements for the qualifications of pre-school principals and teachers to ensure that they are trained for the job. The Ministry informed us last year that 82% of pre-school teachers are now certificate or diploma trained, and 70% principals diploma trained. Has this ratio improved? Are there any plans to ensure that all teachers and principals have the relevant qualification?

3.45 pm

In conclusion, Sir, I believe that the quality of our pre-school sector should be further improved for the sake of our children to give them the right headstart for their education journey. MOE must continue to pay attention to children from

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lower income backgrounds, and help them gain access to high quality and affordable pre-school education. It is a long-term investment, but this is one of the most effective ways to lift an entire group of Singaporeans out of the poverty trap and give them a chance to make good in life.

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, there is diversity in the quality of our pre-school education amongst its providers. Does MOE intend to close this gap on the standard of our pre-school education?

My concern is on the accessibility of pre-school education to the lower-income group. Could there be cooperation amongst Ministries in identifying these families? Should there be a database set up for this purpose to provide better assistance and follow-up? Could MOE design a comprehensive automatic scheme for needy families to ensure that no child is deprived? Could MOE also provide a plan for monitoring the progress of these children up to secondary school?

Mr Michael Palmer: Sir, the Government has continually upgraded our education system at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. I applaud the changes that the Ministry has made in our education system over the years. The most recent ones are very exciting - the focus has shifted to quality and diversity, with the goal being to develop the potential of every child to the maximum, such that we attain many peaks of excellence. More choices are being introduced for students so that they can develop their strength and interest in sports, the arts, and many other intellectual endeavours. At the highest level, the Government is considering establishing a fourth university.

However, I believe that education does not and should not begin only at Primary One. It is during the first six years of a child's life that they develop most of their neuro pathways. It is during this period

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that the child is most eager to learn, and most open to stimulation. It is during this period that children develop the ability to take part in their own learning. If a child receives good quality education in pre-school and is given the correct environment to develop his or her path in primary, secondary and tertiary education, it will be much more fruitful and enriching.

Given the profound impact that a child's pre-school education can have on the growth and development of that child, I ask whether it is not incumbent on us to ensure that pre-school education that we provide to our children should be as good, if not better than the primary, secondary and tertiary education that we offer our children today. If we are to maximise and harness the potential of every single child, why not seize the opportunity to nurture them during the most crucial years of development.

At last year's Committee of Supply debate, the Senior Parliamentary Secretary (Education), Mr Masagos Zulkifli said that the Government has set minimum requirements for the qualifications of pre-school principals and teachers and has also formulated the kindergarten curriculum framework which almost 90% of kindergartens have adopted.

On 15th of February sitting this year, Mr Masagos added a few more areas to the list of support which the Ministry gives to pre-school education, including promoting kindergarten's self-appraisal.

I echo the views on quality assurance stated by Mrs Josephine Teo and Dr Amy Khor. I would like to ask what steps does the Ministry intend to take to improve the quality of pre-school education and ensure that those levels of quality are either maintained or further improved. Why does the Ministry not impose a compulsory and stringent appraisal system for pre-schools rather than the present self-appraisal

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system? As the Minister has said, we hold our schools accountable to the highest standards, why not our pre-schools? Will the Government consider introducing an accreditation programme for pre-schools much like the EduTrust for private schools? If so, will it be a one-off accreditation or one that is reviewed on a periodic basis, and will it be compulsory? If not, why not?

Aside from requiring pre-school teachers to meet minimum standards in English, what other measures are being introduced, and what has the kindergarten curriculum framework introduced - was it revised? And how does the Ministry ensure that all pre-schools adhere to that framework.

Kindergarten

Mdm Cynthia Phua (Aljunied): Sir, kindergarten education has largely been overlooked in favour of primary, secondary and tertiary institutions. I feel that more financial resources should be committed to pre-school education. It has been well noted from aged two to age five that children's responsiveness to external stimulus is at its peak.

Kindergarten education should be made more affordable. Give more grants to approved pre-school institutions, hence, allowing the fees to be lowered. The average cost for a kindergarten teacher is about $2,500, with the teacher/student ratio in K1 and K2 of 1:25, and 1:15 for nursery.

Staff cost is staggering for the kindergartens. The cost of kindergarten fee for two children in a family income of $2,000 would be a hefty 10%, ie, $200 a month, and this fee is only among the lowest. It has been found that around 5% of Singaporean children, aged five and six, do not attend kindergarten. Why is this so? Could the high fees be the reason?

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Presently, there is not a defining standard as to what constitutes good quality education. According to an UNESCO report on education, important contributing factors include good teaching, well equipped and safe learning environment, and an effective curriculum.

Recently, MOE has found that many children who enter Primary One may only have the reading age of five; ie, they cannot even read words like "on", or "is" according to a senior reading specialist who helped develop MOE's new learning support programme.

Help kindergartens to have a set of basic learning curriculum. With this basic learning curriculum, MOE would be able to effectively respond to the changing needs of the children, so as to prepare the children in a formal primary and secondary education.

Lastly, give more funds for children to learn games too, so that more can be selected in the primary schools for their CCA as well.

Pre-School and Childcare Teachers

Mr Zainudin Nordin (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Sir, research shows that a high quality early childhood education produces positive outcomes not only for children and their families, but has a longer term benefit to society as a whole.

In addition to the curriculum and facilities, pre-school teachers are crucial to a successful pre-school experience. For many children, it is this first experience that should foster a lifelong joy of learning and an overall sense of comfort and achievement within a learning environment.

However, despite their importance, our pre-school and childcare teachers are

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currently one of the lowest paid educators in the industry. Many of these teachers join the industry driven by passion. Unfortunately, many of them are leaving due to low pay, increased workload and stress.

In a recent independent study of the pre-school teachers, one in every three teachers interviewed has an intention to leave within the next 12 months. More than half of them said that the low pay is the main push for leaving. Some others cited work stress as being unbearable. Imagine this: out of 100 who join the industry, only 66 will stay to the next age group. If nothing is done to stop this, the current spending by individuals, Government, pre-school centres on training and development would be wasted due to high turnover. And with higher turnover, more training will be needed for new staff, driving cost to increase.

Sir, I believe that teaching pre-schoolers is not just about fun and games. It requires a unique set of skills and is enriched by the years of teaching experience. It is important for us to take care of the needs of our pre-school teachers and keep them motivated to deliver a high quality pre-school education while we enhance the qualification status. We should also look into enhancing the attractiveness of this industry to the incumbent and the new teachers.

Considering the importance of pre-school teachers, are we doing enough to fuel the passion? Have we developed comprehensive policy to take care of the welfare of these teachers?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, our current pre-school landscape is diverse, with about 500 kindergartens and 750 childcare centres operated by private and community organisations. They offer a variety of programmes tailored to the different needs of our students. While this diversity allows for experimentation and

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innovation by pre-school operators in the design of curriculum and delivery of programmes, we want to ensure that they continue to provide pre-school education of a good quality.

International research indicates that pre-school education is particularly helpful in allowing children from low-income families to be more school ready. In addition, our research shows it offers children from non-English speaking homes an opportunity to develop their proficiency in English through exposure and practice. Hence, we want to make sure that these children have greater access to good quality pre-school education, so that they can obtain a firm foundation when they enter primary school.

However, we recognise that pre-school education is not just about getting our children to be school ready, but also about providing a holistic approach to their development and learning. Besides developing their skills in language, literacy and numeracy, we also want to ensure that they undergo other critical areas of learning, such as aesthetic and creative expression, environmental awareness, motor skills development, and self and social awareness. This is so that they can become well-rounded individuals who are equipped with the necessary competencies to prepare them for lifelong learning.

Also, the educational profile of parents has shifted over time. Parents have become more well-educated and better read, and have begun to demand as much emphasis on the rigour of the educational component of pre-school as they had for aspects of care, even in the heartlands. While less than one-fifth of P1 students had at least one parent who attended post-secondary education 20 years ago, this ratio has now increased to one-half today. It is hence necessary to ensure that the quality of our pre-school teachers allows them to engage parents effectively

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and the standard of the pre-school centres keeps pace with evolving demands.

Before detailing the list of initiatives that MOE will undertake to raise the quality of the pre-school sector, allow me to report the progress of those we had already announced and executed previously.

Last year, I announced the project pilot called the Focused Language Assistance in Reading programme or FLAiR. This initiative aims to provide targeted assistance in English to children from lower-income families, as many of them tend to lack reading materials, writing experiences, and opportunities for speaking and listening to the English Language at home. The children receive daily attention from para-educational professionals or Pro-FLAiRs who spend dedicated time reading or conversing with them either on a one-to-one basis or in a group of four to six children. The pilot in 2007 covered 57 heartland kindergartens, 600 children participated, and they were able to develop early reading skills as a result of the programme. We now want to extend this to more kindergartens, and we will be encouraging more kindergartens this year to provide this programme.

Dr Ong Seh Hong, Mrs Josephine Teo, Dr Amy Khor, Mr Michael Palmer and Mdm Cynthia Phua have asked about improving the quality of pre-school education.

We have been implementing various initiatives over the years to uplift the quality of pre-school education through the better training of teachers. Firstly, we have articulated standards of professional qualifications for all major providers of pre-school education to meet. As of January this year, we have about 90% of teachers employed in kindergartens and childcare centres, who have attended or are undergoing training to acquire

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certificates or diplomas in pre-school education.

Secondly, to ensure acceptable standards in pre-school teacher training, MOE and MCYS have jointly set up the Pre-School Qualification Accreditation Committee (or PQAC) in 2001 to accredit pre-school training courses up to Diploma level. As at December 2007, the PQAC has accredited 70 PQAC courses run by 21 training agencies.

Thirdly, to allow our pre-school teachers to attain a basic level of English proficiency, we mounted the English Communication Skills (or ECS) Course in November last year to develop teachers’ accuracy, facility and fluency in the appropriate use of Standard English in various situations. To date, 315 kindergarten teachers have attended or are attending the course.

MOE has developed a pre-school curriculum framework in 2003 to guide pre-school operators in developing programmes that meet the needs of their children, and conducted in-service workshops and briefings to more than 7,000 teachers on its effective use. To date, more than 90% of kindergartens have adopted the principles of the curriculum framework in the design of their pre-school programmes.

As a result of our continual efforts, the quality of our pre-school sector has steadily improved over the years. Building on what we have been doing over the past few years, we are now ready to take the next step to further uplift this quality across the board by improving the quality of our teachers.

MOE had previously set the minimum academic and professional qualifications of pre-school teachers in 2001. As a result, all pre-school teachers were

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required to have three ‘O’ level passes, including a pass in English, and the certificate-level professional qualification.

At that time, the emphasis was on making sure that teachers received adequate professional training that would enable them to deliver their lessons effectively.

4.00 pm

Over the years, there has been a shift in educational philosophy. In the past, teachers were seen as bearers of knowledge and expected to teach skills and content to children as passive learners. Now, children are viewed as active learners who construct knowledge for themselves, and the role of the teacher has transformed to one of helping them to construct their own learning in a seamless, integrated and holistic way. With this increased complexity, it is now timely to improve the basic calibre of our teachers so that they can continue to have the capacity to engage children through more sophisticated pedagogies.

Hence, we will require that from January 2009, all new teachers will need to have five 'O' level passes, including a pass in English, and hold a diploma-level professional qualification in order to teach in either kindergartens or childcare centres. This is attainable, given that there is a ready pool of candidates with five 'O' level passes which has grown from more than 70% of the 'O' level cohort in 1997 to 80% in 2007.

In addition, we want our incumbent pre-school teachers to attain a basic level of English proficiency, so that they will be able to help our children, particularly those from non-English speaking families, to acquire the foundational language skills needed to be school ready. Hence, incumbent teachers who already have a diploma-level professional qualification do not need to meet the new requirement of five 'O' level passes, but they will need an 'O' level pass in English, or a pass in an

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English proficiency test, to teach K1 and K2 classes. If incumbent teachers are unable to obtain either a pass in English or a diploma-level professional qualification by January 2013, they can still teach at the nursery level. To further uplift the standards of English proficiency, we will also require new teachers with C5 or C6 in English to pass an English proficiency test within two years.

Sir, in order to help boost the overall quality of our teachers over time, we will require each pre-school centre to have at least 75% of all its teachers, including K1/K2 and pre-nursery/nursery teachers together, to meet the new requirements by January 2013. These teachers who comprise 75% will include new teachers with at least five 'O' level credits, including English Language (EL) and a diploma-level professional qualification, and, secondly, incumbent teachers with an 'O' level credit in EL, or a pass in an EL proficiency test, and the diploma-level professional qualification.

Currently, already more than half of our incumbent teachers meet the revised requirements. A centre can retain incumbent teachers who do not meet these requirements as long as they teach at the nursery or pre-nursery levels, but these teachers should comprise less than 25% of all teachers in the centre in 2013.

To encourage teachers and principals to continuously upgrade their academic qualifications and professional expertise, MOE and MCYS will be offering bursaries to pre-school professionals from this year onwards. This will enable them to enhance their competencies so that they can provide better pre-school education for the children under their charge.

In addition, we will also further tighten standards of accredited pre-school teacher training courses to enhance the rigour of teacher training. The revisions are expected to be completed some time

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around mid-2008 and the enhanced standards will take effect from 2009.

We will also work with professional bodies to present awards to outstanding and innovative teachers. These awards will help to identify and build up a pool of capable pre-school teachers to serve as role models and mentors to fellow teachers. Funding will be provided for these teachers to attend mentoring courses and they will also be involved in sharing good teaching practices. In this way, we hope that they can help develop a positive sharing culture throughout the pre-school sector, and uplift the overall quality of teachers in the sector in the process.

Besides raising the minimum qualifications of pre-school teachers, we are of the firm belief that the quality of the pre-school sector will improve across the board if operators are provided with resources to help them monitor their performance and upgrade themselves. As mentioned by Members, to nurture this climate of continual self-improvement, MOE developed and distributed a tool, called Pursuing Excellence at Kindergartens, or PEAK for short, to encourage kindergartens to conduct yearly self-appraisals and think of more effective ways of delivering educational outcomes, and this was introduced in 2003. As of December last year, 90% of kindergartens have practised self-appraisals in their kindergartens and found the tool to be helpful.

Mrs Josephine Teo and Mr Michael Palmer also asked about quality assurance. To encourage pre-school operators to further uplift their standards and strive for greater excellence in pre-school education, MOE and MCYS will develop a voluntary quality assurance and accreditation framework and implement it from January 2011 to guide pre-schools in gauging their progress in achieving a

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higher standard beyond the minimum requirements. Through this framework, pre-school operators will be able to benchmark their education outcomes through yearly self-appraisal and external assessment. Pre-school operators that meet specified standards may then apply for accreditation. Although participation is not compulsory, attaining a good quality rating or accreditation status is an endorsement and recognition of the quality of the pre-school. We believe that this will incentivise pre-school operators to improve their standards over time, uplifting the quality of the pre-school sector in the process.

To support pre-schools in their efforts, MOE will provide them with additional curriculum resources to help teachers implement the curriculum framework. MOE has embarked on a project to develop a Curriculum Planning Guide which aims to guide teachers to translate MOE's curriculum framework into quality learning and teacher-pupil interactions. The Planning Guide will also provide suggestions for pre-schools to plan, monitor and reflect on experiences and instruction that will enable children to make progress in their learning and development.

We also recognise that a well-resourced classroom can provide a stimulating environment for learning. With effect from 2008, non-profit pre-schools can apply for grants to purchase teaching and learning resources such as books, computers and software.

To nurture a spirit of innovation and experimentation among pre-schools, MOE and MCYS will also introduce an innovation fund this year. This aims to provide seed funding to encourage pre-school operators to try out new ideas and experiment on areas that will have an impact on the quality of teaching and

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learning, pupil development and school management.

We will also be exploring the development of an early childhood education training and research programme within NIE, so as to build up a strong local community of expertise in early childhood education, leadership and research.

While we develop ways to improve the quality of pre-school and allocate resources for it, we want as many children as possible to benefit from it. We thank Mdm Cynthia Phua for her question on improving the accessibility of pre-school education. To provide access to those who are currently not attending pre-school, MOE, MCYS and grassroots organisations have put in place an outreach programme since last year to identify five-year-old children who are not attending pre-school. Yes, they may be volunteers from the grassroots organisations, but their job is not just to conduct visits to families with children who do not attend pre-school, but to also provide them help and, if necessary, refer them to social service agencies. The percentage of our five-year-old children who are not attending pre-school is now about 3%. MOE and MCYS will continue to work closely with the community to support grassroots organisations in their outreach efforts this year.

MOE has also worked with primary schools since 2006 to identify six-year-old children who are not attending pre-school somehow at the point of the Primary 1 registration exercise, and help them place their children in pre-school for the remaining months prior to the start of Primary 1. We have also supported the Self-Help Groups in their Bridging Programme to equip needy children who did not attend pre-school with basic school readiness skills. We will continue to adopt this targeted approach to reach out to these children, as we believe that

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this would be more effective in getting them to attend pre-school than introducing compulsory education at this point of time.

On ensuring affordability of pre-school education, currently, MOE provides annual recurrent grants to help eligible kindergartens who cater largely to lower-income families with additional resources to improve their quality, while maintaining affordability of fees. MOE has provided $17 million in 2007 for this purpose. To ensure that pre-school education continues to remain affordable with the raised teacher qualifications, MOE will be enhancing the recurrent grants for these kindergartens. We will give details later on.

Parents can continue to make use of the Baby Bonus and the monies in their Child Development Account to pay for any increase in pre-school fees. Of course, for the needy, a variety of financial assistance schemes have already been put in place to help children from lower-income families, such as the Kindergarten Financial Assistance Scheme (KiFAS) and the Centre-Based Financial Assistance Scheme for Childcare (CFAC). MCYS will be announcing enhancements to both schemes to help more families to pay for their pre-school fees.

For those who need further help, community-based support is also available through the grassroots organisations, self-help groups and PCF kindergartens, to supplement the Government subsidies. For example, CDAC and MENDAKI provide additional financial assistance under the Pre-School Assistance and Support Scheme (PASS) and Education Trust Fund (ETF) initiatives respectively. Advisors and grassroots leaders can also tap on the Citizens' Consultative Committees' Welfare and Education Fund and ComCare Fund to assist their residents who need financial support to send their children to pre-school who may

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not qualify for the assistance somehow. The Government will continue to review the affordability of pre-school education, to make sure that no child will be denied a place in pre-school because of financial difficulties.

MOE will be spending a total of $30.5 million in 2009 for all the initiatives to uplift the quality of the pre-school sector.

Lastly, Mr Zainudin Nordin spoke on the need to enhance the remuneration and professional image of our pre-school teachers. While matters pertaining to remuneration are directed by pre-school providers and essentially market driven, more importantly, MOE and MCYS recognise that the most direct way to enhance the professional image of our pre-school teachers is to improve the calibre and training of our pre-school workforce. This is why we have raised the minimum academic and professional qualifications for pre-school teachers.

The Association of Early Childhood Educators, Singapore, or AECES, promotes the professional development of early childhood educators and has disseminated a Code of Ethics to all pre-schools. MOE and MCYS will encourage AECES to play a more active role in improving the image of the early childhood professionals.

To help kindergartens identify training needs and prioritise areas for the professional development of their staff, MOE has developed and disseminated a Professional Development Framework. We also organise in-service training, workshops for pre-school educators to improve their pedagogical, leadership and management skills. Teachers and principals are invited to share their experiences and good practices in areas such as curriculum planning, teaching strategies, assessment, partnerships with parents and community, and action research at sharing sessions and briefings for kindergarten leaders.

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Overseas experts on Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) have also been invited by MOE and MCYS to conduct seminars so as to further build a professional pre-school workforce.

In conclusion, the Ministry will continue to review our efforts to uplift the quality of pre-school education, so as to ensure that all children, without losing sight of those from low-income families, will be ready for school and prepared for life.

The Chairman: We have some time left. Dr Neo.

Dr Lily Neo: I would like to seek some clarification from the Senior Parliamentary Secretary. Earlier, he said that children from disadvantaged families should not be given automatic assistance for fear of an entitlement mindset of these families. Could I ask him whether is it not better to err on the side of generosity to ensure that no child is deprived of education in our society here?

Is it fair to adopt this policy of fear of entitlement mindset on these children who badly need our assistance? And is it right to deprive these children the chance of levelling up in education as a result of this policy?

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Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, I do not want to go into a philosophical debate about whether we should be nurturing the entitlement mentality or not. But I think what is important for us to notice is the process we have already put in place to ensure that these children have access to affordable and good quality pre-school education.

As I mentioned just now, we have engaged the community organisations as well as VWOs and PA to go and knock door-to-door to get these children the

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education that they should need, rather than just looking at the database and at the automatic qualification of all these children. I think the effect of the grassroots going to get these children to go to pre-school, the effect of the parents making the effort to bring their children to pre-school, augur well for a society that we all look for.

Mrs Josephine Teo: Sir, I would like to seek a clarification from the SPS on the quality assurance framework. I believe the SPS said that this framework will take effect from 2011. I would like to find out from him what are the considerations why we have to wait until 2011 for this framework to be introduced and what happens between now and then.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, I think we have to look at this whole development in perspective. The upgrading of the quality does not come on its own. It is in conjunction with the policy that we had announced just now, and it will take time for the industry to adjust and bring out the right amount of quality that we want to see within the industry. Therefore, it is fair for them to also implement this quality assurance in that context so that they are given time and we are also given time to develop that framework that is fair for everybody and time for everybody to know how to basically succeed in the accreditation process.

Mdm Cynthia Phua: Sir, I would like to ask the Minister whether there is any target that MOE hopes to achieve for participation rate for sports CCA. With the Sports School itself, why do we have six other schools to embrace sports excellence? Can this excellence in sports be delegated down to the sports clubs which are keen to have more talented students who are good in sports? With this, can we have more MOE funds to allow more children in the normal schools to have sports CCA?

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Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: We would like as many children as possible to participate in CCA. The effects and benefits of CCA, as I mentioned just now, are quite obvious. But certainly we cannot force them, especially in primary schools. But now we know that primary schools have innovated various ways to get children to be interested, including modular CCA.

Funds are already available from MOE, as well as MCYS, in the SEP Fund that I mentioned just now for each school to implement every quarter, every year, different kinds of sports that will enable all children to participate in sports that they may not be participating in, in a particular CCA. So, funds are already available.

Mdm Cynthia Phua: Sir, is there any target for the participation rate?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: There are no hard targets. For secondary schools, it is compulsory. For primary schools, it is not compulsory yet. We want them to participate voluntarily at this point of time because there are logistics issues for primary school students to attend CCA, especially if it is after school hours.

Mr Alvin Yeo (Hong Kah): Sir, I would just like to ask the Minister, since smaller class sizes were introduced for Primary 1 and Primary 2 students in 2004, what have the results or feedback been and whether there are plans to extend that to other primary level students.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Sir, the results have been positive. We now have a few years to look at this. In fact, we have studied it quite carefully across schools as well as looking at specific schools to see what real outcomes have come about as a result of smaller class sizes in Primary 1 and Primary 2.

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The small class size per se has not been a decisive factor. What has really mattered is how teachers have made use of a small class size, and we do see some variations across schools. The schools in which the teachers have made the most use of a smaller class size to change learning methodologies - a lot more group work, a lot more chances for the students to question, a lot more interaction back and forth between teacher and students - are the ones that have seen the most measurable outcomes coming out of smaller class size. So, smaller class sizes have facilitated something that is more important, and that is really the interaction of teacher and students. What types of benefits? We cannot put a score to this but, on the whole, the teachers and parents have concluded that the students are now more interested in their learning, more outspoken and willing to stand up in class to question and express their views. And the weaker students especially, together with what we are doing on the learning support programme, are now a lot more engaged in their learning. They are able to catch up with the rest of the class and are progressing better in Primary 3 and 4.

Should we extend it beyond Primary 1 and 2? I do not think we should go for the same model of mandating a fixed class size across schools. What we are doing is improving our pupil-teacher ratios - fewer pupils for each teacher - by providing more teachers to every school and then letting the school decide, because the schools are different, classes are different. Students differ in their abilities and learning styles and it is really for the principal, the Heads of Departments and the teachers to decide how best to deploy these additional teachers. Some principals might feel that their average classes are doing fine just as they are. But there might be a group of students with an exceptional talent who need a little more pushing on a smaller group basis, and a group of students who

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are weaker who need more attention and supervision even after school hours to help them come up and catch up with the rest. So, these are school-based decisions. It is best that we flow more teachers to the schools and let them decide how best to allocate them, rather than mandate this across the board.

Dr Ong Seh Hong: Sir, I would like to move to university education. I have two clarifications - one affecting current undergraduates and those who have graduated, and the other on future undergraduate students.

For current undergraduates and those who have just graduated, I would like to find out from the Minister how many of them graduated with a debt burden because of study loans, eg, how much, on average, is the financial burden per graduating student?

For the fourth university, my question for MOS Lui is: with the increase to 30% in the number of students targeted from the current 25%, how would he ensure that the standard of a university education is not eroded? I have read from some news reports last year that, in Taiwan, because they have so many universities, some of the students, even if they fail English, could still get into university.

RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, let me take the questions one at a time.

As to the number of students who are in debt when they leave university as a result of tuition fee loans and study loans, I do not have the data with me. What we do know is that, when we work out the figures, if they take the maximum amount that is required to pay for fees as well as living expenses, because it is interest-free for the duration when they are in university and if they take the maximum duration of 20 years thereafter to pay for

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the loan that they have taken, it would be 10% of their starting salary when they first graduate. Obviously, over time, as the salary increases, they can pay back faster and it becomes a slightly smaller percentage. So we monitor this quite carefully to make sure that, for those students who really require a full loan - whether because they do not qualify for bursaries or do not want to depend on their parents - that, yes, they go and take a loan but it is an affordable rate of payment.

For the fourth university, the Member is absolutely right in the sense that we must do so carefully to make sure that we keep standards high, because the impact is not just for the students from the fourth university. If we erode the quality of the university sector in Singapore, I think all the graduates will suffer to one extent or another. We have seen examples in other countries, eg, in the United Kingdom, and Taiwan, as mentioned by the Member. But they have expanded the university sector very quickly. They have converted polytechnics into universities, all trying to raise significantly the participation rate in a degree education, and it really has impacted the graduates coming out from the universities because they find it difficult to get employment. They would have been better off going for a polytechnic education, which is very hands-on, very applied, with the right skills, coming out into industry and manufacturing. In that sense, they have eroded that aspect of their education without gaining the benefits that a university education ought to give to an undergraduate.

So, we have to be mindful of that. We are doing so gradually, raising from 20% to 25% over the past decade up to 2010, and then doing so from 25% to 30% by 2015. And we are confident that we can do so for a few reasons. One is that the economy is strong. There is a demand for graduates. Two is that, if you look at the

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improvements we have made to the primary, secondary and post-secondary education, whether it is JC or polytechnics, I think our students are well equipped to benefit from a university education. And so, by progressing gradually, carefully and judiciously, we will make sure that our universities produce graduates who will be very employable and contribute back both economically as well as socially.

Mr Zainudin Nordin: Sir, I would just like to know what kind of progress has Northlight gone through. What are the employment opportunities that are available for the graduates of Northlight and what are the resources that are being provided for the students in Northlight? What is the impact that MOE expects from the new requirement for pre-school and childcare teachers that has been set for 2009? What will be the impact? Is it cost? What are the other possibilities that can happen because of this requirement?

RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, let me deal with Northlight. Northlight was started in order to provide more opportunities for the students who find that they have difficulty getting through PSLE and probably will have difficulty going into one of our national secondary schools where the syllabus and the approach are more academically-inclined. We decided to set up this school in order to be able to provide a different form of education for a group of students that are less academically-inclined.

Judging by what has happened so far since the establishment of the school, it has really been very encouraging. Teachers were carefully selected, having that passion to work with a group of students who are more hands-on, need to be engaged in a different way, challenged and motivated in different ways. We have found the students responding well to the curriculum that has been put together for them. We have also been very encouraged

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by one additional aspect, ie, how the community has come in to support the school and the students. What they are getting in Northlight will not only enthuse them for the kind of education that will equip them with some basic skills so that, when they do transit to ITE, they will be better equipped and prepared than they would otherwise be if they had gone through the normal secondary route, including the Normal (Technical) stream.

4.30 pm

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, for the second part, the question is what is the probable impact. I think the Member may be referring to the possible displacement and so forth. We have to look also at the positive outcome of the policy.

Firstly, we believe that it will make the pre-school industry a very attractive industry for newcomers to come into. The Diploma courses in Ngee Ann Poly, for example, will be much more sought after because the industry will have a better name, better quality and better pay.

However, for incumbent teachers, we have ascertained that about 50% in the kindergarten sector and 60% in the childcare sector have already got the minimum requirements to stay in the industry. However, the other 50% and 40% respectively for this industry have time to upgrade themselves and also to attain the necessary qualification. So it is up to the individuals to ensure that they get the right qualifications to teach our children at pre-school level. I think I have to underscore the importance of the competency that we need for pre-school teachers to impart a more sophisticated pedagogy for our students.

Let me give an illustration. I was in Hong Kong once and watched this pre-school teacher supervising a child drawing a big painting on a very big piece of paper. From an untrained observer like

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myself, I thought this child was doing a painting but he was actually drawing a still art of a flower. When I asked the supervisor, the teacher said: "No. We are not teaching him to paint, we are training his gross motor skill". That is quite different. I think that is from an untrained teacher's perspective, if we do not train them well, it means they do not have the right qualification. These teachers who do it will carry out the routine without understanding how they are developing our child. What we want is a more sophisticated, well trained teacher who knows how to best develop our child to the right pitching of the qualification when they come in, and the training that we can give them.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo (West Coast): Sir, I would like to ask MOS whether there is any difference between private schools and training institutions for adult students, and whether the training institutions providing education for adult students would also be similarly subject to the EduTrust and the new regulatory framework.

Mr Gan Kim Yong: Sir, the private education scheme, particularly EduTrust, is focused mostly on institutions that offer diploma certification and specialised academic achievements. So we will initially focus on private schools that offer programmes that lead to a formal qualification, but we will look at all institutions that offer training and education in the longer term.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak: Sir, speaking on behalf of the sandwich class with elderly parents to take care of, will the FAS scheme be considered base on a per capita income, rather than just on household income?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: The different levels of FAS already take into consideration the per capita basis.

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Dr Lim Wee Kiak: But it only takes into account how many children you have. It does not take into account the elderly parents you support.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: If I can read to the Member again: for one or two children, the income level is $1,500 and for three or more children, the income level is $1,800.

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: Sir, clarifications for Minister of State Lui. Does MOE assess the root causes of the entry students who failed their PSLE and enter Northlight School? I was told that a number of the students actually have learning or intellectual disabilities. So what is the difference between Northlight School and the other special schools? That is my first clarification.

Second one is: would the Minister comment on my suggestion to have MOE develop a communication matrix, for example, to explain to parents and students so that they can make informed choices about the many types of education options we have, like Science and Technology School, Mathematics and Science School, and so forth?

The third one is for Minister of State Gan Kim Yong. I appreciate his openness for the shared services model for special schools. Can I request that the ground be consulted before this model is implemented by MOE so that it does not become an old wine in new bottle kind of syndrome?

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Ms Phua asked three questions. I was going to ask MOS Lui to answer the first, I answer the second and MOS Gan the third. But there is a Parliamentary rule that says maximum two responses to any set of questions. So I will answer the first two.

Why do students fail their PSLE repeatedly? It is something we have been

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looking at. We notice that there is a group of students who go through the learning support programme at Primary One and Primary Two and do not graduate or they may just barely make it after the end of those two years. We have taken a very thorough look at this group of students several months ago. We looked at a whole cohort and at each student individually.

There is in any population, a group of students who will be of lower intellectual ability. This is true anywhere you go. There is also in any population, a group of students who might be of average or even above average intellectual ability but who have a specific learning disability, be it dyslexia or some other form of learning disability, and we find that for this group that fails to make it through Primary Six, it is principally the first group, those who are very weak in intellectual ability. They might have some other strengths, they might have some artistic flair, they might be good at some aspect of the languages but weak in mathematics. They have some strengths typically which we can try to draw on.

This is a group that we are now looking at carefully to see how we can further support them in Primary Three and Primary Four. Not through a formalised learning support programme, not through a new stream as such, but see how we can help them keep pace with the class, at least on the basics. Keep them well occupied and help them find some strengths in themselves. We are also addressing the needs of that group which has a specific learning disability although they may be of average or above average intelligence. Particularly for Dyslexic kids, there is more that can be done.

We are now working a tight referral system between the Ministry and schools and the Dyslexic Association of Singapore to see how we can intervene earlier to

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help these children while they are in Primary One or Primary Two. Unfortunately, we often find that amongst these very weak students, they have both problems. They have both specific learning disabilities plus weak intellectual ability. We can help them remedy some of their problems with Dyslexia but we will still have to make do and help them find and discover themselves and be able to go through primary school feeling that they are not being cast away. Go through Northlight, some of them might make it into the Normal (Technical) stream, the main stream, pick up some skills, and move on to ITE. We think more can be done.

Does the Member want me to answer the second part of her question first?

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: Minister, my question was: do we have any method of assessment for students applying for Northlight school because they might fail their PSLE repeatedly not because of family background but because of some learning disability? So I think the assessment is important. And if so, why is Northlight so different from the other special schools which are like step-children in the system and Northlight is treated as a direct descendant of MOE? I guess that is my underlying question.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Most of the children in Northlight are those who are not having any specific learning disability, physical or intellectual, but who are just generally weak in academic studies. They deserve a different mode of learning, a different setting, a different school environment. So Northlight is not set up to cater to students with specific learning disabilities, that is something which the special education schools do much better as well as these people like the Dyslexic Association and others who are working together with the mainstream schools to tackle these difficulties.

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On her second question about communication matrix, it is a good idea. Actually, we do a fair bit of communication with parents all the time. Dr Lim Wee Kiak came to Parliament today showing a brochure he got last night. We communicate with parents through flyers and brochures, school-based as well as MOE's own brochures, quite often. Before the end of each year, parents of every Primary Six child get a fairly well worked out colourful description of the choices available in Secondary One. So we will try and do this better - simplify it, get the message across because the choices are getting larger and it becomes a more complex decision for parents. I think MOS Gan will handle the third part.

Mr Gan Kim Yong: Ms Phua asked whether we can get close to the ground and get the feedback from the ground in developing a shared services model. The short answer is, yes. In fact, we have developed workgroups within the Ministry of Education, to work very closely with special education schools and we also have sharing sessions with teachers and principals to understand their needs. And we will continue to work closely with them to get feedback from them, to understand where their strengths and weaknesses are, where their needs are, and how we can help them to develop shared services as a business model.

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, although I have a second topic for clarification, could I just get an answer for my first clarification first? SPS did not answer my question whether he agrees with me that we should err on the side of generosity to assist children from the disadvantaged families to level-up in education.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: I rather approach it from not erring on the side of

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generosity but making sure that we approach them knowing where they are, who they are and making sure they get the financial aid that they need. If somehow the parents come to me for KiFAS or for whatever reasons, do not declare properly and it is not gross criminal mis-declaration, I think we just move on. Rather than penalise the child by stopping the child from going to kindergarten, let the child go through the pre-school.

Dr Lily Neo: Mr Chairman, I do not think my question was answered because I did not ask for financial assistance as such. I was making a speech in the Budget debate and earlier on, when I asked for automatic assistance, it was not financial assistance that I was asking for. Actually, I was asking for the schemes in place to make sure that the children from the disadvantaged families have a chance in education. I do not want to repeat as I do not think the Chairman will allow me to repeat all the areas that I have mentioned earlier that they need help in.

Dr Loo Choon Yong (Nominated Member): Mr Chairman, Sir, some time ago, MOE placed counsellors in schools. I wonder whether the Ministry would share with the House the experience in terms of whether there has been a falling truancy rate, drop-out rate from school, whether it has been a good practice and whether the Ministry wants to extend the scheme.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: The effect has been very positive but we do recognise that in a number of these schools - we identified 70 of them - the workload on the full-time counsellors has been quite heavy and, because of that, we have decided to give them more full-time counsellors.

Dr Loo Choon Yong: What has been the result in terms of drop-out rate and truancy rate, for instance?

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Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: I do not think we can attribute the failure or success on the reduction of the drop-out rate in any school solely on the existence of the FTSC. It has to be many other factors. Some schools used, for example, the time-out programme, incorporating the FTSC, the operation manager within that programme, to address the issue.

So I think it is not so black and white, whether FTSCs do address the attrition issue. However, they do address the need to case manage some of these students on an individual basis on the issues that they have in their growing up.

4.45 pm

Mr Sin Boon Ann (Tampines): Sir, I would like to ask SPS whether the Ministry has a policy of monitoring the quality and effectiveness of school counsellors. Because just last week, I had a resident come to me to tell me that the child was more petrified of the school counsellor than the teacher. That was the reason of the complaint in the first place.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, perhaps the Member could write to me on the matter.

Mr Alvin Yeo: Sir, I just want to seek clarification on the proposed fourth university. Given the importance of developing a research culture in Singapore, I was going to ask whether the Minister would consider positioning the new university as a science and technology type of institution modelled along the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) or California Institute of Technology (Caltech) where there is a strong focus on both pure and applied research.

RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, it is probably a little bit early to try and determine an exact model on what the fourth university would be like. But because NUS and NTU are already fairly

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strong research intensive universities focusing particularly on the basic and fundamental research, we thought that for the fourth university, we could take a somewhat different approach, which is to look more at solutions directed research, meaning research that is done to meet immediate near-term problems faced by companies and industries, and have their students who are going to spend quite a significant amount of time in internships and a more applied-type learning style to be able to work on these problems, and provide solutions that meet some of these immediate near-term challenges, rather than to spend much of their attention on basic and fundamental research. So we thought that is the approach and the direction that the fourth university could take with regard to research.

Mdm Cynthia Phua: Sir, I have two clarifications. With school bullies on the rise, does MOE have a programme to really guide the rest of the children to handle the school bullies in school?

Second, the Minister has emphasised on the role of principals in the schools. I would like to ask the Minister, if there is a change of principal within a four-year period, is the period too short? Let me explain. Recently, I have seen the case of a new principal in a school. The new principal has new ideas, which resulted in resignations of the second liners. Then the principal would have to recruit, convince and, at the same time ---

The Chairman: Mdm Phua, we are running out of time. Please finish your question.

Mdm Cynthia Phua: And he also has to review the curriculum. Can the Minister explain whether the four-year period is too short?

RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, on school bullies, Dr Lily Neo raised a motion a few sittings ago and we had quite a

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discussion on this issue altogether. Let me say again that basically for bullying, this is something that MOE takes very seriously. Our teachers are trained to handle it, to meet with the child, to investigate the incidents, to provide counselling, to provide support and to provide remedial corrective measures, as necessary. That is the short answer, because we had quite a long discussion on this a few sittings ago.

On the role of principals, we have actually moved to a situation where we have principals staying seven years in a particular school, compared to the past which may be four-five years. I think this allows them a sufficient amount of time to basically invest themselves in the school, bring their philosophy to bear, and to see through some of the changes as well as the results. But as a norm, it is not good for them to be in a school for too long, because we want new ideas, we want freshness coming in. So we really have to strike a balance, and we think that the norm of seven years now is probably about the right balance.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo: Sir, I understand that individuals who do not qualify for the four universities programme cannot make use of the CET fund. From the perspective of the industry players, this actually could be seen to be undermining their competitiveness. Therefore, can the Minister consider allowing the subsidies to be used for those taking part-time degree programmes at other approved private institutions?

RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, I am not sure I got Mdm Ho fully on this. The CET, in the sense of allowing students who had not gotten a degree but who wish to take part-time degree programmes at UniSim and the three autonomous universities, this was something that was recently announced in the Budget debate. Those who may not qualify for the three

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universities and the fourth university now have an additional option. Instead of only looking to private institutions or institutions overseas, they are now able to work and yet at the same time avail themselves of the opportunity to do a part-time degree at UniSim, NUS or NTU, because SMU currently does not offer this.

Why are we confining ourselves to these institutions for the time being? I think we have the assurance of quality. Here, we are having this long discussion and debate over private educational institutions and how we can have a better handle on their quality. Right now, I think there is no certainty that all the institutions out there are going to be able to provide quality. In time to come, as MOS Mr Gan has just proposed for us to do, that may improve significantly. But as at this particular point in time, as we introduce this new programme, we want to make sure that we confine it only to those institutions where we have a greater assurance and where we are sure of the quality of the programmes that they offer.

The Chairman: We will take two last questions - Dr Lily Neo and Mr Zainudin.

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, could I come to my second topic of clarification on character refinement which I asked earlier? Is it time to revisit our Civics and Moral Education to see how effective it is in moulding the characters of our children? Could MOE have more educational curriculum or programmes with more emphasis on character development and social etiquette?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, we have just implemented a socio-emotional learning framework, which is a larger framework, to implement character development and meant to infuse within a whole-school approach. And this has just been implemented by schools. We are

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monitoring how they will adopt this within their curriculum and within the school environment, and hope that this will also enhance through CME and other programmes that is relevant in character development to build character.

The Chairman: Mr Zainudin, you have the pleasure of asking the last question.

Mr Zainudin Nordin: Sir, a clarification. I would like to ask MOS how does the worry about changing the polytechnics into universities square with the fact that now some of the polytechnics are given the opportunity to conduct degree programmes. And how does this, at the same time, compare to the fourth university?

RAdm [NS] Lui Tuck Yew: Sir, firstly, about why we were not in favour of the idea of converting a polytechnic to become a university. There are several reasons, not the least of which really is the capacity constraint. We have five polytechnics all well subscribed. It is a mode of education that has become increasingly popular over the years, not least because our polytechnics offer a very high quality of education. So to convert a polytechnic to become a university, I think it means that we actually have to build yet another polytechnic. That is number one.

Number two is that I think where there are niche areas, we encourage our polytechnics to work with a foreign institution to provide upgrading opportunities for specific areas. We have three programmes today for the polytechnics to tie up with the foreign special institutions (FSIs). One is in early childhood, second is in naval architecture and the third one, which was announced recently, is in retail marketing. These are the very limited areas for a very small number of students. That is really the approach that we have been taking for polytechnic and foreign special institutions tie-up. We plan to

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grow this to make more programmes available, tie-ups with more quality institutions from abroad so that there will be more opportunities for the polytechnic graduates.

On top of that, I think the fourth university actually provides us the opportunity to do something different, and I have talked about it. I just want to come back to the point that the fourth university will cater to a combination of students from the 'A' levels as well as from the polytechnics. But in increasing the percentage of students from each cohort going into university to 30%, what it means is that we can have proportionately more polytechnic students than is the case today to have the opportunity to get a degree education here in Singapore in one of our four institutions, if I include the fourth university. Today, it is less than one in six. In time to come, it will be better than one in five.

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, we have had a good debate. As Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam had put it earlier, there were valuable suggestions by Members. It is my sincere hope that these valuable suggestions will be deliberated and considered in subsequent policy implementations of MOE. On that note, I would like to thank the Minister, MOS and SPS for their good elaboration earlier.

Sir, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

The sum of $7,414,000,000 for Head K ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates.

The sum of $622,467,900 for Head K ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.