SMALLER CLASS SIZES FOR PRIMARY 1 AND 2

SMALLER CLASS SIZES FOR PRIMARY 1 AND 2: **

(Results and feedback): **

34.

Mr Alvin Yeo asked the Minister for Education what are the results and feedback received by his Ministry on the smaller class sizes introduced for Primary 1 and 2 students and whether there are plans to extend this to other students.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: MOE reduced class sizes for Primary 1 from 2005 and for Primary 2 from last year, from 40 to 30 students per class. The move to smaller classes has provided young children with a more welcoming start to formal schooling. To take full advantage of

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smaller classes, MOE also introduced the SEED* programme in 2005 to provide a more engaging learning experience for lower primary students.

Feedback about SEED has been very encouraging. Schools are using the flexibility they have been given to try out varied methods to engage their young learners. Teachers have more room to cater to different learning needs and are able to invest more time in inculcating useful values among their pupils.

In many of these schools, teachers customise activity-based lessons, to match the learning styles and abilities of their pupils. Concepts in Mathematics and English are taught by having pupils carry out hands-on activities in small groups of 6-10. As a result, teachers can spend more time with the weaker students, while students who learn at a quicker pace can learn to lead a group and help their peers. Overall, lessons become more interesting, and by working together, pupils learn important values like cooperation and tolerance.

Alternative forms of assessment have also been tried out under SEED. For example, Punggol Primary assesses pupils in role-play, presentations and story-telling to complement the traditional pen-and-paper assessment modes. The feedback from parents and teachers shows that these opportunities help the children develop their language skills and build self-confidence, and spark off a certain creative energy.

On the whole, our experience with smaller class sizes at Primary 1 and 2 has been a positive one so far, although it is too early to come to definitive conclusions. MOE will continue to monitor and study the results of this move.

Mr Yeo asked whether there are plans to extend smaller class sizes to other levels. Our approach to this issue beyond the early primary years is to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio in schools, and let schools decide on how best to take advantage of the improved provisions. Schools may decide to reduce class size where there is benefit, or to use their additional teachers in other ways that can improve the quality of learning. This will vary from school to school, and by level, depending on the profile of students as well as the particular pedagogic skills of the teachers in the school.

Improving the pupil-teacher ratio however hinges on our ability to recruit more teachers, without compromising the quality of the teaching service. This is important to ensure that we continue to provide a high standard of education to our students.

Thus, MOE's approach is to proactively recruit as many good teachers as possible. We are making good progress, and are on track to meeting our target of 30,000 teachers by 2010. MOE is also committed to providing the best possible support for our teachers, such as deploying more para-educators and administrative support staff to our schools, so that teachers can focus more time on helping their students learn better.

3 Strategies for Effective and Engaged Development.

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