SURVEY ON THE TEACHING PROFESSION

The following Question stood in the name of Encik Wan Hussin bin Haji Zoohri -

Encik Wan Hussin bin Haji Zoohri: To ask the Minister for Education what are the main findings of the survey on the teaching profession conducted by his Ministry; and what steps are being taken to overcome the shortcomings in the teaching profession as revealed in the findings.

Encik Ibrahim Othman (Bedok GRC): Question No. 4, Sir.

The Senior Minister of State for Education (Dr Tay Eng Soon) (for the Minister for Education): Sir, I am answering on behalf of my Minister.

The Ministry conducted a survey in April this year in connection with the Institute of Education (IE) admission exercise.

The various steps taken by the Ministry to improve the image of the teaching profession, such as television advertisements and revision of starting salaries and IE bursaries appear to have made a favourable impression on the public. The impression is particularly strong amongst the younger age group. They feel that teaching contributes to society and is a satisfying career which provides opportunity for exercising creativity.

However, parents still feel that their children should go into other professions. They believe that the career prospects of a teacher are less favourable than those in other sectors.

The Ministry is aware of the need to improve the prospects in the Education Service. It is studying how the Education Service could be placed under a separate Education Service Commission. It is also reviewing the salary structure to see how those who take on positions of responsibility as Principals, Vice-Principals, Heads of Departments in schools and HQ officers can be better rewarded.

Encik Ibrahim Othman: Was the IE able to recruit enough teachers from its recent intake this year?

Dr Tay Eng Soon: Mr Speaker, Sir, the IE's target for recruitment this year was 454 graduates for the Diploma in Education programme, 120 for Diploma in Physical Education programme and 375 for the Certificate in Education programme, making a total of 949. With this number, the Ministry of Education would be able to fill vacancies arising from the projected retirements and resignations of officers in the coming one to two years.

In the recruitment exercise, the selection board which comprises the PSC, IE and MOE members selected 391 University graduates for the Diploma in Education programme, 104 candidates for the Diploma in Physical Education programme and 460 'A' level candidates for the Certificate in Education programme. The selections were based on criteria such as proficiency in English and ability to communicate well, in addition to the qualifications of the candidates. In the case of university candidates, the Degree must be from an accredited university and the candidate must have two teaching subjects. The intellectual ability of the candidates, as indicated by the details of their qualifications, is taken into account in the selection.

Sir, the outcome of this year's exercise was not as successful as we would have hoped. While we were able to get the targetted number of candidates for the Certificate in Education programme, we were short for both the Diploma in Education and the Diploma in Physical Education programmes. Further, not all offers made to the successful candidates have been taken up. So far, only 789 of the offers have been taken up, against our target figure of 949.

Sir, teaching is a career that requires communicative and intellectual skills. It is right that these qualities should be present in prospective candidates. We cannot solve the problem of teacher shortage by simply lowering selection requirements. Rather, we should make the teaching service more rewarding in terms of better salary scales and promotion prospects. The establishment of an Education Service Commission and revising the salary scales for teachers holding positions of responsibility are necessary if we are to attract more able young men and women to become teachers.

Dr Lau Teik Soon (Serangoon Gardens): Sir, may I ask the Minister of State what is the sex ratio of the new recruits and what efforts are being made to make sure that more men enter the teaching service?

Dr Tay Eng Soon: Mr Speaker, Sir, I thank the Member for that question. It is a long-term concern of the Ministry of Education that there should be enough male teachers, particularly in our secondary schools and more so in our boys' schools. This problem is a difficult one and we are finding it increasingly difficult to persuade young men to come into the teaching service in the face of competition from many other sectors where they can go in and have a career. For this year's recruitment, I have the following figures. In the Certificate in Education programme which is preparing people for primary school teaching, 12% of the number who have registered are men; 88% are women. For the Diploma in Education programme preparing people for teaching in secondary schools and junior colleges, the position is slightly better. 21% are men and 79% are women. The figures are still very low.

Mr Chiam See Tong: Sir, is relief teaching still a problem in our schools? If so, what is the Ministry doing about it?

Dr Tay Eng Soon: Sir, we have mentioned this before in the House that there is always a need for relief teachers. The reason is that there are a number of teachers every year who are away on study leave or who are on maternity leave, having just had babies. These are exigencies of service which will always be with the education service. And to fill these vacancies caused by exigencies of service, relief teachers are needed. So we will always have relief teachers. What we are working to reduce completely are relief teachers filling vacancies which should be filled by full-time teachers. And this is what the annual recruitment exercise strives to fill, in addition to teachers who are resigning or who are retiring.