CIVICS/MORAL EDUCATION PROGRAMME (Progress report)

Mr Leong Horn Kee asked the Minister for Education what progress his Ministry has made with respect to the new civics/moral education programme follow- ing the decision to discontinue the teaching of religious knowledge as a compulsory subject in the upper secondary school curriculum.

Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam: Mr Speaker, Sir, a Steering Committee, comprising Specialists from the Ministry of Education and the Institute of Education as well as school principals, has been formed to develop a syllabus and textbooks for the new Civics/Moral Education programme which will be taught in the upper levels of secondary schools in place of Religious Knowledge.

This Committee has formulated a draft framework for the syllabus and this framework will be discussed at the Schools Council Meeting this Saturday, 24th February. As the subject is likely to be of wide interest and in order that the Ministry may have the benefit of informed opinion, I have also sent the draft framework to Dr Tan Cheng Bock, Chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee on Education, and to Mr Chandra Das, Chairman of the Supervisory Panel of the Feedback Unit. Dr Tan and Mr Das will be organising meetings in order to obtain feedback on the draft framework. Their views will be communicated to the Ministry by June this year.

This will enable the Ministry to finalise the curriculum in time to introduce the new Civics/Moral Education programme in 1992 starting with the secondary III pupils.