ESTIMATES OF EXPENDITURE FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 1ST APRIL, 1998 TO 31ST MARCH, 1999 (Paper Cmd. 3 of 1998)

Order read for consideration in Committee of Supply [7th Allotted Day].

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Head J -

Resumption of Debate on Question [18th March, 1998],

That the total sum to be allocated for Head J of the Main Estimates be reduced by $100. - [Dr S. Vasoo].

Question again proposed.

Mdm Claire Chiang See Ngoh (Nominated Member): Sir, I am raising this concern based on a fundamental core value which the Government has repeatedly articulated: the desire to become a gracious society. I think BG Yeo's vision of Singapore becoming the watering hole for Silicon Valley experts to come to Singapore to hone our expertise for the IT commerce sector is a very stimulating and intellectually an uplifting one. I applaud that vision. But if we could also visualise Singapore as a nation where people on wheelchairs who are physically handicapped but mentally brilliant, like Dr William Tan, or not too bright but still able, can mix freely and openly over a jug of beer with other Singaporeans without social stigma, in a barrier-free physical environment, then I say we are a city of graciousness. Because it is a city with intellect, enterprise and humanity prevailing side by side.

With this vision of a city as a driving value for my cut today, I would like to raise the following issues to the Minister:

First, what progress has been made on the 1993 Advisory Council's recommendations, and the number of facilities identified for the needs of the disabled?

Second, do we have a central registry of disabled children to enable us to reach out to kids hidden away by parents? What further resources and support can be committed by the Ministry to help disabled children integrate in the mainstream education?

Third, could the Minister also reinforce our plea to MOE to persuade neighbourhood school principals to accept disabled children and to create a barrier-free school environment, focusing on physical accessibility to laboratories, canteens and libraries?

Fourth, another concern is the physical and sexual abuse of disabled children, especially the girls. Can the Minister inform us of past records of such abuses and whether the amendment to the Women's Charter is an enabling legislation to protect them and prevent such abuses?

Fifth, PWD, some years ago, assured MCD that it would create a disabled-friendly environment through its walkway upgrading projects, to increase physical accessibility of the disabled. Can the Minister confirm that this is now a HDB policy for all constituencies? At this point, I would like to make a plea to all MPs in this House to take this matter seriously. The disabled wish for a barrier-free physical environment, so that they can manoeuvre their way around in a wheelchair without assistance. Gradient of kerbs, road crossings, ramps are a few suggestions which can be easily designed. These user-friendly features are helpful to all Singaporeans, especially young mothers with infant push-carts. They do not cost a lot. I was heartened to hear from Mr Charles Chong, MP for Pasir Ris, and I applaud his initiative, that his Town Council built a ramp for a handicapped girl to help her get to the car park to go to school every day. These are simple, concrete but significant measures which MPs can do for their constituents to spread the spirit of care and share.

Sixth, could the Minister reinforce our plea to HDB to establish a policy whereby ground floor units of flats or lift decks can be allocated to families with disabled persons to facilitate their access and mobility?

Sir, MCD, NCSS and about 56 voluntary welfare organisations have done a lot in the caring of the disabled by offering funding for basic facilities, training and service development. I see the need now to lift our eyes to the community for assistance. I see two areas of focus.

The first focus is to enhance employment opportunities for disabled persons. We have talked about this during the MOM debate. I am pleased to know that NCSS will be carrying out a survey on employment problems of the disabled, to identify the factors securing and retaining employment for the disabled and the views of employers regarding their employment. This survey will help us develop a strategic plan to improve employment opportunities but, meanwhile, I hope the CDC could channel queries and job recommendations through its Helpline. The public sector could take the lead by employing more disabled persons, so as to encourage more employers in the private sector to do the same. But as Minister Dr Lee Boon Yang said a few days ago, the challenge is in changing the mindset of the employers. It looks like we will need a national awareness campaign.

The second focus is to encourage VWOs to develop informal networks, eg, a disabled children's circle, youth circle or an elderly circle within neighbourhoods to enhance mutual support as well as strengthen inter-agency help networks through sharing of services.

Sir, I would like to make a call again to all Members of Parliament to support the programmes of MCD, CDC, NCSS and VWOs at each of their constituencies. MCD, given its limited budget, has accomplished many targets in the areas of service provision. We now have to generate community-based initiatives by focusing on enablement and participation approaches to help vulnerable groups reach an optimal level of independent functioning.

Minister Abdullah Tarmugi has broad shoulders to take on this huge task of community development, but the responsibility of community building requires the collaboration of everyone. I urge the hon. Members of Parliament in this House to support his mission, participate and help to generate an enduring reservoir of resources and helping networks for community bonding. I propose that they visit VWOs, find out the problems faced by their constituents, and serve as a bridge to convey their problems to the respective Government bodies. The experience will only enhance MP-constituent relationship.

Dr Lee Tsao Yuan (Nominated Member): Sir, in 1995, during the Committee of Supply debate, I proposed a national volunteer services scheme for women.

I would like to resurface that proposal today. I believe, that as Singapore matures, we need to pay more attention to the issue of social cohesion. If we are not careful, stratification of our society along socio-economic lines could occur. Over time, the poor will become better off, while the rich could become even richer so that the gap between the haves and the have-nots could widen, particularly where property and other assets are concerned. In other words, we need to make an effort to develop social bonding at the national level, particularly across socio-economic lines.

One of the greatest institutions of social bonding that we have in Singapore today is national service. During their two and a half years, men of diverse social backgrounds, eg, the Hokkien speaking, or shall I say Hokkien swearing primary educated man, together with the Cambridge-trained son of the rich tycoon are thrown together. They train together. They eat together. They suffer together. They relax together. And because of these ties, bonds of friendship are forged which transcend socio-economic status. As a result, an understanding and tolerance of others from entirely different social backgrounds is developed, which will stand them in good stead throughout their lives.

However, this form of social cohesion is absent for women. Schools offer some opportunity but this is limited. As a result, a Chinese girl may grow up never having been to the home of a Malay friend and vice versa. A girl living in a district 11 bungalow may never understand the concerns and mindset of someone who grew up in a rented 3-room HDB flat. There is simply no opportunity to do so.

I would therefore urge the Government to seriously consider a national cohesion scheme for women. The objectives are clear. First, it is to develop social bonding among women at the national level and, second, in developing that social bonding, it will also foster a greater sense of community, of national identity, of what it means to be Singaporean.

The best time for such a scheme to occur is after `A' levels where there is a window of about six months before the university term begins. The scheme could involve a range of duties, including social work, health care and administrative support services. It should include a physical training programme to develop physical fitness, much like the Outward Bound School.

In conclusion, I believe that social cohesion and social bonding should not just be for men alone, simply because they have national service and women are excluded. A scheme should be started for women. The beneficial effects of such a scheme are of strategic importance for Singapore. I also believe that in this day and age, this is the time to implement such a scheme. It is a scheme for which the time has come.

Dr Teo Ho Pin (Sembawang): Sir, my topic is on quality of life.

If we were to go through the corporate brochures or annual reports of various Ministries and statutory boards, we will find that most of them have impressive mission statements, visions and goals for their respective organisations, many of which strive to develop Singapore into a world-class city, a city that offers diversity and choice, a city with a rich variety of environment, a city of character and grace, and a city with a rich quality of life.

Although all these mission statements reflect what the respective Ministries or statutory boards would like to achieve in the next century, many fail to reflect what Singaporeans really want in life. While it is easy to define a world-class city, it is difficult to define quality of life. Thus, I would like to urge the Ministry to develop a set of social indicators to measure our quality of life.

A recent Straits Times report on 2nd June 1997 highlighted that, "Life has become better for Singaporeans in the five years between 1990 and 1995. Singaporeans are richer, better-educated, live in bigger homes and hold better jobs." 12.45 pm

Another survey which was conducted by Asiaweek in October 1996, ranked Singapore's standard of living second, as compared to 40 other cities in Asia. But, are these measures truly reflective of the quality of life of Singaporeans? I do not think so. If you were to conduct house visits to a block of 3- or 4-room HDB flats, you will receive this common feedback from the residents, "Living in Singapore is very good, but life is very tough."

In some developed countries, the standard of living is improving, but the quality of life does not necessarily improve at the same time. Are people happier, more fulfilled, more creative, more able to develop their potential? Are their relationships at work and leisure as satisfying? Do they find their neighbourhood and environment as pleasant to live in? Is there a supportive network of families, friends, and neighbours to help them in their old age or childcare? All these questions must be properly addressed before we embark on our ambitious plans to develop Singapore into a world-class city. I hope the Ministry could update the House on the quality of life of Singaporeans.

Sir, I would also like to urge the Ministry to consider developing a Quality of Life index for Singaporeans. Economic indicators are used to track the performance of the economy. We also need Quality of Life indicators to monitor the fulfilment of Singaporeans' needs and aspirations in life.

Dr Toh See Kiat (Aljunied): Sir, it is commonly acknowledged that there is too much stress in Singapore and, as Dr Teo has eloquently put it, the quality of life is not as it should be. We are too strung-up. We are too serious minded. As the Minister for Information and the Arts said in the debate in this House a few days ago, quoting Mr Sim Wong Hoo, our best and most famous entrepreneur, there is not much of a fun element in Singapore. Even a pressure cooker needs safety valves or else the pot will explode and then whatever you are cooking is useless and wasted. I do believe, Sir, that the pressure cooker that we are in in Singapore needs safety valves. There is anecdotal evidence that more and more children, for example, are going for counselling and the mental health of our nation is at stake. The talents that we are nurturing could one day explode and then be wasted. I do not know if there are figures, but if there are, I hope the Minister would reveal them to the House.

Sir, my purpose today is not just a call to the Minister to do something about this, but also a call to all Singaporeans, my fellow Singaporeans, to remember to work hard and play hard. This is a call to all Singaporeans to keep a healthy mind in a healthy body. Being competitive is fine because we are a small nation that survives on our wits, but being a small nation that is competitive does not mean that we have to spend every single moment making money and forget about our health and forget about our families and having fun with them. Being competitive, without being healthy, is thus foolish.

My call is also to the Singapore Government to promote sports (not only for the masses, we have been doing that a lot) and I think it is time we move on to a higher level, and that is we should also be promoting sports for professional talents to grow, not just in soccer but in everything else. This may seem like benefiting only a small group of people but as we can see from other nations, every time somebody wins a medal in the Olympics, the whole nation wins and cheers. Every time there is a medal won in the World Cup, not only in soccer, but in all sorts of things, everyone stands up and cheers. So I think it is important now for us to start looking for programmes to groom professional talents and be serious about this because professional talents and champions also serve this purpose of bonding the nation and the community together, and giving us all, you might say, a vicarious national pride in this achievement. We need bigger grants for grassroots organisations, for example, to organise family oriented sports and games and recreational activities and be more proactive in starting some of these programmes.

My call is also to the Government to promote mental health by building facilities that would give fun, inexpensive fun, for Singaporeans. It is nice to build big resorts or big tourist spots that can also be used by locals, but these are expensive and generally if you look at the entrance fees of $15-$16, nobody goes. If you look at the Lianhe Zaobao celebrations, they opened up Tang Dynasty City for a dollar and crowds came. Perhaps we do not have to charge a dollar, maybe $3 or $5, and I think much more response will be there.

We need to create facilities for Singaporeans to play, recreational facilities that do not cost the earth, perhaps such as adventure campsites. I think we have got adventure campsites that were planned but are now suffering from the regional crisis because these things have to be put on the shelf as they are not deemed to be necessities. Sir, I think that is short-sighted. These are necessities - fishing sites, perhaps even kelong sites. I think PPD and some other agencies discourage Singaporeans from going up to kelongs to just spend a night there, or fish and do things like that. I think we should allow them to do so. We should allow for more outdoor accommodation for fun activities, more parks like Sungei Buloh and Labrador and we should leave Pulau Ubin alone so that it is unburdened with all our improvements. There is value in being able to just run around in the wild, so to speak. Sir, if we leave it untouched, it also helps our Singaporeans to be reminded of the times that we have gone through, that once upon a time in Singapore it was like that. It would give them some lessons in how far we have come and how much we should appreciate the work that we have put in.

Sir, perhaps this can be modified a little. We might be able to preserve one or two villages in there as pristine as we can. Leave it there, the Malay village or the Chinese village, so that the people would remember how we lived once upon a time. Perhaps for this model village we can put people there. Like in other countries, for example, Plymouth, in Massachusetts, they have got a village there as if it is still living in the 1600s. They have got people moving around, sowing, planting, milling, and so on. Maybe we can do a model village like that just to remind Singaporeans of where we were and how far we have come.

Sir, this call is also to the Government - and the Minister for Finance is happily here - for the Minister for Finance to allocate some more funds to the Minister for Community Development so that we can have funds to educate and publicise these things that Singaporeans can do to help them to learn and this is a learned thing to learn the art of relaxation and the proper use of leisure time.

Dr Ho Tat Kin (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Sir, the Government adopts a many helping hands approach in the provision of social service. This approach harnesses the collaborative efforts of Government agencies and non-government organisations in the provision of social welfare and community support services and programmes for the less fortunate in our society.

Sir, although a wide range of services has been put in place by various organisations, the general public or even social service agencies may not be aware of the availability of the full range of services. MCD could perhaps identify specific target groups which would be most likely to need such social service. I believe the group that needs this service most are usually low income families staying in the 1-room or 2-room rental units. I understand there are about 100,000 households in this category. MCD, together with CDC volunteers, could target this group for an extensive outreach programme. CDC volunteers could first be trained to understand the entire scope of social services available. The volunteers in their encounters with these families would then be able to explain, and also assist those who need such service, to apply for them or help to refer them to the relevant authorities.

Sir, may I ask what measures will be taken to provide greater publicity on the different types of social service available so as to reach a wider audience?

Dr S. Vasoo (Tanjong Pagar): Sir, I feel we should ask ourselves one basic question. Are we giving enough help to the voluntary sector? I am sure Members would be able to assess this. They have been involved in the various voluntary sectors and encouraged people to participate in various voluntary activities. Sir, my own assessment is that, yes, we have given some help to a certain extent. Moral support and encouragement, plenty. You and I can give all this to the many organisations. But this is insufficient. Just appeal to the hearts and cajole people is a good thing, but it is insufficient because a lot of efforts go into the raising of funds, to run projects and to translate ideas, interests, concerns, into concrete programmes.

If you assess the financial grants given to voluntary organisations, I would say that some are given, perhaps a little. Let me tell you what has been provided to the voluntary sector. First, you have the matching grants for various programmes. It is up to 50% for selected programmes. The voluntary organisation has to raise the rest. It is a good thing, but how much can you raise because a lot of organisations are competing out there for funds, including the CDCs today who are also in the scene competing to raise funds from various people. And you and I are being cajoled all the time. It is good if we can help. But I think at some point, many of us could suffer from compassion fatigue. But, nevertheless, we should do something for the community.

For capital grant, I think there is good mileage because organisations get up to 95%, but these are for a few buildings, and new facilities and other developments. This is an interesting development and I must say that the Ministry has given support in this aspect. For many of the voluntary organisations, their facilities need to be upgraded and I see that some of the facilities are really down to the pits. So what we have to do is to see what can be done in terms of providing grants for them to upgrade their facilities. I assert that more could be done in this area.

Sir, I know that moral support alone is insufficient. I can understand the Minister's predicament. He has been persuading the Ministry of Finance, year in and year out, to get more funds and since the Minister for Finance is here this afternoon, I am glad he is here, I see that it is important that he be persuaded to support community building cause and to note that the funds that he will be releasing is in terms of investment for the social infrastructure. It is the people that we are looking at, ie, community building and community cohesion. We want to prevent social divide in the community. If the community is divided, how could we harness them to be productive people? Sir, almost every sector of the community is important to us. Whether they are the able or disabled, I feel it is important for us to find ways to support them. And I hope that next year the Minister for Finance would be better persuaded to release more funds. I am sure my colleagues would agree with these suggestions and persuasion. 1.00 pm

Sir, I hope that the Minister would consider this matter seriously. And I hope he is not suffering from compassion fatigue but able to see what he can do to boost the voluntary sector as well as the Ministry of Community Development.

Sir, increasingly voluntary organisations are also encouraged to provide more and more services. We ask them to develop programmes. We persuade them with all good intentions and purposes. Many of them want to do good. But how can we help them to have a better mileage, in terms of contributing to the community? What more than by providing them adequate funds to enable them to achieve the missions and objectives to do public good. This is an area where we should examine seriously, in terms of what support we can give them.

Sir, some of these organisations are affected by spending a lot of time in raising funds. I suppose more than 70% of their time is spent in raising funds and 20% in terms of service delivery, thinking about what and how they can plan ahead. So I hope we can relieve them of this fund-raising burden. It is not easy to raise funds today, because many of us are all the time approached by many organisations, persuading us to do what is possible, and many of them are very supportive. I hope that people will continue to do so, but there is a threshold to how much we can do. And the heart of the matter is that volunteers and others can do things up to a point. But Government must demonstrate its capacity to do more and should be encouraged to do a little more so that it could inspire more volunteers and people in the community to contribute to this common good. To reduce the problem and burden of fund-raising, it is necessary for the Ministry to persuade the Ministry of Finance to increase grants for the voluntary sector. I would like to persuade the Minister for Finance to see whether the CDC funding formula of $3 to $1 could be applied to the voluntary sector, ie, for every $1 raised, the Government will give $3. If it is matched by that formula, then I think the voluntary sector would be able to do more and the community would be able to benefit in the longer term. We will be able to reduce the social divide in the community and people will participate fully in community building.

I hope that the funding formula and support for the voluntary sector could be reviewed and the Minister for Finance would be able to think of ways in which he can urge and encourage people to do more.

Mdm Claire Chiang See Ngoh: Sir, I would like to know from the Minister what measures have been taken to improve the professionalism of the social worker sector. Based on a number of conversations I had with various people following my maiden speech in November last year, I have observed some uncertain sentiments.

There is a fear that by recognising the professionals through accreditation measures, we may risk losing thousands of needed good-hearted volunteers who may now "disqualify". That is not so. In fact, the feedback is we are losing volunteers because of unclear role expectations, low professionalism, absence of training and self-growth opportunities and weak volunteer development programmes. Moreover, volunteers can still be accredited by experience and performance accordingly. They can also take up course modules in their work experience and become progressively professionalised, so to speak. So they will not be excluded.

On the side of the professionals, for the sake of protecting public interest, they feel strongly the need to differentiate the volunteers and professionals by skills so that the qualified and certified social work professionals will handle therapy related work and the social work volunteers or non-accredited staff can be trained to offer other administrative, management and non-clinical client-related services.

The confusion of the word "social worker" which has been used very loosely in the community and by the media because it is referred interchangeably to everybody - professionals, non-accredited staff and volunteers in the field. They assume that social workers are primarily volunteers. Sometimes legitimately so because a social work professional can be a volunteer. A volunteer in the social work sector, on the other hand, may not have professional qualifications. And a staff not trained at all in the social work discipline, who is managing a VWO, is also seen as a social worker. Everyone, irrespective of qualifications and skills, as long as she contributes in the social service sector becomes commonly known as a social worker. That is the root of the confusion.

I would like to highlight to Members of the House that they are different in their areas of focus, the kind of training they bring to the field and the sort of professional outcome and work performance we expect from their participation. We must develop a system of job functions and skills levels. Once clear work roles are established and their contributions are organised in complementary terms, the closer we are towards developing an action model of cooperation for enhancing performance standards in that sector.

I hope the Minister will continue his effort in pursuing the need to professionalise the social service sector and accord due recognition by accreditation, rank and remuneration of social workers.

On another matter, Sir, there were special requests from numerous VWOs whether we could give direct service volunteers some incentives to influence a minimum standard of services. Sixty-one agencies, about 82% in a survey of 75 VWOs last year, conducted by NCSS, expressed problems in sustainment and deployment of volunteers. Organisations which focus on their service delivery standards through training are finding it difficult to retain their volunteers. I was told that an occasional praise, a door gift, lucky draw prizes, a certificate or inspirational talks and stories are no longer adequate to motivate these thousands of people to give up their leisure and take up the burden of fulfilling someone else's need on a regular basis. On top of this, like Dr Vasoo says, these people are asked to look for funds to perpetuate their own sacrifice.

There are about 12,500 lonely elderly poor in Singapore; the number is going to grow to 17,500 by the year 2030. Unless such people are befriended for psycho-emotional support, kept clean and fed by volunteers or full-time staff, they would become early candidates for nursing homes. It was calculated for me that it costs the community less than $50 per month for each of these elderly to be supported by volunteers. In a nursing home it would cost $1,000 per month.

We need an average of 2,000 volunteers to assist direct service VWOs to care for the chronic sick, the disabled, the young and the abandoned individuals. The social burden on the state will increase. We need to look deep into community resources by mobilising and deploying the thousands of homemakers and retirees for action. By giving them basic training in care programmes, they form a significant community of reservist volunteers whom we should bestow some degree of prestige and privilege.

Sir, there are two views about the use of material incentives. One which urges us to accept the reality of the voluntary movement and offer material incentives to attract and retain volunteers. The second view sees the use of material incentives as a wrong spirit to promote in voluntarism. Moreover, by having the Government stepping in to do this, a whole lot of requests from other quarters will follow. What limits and on whom does the Government impose? And how much is enough as benefits to volunteers, anyway? So although I support Dr Vasoo's call for more support for the volunteers, I think this is a complex issue that we need to handle cautiously.

A middle view sees the voluntary movement being organised and incentivised at the NGO level, but there is then an overall need to critically examine if the resources and management capabilities of NGOs can effect such an outcome. We need advocates and leaders in the social service sector who are not care-givers, therapists or social work professionals, but are good managers with a helicopter view for developing community initiated programmes.

Sir, some strategic planning and visioning is urgently needed to promote voluntarism as a philosophy and a movement. NCSS is working hard at this, but the Government must step in to support with resources and public education programmes. If not, the State will only be saddled with increasing social burden costs and a desperate lot of Singaporeans with no one taking care of them.

We seek the Minister's direction and leadership on this matter.

Mr S. Iswaran (West Coast): Sir, today in Singapore, the planning and delivery of community and social services occurs at three levels.

The first is at the national level where the Ministry of Community Development studies overall trends, ascertains needs and plans and implements programmes nationwide.

The second is at the district level. With the advent of Community Development Councils last year, we now have the equivalent of local governments to cater to the needs of residents at the CDC district level.

Finally, we have the community groups and volunteer welfare organisations. These organisations target specific groups or neighbourhoods in order to serve the community.

Sir, clearly, there is a need for coordination and cooperation across these three tiers. And it already occurs to some extent. MCD has enlisted the support of many helping hands by working closely with the VWOs. CDCs are doing the same, particularly with volunteer organisations in their respective districts. However, it is the third axis, that between the Ministry and the newly established CDCs that is perhaps not as strong as it ought to be.

A case in point is the provision of Before-and-After-School Care services. MCD has a plan to roll out BASCs islandwide. It then invites VWOs to indicate their interest in running these centres. Most, if not all, the CDCs have similar plans to offer BASC services. They too are approaching VWOs to collaborate. It seems to me that much duplication can be avoided if the Ministry shares its long term master plan for BASCs with the CDCs. The implementation can then be a joint effort.

Indeed, the Ministry should not just share but also jointly develop these master plans with the CDCs and possibly the VWOs. MCD would have the macro perspective of overall trends. CDCs would bring the micro perspective of local needs and constraints. Together, MCD and CDC can identify VWOs with the expertise and interest for specific projects and support them with resources. In this way, each party is able to add value according to their strengths.

This approach applies not just to BASCs but also to other services aimed at the aged, the disabled and the young. Ultimately, the many helping hands must work in concert if we are to reap the greatest benefit for our community. I would, therefore, like to ask the Minister what plans there are to step up cooperation and coordination with CDCs and VWOs in the planning and implementation of the community service programmes.

The Minister for Community Development (Mr Abdullah Tarmugi): Sir, I thought I should stop the debate here for a while to reply to some of the questions. I am not too sure whether I can finish answering everyone by the time the "guillotine" for my Ministry comes into effect.

Yesterday we were concentrating on the aged, but today apparently we have shifted to the other side of the fence by going to the children. We have questions on juvenile delinquency, child abuse, and child care centres. I would like to start with Dr Vasoo's questions yesterday on juvenile delinquency and also Mr Shriniwas Rai's and Dr Yaacob Ibrahim's. These three gentlemen raised some questions and concerns on the issue of juvenile delinquency. 1.15 pm

Sir, the issue of juvenile delinquency is a very complex one. There is till now no single, quick fix solution to the problem of juvenile delinquency in any community. And in any community, no matter at which stage of development it is in, there is the problem of juvenile delinquency. The best approach is a multi-disciplinary and multi-pronged one which involves the community, the Government, the VWOs and, most importantly, the parents. So we involve the schools, social service agencies, the Police, the community, teachers, preachers, friends and, most importantly, as I said, the parents. At the local level, we already have a network involving the different agencies. At the national level, I am not too sure whether Members are aware that there is an Inter-Ministry Committee on Juvenile Delinquency chaired by the Minister of State for Home Affairs. This Committee looks into all problems of juvenile delinquency which are brought up by the various Ministries and coordinates the efforts of the various Ministries.

There are two approaches which the Government takes on juvenile delinquency. One, is the preventive and development programmes approach, and, two, the reinforcement and rehabilitative programmes approach. In terms of preventive programmes, we have an intensive public education programme to make people aware of the dangers of juvenile delinquency and also how to prevent juvenile delinquency from happening. We have linking of schools with MCD and social service agencies. We have in schools a checklist for teachers and also for VWOs where they can identify children or students who are at risk and would need help so that schools can refer them to FSCs or professional social workers to be counselled. They can be helped. Then of course there is the Before-and-After-School programme.

In terms of enforcement and rehabilitation programmes, we have the Guidance Programme for Police Caution Cases, the National Youth Council's Streetwise programme and networking between MCD and social service agencies to provide counselling, support and supervision for juvenile delinquents.

Dr Yaacob asked how do we keep our children and teenagers occupied so as to prevent them from becoming juvenile delinquents. As you know, there are many programmes organised by the People's Association Youth Movement, the National Youth Council, and the social service agencies to keep the children occupied. Even the BASCs will keep them occupied to ensure that they keep themselves away from bad peer influence. And we will be looking into more ways to see how children could be distracted from bad peer influence into activities which are wholesome and useful for them when they grow up.

There is one interesting point which Dr Vasoo and Mr Rai brought up, and that is, empowering schools to send children beyond parental control (BPC) cases to the Homes. I am reluctant to support this and I would not want to advocate this proposal. Let me explain. If we do this, we will run across problems with differing standards of assessment by teachers or principals. Some principals may be more than happy to send their students direct to the Homes. But some other principals or teachers may have more stringent standards; in other words, they will not want to send them to the Homes. We may have very differing standards and we may also encourage schools to be less stringent in trying to help their students because it is an easy avenue for them to get rid of problem students.

The most important thing is that it is not fair for us to place this very heavy responsibility on the schools. Whether we like it or not, they may suffer the stigma of being sent to the Homes. The thing to do is to empower the parents instead, not the schools. We must put the whole responsibility of looking after the children on the parents. Therefore, we need to reinforce parental responsibility. We have to ensure that parents get the help and the knowledge parenting knowledge to look after their children and to bring up their children properly.

There are avenues, Sir, in the community which parents can turn to. They can go to the Family Service Centres for help. They can come to my Ministry for help, advice or counselling. And if a child is really recalcitrant, the parents can lodge a complaint. The parents must lodge a complaint to the Juvenile Court and the child may be placed under statutory supervision or admitted to an approved Home. It is a serious matter before a child can be sent to a Home. So I do not think we want to empower the schools to send children direct to the Homes. I think it is unfair to them. Sending of children to the Homes should be a last resort, something which we would not do and something which we only do after trying other ways to solve the child's problems.

Mr Shriniwas Rai and Dr Yaacob also asked about the Boys' Home and measures to improve the Boys' Home. Members must have heard about the recent riot which happened in the Boys' Home. It is something which we did not want to happen, but it happened. The Singapore Boys' Home, as has been mentioned yesterday, is over 100 years. We face problems of staff. There is overcrowding. But, more importantly, the profile of the boys that are admitted into the Homes has changed over the years. Previously, the number of boys with history of violence or involvement in violent crimes was about 20% but now it is about half, or 50%. In other words, the kinds of children and teenagers that are being sent to the Homes are different. About 90% of these boys have previous secret society or gang connections.

Since the attempted break-out, MCD had further upgraded the security of the Home because security was the immediate concern. We had brought in the Prisons Department. We had sought the advice of the Police on how to increase the security of the Home. We even had to employ CISCO officers as guards because, previously, we had only commercial guards.

We had some of our internal procedures reviewed and tightened our management and control of the boys in the Home. There will be a new Home for the boys to replace the Boys' Home. It will be ready by the end of the year. And in the new Home, we hope that things will be better. The environment will be better, there will be more facilities, more space, and security will be better. We would also improve the staff/resident ratio. So be assured that we have looked at the problem very carefully. We will continue to monitor the boys there and we will see to it that the conditions in the new Home will be so much better than the old one.

Amendments to the Children and Young Persons (CYP) Act are being thought of by my Ministry. We will be amending the Act to include provisions for enhancement in the treatment of young offenders and those who are beyond parental control. There will be new sentencing options which will be available and will provide the courts with a wider choice in selecting an appropriate treatment for the kinds of cases that come up to them. In the amendment too, we will see to it that not only parents but also family members are more involved in the rehabilitation of children.

I would like to thank Mr Rai - I am afraid he is not here - who has offered to help review the CYP. The CYP has in fact gone through a lot of discussions between my Ministry and the courts, the Police, the AG's Chambers and even the GPC for Community Development. I intend to table the amendments in this House later this year. However, I would be pleased to receive views and suggestions from the NMP in the meantime.

Mr Rai also suggested that instead of sending children to court, he would rather that a tribunal, similar to the Tribunal for the Maintenance of Parents, be set up to deal with juvenile delinquency. This is to divert the juveniles from the juvenile delinquency system and also not to criminalise the boys. We support the use of diversionary measures wherever possible and we too believe that the juvenile court should be the last resort where boys should be sent to for treatment and rehabilitation. But we do not think that a tribunal is necessary because a tribunal, as proposed, will also include a judge and a judge will preside and thereby it would be similar to a court or at least a quasi-court.

The NMP also suggested that there should be social workers to sit with the judges in dealing with cases. This is happening, Sir. In the juvenile court setup, we have a court system but we also have a magistrate who sits with at least two members of the panel of advisors who are laymen (not lawyers), who may be teachers and social workers to advise or hear the case together with the judge. They serve to advise the magistrate on the possible treatment of cases and to discuss the case with the magistrate.

Prof. Low also asked about the Boys' Home. I think I have answered some of his concerns. He suggested that there should be better programmes in the Home. I am glad to say that in the new premises, there will be a classification centre where all new committals will begin their rehabilitation programme. Each boy will be assessed by a team of officers and an individual treatment plan will be designed for each inmate and a contract worked out. In other words, there will be a more sensitive classification system, so that each inmate or each committal boy will be better looked after in that sense. 1.30 pm

As regards staff/resident ratio, I agree with Members that the ratio of 1:40 for the existing homes is simply unacceptable. We will look into this and we will improve the staff/resident ratio in the new complex.

On child care centres, Assoc. Prof. Low Seow Chay asked whether there ought to be stricter control over the usage of child care centre premises. He mentioned that some of the child care centres, instead of administering the programmes as determined by my Ministry, come out with a lot of enrichment programmes. They even refuse to take in extra students because they feel that the students will not be "enriched" enough if they take in more students. I would like to inform the Member that there are child care regulations which stipulate that child care premises cannot be used for any purpose, other than the ordinary conduct and business of a child care centre. Our officers visit these centres frequently and, in fact, there is an annual report. In other words, we have an annual assessment of each centre and we use a list of criteria to evaluate the centres. The Ministry, however, does allow child care centres to conduct one approved enrichment programme, in addition to the normal programme for children enrolled in the centre.

Assoc. Prof. Low also mentioned the shortage of child care places. This problem apparently arises every year, that there are not enough places and there are long waiting lists. But the truth of the matter, as I have answered at a previous sitting, is that there are enough places and, indeed, some centres have vacancies. The problem is that parents want to choose more popular centres, and they want to choose preferably centres below their blocks. Therefore, there are some centres which are over subscribed and there are other centres which are empty or which have vacancies, simply because parents tend to choose centres which are more convenient to them or which they prefer. So if we look at the child care centre situation at the macro level, there are enough places. The supply is enough for the demand. But if we look at each child care centre, there seems to be some mismatch between what the parents want and what the centres can provide.

Right now, there are 464 child care centres providing places for 38,000 children. Another 40 new child care centres for an additional 3,000 children will be provided this year. We will continue to provide sites. We will continue to monitor demand and supply and, if need be, we will continue to build more child care centres.

Prof. Chin Tet Yung feels that MCD should take a more positive role in planning and coordinating the provision of facilities in child care centres. Mr Zulkifli calls for a national child care centre system where Government will be involved in the setting up and running of child care centres. As of now, actually Government is very deeply involved, as I mentioned earlier, in the development of child care centres. It has regulations for these centres. It sends officers to check and monitor the progress of these centres.

MCD actually adopts a three-pronged approach in developing child care centres. First, to ensure that there is availability and accessibility of child care centres; second, to ensure that child care centres are affordable; and, third, we want to ensure the quality of the child care centres.

We project the demand of child care centres, review such projections annually, and we take into consideration HDB's housing development plans in new estates. So there is already close coordination between my Ministry, HDB, URA and the Land Office in terms of location of child care centres and availability of sites for child care centres in the estates. HDB will indeed be incorporating child care centres and other social facilities in its building plans for new estates, and, as far as possible, to have such facilities built in tandem with the development of the estates in the future. Therefore, once we have the estates, we will have the child care centres and other social facilities built up at the same time.

In terms of quality, MCD ensures that there are enough training programmes for child care centre teachers and supervisors, training programmes by accredited agencies. We set the curriculum for the training to ensure standards. MCD also gives training awards to those who are interested in pursuing a full-time career in child care centres. The award comprises a grant for fees and allowance during the duration of the course. And on completion of the course, the candidate is allowed to work in any child care centre. In other words, there is no bond. The person is not bound to work in any centre. He is free to work in any non-profit organisation's centre or in a private child care centre if he or she wants.

Prof. Chin asked for tax rebate for child care courses. I am afraid there are no such rebates, but SDF, I am told, provides 80% funding for course fees, whether it is basic course, intermediate course or advanced course. In addition, SDF also funds 50% of the course fees for first aid and other enrichment courses. I think there is really no need for tax rebates for people to go to child care courses.

Coming to the supply of child care centres in Woodlands, Prof. Chin commented that MCD was slow or rather sluggish in the development of child care centres in his constituency. The Member must be aware that there are currently 12 child care centres providing 920 child care places in the Woodlands estate. The total enrolment in these 12 centres is about 90% right now, and there are, in fact, still 50-odd vacancies in these centres.

As regards the long waiting list, I have given the reasons just now. They are mainly for the more popular centres in the ward. Assoc. Prof. Chin may not be aware that for some years, Woodlands had only two centres and the utilisation of these two centres was actually poor. Consequently, private and non-profit organisations were actually reluctant to set up child care centres in the estate for some time. Despite this, my Ministry pushed for the development of more centres in the estate and as the estate expanded. And within two years, between 1996 and 1997, 10 new centres became operational, and 10 more with a total of 780 places are being planned for the estate. Out of this number, I am told that six are already under construction and will be ready by the end of this financial year. If demand still exceeds supply despite all this building, my Ministry will consider building more child care centres in Woodlands.

Dr Toh See Kiat asked for more child care centres in the workplace. I cannot agree with him more on this. It is very important and I think it is very convenient for parents to have child care places in their workplace. Indeed, we have been working toward this. We have been trying to do this for quite sometime now. The benefits of child care centres in the workplace are immense. I think nobody can argue against it. It is mutually beneficial for the employer as well as for the employees. And it is also good for the bottom line of the companies.

The Government has been setting an example in this. It has taken the lead in providing child care centres in workplaces. There are about 30 workplace centres in various Government departments. Actually, there are a lot of incentives for companies to set up child care centres at their premises. There are financial subsidies, for example, which we give to non-profit organisations, and which we also extend to firms. In addition, the firms are allowed to claim expenses incurred in capital expenditure and subsidies given to employees for child care as tax deductive expenditure. They may also claim industrial building allowance on capital expenditure for the renovation and conversion of their premises. In fact, there are already enough incentives for firms to set up child care centres in their buildings, and we will continue to find and to encourage more companies to build such centres in their workplace.

Madam Claire Chiang spoke very extensively on the disabled, and she made a rallying call. I am thankful for that. I think MPs at the local level can help as advisers to their grassroots organisations. They can network with other VWOs. They can network with CDCs to ensure that there are enough help or social agencies or institutions to help the disabled in their constituencies.

It has always been my Ministry's philosophy that the disabled can live meaningful lives and can be integrated in the community. In fact, they ought to be. It is better for them to be integrated into the community, rather than being put aside in institutions or being hidden at home.

She mentioned three areas of focus - training, employment and informal support networks. In terms of training, we actually have many agencies serving disabled people, which also run training programmes, eg, Rainbow Centre, Down Syndrome Association, Singapore Association for the Visually Handicapped, Canossian School for the Hearing Impaired. They have training programmes for disabled people. 1.45 pm

I agree with the NMP that employment plays a very important role in the integration of disabled people into the community. My Ministry, in fact, together with NCSS set up Bizlink Centre in 1988. So the Centre is 10 years old now. It is now known as Bizlink Centre Singapore Limited. It is a central body to coordinate employment assistance for disabled persons in Singapore. It works together with the Ministry of Education and also the Ministry of Labour and provides vocational assessment and assistance and also job placements for the disabled.

Indeed the Centre's data bank has about 2,000 potential employers which we can draw on to provide employment to the disabled. We feel that there is scope for Bizlink to work together with CDCs to reach out to the community for job placement/assessment of the disabled. We will see that this happens and we will encourage such coordination between Bizlink and the CDCs and the community.

The Government also funds vocational training programmes leading to Certificates of Vocational Training for Basic Computer Applications, Office Practice and Service Skills for the handicapped to ensure that they have the skills for employment.

To encourage employment of disabled persons, the Government also provides financial incentives to employers, like tax rebates for modifications which they make in the workplace to enable the disabled to work, and for reimbursements of the first 1 1/2 months of the disabled employee's salaries, as well as transport and food allowance, for the disabled worker, where needed. In other words, there are incentives for employers to employ the disabled and we would certainly encourage employers to look into the disabled as a source of manpower.

The public sector actually is the largest single employer of the disabled people. As at end of last year, we have about 224 disabled persons employed in the public sector and we will increase that number when we find suitable disabled to work in the civil service. But the greatest obstacle to the disabled, as I mentioned this afternoon, is the prejudice against the disabled in the community, that existed in the community itself and this is something I think we have to tackle through public education, through the public knowing more about what the disabled can and cannot do.

She also asked about the recommendations of the Advisory Council for the Disabled. It is quite a long list, Sir. I could provide the NMP with the list if she needs it. It is quite a long one and most of them have been implemented.

With regard to schools, where possible, disabled children are integrated in normal schools. There are no barriers, physically, to the handicapped and schools have been cooperative. Where there are handicapped in the school they make sure that mobility and access for the disabled are made as easy as possible, where necessary and appropriate. But we feel that it is not always advantageous for the disabled children to be sent to normal school because some of them are mentally disabled. Therefore it may be better for them to attend special schools instead of going to normal schools, where they can be better looked after, where their needs and learning can be tailored more to their level of understanding.

On barrier-free environment, she did mention that the BCD has got a Code on Barrier-free Accessibility in Buildings. It was I think revised in 1995. The code requires new buildings to have barrier-free features such as toilets for the handicapped, ramps with gentle slopes and kerb ramps which slope upwards from the road to the building. In other words, there is a gentle slope from the road to the building walkways instead of a sharp angle.

New buildings have to conform to the requirements of this code and old buildings would have to comply with these revised requirements when they undergo major renovations. HDB, I am told, has also incorporated accessibility features in the new HDB buildings as well as existing buildings which are being upgraded in the Main Upgrading Programmes.

On the provision of ground floor units for families of the disabled, HDB does allocate ground floor flats where they are available and possible for families of the disabled. In the rental flats, they are also given ground floor flats and also flats at lift landings and when they transfer their flats they are also given priority for ground floor units.

With regard to sexual abuse of disabled individuals, this is something which we all abhor. It is right that we feel very strongly against this, and I agree. I share the NMP's concern about physical and sexual abuse of disabled individuals, particularly the young ones and the girls.

The provisions in both the Children and Young Persons Act, as well as the Women's Charter, protect all victims from abuse, including the disabled. In fact, the amendments to the Women's Charter provide an added avenue through which help can be obtained, for example, the Charter now allows persons to apply for a protection order on behalf of an abused victim. In other words, for the disabled person who could not make any report, a protection order can be applied for on behalf of that person by other persons.

I think the NMP also asked about the central registry for disabled. She may want to know that there was a Registry of Disabled People or CRDP which was established by the then Ministry of Social Affairs in 1969. But there were some inherent difficulties in maintaining the Registry because of people being reluctant to report, infrequent reporting and very unreliable reporting. Therefore, in 1988, the Advisory Council on the Disabled recommended for the CRDP to be discontinued. But currently, I am told that welfare organisations working with the disabled themselves maintain their own registry of the disabled who are under their charge and they update these registries regularly. So if the Member is interested in knowing who are the disabled and where they are, perhaps she could approach these organisations directly.

Dr Lee Tsao Yuan talks about a national cohesion scheme for women. This is quite a different subject from what the other speakers have been talking about. But I agree with the sentiments about the need for cohesion. There are avenues for males but apparently there is none for females. There is something about being in the trenches together, eating together, wallowing in the mud together for National Servicemen. They do set up this bond between the rich and poor, between the Hokkien, the Cantonese and the Malay and the Indian or whatever race. So I agree with the sentiments. The question is whether NS should be extended to women. This question is one which Government is still looking into. It has not dismissed the idea. But there are several issues which we need to look into very carefully. For example, the reasons for having NS for women in the first place. Well, she has given one reason, to encourage cohesion and bonding among women. Other issues are whether we should enlist all women or some of the women, and at what level. Who should be enlisted? Which Ministry should be in charge? What would the enlistees do? These are issues which have to be carefully looked into and, as the Member mentioned, the scheme ought to be very carefully formulated.

I am glad to say that we shall look into her suggestions, to see whether a modified form of National Service can be implemented for some women in Singapore. But notwithstanding that, NS is not the only way to bring about social bonding and social cohesion among women. They could engage in social service, they could go down to the constituencies and join the CDCs; they can join as Civil Defence volunteers. They can help in the self-help groups. Indeed there are many opportunities for women to get together and help out others. I think through such involvement in the community, our girls would be able to interact with Singaporeans from all walks of life and from all income groups. Besides deriving personal satisfaction, they somehow very quickly learn to understand the plight and circumstances of the families and individuals whom they work with and whom they help. They are able to empathise with those who come from completely different socio-economic backgrounds, but they share, nevertheless, a common identity of being Singaporeans.

Dr Teo Ho Pin talked about quality of life. The definition of quality of life can be very nebulous. Different people have different definitions of what a good quality of life is. I grew up in an urban slum, and I used to have a neighbour who was a hawker, who had eight children. To all intents and purposes, he considered his life as of good quality. He said, "I have got no problems. I don't owe any mortgages. I don't have money in the bank but I have enough to eat." To him, quality of life is good. And yet I know of someone who earns $25,000 a month, who keeps on complaining he has not got enough and that his quality of life is somehow very rotten. So the definition of quality of life indeed can vary between one individual and another. But even then I agree that we should not neglect the development of social and community infrastructure and we should not just measure quality of life by material standards alone.

When the PM presented his ideas on Singapore 21 last year, he said that Singapore needs to go beyond economic and material needs and reorient society to meet the intellectual and emotional, spiritual, cultural and social needs of our people. In this regard, my Ministry will continue to develop policies, programmes and infrastructure for individuals to lead a more meaningful and balanced life through promoting community bonding and social cohesion and inculcating family values, promoting voluntarism and caring for the young, the aged and the needy.

On the issue of quality of life indicators, again this is something which we have to think about. We have to work at definitions. We have to work at measurements and at the indices. We have now on-going a survey on the state of families in Singapore. It is being carried out by my Ministry. We hope it will produce some important social indicators for Singapore. If Members have any proposals on what kind of indicators ought to be included in this index, my Ministry would be most happy to receive it. 2.00 pm

Working hard, playing hard - that is the motto of Dr Toh See Kiat. In MCD, we believe in playing hard but, alas, we work harder. We agree that Singaporeans work hard but we also agree that they must learn to make meaningful use of their leisure. They must have some balance in life. In this respect, the Singapore Sports Council, which is under the Ministry, has done quite a lot, in terms of promoting sports at the community level Sports for Life and also the SPEX 2000 programme.

With regard to the Sports for Life programme, since its launch in September 1996 from Sports for All programme, we had made a survey last year on sport participation. It was revealed that the percentage of regular sport participation had increased from 24% in 1992 to 34% in 1997, within five years, so a 10% increase within five years. But what is significant is that 72% of the participants spend more than 45 minutes in each session. This is very significant because it shows not only the regularity of participation in sports but also the length of each session. And for 72% to spend more than 45 minutes is indeed significant.

The Singapore Sports Council has launched a public education programme to promote the message that sports is not only fun but it is also beneficial to one's fitness and to oneself. The SSC has now embarked on a second phase of this national public education campaign. The mass media will organise road shows, exhibitions, to bring home the message that sports is fun, it is easy to take up and it is healthy. The campaign will impress on Singaporeans that we do not have to be fit to take up sports but rather sports will develop fitness.

In addition to what the SSC does, PA also has many leisure activities in the CCs. Quite apart from sports, it has got a sea sports centre, karaoke, outings, dancing, barbecues, etc. So indeed there are many opportunities for Singaporeans to play. Just like the proverbial horse which we want to drag to the waters to drink, unless the horse wants to drink nobody can force it to drink. Therefore, we have enough outlets for Singaporeans to play; it is up to the Singaporeans themselves to take up these opportunities.

The Member also wants to know statistics on children attending counselling or children with problems. I am afraid we do not have the details but what we have are statistics from the Institute of Mental Health. According to them, there are 16,253 attendees seeking child and adolescence psychiatric outpatient services at the child guidance clinics. We do not know the details. If the Member is interested, perhaps he could approach the Ministry of Health to pursue the matter.

Dr Ho Tat Kin proposed that we consider reaching out to the poor to make them aware of the kinds of services that are available. I agree with the Member of the need for us to reach out to the poor. In fact, it has been our experience, not only in MCD but also in self-help groups and among the VWOs that the group which you try to help is the very group which is the hardest to reach, for example, the low income group. I am glad to say that last year my Ministry embarked on a joint project with the Marine Parade CDC and the Tanjong Pagar CDC to launch a public education programme on social services to reach out to households living in 1- and 2-room HDB flats. In this programme, volunteers from the CDCs, RCs and VWOs were enlisted to go door to door, we go and knock on each door, literally reaching out to the community, to explain to the 1- and 2-room flat residents of the various programmes and services that are available for them to take advantage of.

My Ministry also has established a booklet entitled "We're Just A Call Away" which contains information on available services and schemes which families can avail themselves of. The booklet can be used by volunteers to brief and advise families. There are also two other publications: one is "Helping Low-income Families The Singapore Way" and the other is "Reaching Out - Directory of Services to Help Low-income Families". These two publications can also be used by social service providers, schools, grassroots organisations for their own reference and also for them to pass on the information to their residents and students.

The CDC has also launched a National Helpline in January this year. This is where people can contact the CDC directly, a one-stop information provider, as it were, for them to ask the kinds of help available to them. This has made things easier for people. Instead of going to several organisations, they just call on this Helpline and they get all the information they need.

I would like to thank Dr Vasoo for lending his moral support, again, for MCD to get more funds and also for VWOs. He also mentioned "compassion fatigue". I sincerely hope that this would not happen because once we have compassion fatigue, then there go our plans for having more volunteers and more people to care for others. I do hope that compassion fatigue will not occur and will not happen in Singapore.

The various Ministries dealing with VWOs (MCD, MOE and MOH) are working very closely with NCSS to monitor the impact of the current economic downturn on social services and the ability of the VWOs to raise funds and to anticipate the sort of support that VWOs may need. But VWOs themselves, I think, can help themselves. We really feel that they are still able to raise funds, provided they have good programmes, their aims are clear and the programmes are perceived by the community as worthy of support. For example, the recent President's Star Charity collected more than $2 million whereas last year they collected only about $1 million. So it is more than double what they collected. Indeed people are still able and they donate even in bad economic times like this.

They can also look into how they can streamline their services further, review or re-prioritise their needs and expenditures like what the Government and the private sector are doing. And they may also want to consider more creative ways of raising funds. Indeed, this is the time for them to be more creative, to examine themselves and to face the whole situation as a challenge for them, which can be very exciting. And they can look into other avenues, and more innovative ways of raising funds.

I want to assure Members of this House that Government has not cut back on its budget for approved programmes run by the VWOs which receive Government funding. And Government will also not be cutting back on its development programme for community-based social services such as FSCs, child care centres, and BASCs. In fact, there will be a 14% increase over FY97 in the provision for the development and operating expenses of the VWOs.

With regard to CDC funding, whether we can extend the 3:1 formula to VWOs, if there is a real need and Members can convince the Minister for Finance - he is not here now - I think he might consider the proposal very sympathetically.

On voluntarism and professionalism in social work, Mdm Chiang mentioned about the need for people to recognise what social work really is. We need both types of workers really - the professional social workers and the volunteers. Indeed, in our many helping hands approach, we need a variety of such workers. There is a wide range of services requiring a variety of skills. For example, at one end, there is the befriender type where we need volunteers. There is also the more administrative duties where we can get via paid staff in the voluntary welfare organisations. Then at the extreme end or the high end, you may call it, where we need real professional social workers to deal, for example, cases of child abuse, domestic abuse or family casework. These really need professional, knowledgeable and skilful workers.

So we need volunteers and we need social workers, and we need those in- between too. And there is room actually for a whole continuum of services to be served by these people. They need different knowledge and skills. She is right that the public is somehow unclear about what a social worker really is, and there is this confusion also that social worker equals a volunteer equals a counsellor, equals anybody who works in a voluntary welfare organisation. The public is largely unaware of what social work actually involves, and that it is a professional service rendered by trained persons with specialised knowledge and skills and these are to be differentiated from acts of charity carried out by volunteers. The professionals will have an increasingly important role as our society develops further and the social service sector expands. My Ministry will help bring about better recognition of social workers by way of investing in training and improving service conditions and public education about what a social worker really is.

In the area of training, for example, my Ministry has been sponsoring specialised training for social workers which includes training in working with family violence victims (this is training in specific areas about family violence) and training for new services such as counselling first-time offenders in Police caution cases. We are also working with the NUS Department of Social Work and Psychology and with various training institutions to increase the specialised and professional upgrading opportunities. MCD's staff itself will be attending upgrading courses to equip them with professional skills to perform their work properly. At the other end of the scale, the voluntary sector will also be given more resources for training of the volunteers so that agencies can upgrade the skills of the helpers and those working in the organisations.

MCD is also studying how best to achieve a good standard of practice, especially in the most critical area of social work interventions, like child abuse and domestic abuse. We will look into an ethical code of practice and the need to regulate the practice in those critical areas so as to ensure that, especially in cases where the clients are vulnerable, the social workers who handle the cases are properly qualified, that they know what they are doing. These are critical areas and this can, in fact, either help the victims or cause more problems for them, if the social workers are not knowledgeable and skilful enough.

MCD will also work with the Singapore Association of Social Workers and NCSS to look into the development of the social work sector as a whole, in terms of manpower planning and standards. There is always the challenge to attract volunteers in Singapore. We have found that somehow people are more charitable when giving donations of money because it is a one-time commitment. You want $10, I give you $10; you want $50, I give you $50. But if you ask me to commit one hour a week, it is a long term commitment. So it is much more difficult to get people to volunteer their time and energy than getting people to donate. But it is a challenge which we will face. We will need to calibrate carefully between passion and compassion and whether there needs to be some reward for volunteers. We need to balance the two. I know some of us really abhor the idea of rewarding volunteers. And at the other end of the scale, some people feel that they may be volunteers but, at the same time, they are human beings too. 2.15 pm

The last question by Mr Iswaran was whether there could be closer coordi- nation or cooperation between the CDCs and MCD. I would like to assure the Member that indeed we work closely not only with CDCs but also with the other agencies I mentioned earlier. In particular, he mentioned about the BASC programme. MCD has got a Social Service Development Master Plan for BASCs, FSCs and all the other centres. We have met with the officers of the Tanjong Pagar and Marine Parade CDCs and we shared with them our Master Plan for BASCs, FSCs, CDCs and the other centres. We will be holding similar sessions. In other words, we will be working together. It is not as if we work on certain directions and the CDCs work on another. We have regular dialogues. We have regular consultations in the planning and implementation of our social service facilities.

MCD is currently working with the CDCs on a number of projects, including public education on social services. We are also working with them on the development of social service facilities, as I mentioned earlier, such as the BASCs and the provision of services, such as food rations to the needy and meals-on-wheels project. We welcome proposals from the CDCs and advisors on the services that are of priority and which they feel would be needed for the community.

Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed (Cheng San): (In Malay): Sir, I would like to make some comments on the subject with regard to the Family Development Department in MUIS. I would like to declare my interest as the former President of the Muslim Religious Council of Singapore and Chairman of the Committee that was appointed by the Minister responsible for Muslim affairs to study and make recommendations on the question of divorce. One of the suggestions was that there should be a special unit established to handle the problem. It has got close connection with the question of family development.

Members of the House may still remember that at the Budget session last year, I had stressed the importance that the Government should increase its assistance to MUIS. The work and responsibility of MUIS in the development of the Muslim community in Singapore has become so wide that MUIS should be given more opportunities and resources to carry out its duties. Therefore, I am happy to see that the Government has allocated an increased contribution to the Family Development Department. Though the provision of $1.8 million is quite a lot I see that it is only for the financial year 1997. The Government should consider increasing its contribution as the responsibility of this Department is heavy and important. If it is not done through MUIS, the Government may assist through MENDAKI, AMP and other grassroots organisations. If the Government is to promote this good effort, MUIS will have to rely on the effort of the organisation. Strategies will have to be made for this Department to increase its responsibility.

In this connection, Sir, the relevant unit of MUIS has to work closely with AMP, Madrasahs and other grassroots organisations to obtain better synergy. It is important that this department together with other Muslim organisations set up a network with other Government agencies and non-Government agencies to utilise the resources available as the Muslim community is taking part in this.

Finally, I would like to congratulate the Minister for Muslim Affairs, Mr Abdullah Tarmugi, for showing great interest in the Family Development Unit. Family is the core of individual development. The stronger the family is, the better will be the opportunity for individuals to progress forward with the other communities in Singapore.

Mr Hawazi Daipi (Sembawang): Sir, the idea to set up a unit under the Islamic Religious Council (MUIS) to help Muslim families to strengthen family relationship in order to reduce divorce rate among them has evolved into something bigger. Like Mr Zainul, I think we should applaud this. A Family Development Department will now be formed to look into not only ways to reduce the number of divorces among Muslim families but to find ways to strengthen family values among them. This is a move in the right direction as the work of the department should include finding ways to strengthen parenting skills too. I hope the Minister can enlighten Members as to the staff strength and responsibilities given to the Department and how it will work with existing Malay/Muslim voluntary welfare organisations in strengthening family values among Muslims in Singapore and reduce the number of divorces. The department should be given sufficient manpower and resources to achieve its objectives.

One aspect of its work that should be given some emphasis is in the area of improving the contents and presentation of pre-marital courses and counselling. I found that the few lectures that I have heard over the radio sounded more like religious sermons rather than something that could appeal to potential couples, ie, those who are planning to get married. In this regard, I would like to know how MUIS or the relevant agency assesses the effectiveness of the pre-marital courses. How many couples who attended the courses have divorced within the first five years of their marriages? One other area that the department should take a closer look at is how to help unmarried Muslims, including, if not particularly, female graduates. In these two areas, I hope the department will conduct thorough studies so that the programmes that will be carried out will not only be suitable to Muslims but are more effective in achieving their objectives.

Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed: (In Malay): Sir, recently, NMP Dr Lee Tsao Yuan reminded the House how important it is for national cohesion to exist. Her interest and concern of society touches on the question of community and religion. We must ensure that this element will not divide the multi-racial and multi-religious community in Singapore. Islam, as we know, is an important instinct for the Malay/Muslim community in Singapore. We also know that Islam encourages harmonious living and Islam is holistic and encourages us to live in tolerance.

When the Minister for Education, RAdm Teo Chee Hean, raised his concern that a number of Muslim pupils are unable to enter the national school system, it has become a topic of general concern of the Muslim community. Is the Government not happy with the Muslim students attending classes at Madrasahs? What is the future of these Madrasahs?

I am confident it is not the policy of the Government to put aside the Madrasah. Madrasah has an important role to play and is close to the hearts of the Muslim community in Singapore. As we know, the Muslim community of Singapore has voluntarily given $14 million for the Madrasah Aljunied in a short time and in record time. We know the Malay/Muslim community has high hopes for their Madrasahs. The Muslim community wants Madrasah graduates to fulfil the religious needs of the community and strengthen their beliefs in the religion. The question is not that the Madrasah should be there or not, but whether the system is suitable for the Muslim community in Singapore in the context of this multi-religious society.

I am confident that the Madrasah will have its place in the community and that MUIS and Madrasah sponsors can work hard to improve the Madrasah. Probably, the Minister responsible for Muslim Affairs, Mr Abdullah Tarmugi, can explain the mission of MUIS with regard to the development of Madrasahs. What steps have been taken to ensure that not only the needs of the teachers are fulfilled but the potential of each student who enters Madrasah education for the benefit of the national economy? The Madrasah should play an important role to fulfil the aspirations of the community and the nation in order to develop fully the potential of our citizens.

With regard to the future of Madrasah, the Minister can consider the establishment of a joint committee between the sponsors of Madrasahs and MUIS and the Ministry of Education to settle issues connected with these Madrasahs.

Mr Hawazi Daipi: (In Malay): Sir, the question of Madrasah education has been a topic of discussion between the Muslim community and the Minister for Education touching on the subject of 500 Malay pupils each year who will not be able to enter the national school system. He expressed concern that they will miss the opportunity to obtain quality education and skills and as such will not be able to integrate into the economy and the social system of Singapore in future.

It appears that some Muslims in the community have expressed concern about the comment of the Minister for Education on the education and job opportunities of Malay-Muslim children who are attending normal school. Also they are concerned that the Government may take steps to change the Madrasah education system or close the Madrasahs. May I take the opportunity to ask the Minister responsible for Muslim Affairs whether this assumption is correct or not. If the Government has no intention of doing so, please express it clearly and the Malay-Muslim community should accept it as a comment and that will be a hopeful sign within the Malay-Muslim community that the madrasah education system be improved, so that more benefits will be obtained by its pupils and the public in general. Sir, the question that I express here is in that direction. 2.30 pm

Also, my question is with regard to the statement made by the Minister responsible for Muslim Affairs earlier this month that a committee comprising members and representatives of the madrasahs, the Malay/Muslim community, the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) and the Ministry of Education will be formed to study the question of madrasah education. I welcome this move.

The encouragement of parents to send their children to madrasahs is clear. Some of them like to see their children having alternative education, balancing secular and religious education. This is because there are six full-session madrasahs which are having subjects with regard to secular and religious education. Some of the parents like their children to become Muslim teachers and scholars, and it is the hope of the Malay/Muslim community locally that religious educated leaders should have the highest education possible. However, the point is that about 10%-15% of each cohort of standard one madrasah are able to go for higher learning. What about the fate of students who are not able to continue with higher education? Will they have the basic educational needs to enable them to follow courses in skills required by the economy so that they have the opportunity of higher employability?

We know the type of investments that will be brought into Singapore in the future will be those concentrated in the production of component parts and high-tech goods, whereas labour intensive industries will be leaving Singapore one by one. In short, how can the madrasah be able to improve its service to the Malay/Muslim children so that they are prepared for the job market? It is important that the economy of Singapore is knowledge-based.

Sir, a full report on madrasah education was published in the Straits Times and it reflected clearly the views that have been raised by Malay/Muslim leaders with regard to improving the prestasi or performance of madrasah education to children and the public at large. First, the concern of the Malay/Muslim community is that, with the cooperation of the Muslim community, the Government should make the madrasah mission schools use the curricula approved by the Ministry of Education.

Second, start full-time madrasahs beginning with secondary school level, so that all students could follow the same primary level basic education before they make the choice for further education in madrasahs.

Third, upgrade the quality of the week-end madrasahs so that more parents will be able to send their children to participate in religious education while such students attend formal school as far as they can attain.

I hope the Minister will give his views and inform the House concerning MUIS' efforts in helping in the management of upgrading the quality of education offered to Malay/Muslim children and also in upgrading the work capability during their working life. To what extent can the Ministry of Education help to upgrade?

Dr Vasoo: Sir, I will be brief. I want to ask the Minister what improvements is he making to the scheme of service in order to attract staff to his Ministry.

Mr Choo Wee Khiang (Jalan Besar): Sir, I will be equally brief.

The Singapore Sports Council has done a very good job and it has been transformed. But I understand from many National Sports Associations that they are all running into financial difficulties. They have a lot of good and great plans, but they need funds. Could the Minister please go to the Minister for Finance and ask for more money in order to ensure that we can put SPEX 2000, Sports for All, Sports for Life and Healthy Lifestyle in place?

Mr Ong Ah Heng (Nee Soon Central): (In Mandarin): Sir, I will be very brief. I would just like to ask the Minister on the Sports Excellence 2000 scheme of the Singapore Sports Council which has been implemented for the last five years, costing about $10 million a year. Have we attained the targets that we have set and is there any further plan?

Secondly, I must declare that I am the President of the Singapore Basketball Association (SBA). The SBA has been holding all its tournaments at the Geylang Indoor Stadium, formerly known as Gay World Stadium or Happy World Stadium. If you happen to pass by the Geylang Indoor Stadium, you will notice that the stadium is exactly the same as it was in the 50s.

My concern is that many people are saying that basketball is a game played predominantly by the Chinese-educated. So why should the Government look after them? But why do people have this sentiment? I think the Sports Council should take some responsibility for this perception. Why can the SSC not do something to upgrade the stadium? If the site is earmarked for development, then the stadium should be demolished. If not, then something should be done to spruce up this stadium where all major basketball tournaments are held, so that it will not give people the impression that since basketball is played predominantly by the Chinese-educated, the Government will not look after it. I think the Singapore Sports Council should do something about it.

The Chairman: Mr Sinnakaruppan, I think you have to be brief too.

Mr R. Sinnakaruppan (Kreta Ayer-Tanglin): Sir, I just want to take a few minutes to speak up for soccer fans in Singapore.

For generations now, soccer fans from all over the world follow the English League with great enthusiasm and interest. In England, in every reasonably big town, there is a soccer club named after the town, and the soccer club is rallying behind the town in order to get the people to bond together. The people follow the fortunes of the club, and win or lose, they support the club and there is a bonding in the town.

In Singapore, we have started the S-League. We now have 11 soccer clubs in the S-League, and we have eight CDCs, following the idea of our Prime Minister. The time has come that we have to use sports, particularly soccer, to link and bond people in the CDCs. My suggestion to the Minister is to link these 11 S-League clubs to the respective eight CDCs. In some CDCs, there may be more than one club. For example, in Manchester, they have Manchester City and Manchester United. In the same way, for example, Central Singapore, we can have Home United in Bishan and Balestier in Kreta Ayer-Tanglin.

We have already started linking these clubs and CDCs at our central CDC, thanks to our Chairman. I understand Tanjong Pagar has done so and Marine Parade has done so. I would like to urge the Minister to extend it and make it a comprehensive network so that this process of community bonding can be expedited. And as a by-product, we could also change the names of the clubs to link it to the satellite towns or the name of the CDC's.

Mr Zulkifli bin Baharudin (Nominated Member): Sir, I will try and make it short. I want to talk about multi-culturalism from the point of view of self-help groups.

I would just like to give my praise for the success of self-help groups to increase ethnic identity, consciousness and self-esteem of Singaporeans. But, more important, the success of these self-help groups is based on feelings of ethnic communities that are receiving the kind of services more suited to the problems they experience. Based on group membership, this can bring about other problems. I am concerned about these problems and I think we need to have CDCs to do more multi-cultural programmes. Because the experiences in some of these countries which practise assimilation of different races, we have now seen the problems, racial tension and unease in times of economic turmoil. So we cannot assume that we will not have that problem.

Sir, I think we need to do more to develop the growth of a multi-cultural society, especially among our children. Because I think and believe the normal way of thinking, feeling and behaving, when begun at an early age with children, contribute to a culturally sensitive atmosphere that is needed for all age groups in Singapore. So I urge that more be done to promote multi-culturalism in Singapore.

Mr Abdullah Tarmugi: Sir, I would like to take the question of madrasahs first, because I think it is important.

Sir, madrasahs are important and established institutions in all Muslim communities. They are primarily set up to provide religious education for Muslim children and to prepare those who wish to pursue vocations such as religious teachers, leaders and scholars in madrasahs, mosques and Muslim organisations.

The Government understands the importance of madrasahs to the Muslim community, and would like to assure the community that it is not the intention of Government to stop them from continuing.

However, the madrasah system is not without its concerns and problems, and the community must be prepared to make changes to overcome these problems and concerns. One is as pointed out by Mr Hawazi on the issue of employability of madrasah graduates. As mentioned earlier, madrasahs will have to produce religious teachers and leaders required by the Muslim community.

But not all madrasah graduates have the inclination or ability to go on to become religious teachers and scholars; nor do we need all the graduates of madrasahs to go into these vocations. This means that those who do not go into these vocations or who fail to complete their madrasah education will have to secure other employment.

MUIS will continue to revamp the madrasah curricula to enhance the teaching skills of teachers and also to strengthen the management and administration of madrasahs. Apart from the existing core curriculum of religious subjects, English, Mathematics and Science are also taught in madrasahs. IT literacy programme will also be introduced in madrasahs. The curriculum time and subject combination will be revised to meet the dual needs for a trained workforce and a qualified pool of religious workers for the community. More students will be encouraged to sit for the O' and A' level examinations. And these measures, hopefully, will help to increase the employability of madrasah graduates.

MUIS is also looking into the streaming of students at the primary level, so that weaker students can be given more attention. This, together with better trained teachers, will help to reduce the high attrition rate in madrasahs, which is another concern about the system mentioned by Mr Hawazi.

Mr Zainul may be pleased to know that National Education will be incorporated in the madrasah system. An MOE-MUIS joint committee on National Education has been formed to study and help the implementation of NE in madrasahs. MUIS has met the madrasahs and they have supported the inclusion of NE in madrasahs, which also plan to have joint programmes with mainstream schools as a way of enhancing the common Singaporean identity. These and other measures mentioned earlier will help to bring the madrasahs in tandem with national needs and aspirations, as proposed by the Member.

Let me touch briefly again on the question by Dr Vasoo about what are we doing about the service conditions of social workers. The Ministry, as I mentioned earlier in my answer to Madam Claire Chiang, is looking into how the service conditions of the social workers can be improved. Because we know that they do onerous jobs and we know that we are really competing for manpower against the other industries. So we will be looking into how we can improve their service conditions and we will also be looking into their training needs, as I mentioned earlier. 2.45 pm

On sports, I wish to thank Mr Choo Wee Khiang for complimenting us on what we did for Toa Payoh Stadium. We have air-conditioned the stadium and I think the table tennis players now are playing in a much more comfortable environment than previously.

As regards to funds for the NSAs, we are always looking at how we can help the NSAs. But the NSAs will also have to convince and show us that they are running the Associations properly and they have a proper management system. So we will be looking into these criteria and we will extend all the help that we can.

On the problem of Gay World Stadium, the area is going to be redeveloped and, therefore, it is on annual TOL. So we feel that it is not economical for us to upgrade the stadium. But we have done something to the seating and whatever improvements we can, but we thought it would not be economical for us to invest too much funds to upgrade the stadium. I hope the Member will understand what we can and cannot do to upgrade or improve the Gay World Stadium. It is not because basketball is played by Chinese school students and therefore we are neglecting it. It is because of the circumstances which surround the stadium itself.

On CDCs and S-League, yes, we agree with the sentiments of Mr Sinnakaruppan about bonding and the ability of football and sports to encourage bonding among citizens. We encourage the adoption of S-League teams by CDCs. Marine Parade CDC has done it. Central CDC and also Tanjong Pagar CDC have done it, and we will continue to promote the idea to all the CDCs. But really the decision would have to be on the CDCs themselves and on the teams.

With regard to the change of names of teams, I leave it to the teams themselves, whether they want to call themselves the "Tanjong Pagarers" or "Marine Paraders", instead of calling themselves the "Cobras" and the "Stallions" or whatever. But we are supporting the idea itself and we will certainly encourage other CDCs to do the same.

Mr Sinnakaruppan: If the CDCs adopt these soccer clubs, will they be eligible for the $1 to $3 grant? Next year, legal betting will be on, and it will not be a problem, but what about this year?

Mr Abdullah Tarmugi: I have just got a ready "No" from Mr Wong Kan Seng. We will leave it to the CDCs because it is not MCD which administers the funds.

Let me reply to Mr Zulkifli's question about multi-culturalism. I fully agree with the need for the self-help groups to see beyond the community. And really the important thing is the leadership of these organisations. The leadership must see the importance of going beyond their own communities and seeing themselves as part of the whole of the national population rather than as a small community which looks inwards into themselves. I have encouraged joint programmes between the self-help groups and the CDCs. They have in fact come up with a joint project of setting up a family service centre or social service centre which is at one of the CCCs in Toa Payoh. So we will try to encourage more of these joint programmes among the self-help groups.

Mr Choo Wee Khiang (Jalan Besar): I thank the Minister for his reply. If we recognise the importance of sports, I think he should consider re-naming his Ministry to "MCDS", Ministry of Community Development and Sports.

Dr Vasoo: Sir, as usual, Members have stretched their viewpoints. The Minister has given very elaborate replies. We have covered as much as possible and we look forward to the Minister's seamless plans for the community and the social service sector. With that note, I would like to withdraw my amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

The Chairman: It is "guillotine" time.

The sum of $366,199,120 for Head J ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates.

The sum of $169,350,900 for Head J ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.

Head L -

The Chairman: Head L, Ministry of Education. Amendment No (1), Mr Loh Meng See.

Mr Loh Meng See (Kampong Glam): Sir, I beg to move,

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

In this year's budget, the Government has provided a total sum of $5,700 million for expenditure on education. This is made up of $3,785 million for operating expenditure and $1,915 million for development expenditure. The total expenditure on education constitutes 3.6% of GDP and 20% of total Government expenditure. For every $5 that Government spends, $1 goes to education. I wish to commend the Government for giving top priority to education. The Government has not allowed the present regional financial crisis to affect our focus on the long term competitiveness, growth and development of Singapore.

Sir, brain power is the basis for Singapore's success today and the spring-board of our prospects tomorrow. If we look back on our lives, we can remember fondly the teachers who have affected us. We will readily attribute our development and achievements to those beloved teachers who had excited our imaginations and set us on the path which we have subsequently followed.

Education is a human enterprise. It is people, teachers, students, administrators and parents, who make the difference between success and failure in our school system. But teachers are the key. Teachers open the door to new knowledge and moral values. Teachers are at the forefront of implementation of school and educational policies.

In the classrooms, teachers wield considerable influence on the students in the way they teach and behave. There is definitely a link between teacher-effectiveness and school performance. The planned changes in the National Education programme, information technology, creativity and thinking skills and curriculum review, will not be successful if we do not have the support and commitment of the teachers. The teachers must be persuaded to own the new approaches in teaching methodology, instructional materials and assessment modes. We have to find new and better ways to involve teachers in empowering them to enhance their work performance and bring about the desired outcomes in our students. Perhaps the Minister can give us an update on the progress made in the implementation of the key initiatives of the Education Ministry.

The Ministry of Education has done much in recent years to improve the salaries and conditions of service for teachers. The anticipated slower growth of the economy may require the civil service to either freeze or moderate the salary increases of public sector employees. I hope the Ministry will consider carefully whether any wage restraint exercise in the civil service should be extended to those in the Education Service. I believe that there is still some catching up to do in the remuneration package of the teachers. Now is a good time for our teachers to be recognised and rewarded with competitive salaries, promotion and career development opportunities. This will enhance the status of teachers in our society.

Besides the salaries and fringe benefits, there are other aspects of the job that can uplift the morale of the teachers. Teacher-principal relation is important. The transfers and postings of principals to new schools should be better planned and communicated to teachers, students and parents. Teachers are affected by the leadership and competencies of principals in making firm and fair decisions. Teachers are also affected when they perceive inequitable distribution of workload assigned by the principal. Teachers also lament that they have to take on administrative and clerical work at the expense of their teaching roles. We should build and develop more trusting relationship and team spirit among principals and teachers in our school. The Ministry has already provided school administrators in schools and launched the School Clusters Scheme. I wish to ask the Minister on the improvements made towards achieving excellence in the management of our schools. Perhaps it is also time for the Ministry to seriously consider the setting up of a Principals College to train and develop potential talents and those already holding the principal's position.

In the Ministry's budget, 511 temporary and relief staff positions have been done away with. Does it mean that the positions have been regularised and made permanent? In the new financial year there is the need to recruit 1,750 teachers. We need highly committed and dedicated individuals to join the teaching profession. With the recent large intakes of new and younger teachers, I would imagine that the median age and the average length of service of teachers will be lower. We may have better educated and more knowledgeable teachers, but I wonder whether they have the necessary experience and maturity to handle, for example, the teenage students in secondary schools.

I also understand that we are short of English Language teachers. This has affected the general performance of students in the "O" level examinations in English Language. What are the Ministry's plans in attracting and retaining very good English Language teachers in our schools?

Mr Lim Swee Say (Tanjong Pagar): (In Mandarin): Sir, there is a Chinese saying, "If you are my teacher for a day, I will respect you like my father for my whole life time". This saying reflects how much respect students in the old days had for their teachers. It is also said that a successful teacher would have students all over the world. This saying affirms the social status of teachers. With the changes of time, students are difficult to teach, even parents are harder to handle and the pressure on teachers is increasing day by day. The question of how to improve the morale of teachers is a great challenge. There are four reasons for this. One, generally parent's educational level is higher and therefore their expectations on the teachers are correspondingly higher. As a result, their respect for teachers also correspondingly declines and some even criticise the teachers and interfere with their methods of teaching -- and this is a big blow to the dignity of our teachers.

Secondly, in the past, teachers enjoyed a very high social status. Society generally respected the teachers and emphasised on morals. Now, the number of children in the family is small and parents both go to work. Accordingly, their way of bringing up children is different and this again further weakens the students' respect for their teachers. On the other hand, there is this problem of knowledge explosion and so the teachers, students and parents have to do all they can in the pursuit and transmission of knowledge and therefore the question of stress on morale also begins to decline in the minds of the people.

Thirdly, with the advancement in science and technology, it is difficult for us to catch up with the time, especially for the older teachers who will find it more difficult. Some teachers, particularly the older ones, have developed a technology phobia. In fact, technology itself is making it difficult for us to catch up with the times. Especially for older teachers, they will find it more difficult. And so some teachers are beginning to take courses to learn the latest technology available to us.

Fourthly, the syllabi and curricula of schools have also been changing all the time. Now, apart from the normal curricula and syllabi, the teachers have to look after National Education, thinking and creativity, computer teaching, etc. As a result, they are highly stressed in the classroom and they really crave that they can have "three heads and six arms". That shows how much pressure is put on the teachers.

Generally, the teachers have to upgrade themselves to catch up with the latest technology. On the other hand, the pace of the schools is on the move all the time and they may well suffer the "fatigue syndrome". If we do not face up to this phenomenon, it will only worsen the morale of the teachers.

In last year's Budget, I really appreciate the Minister's vision. The Minister for Education has stressed the importance of professional training and it has also committed to the upgrading of teachers in their skills. I hope that the Ministry of Education can go one step further to give the teachers more support. This will not only improve their salaries and service conditions, but more importantly, they must go a step further to improve the social status of teachers, and the kind of respect they used to enjoy in the past. We must affirm the teachers' position so that they can develop their professionalism and teach our next generation better.

Mr Peh Chin Hua (Jalan Besar): (In Mandarin): Sir, schools in Singapore are well-equipped with first class hardware in terms of school buildings, classrooms, computers, teaching aids and other facilities. Our students enjoy studying in a high-tech and comfortable environment. However, in terms of software, we are quite inadequate.

When we talk about having "thinking school" and creativity, having good hardware is not enough. Creativity is not something that you can learn in the classroom. Creativity must be inculcated through experience in the reality of life. If you want to catch the light at the end of the tunnel, you must be prepared to go through the dark passage in life, work hard and persevere.

Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong urged the parents and students not to narrowly pursue more "A" grades, and neglect the importance of moulding a perfect character. I fully agree with him.

The greatest mission of education is to cultivate the students through the five aspects of education, namely, moral, intellectual, physical, community and aesthetic education, so that they can mould a perfect character on the basis of moral values, knowledge, physical fitness, social concept, and aesthetic appreciation. Only in this way can we assure that the future generations of Singaporeans are capable of playing a more important role when our nation faces greater challenges ahead.

On the basis of this principle, I appeal to the Ministry of Education to include the behaviour and conduct of students as part of the criteria for admission to secondary schools and institutes of higher learning. So students with slightly inferior academic results, but have good "A" or "B" grades in their conduct marks, can also have the opportunity to be admitted to the better secondary schools, junior colleges or universities. This will indirectly encourage students and their parents to attach more importance to seek perfection in their character.

I would also call upon all the schools to set up an "Excellent Conduct Award" for every standard and every class each year. We should not put our emphasis only on academic results. Excellence in conduct and behaviour is just as important. By focusing on how many "As" and neglecting the conduct of the students is an imbalance in the whole education system.

To a large extent, the conduct of students is influenced by the school environment, the words and deeds of the teachers and the principal. This is what the Chinese described as wei ren shi biao (be a model of virtue for others). Recently, I read in the newspaper a real-life story of how a group of secondary one students of the Class of 63 in Thomson Secondary School inserted an advertisement in the newspaper, some 34 years later, to look for a certain teacher whom they were very fond of but had lost contact with. They found the teacher and had a memorable reunion. I was very touched by this report. I do not know whether the Minister has read this report in the newspaper. If he has not, I can supply him with the relevant cuttings.

I feel that to mould the perfect character of the students, the responsibility must lie squarely with the principal and the teachers. Credit must also be given when it is due. I would therefore suggest that the Ministry of Education set up an "Engineer of the Soul Award" to show appreciation to those principals and teachers who have worked their hearts out with perseverance and dedication to education throughout their whole life-time.

When I try to remember the good teachers I had the good fortune of coming under during my 10-odd years in school, I cannot hardly count beyond my five fingers. So if we do not do something to encourage these good teachers, how are we going to build the good character of our students? I think it would be very difficult. So I hope the Ministry of Education will consider my two suggestions above.

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: Order. I suspend the Sitting and will take the Chair again at 3.30 pm.

Sitting accordingly suspended at 3.08 pm until 3.30 pm. Sitting resumed at 3.30 pm

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Debate in Committee of Supply resumed.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Head L (cont.) -

The Chairman: Mr Chew is not here. Dr Tan.

Dr Tan Boon Wan (Ang Mo Kio): Sir, we enjoy an excellent education system that we can be proud of. For a small nation, our students have done well, often times performing better in international examinations and surveys than their counterparts from larger and more developed countries. Credit must go to our teachers and students. However, in a very rapidly changing world, our education system must continue to change to keep abreast of the fast changing time, better still we should strive to move ahead of new requirements. But this is no easy task. For what we are seeking to do to our education system is not to repair a defective one but to make a good system better and more suitable for a demanding and uncertain future. This is a difficult task which carries heavy responsibilities and requires much care.

The Ministry of Education has done very well in bringing change to the education system. One area that deserves mention is for the efforts to improve the management of our schools. Several innovative management initiatives like school cluster and the appointment of administrative assistants and operation managers have been introduced. I was proud to read that the UK introduced the cluster school management concept at the end of 1997, long after we had implemented it.

Our teachers are a critical educational resource. Good management of our schools is crucial to draw out the potential in our teachers. Good managers motivate their staff and bring out the best in them. I would recommend that principals adopt a more business management approach towards running their schools. Principals should therefore be introduced to modern management knowledge and techniques used in business, especially in the area of human resource management. I believe the business schools in our universities can help in this task.

The recent salary adjustments, promotion exercise and greater flexibility and opportunities to upgrade themselves have been great morale boosters to the teachers. They are better motivated when the Ministry is responsive to their needs. They feel that the Ministry cares about them and has their interest in mind. The public will also view the teaching profession with greater and higher regard. With all these changes, I look forward to greater motivation and a higher morale among our teachers, students and parents and better performance and discipline from our students.

Sir, let me now touch on the courses that the Ministry has introduced to upgrade our teachers. The Ministry has introduced many innovations like IT and new teaching and assessment methods into our schools. It is vital that our teachers are properly trained and equipped to handle these innovations. The Ministry has introduced many training courses, including IT courses, to impart these new skills and knowledge to our teachers. The efficacy of these courses depends on the implementation of the training programme. I hope that the Ministry will look into ways to make the implementation process more effective.

I have some feedback which may be of help. Teachers have expressed three areas of concern, namely, the course schedule, the course content and the use of the newly acquired knowledge and skills. Teachers, generally, have difficulties juggling their training schedule with a full load of teaching duties. Some principals have helped by rescheduling activities and others have given their teachers time off to attend training. The support of the principal is crucial. Teachers want their principals to understand their difficulties and to show support for training, both in words and deeds. Secondly, teachers quickly lose their newly acquired knowledge and skills if these are not put to use. Teachers have to use the new knowledge and skills in order to deepen their understanding of it and to internalise it. They must be encouraged and given opportunities to do so. If this is not done, they will quickly forget what they learn. It will be a case of training for training's sake.

This brings me to the course content. Some teachers found the courses too theoretical. They prefer to start with practical courses which they can use immediately. They can move on to intermediate and advanced level courses after they have gained some experience and confidence with the new technology.

Sir, I will now move on to the needs to reduce the course content to make learning easier and more efficient for our students. Our children work very hard in schools. The result of their effort is good grades and success. In the future where information and knowledge decide the outcomes of competition, our students must also acquire the ability to think more and to be more creative and innovative. Our students must therefore continue to score in their examinations while becoming more creative and innovative in their thinking process. At the same time, one should not be achieved at the expense of the other. This is no easy task. If we do not do it right, our students will become more stressed out. One way is to help our students to study more efficiently. With interconnected computers, there is less need to memorise volumes of information which has grown rapidly over the years, partly also a consequence of IT. But no matter how easily accessible facts and information become, each child must still acquire a core set of facts, knowledge and skills in order to make use of the volume of information that can be accessed on the network.

Learning can be made easier if we pare down the volume of information to this core of facts and knowledge that we need to teach our students. This will free time in the curriculum for other activities which can be organised to help develop their thinking, creative and innovative skills. I have been told that the Ministry is already doing this and in some subjects, they have been able to scale down the content by as much as 30%. I would like the Ministry to make more urgent efforts in this area. We should make more use of the Internet as a teaching tool and its vast store of information as educational resources. We should thus give our students better and easier access to the Internet. Our students therefore need to be proficient in the use of information technology. In the new millennium, every student who misses the opportunity to be computer literate will be handicapped. We must not delay the IT programme to equip our schools with computers for our students to work on and to imbue our teachers with the resources and skills to teach with the computer.

Here, I would like to add that preparing teaching materials and resources is a time consuming and tedious process. For teachers new to the technology, it is in fact also a daunting and intimidating task. I would like the Ministry to consider a centralised effort to produce such teaching materials and resources to assist the teachers. Such a centralised body would allow teachers to seek help, especially when they start to use IT in their work. The use of common syllabi in our schools makes a centralised effort practical and feasible.

Finally, Sir, let me touch on the topic of technical education and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE). Four of every 10 of our young will not go to the polytechnic or universities. They will go to work or proceed to the Institute of Technical Education where they will acquire practical skills needed by our companies. The first batch of the Normal (Technical) stream students has completed their secondary education. Some of these students have come to seek my help to get them into ITE courses. I hope that this is an indication that our students have accepted ITE as an educational path. However, the shortage of places suggests that IT has some work on its hand to either re-allocate its teaching resources to the more popular courses or to sell the less popular but important courses to the students. As the first batch of Normal (Technical) students has passed through the portals of our schools and ITE, I would like the Ministry to update and apprise the House of the progress made by students in the Normal (Technical) stream and ITE in providing technical education to our young.

Mr Zulkifli Bin Baharudin: Sir, I would like to make two suggestions to the Minister. One, is to introduce education programmes, especially for parents, to make them better and more effective tutors at home and, two, to provide a more flexible and accessible training programmes for teachers in recognition of the great demand placed on our teachers.

In a recent study conducted by the AMP involving some 2,004 Malay/Muslim workers, it was found that Malay/Muslim parents now have much higher aspirations for their children in education. 61% of them want their children to obtain at least a polytechnic diploma. That is the good news. In fact, more parents want their children to obtain higher degrees like Masters and PhDs. The result of this survey was in fact recently published in the Berita Harian. But the not-so-good news is that, of this 61%, more than half of the parents are uncertain of ways to help their children to succeed academically. I am sure a lot more are incapable of teaching, guiding or tutoring their children at home. While I do not have any empirical evidence of the situation in other communities, I believe there is some relevance here.

I was extremely disturbed by these statistics. It has taken this country and community so much and for so long to give parents the hope, promise and optimism and the feeling that in Singapore, despite differences in race, language, religion and income group, their children have equal opportunities to progress and achieve the desired academic success. But there is a danger that parents may become frustrated and disappointed if they continue to feel helpless to assist and guide their children.

I have discussed this matter with a number of parents and found that even those with tertiary education have some problems understanding, let alone tutoring their primary school children in Mathematics. Some, for example, especially among the more affluent, have found it necessary to attend special classes organised to guide and help parents on ways and methods of tutoring their children. Many of these parents have discovered that the methods and concepts taught in school today are alien to many of them. Quite naturally, some of these parents see tuition as the only solution to these problems. In fact, some of them feel inadequate if their children are not getting enough tuition compared to their peers. This brings about a host of other problems, namely, stress, excessive workload, complaints of high tuition fees. I think we should not allow parents to feel that the academic achievement is dependent upon the amount of tuition that students get. Parental guidance and help are more significant factors. I am therefore suggesting to the Minister to structure a programme to prepare and equip parents so that they can play an effective role as teachers and tutors at home. Self-help groups can also have such programmes by making parents the facilitators in their children's education. We must demonstrate and emphasise that the teaching and education of our children is as much the responsibility of parents as it is for teachers.

I would like to touch on another point that was raised by some other Members earlier and that is with regard to teacher training. I would like to ask the Minister on the type and scope of training that teachers receive in order to keep pace with increasing demands placed on them. I sympathise with the teachers who are under tremendous pressure from parents and society to produce and nurture creative, disciplined, well-rounded, eloquent, IT literate students with the right moral and national values. It is a very difficult task indeed.

But teachers do need training in all these matters, including IT skills, problem solving and many others. It would indeed be very difficult for the Ministry to provide such a diverse range of training for teachers through its in-house training programme. I personally would like to see more teachers attending privately run seminars and conferences and hope that teachers are given greater accessibility and flexibility to attend such courses. Perhaps, through such interaction, we can enhance the profile and image of teachers and instill greater understanding amongst parents and society at large of the huge responsibilities and pressure our teachers shoulder. 3.45 pm

Dr Toh See Kiat: Sir, it is easy to think of ways to spend money to build good schools and provide the hardware for schools, like computers and the sort of equipment that they need. These can all be listed out. I think it is important to talk about the software that goes into the schools, the children and what we put into their minds.

Sir, creative people are divergent thinkers. They tend to come to different conclusions from the majority of us. I have read somewhere that Thomas Edison, for example, was deaf in one ear, because he had been boxed as a child for misbehaviour. We have got a society that tends to, they say, build conformist patterns in children, and this is a clear way of destroying creativity of people who are divergent thinkers. Children who act differently, think differently or give different answers are looked upon as being too smart, too big for the shoes and, therefore, punished and suppressed in normal schools. I think we need to think of ways of changing that.

Schools are also burdened with all sorts of programmes. Many of these programmes are, of course, introduced with good intentions, with well-meaning purposes. But when these programmes are implemented in schools, they are done in rather unthinking ways. There are all sorts of enrichment programmes, programmes that teach children IT, programmes that teach children who are bad in their mother tongue to pick up their skills, remedial classes, even community service hours for them to learn how to serve others. Our children are very, very busy people. They have so many things to do. Sir, I wonder whether the schools actually do think carefully of how to implement this, whether the schools give the rationale to the children, so that the children grow up learning why they are doing these things.

For thinking schools, we need to reduce the academic load somehow, because there is this irresistible desire for schools (and parents, I suppose, pressuring the schools) to teach primary 6 work, for example, in primary 4. And drill for GEP aptitude test. I think this is ridiculous. Creating needs time to think. Play aids creativity. I think we need to give back to our children time to play, time to be children, time to do things that fill up their time meaningfully. And not just to see that if there is some time left, they must not be given time to be idle, let's fill it up. So we have teachers and parents who have this temptation and they say, "Well, you have got a long weekend ahead. Chinese New Year is coming, many days of holidays, I think you need to do some homework." And then piles of homework are given to them. How do they enjoy their long weekends and holidays then? And how do we give them time to play and learn to be creative?

Sir, I think creativity perhaps needs to be nurtured, but I wonder whether creativity can be taught. How would creative teachers be identified? Because if creativity can be taught, surely they must be taught by creative teachers. Otherwise, how do uncreative teachers teach creativity?

I think this is a pertinent question to think about, and we certainly do know that we have got a lot of good teachers. But I think it is not every teacher that knows how to be creative or knows how to teach creativity.

We are sending a lot of teachers, in a way, back to school, to seminars and workshops to learn things that they perhaps did not learn when they were in the teachers' training school. We are sending them to do all these things because we want to upgrade their skills and improve their professionalism. But we also need to be careful that we do not fill our teachers' time so much that they too have no time to think. And if teachers have no time to think, how can they teach students to think in the thinking schools? Tired teachers have no time to think and plan. Tired teachers have no ability to rest, read, refresh and keep up to date. If this happens, we are not going to get our thinking and creative schools.

Lastly, I would like to mention that we need to be careful when we plan all these programmes with purpose and good meaning, but they may be implemented in a way that is not expected. I know, for example, that the Ministry of Education sets some very reasonable standards. But the policy makers must remember that at the ground, things are looked at differently. And if they do not understand the rationale of some of the programmes that are being introduced at the Ministry level, they are going to do it their own way, and they are just going to look at it as yet another thing to do to improve the ranking.

Mr Iswaran: Sir, we live in a society that venerates the role of the teacher. Over the past year or so, we have witnessed many Government initiatives on the education front. National Education, information technology and creativity have been at the core. I would like to look at these initiatives from the perspective of the teacher.

Sir, the new initiatives have brought about considerable change in the school environment. Teachers have had to adapt to new technologies. They are asked to incorporate new pedagogic methods in their classroom. At the same time, they have to deal with extra-curricular activities and other administrative duties. It would not be an exaggeration to say that our teachers have found life becoming a little bit more hectic, a little bit more stressful.

Sir, in part, to address these concerns, I would like to ask the Minister for some information on initiatives of the Ministry in a few areas. The first area pertains to curriculum. In the Addendum to the President's Address last year, the Minister announced that efforts would be made to reduce the curriculum. This is an initiative much awaited, not just by students and teachers, but also the parents. In particular, it would give teachers the capacity to undertake the new initiatives the Ministry has introduced with greater vigour. So I would appreciate it if the Minister could give us an update on this.

Secondly, in a somewhat mundane but I think very important administrative arena, can more be done to help and support our teachers in schools? Some of our staff rooms look like they have remained unchanged since the 60s and 70s, and yet we live in an era where systems furniture and open office systems are the norm. Similarly, it is not unusual to find a computer on every desk or every other desk in the commercial world. This is certainly not yet the case in our staff rooms. I know the Minister has already undertaken initiatives to address this. I would appreciate it if we could understand the progress and the targets.

Finally, according recognition to our teachers is extremely important. In part, this is done through the competitive remuneration. And I know the Ministry has conducted a comprehensive review last year and recently, and will continue to monitor this situation. It is the non-monetary arena in which I am concerned. I think more can be done. We have annual events like Teachers' Day to acknowledge their contributions. But I think it is more than just one localised annual event, and it is certainly not the responsibility of just the Ministry, the students or the teachers. I think our society and our institutions, as a whole, should cultivate this culture of constantly recognising our teachers' contributions. Recently, the Lianhe Zaobao introduced an award for excellence in the teaching of Mandarin. I wonder if this could be emulated by the other vernacular media.

Also, in every day's Straits Times, we have at least 4-6 pages of business news and 15 minutes on TCS talking about the achievements of corporations and their leaders. We have 400 over schools. We have about 300-350 listed companies. Surely we can do something similar, if not on a weekly or daily basis, then perhaps on a fortnightly basis to highlight some of their accomplishments. After all, our future wealth creators are in these schools.

Sir, in keeping with the spirit of thinking schools and learning nation, I believe it is very important for us to constantly think of our teachers and learn of their accomplishments.

Mr Hawazi Daipi: (In Malay): Sir, the Education Ministry has succeeded in attracting many candidates as teachers. Its bumper harvest can help overcome the shortage of teachers and enable new programmes to be implemented in schools.

However, we cannot rest on one's laurels, because it appears that we need many teachers not only to take the place of those who retire or resign, but also to reduce the burden experienced by teachers. If we look around, we can see that many schools are forced to depend on temporary teachers, because teachers who retire or resign or fall ill are not immediately replaced by permanent or full-time teachers. This results in many of the students affected not getting the full guidance in the subjects taught. Is the Education Ministry looking into this problem and how does it intend to overcome it? If we actually need more teachers, is the Ministry reviewing its policies on recruitment of teachers with overseas degrees?

I acknowledge that the teaching profession needs teachers who are dedicated, of good morals and are people who can educate their students, not only teach particular subjects. However, would it not be better if the Ministry reassesses its policy on recruitment of graduate teachers from foreign universities if these people can contribute to the education of our children?

Why are some candidates with overseas degrees, who are currently employed as part-time teachers with graduate salaries, not offered salaries which are commensurate with their qualifications?

Sir, talking about teachers, I would also like to point out the need for the Ministry to send teachers who are more capable as educators, guides and, what is no less important, as disciplinarians, to schools which are likely to accept more students with limited academic abilities. This is so that the teachers concerned can increase the motivation of the students.

Another matter that I would like to touch on is how our schools fund their various activities while their operating budgets are becoming more restricted. How can schools provide programmes to increase creativity, for example, with limited funds? Does this mean that we have to compromise the quality of our education?

I hope the Ministry of Education could clarify.

Mr Loh Meng See: Sir, I would like to talk on higher education.

Our universities have budgetted an increase in student intake in the new financial year. The question in the public mind is how many of the places will actually be for Singaporeans, as the universities have announced plans to take in more foreign undergraduate students. With the regional financial crisis, the depreciation of the Singapore dollar against the US dollar and the British sterling pound, and the anticipated slower economic growth, there would be students who had originally intended to study overseas, but have to shelf their plans and remain in Singapore for their tertiary education. What then would be the impact of this on the student enrolment and the ability of the universities to accommodate all the students who meet the entry requirements? Will the universities be able to expand its facilities quickly to take in larger intakes of students if there is demand, especially in some popular courses? 4.00 pm

If the regional financial crisis persists for a prolonged period, the Ministry would have to accelerate the opening of the third university to take in the large number of undergraduates wishing to remain in Singapore for their university education. Can the Minister give his assessment on the impact of the present regional financial crisis on the demand for places in our universities in Singapore and how will the universities be coping with the situation?

The universities have recently announced that the future admission criteria for university would not be based solely on academic results. There is already the test and interview selection process conducted for students applying for courses in law and medicine at NUS. How different is the new basis of selection for university admission? Can the Minister explain the merits of this new entry system? How do we satisfy the students, and their parents, that they would not be unduly penalised under the new system of admission?

Many have viewed this system to be subjective and are concerned that the wrong selection could lead to unintended and undesirable outcomes. How do we assure the students that they will not be denied the opportunity of studying the courses of their choice.

Presumably under the new entry system more weightage would be given to extra-curricular activities. Would it then mean that those youths who had represented Singapore either in sports, arts, music and culture, in international competitions and have won medals, would be given automatic admissions into our universities, if they meet the minimum entry requirements?

The Ministry of Education has recently informed prospective applicants of Business Administration and Business courses at NUS and NTU, that NTU would cease to offer business courses after year 2000. Singapore Management University is a private university. What would be the difference for students choosing to study either at the NUS or SMU? What would be the focus and orientation of NTU when it no longer runs business courses? What would the vacated facilities at NTU be used for in the future? Would there be any difference in the fees payable and the entry requirements between the two universities of NUS and SMU? Will there be an overall increase or decrease in the number of places for students pursuing business courses in NUS and SMU? Would SMU be strictly a university for business and finance related courses? What would be the future of the programmes currently run under the Singapore Institute of Management?

Sir, with regard to the Open University what would be its status with the establishment of SMU as a private university? How successful has the Open University been? How many students have signed up and graduated from the Open University? Can the Open University be more flexible in its entry requirements to cater to working adults who have made good progress in their careers? We should be open-minded and make it easy for mature students to qualify for admission into the Open University courses.

Is it really necessary for applicants to have relevant "A" level subjects to apply for courses in the Open University Degree Programme? We are already facing a shortage of English Language and Literature teachers. If non-graduate teachers who have "A" levels in other arts subjects and have the interest to do a degree in English Language and Literature, we should allow them to do so, provided they pass the entrance examinations. After all, they need to work hard to earn their degrees.

May I also ask the Minister whether there are plans to expand the range of courses in the Open University to encourage more working adults to take up continuing education programmes?

Sir, there have been concerns expressed that the private educational institutions conducting twinning programmes with overseas universities may fall short in the high standards expected of a university. In such an important area of quality control, I do not think we should completely allow the market to decide. The Government can make the Open University a model for standards of distant learning courses and a benchmark for comparison against private educational institutions.

Assoc. Prof. Chin Tet Yung (Sembawang): Sir, I would like to state that I am currently an academic staff member of the National University of Singapore.

Sir, a total of $1 billion is provided to our 2 universities for the financial year 1998. The average annual subsidy per student is stated to be, at NUS, $18,300 per student, and at NTU, $15,200. These are major investments on our universities and their students. The aim is to provide Singapore with graduates having the requisite knowledge and skills for employment and to promote research and innovation. The broader vision sketched out by DPM, Dr Tony Tan, last year in the debate on the President's Address, is to make the two universities world-class and its graduates more responsive to life-long learning and changing circumstances. One of the proposals was to broaden the curricula of the universities, to have courses such as history, regional cultures or language and expository writing.

Sir, university or tertiary education is regarded as the pinnacle of one's educational career. Graduates usually join the workforce after university. At the university, the student takes a degree course that may determine his career. Economic competitiveness plays a large part in the student's perception of what he or she should be reading at university. Excelling in the subjects that are seen to be most relevant to employers appears to be uppermost in the minds of most students. The proposal to broaden the curricula of the university is seen to promote other objectives, besides job competence and economic competitiveness. It is to arm the graduate with life-long learning skills and a better appreciation of the world around them. Additionally, these subjects serve the more traditional functions of university education, namely to build civic responsibilities and cultivate tolerance, in short, to produce a well-rounded educated person. There are several points, Sir, that should be made concerning these broader aims of university education. I hope the Ministry will see fit to comment on them.

First, and most important of all, unless the consumers buy the product, that is to say, unless they believe in the aims, all will come to nought. Subjects are learned, examined on and discarded by semester. At the end of the day, only the grade counts. To avoid this, our university students have to internalize a different set of values, a sense of pursuing knowledge for its own sake, a sense of civility, a sense of culture, a sense of community. Without a new perception on the part of our students, there will only be the appearance that we are doing the right thing. This should be avoided at all costs.

Second, the employers must believe in the broader curricula. Many enlightened employers do look at the totality of the graduate's time at the university, not only in what grades he has obtained, but how broad the sweep of subjects he has taken and the intellectual maturity that he displays. But there are also many who take a blinkered view and who would hire only graduates who had done the subjects most relevant to the jobs. This has to change. Professional bodies must take a more enlightened view about what is required for professional competence.

Third, the home universities must provide the wherewithal in terms of facilities and teaching to foster the academic tradition. There must be intellectual autonomy, intellectual curiosity and intellectual rigour to inspire and motivate the students. The worst thing that could happen is a broad curriculum, badly taught and half-heartedly learned.

Finally, there must be recognition of the quality of the home universities - that its faculties are comparable to some of the world's best. That recognition must be shown through the award of prestigious scholarships and to the top students in Singapore.

I hope that the Ministry of Education would do its best to persuade the top students, the scholars, that the home universities are equal to the task of providing for their tertiary education. Sir, the Government has been farsighted enough to continue to invest heavily in the tertiary institutions. We are still on course in respect of the objective. For our home universities to be world-class, let us also ensure that our graduates are world-class.

Mr Chew Heng Ching (East Coast): Sir, I rise to applaud the move by the Ministry of Education and our tertiary institutions to fine-tune the admission criteria for our local universities. The encouragement of the development of all-rounded students, taking into account each student's ECAs and achievements, personality and communication skills, deductive capacity and general knowledge, is a step in the right direction, as these attributes are necessary for graduates and Singapore to succeed in the 21st century.

Obviously, the objective of the new admission criteria is to nurture all-rounded talents so that our graduates will not only be equipped with specialised skills, but also be able to conduct themselves gracefully when they enter working life. Sir, I understand the Ministry will appoint a panel or committee to review the admission criteria and work out implementation details for the scheme to be effected in the year 2001. I wish to raise some concerns and suggestions to the Ministry as regards the new admission criteria.

Firstly, Sir, whilst I agree that greater emphasis should be placed on ECA as a criterion for admission to the university, we should not over-emphasise this. Students could over-compensate, and parents could put undue stress on them to spend an exorbitant amount of time on ECA. The resulting participation for the sake of participation might detract from any benefits that these changes are designed to create and also compromise academic excellence, which has been the hallmark of our education system all these years. There is therefore a need, Sir, to properly establish an optimum balance between academic excellence and ECA.

Secondly, Sir, I believe there must be social consensus all round, among parents, teachers and employers, that indeed the new admission criterion is in the interest of all, particularly in producing graduates who should be more forward-looking and who have to compete with talents all over the world as they venture out to the region to seek opportunities in line with our move towards regionalisation and globalisation. To do this successfully, and to gain acceptance, we must also educate and prepare our parents, our teachers and our employers, on this move. And I believe that we should start now and not wait till the year 2001. The Government therefore should look into implementing changes to our education system and employment scene to facilitate this process of acceptance and social consensus.

Finally, Sir, in establishing new criteria for admission into our universities, inevitably we have to learn from the experience of more well-known and established universities world-wide. By all means, learn from the others, but I would caution against the wholesale adoption of a particular model, whether it is based on the US, UK, Australian or Japanese model. May I therefore suggest that the Ministry look into the various models and adopt whatever is relevant to our needs. At the end of the day, Sir, we must develop our own admission criteria, given the unique nature of Singapore, with its constraints and limited manpower. Sir, I urge the Ministry to consider these concerns and suggestions in drawing up the new university admission criteria.

Mr R. Sinnakaruppan (Kreta Ayer-Tanglin): Sir, unlike one or two of my colleagues, I am cheered by the recent changes that have been announced for university admission by Deputy Prime Minister, Dr Tony Tan. In fact, many of my friends who I have spoken to, welcomed this announcement. But, however, there are some who do have concerns and are anxious as to how it will be implemented, as the GPC Chairman, Mr Loh, has pointed out.

Sir, in our education system, the top 20% in each school cohort enter the university. It is from this elite that leaders of industry, business and politics in Singapore will largely surface from. Whether one becomes a leader in industry, in business or commerce or in politics, the fundamental factors that will make him or her a successful leader is his intellect, his character, that is, integrity, honesty and confidence; his effective communications skills, that is, written and oral skills; and inter-personal skills, and other qualities like charisma, perseverance, tolerance and compassion for fellow human beings. Sir, this list is by no means exhaustive, but these are some of the key qualities of leaders.

If you are in politics, certain of these factors will be emphasised - charisma, ability to convince the mass of Singaporeans on the policies that have been implemented and to follow through, to understand ground feelings and so on. If you are in business, operational skills become essential. So broadly, these skills are required in whatever you do as a leader. 4.15 pm

Sir, we have often heard that a good degree is but only a passport to a good job. But whether one develops a good career and succeeds in his life depends on many of the above qualities that I have mentioned. Sir, when I was a student leader in my undergraduate days at NTI, the predecessor to NTU, a very senior administrator of the University used to meet student leaders for lunch from time to time. At one lunch meeting, he said that he was very happy that we were involved in student leadership because he felt that the experience that we could gain would indeed give us an all-round or universal university education. He said that he reflected back to his own group of friends during his Raffles College days and came to the conclusion that those friends who were very active in student activities and, of course, did reasonably well in studies, had as a rule done much better in their careers than those who had excellent results but did not have an all-round education. By the way, the university undergraduate hostel lingo, we called this type of people, the latter, "square" or "Martians", people from Mars.

Sir, today, after graduating 13 years ago, I find that what this administrator has told me is very true indeed. Personally, I have been very active in ECA in primary school, secondary school, pre-U and in the university due to the kind guidance of my parents, my teachers, relatives and friends. I feel very strongly that ECA has helped me very significantly in my personal development and career. And therefore, I feel very passionately in supporting this policy.

The universities in Singapore have moved in recent years to the modular academic system. Although it is a good policy, one of the side effects of this, sadly, is that the time that undergraduates have for ECA is somewhat lessened, somewhat squeezed. Therefore, broadening the university admission criteria would encourage an earlier development of this all-round university education at junior colleges, at secondary schools and even primary schools. But the main fear really that I have is that some principals, some teachers and perhaps some parents may go overboard and unduly emphasise ECA in lieu of the academic curriculum. The Education Minister should be aware of this and ensure that the academic curriculum and ECA find the right balance in our schools so that a balanced foundation is laid before some of the brighter children who enter the universities.

I would also like to urge the Minister to release more details on the implementation of these policies as soon as the appointed panel completes its work. I would urge that this panel complete its work as soon as possible so that this apprehension that people have on a balanced weightage of ECA vis-a-vis academic results can be resolved. And I would also like to urge the Minister not to wait till the year 2001 to implement it; try and implement it as soon as possible, if not, the next academic year.

Assoc. Prof. Chin Tet Yung: Sir, I reiterate my interest as an academic staff member of the National University of Singapore.

One of the perennial problems that has always plagued every university staff member when he sees a new batch of students for the first time is: Have we admitted the right people? Or an even more difficult question: Did we leave out some deserving ones? These are questions that are hard to answer. Recently, a suggestion was made that admissions should not be based on "A" level results alone and that other activities of the students should be taken into account. The so-called extra-curricular record should be examined with points to be awarded to various types of deserving activities.

All this is, of course, well and good. But it must be noted that the "A" result is really the culmination of at least two years' hard work. Examination smartness should not, of course, be dismissed lightly. If the extra-curricular records were taken into account, my first concern is that it would take the spontaneity and fun out of participating in such activities. Students, together with parents, in Singapore are very good at applying what is specified, what earns most points. We may, in fact, encourage an unhealthy attitude, for example, of doing community service without the heart in it. Extra-curricular activities will be pursued very much like grades in "A" levels themselves. It would detract from, rather than reinforce, the aims of extra-curricular activities, that of pursuing certain activities for their own sake, whether it be community work, sports or drama. We, therefore, need to exercise great care in this matter. Extra-curricular activities should be encouraged but not forced directly or indirectly on students.

The second point is that consistent with the approach of the universities in broadening the curricula, the specialisation that has taken root for a long time in the "A" levels, namely, separating the students into Science, Arts or Commerce stream, should be re-examined. Both numeracy and literacy should be necessary conditions for the admission of students to the university. This would be in keeping with the proposal to broaden the university's curricula. A JC student should be allowed to take a preponderance of subjects in his chosen specialisation but he should take at least one from another stream.

The third point is that care has to be taken in instituting other forms of admission procedures, like interviews. There is always the danger of subjectivity in personal forms of assessment. For this reason, it would be wrong to put too much credence on it. An interview probably operates best as a means to sift out those who cannot make it rather than as a positive factor for taking in students. Drawing from my own experience, for example, it is very difficult to tell what the student has prepared for and what he actually genuinely believes in. For example, one candidate, having declared his great interest in reading law, he was asked: "As you have a great interest in reading law, what can you tell us about the courts in Singapore?" And the response was: "Colombo Court". It is quite inappropriate in the circumstances. Other answers to the same question, taken by my colleagues: "Badminton court, tennis court." This clearly indicates that the students with some idea about having an interest practising law but have not really taken the trouble to look at the matter seriously.

Finally, I believe that the signals should be sent strongly and clearly to parents and teachers that they must give some leeway to their children to pursue their own interest. A child or young person is much more likely to excel in an extra-curricular activity if he did it out of interest and commitment.

I hope that these views will be taken into account by the Ministry when working out the new guidelines for the admissions to universities.

Mr Gerard Ee (Nominated Member): Sir, the Open University Programme should have a more flexible entry requirement to provide a second chance to those who did not see the need for a higher education when they were younger. Back in the 60s, many people aspired to complete just the Cambridge examinations. It would have been sufficient for them to secure a good job and earn a living. As Singapore advances, it became necessary to gain good `0' level results. Subsequently, the standard increased and one needed "A" level passes. Today, one will pursue for a diploma, degree or a professional qualification. Some people will go on to earn a Masters degree.

The Open University concept in the United Kingdom caters for anyone who wishes to upgrade himself or herself by studying for a degree. Anyone without the requisite "0" and "A" levels can enrol for a foundation course where the necessary skills for the pursuit of a degree are taught and examined. On passing the examinations or the foundation course, one becomes eligible to continue with the degree course. This way, all adults have a chance of studying for a degree, irrespective of their past study track record. Their working experience would have equipped them to embark on this journey.

In Singapore, those who have targeted entry into one of our main universities stand a better chance to qualify for admission to the Open University Degree Programme. Sir, there is a danger that it would become the University with easier options for the students of today. The Open University Programme must set for itself higher ideals than just being equal to our two major universities. It can be recognised as an equal while catering for different segments of our society. Room must be made for the mature students, the experienced workers with few or no GCE passes at "0" or "A" levels. Only then is it an Open University.

Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed: Sir, I think we all know that we have a very high literary rate in Singapore. I do not know whether there is a measurement for motivation. But I am sure if there is one in Singapore, Singaporeans would measure very well on that score.

If you look at this booklet on "Desired Outcomes of Education", Sir, you will find that the Ministry has outlined various attributes which they would want to see as outcomes of education. If you look at just secondary and junior college, you will find that they want the products of education to be enterprising and innovative, possessing a broad-based foundation for further education, believe in their own ability, understand what it takes to inspire and motivate others, have an entrepreneurial and creative spirit, be able to think independently and creatively, and strive for excellence and have a zest for life. I think all these will contribute to more and more Singaporeans wanting to improve their level of education and, thus, I am glad to see that we are pursuing the Open University actively.

The question I would like to ask is: what level of coordination is there among the institutions of higher learning in Singapore with the Open University? And what more could be done to make the Open University more open with more opportunities for those who are not able to pursue full-time tertiary education?

I also would like to suggest, Sir, that there is room for selective twinning with foreign universities on an open university concept and level. For I am sure all these will contribute towards making our Singapore achieve the target of excellence and a thinking society.

Dr Toh See Kiat: Sir, it has been announced that the Singapore Management University will be run privately along lines of American universities, and I think this is a good move. It has also been announced that entry standards at this SMU will be high but not necessarily based on academic results. That is a good assurance because we do not want the SMU to be a third rate university. It has been announced too that amongst the other things that would be referred to when choosing students for the SMU would be their record of extra-curricular activities (ECA) and aptitude tests and perhaps essays and interviews. I think that this is also a move that is to be highly commended.

The outcome of education really must be to produce a rounded student that is not just word perfect, and not certainly not word perfect "bookworms". We need flexible thinkers, we need people who care for society to be compassionate. And Mr Zainul has referred to the booklet called the "Desired Outcomes of Education". Several of the outcomes for potential leaders are also listed in this book on page 4: First, committed to improving society; compassionate towards others; able to inspire, motivate and draw out the best from others and has the tenacity to fight against the odds, not quitting. 4.30 pm

Sir, I doubt that any of these things can be learned in the books and from professors, no matter how intelligent and how brilliant they are. These are things that you have to learn, as Mr Sinnakaruppan has mentioned, from living in the hostels, from acting in the plays produced by the student societies and being student leaders, like Mr Sinnakaruppan was.

Sir, it is not easy for a student these days, especially in university. Not only do they have very little time for ECA, but they are sometimes actually discouraged because they will be faced with comments like, "You stupid fool! Go and study! Why do you care so much for other things?" These are things that we have to nip in the bud. If ECA is to be one of the criteria for admission into SMU, I think we ought to look at the character development aspect of ECA rather than to worry that it is going to be another pressure point, another thing for which the parents would say, "Son, you'd better go and get a gold medal for 100 metre sprint."

Sir, one other thing that I would want to raise is to urge those who are planning for SMU and those who will be choosing students for admission that they mind what Prof. Chin has said about not leaving out those who are deserving. There are many ways that students can be deserving to enter into SMU without having got sterling academic results. American universities choose students sometimes based on their potential. In other words, a child's personal interests and potential are as important in deciding whether he should go for a course or not. If he is a violin prodigy, as has been reported in the Straits Times recently, he may be a teenager, his age is too far below what his cohort would be but he, nonetheless, is a genius, and he should be admitted. We do not want to have a situation where Albert Einstein is refused entry into SMU or any of our universities.

Sir, the other requirement that perhaps SMU could look into, when looking into admission criteria, is to consider if this high emphasis we put, as a society, on the mother tongue is important. I know I am going to be accused of heresy at this point with some members of the establishment. But I am not saying we should drop or stop teaching mother tongue. What I am saying is that the stress of our current educational system is sometimes due to parents putting on more pressure though the Ministry of Education requires them to have some reasonable standards in achieving mother tongue proficiency. Actually all that the Ministry of Education requires is just a pass in the language.

Sometimes, parents adopt this attitude that to reach the tree tops you have to aim for the moon. And so they force the students to go for all kinds of remedial lessons and tuition when actually the standard is already proficient. And so they add the stress because they fear that if they do not do this, the student may not even pass the mother tongue and so cannot get into university. Sometimes, they know that their own children can pass mother tongue but they are afraid that in a contest between two equal persons, the one with the lower mother tongue grade would drop out. Then they may say, "Son/daughter, I cannot afford to send you overseas." Here, we have an opportunity for SMU to be a kind of overseas university based locally and this is where we can say, "Well, if you pass mother tongue or even if you don't pass, we can consider and see if you are really one of those who deserve to enter otherwise." Then we would not have people who, when asked about the courts, say "Colombo Court" or maybe "food court".

Sir, I think it is also important that if we do have standards that are flexible like this, in terms of admission criteria, then we can also afford to be lenient in deciding what courses the students can do in this university. I hope that if these cases arise, our SMU will be more flexible than the two established universities that we have currently.

The Chairman: Mr Zainul Abidin is not here. Mr Hawazi.

Mr Hawazi Daipi: Sir, I was encouraged to note that 91% of 6,740 students from the Normal (Technical) course have applied to get into ITE. I would say that 91% is quite a high proportion. Without the finest training implemented some four years ago, many of these students, who are generally weak academically, would probably have joined the labour market with very little knowledge and skills. However, what happened to about 600 students or so who did not apply to enter the ITE? They could be unemployed now or have joined the labour market with no technical skills. The number may be relatively small but, taken cumulatively over the years, we will have a large number of Singaporean workers who have low or no skills, the problems among older workers, which the National Trades Union Congress and the Government are now working hard to address.

Considering that education and skills training are not compulsory here, I would urge both the MOE and ITE to do more to encourage all Normal (Technical) students to take up courses at ITE and help ensure that these students do not drop out halfway. In the same vein, Sir, what would MOE and ITE be doing to encourage more students to take up apprenticeship programmes, a problem which the Minister of State for Education said existed now?

[Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair]

4.35 pm

Dr Teo Ho Pin: Sir, my topic is on private educational institutions. Over the years, the Government's effort to encourage Singaporeans to upgrade themselves has resulted in many Singaporeans taking up many courses in private educational institutions. These include tertiary courses such as diploma, degree and postgraduate programmes. As such, there has been an influx of private educational institutions and overseas universities offering a wide range of tertiary courses in Singapore. Although it is assumed that Singaporeans who are attending tertiary courses should be able to evaluate the quality and recognition of these programmes, in practice this may not be so.

Sir, I am the President of a professional body. Very often, I receive queries from students or practitioners concerning the recognition of various professional degrees, or diploma courses conducted by private institutions. Many Singaporeans have spent large sums of their savings on these courses. Sometimes, they do not obtain value for money. In some cases, they were disappointed when they found that the diplomas or degrees which they have obtained are not recognised by our Government, statutory boards or companies. The above situation could happen because we do not have a system of accrediting tertiary courses conducted by private educational institutions in Singapore.

Sir, to protect the interest of Singaporeans who are keen to upgrade themselves, I would like to urge the Education Ministry to accredit all tertiary courses conducted by private institutions in Singapore. The Ministry can license these private educational institutions, and conduct quality audit to assess the standard and quality of all approved tertiary courses. This could be achieved by appointing quality auditors from the Ministry, our universities or practitioners in the industry. The accredited courses may then be included in the list of approved courses in the CPF Education Scheme. In this way, more Singaporeans would be encouraged to upgrade themselves.

Finally, I hope the Education Ministry can take steps to control the quality of tertiary courses that are currently conducted by private educational institutions. We should set up a national accreditation body similar to that of the UK or USA. Accreditation will assist Singaporeans to make a better-informed decision to upgrade themselves. To have a quality workforce, we need to control the quality of education of both the public and private educational institutions in Singapore.

Mr Zulkifli Bin Baharudin: Sir, I will not talk on pre-primary education. I will go straight to special education. But first, I want to give special thanks to the Minister for increasing this year's budget on special education to 39.9%, an increase of $11 million, from $26.7 million to $37.5 million. I also note that an average cost per pupil in special education programmes of $5,229 is almost equal to that of secondary school education. I would like to suggest to the Minister to consider partial or full integration of special schools into normal schools.

Sir, the emphasis on special education reflects our social responsibility and value that we attach to train as best as we can children with special disabilities so that they can maximise and realise their full potential. This is a worthwhile, noble and difficult cause involving the Government, the community and a dedicated pool of volunteers. In schools, these children are given specialist attention to cope with their varying disabilities from hearing impaired to slowness and those with speech problems. But they and their parents have one common desire and aspiration, that is, to be accepted and integrated as part of society to make their lives as normal as possible. We owe it to them to give our special attention. I would urge the Minister to set aside classrooms in normal schools to accommodate children who are now attending special education programmes. This would allow for maximum opportunities for integration and speed up adaptation process. They should have common programmes and curriculum, where appropriate, but have their own specialised care and training, when necessary.

I can understand the complex administrative difficulties and inconveniences it can pose. But I think this is a small price that we should be willing to pay. Our children can also benefit enormously by learning, playing and growing up with children of special disabilities. If they are not prepared to put up with the minor inconveniences and sacrifice, how are they going to grow up into adulthood to appreciate that it is part of nature to have amongst us those who are born with special disabilities? How are they going to appreciate that it is their responsibility as part of society to take care of people and ensure their quick recovery, adjustment and integration into society? It is indeed expensive to provide the necessary specialised facilities in such schools. But I hope that the tremendous improvements being made to schools can also benefit students of special education programmes if they are allowed to be integrated into part of our normal education process.

We have seen recently more structured community participation and involvement in some schools. Perhaps, we can experiment more integration at these schools to emphasise and demonstrate our joint responsibility.

Sir, these children may have special disabilities but they need not be specially segregated. Their only wish is to be part and parcel of a normal mainstream education. I think we can grant them this wish.

Mr Iswaran: Sir, I just want to ask the Minister for Education what more can or will be done for a small but important group of students with disabilities. As Mr Zulkifli has said, they too have aspirations, they too have potential to be realised. Equipping them with skills for life and even in employment goes to the heart of human dignity. 4.45 pm

Essentially, there are two approaches through which we can educationally assist students with disabilities. The first is by integrating them, where possible, in mainstream schools. This approach offers important benefits for the intellectual and social development of high-functioning disabled children who have the capacity to do so. I understand from the experts that this is, in fact, part of the world trend.

I would like to ask the Minister what is being done to enhance the capacity of our schools to better cater to the needs of high-functioning disabled students. Can more training be given to our teachers to help them be better prepared to teach disabled students in the mainstream? Or could additional resources be given for them to enhance this capacity?

The second approach is through special schools which have devised customised programmes catering to these students' unique requirements. Last year, the Ministry announced an increase in the financial resource allocation for such schools. I would like to raise a specific question regarding these special education schools. There is a need to professionalise special education. In the UK, for example, special education teachers are properly trained, often with post-graduate qualifications. In Singapore, their qualifications are far more modest and many do not even have a degree. In general, special education teachers appear to be placed at the level of an assistant teacher. The work is physically and emotionally demanding and the terms of employment compare less favourably with other options in the market. Morale is low and turnover is high.

Is the Ministry able or considering any possibility of offering a professional course for the training of special education teachers, possibly by augmenting the basic NIE programme? Also, I would like to ask whether the Ministry is undertaking any measures to help special education schools to retain their teachers, perhaps by offering terms comparable to their counterparts in the mainstream schools.

Dr Toh See Kiat: Sir, recently, I encountered a case of a person who was posted overseas. He, in his youth, was one of the star performers in his particular department. Perhaps, because of that, he was sent overseas and he stayed several years, working for his employer. When he came back, of course, he felt that he was by-passed for promotion because his cohort had moved ahead. But, Sir, I want to talk about what happened to his children. When he brought his children overseas, of course, he wanted to be with his family. But when he came back, his teenage children could not fit in our school system and became drop-outs.

Sir, our Government has been encouraging Singaporeans to build a second wing for the economy and for companies to go regional. I think it is important for us to think of things that we can do to encourage people who have been loyal to their companies and who have been posted overseas. Can we do something to help them adjust when they come back? Perhaps even before they leave, we can have programmes to help them understand the problems that they will face when they come back. And we could emphasise that in cases like this, they would be given exemptions if they need to apply for it. Because in some of these countries they are posted to, their children are not able to study the mother tongue and their standards of the language would therefore deteriorate. We could have orientation. Besides orientation, we can think of scholarships, loans or grants for education.

Like this parent that I met, his children cannot enter our local university. But he is not rich enough to send them for an overseas education. And so he feels that for his loyalty to his company, he has been deprived of something that others take for granted. Perhaps in this situation, we can think of grants or loans or something which we can give to help them send their children to university or for further studies. And if this is needed, perhaps we can even look at relaxing our rules on the use of CPF savings.

The other thing that we can also do to help these students fit back into Singapore society, and besides looking at relaxing the standards for the mother tongue grades, perhaps we could also look at accepting the grades that they have obtained overseas in their overseas educational systems. I think we are rather rigid in this and perhaps our universities, for example, could look into accepting the equivalent of `A' levels, so that these children will not be penalised. Otherwise, if we do not do these things, who would want to go overseas? Who would want to be penalised for being good?

Mr Iswaran: Sir, parenting is an under-rated skill that is taken for granted. The practitioners are generally left to their own devices. There are no courses, manuals or evaluations, except perhaps by their children. Parents usually rely on experiences within their family and circle of friends for references. Yet, as we have heard time and again today, parents play an important complementary role to our teachers in our schools.

Sir, the members of the resource panel for the GPC for Education have highlighted the dissonance that exists between parents' perceptions of school life today, and the reality. Please allow me to illustrate.

For most parents, their understanding and idea of life in school dates back to more than two decades ago. Back then, the advent of the hand-held calculator was momentous. Today, PCs are the norm.

Parents are still grappling with the intricacies of our education system. In a sense, they themselves are streamed. Those in the fast track understand our system well. Others, whom I believe constitute the bulk, have a more approximate understanding.

Parents are also unaware of some of the norms in our schools today. For example, what is the going rate for pocket money? In the business world, HR managers can consult salary reviews by consultants, like Hays, to get some reference points. Whom or what can parents turn to other than their intuition and perhaps casual discussions with their friends?

Then there is the perennial question of what they call BGR - boy-girl relationships. What are the OB markers? What are the acceptable limits? Parents have to walk a tightrope for fear of being labelled as rude or a prude.

These questions highlight the gaps, I think, in the awareness of today's parents. I believe that the Ministry of Education, perhaps in conjunction with MCD, could undertake some steps to better educate our parents as well. In particular, Sir, I urge the Ministry to consider the use of the Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs), strengthening them and using them for this purpose. PTAs could facilitate regular discussions between the schools, the teachers, on the one hand, and the parents to help them to better understand and navigate our education system. At the same time, PTAs could facilitate group discussions amongst parents so that they may share their experiences.

I would like to know whether the Ministry has any plans to further strengthen our PTA system and, in particular, in the area of parent education.

Dr Lily Neo (Kreta Ayer-Tanglin): Sir, I doubt many will fault our education system in terms of first-rate facilities, in terms of fantastic academic results, and even in terms of free and fair opportunities for all our children. The Government and educators spare no effort in trying to let our young have the best. We should all be glad. But "no", we moan and we are disgruntled. We are not quite satisfied, and we tell the world and allow the world to tell us how stressed we are from the education of our children.

Sir, I contend that the problem has to do with our mindset on "success" and "competition for success". We are a success-orientated nation. It is only natural for parents to want success and the best for their children. Compete for it, if need be. It is not enough to assume that this is only part of kiasuism, and it is harmless. Having competition for betterment is not a bad thing at all. But when such competition becomes excessive and begins to look like a survival pre-requisite, we must take note. We need to change our mindset towards this type of "success" and this type of "competition for success". Although this may take years to achieve, we do have to start somewhere.

Bearing in mind that the Government will help the children realise their maximal educational potential, let us see if life can be better when this is achieved, but with a different mindset. Consider emphasising a new ideology and interpreting an old policy somewhat differently from the way we do now. Let me use the following aspects of our present system to illustrate what I mean.

(1) The introduction of a range of textbooks may be good for a whole lot of people, but it may not be so for the very people that matter, namely, the students. The idea of giving people a choice is right, but this offer, with the present mindset, opens the door to the problem of "too many books". It is not easy to have a "perfect" book, so parents will probably buy a couple more to be taught by tuition teachers. This cannot be good for the children. It is my opinion that, for the present, we should still have a standard textbook. From the books by various authors, the work that best represents the topic in the syllabus is extracted from such a textbook to be compiled. Some sort of a standard is thus made available to guide the students, teachers as well as parents. Sir, this way, the students will have less books to carry and the parents will have less books to buy. Indeed, the opposite will be awesome as there can be an endless amount of materials available out there in due course.

(2) It has been said that our students are doing too many subjects for the `O' levels. They say that "only 6 subjects count, but you can do as many subjects as you wish" and you have students doing 10 or more. This is just too much work, let alone too much stress. Let us try to reduce the number of subjects. What happens when the rule is "6 subjects count and you will be examined on only 7"? It is likely that students will not want to study more than 7 subjects for examination purposes. The Singaporean is pragmatic. Mind you, Sir, I am sure many students will still want to study more subjects, but they now can enjoy these other subjects for personal interest rather than for examinations. To deal with this more effectively, the authorities would need to modify and simplify the subject-combination choices.

(3) Adding value to extra-curricular activities (ECAs) is a step in the right direction to encourage students to be all-rounders. However, the mindset is that there is a "new subject" to score from. All at once, ECAs will be in addition to the academic workload. If the rule for admission to course X is "get 3As+1B and your ECAs can give you further advantage", stress is increased, because the requirement for course X now becomes 3As+1B+ECAs and the "new subject" must be pursued. Let us please emphasise that to do course X, just get 3As+1B, and if you should get only 2As+2Bs, your ECAs can help make up the deficit.

(4) Standards and requirements should not fluctuate too much year to year. If a student with 3As+1B in subjects PQRS is eligible for course X in one year, then another student with the same results in another year should also qualify. In other words, an inclusive, rather than exclusive, policy should be adopted. You want course X? Just get 3As+1B, and that is all. You have what you want. Let the standards be more finite.

Sir, I fear that our education system may become too exclusive if we do not simplify more and quantify less. This mindset of our people should be borne in mind when we change policy or introduce new ideas.

5.00 pm

Dr Tan Boon Wan: Sir, our young are unflatteringly described as smart, but self-centred, selfish, and lacking in humility, moral values and community spirit. Let me illustrate this with two frequent complaints.

Students litter and vandalise common facilities without thought. They do not care about the community who lives there and uses the facilities. Employers have complained of being interviewed by young graduates instead of the other way round. The graduates were more concerned with their own interests rather than the needs of the company and the job. It is the extremity of the position that the graduates take that is a worrying sign.

Sir, our young are our future. Today we are still able to influence the course of the nation, but tomorrow we have to depend on them to do it. The attitude and mindset of our young to duties to the nation, society and community, is of great concern. Without a strong sense of community responsibilities and duties among our young, the future of the nation stands on flimsy ground. This is a pressing and serious issue. Deputy Prime Minister, BG Lee Hsien Loong, has spoken eloquently and persuasively on this issue in his recent ministerial statement on bond breaking.

Sir, lest I am accused of being unfair to our youths, let me hasten to add that the sense of community responsibilities and duties of our youth is high. But we are noticing a downward trend. We cannot shrug off this concern by reassuring ourselves that somehow things will turn out right as in the past. The whole society, including the school, community and parents, has duties and responsibilities for the moral development of our young and I would urge each to make conscious efforts to do more.

Our children do spend a substantial amount of their waking hours in the schools, in the company of their teachers and school friends. I am happy to note that the Ministry has recognised the importance of the role of the school and developed several programmes to foster community spirit and to widen the outlook of our students beyond mere school books and examinations. National education is one example. The requirement that each of our secondary school and junior college students performs 6 hours of community service is another. The recent Learning Journey programme adds to the opportunities available to our students to learn more about country and community.

I applaud our companies who have opened their doors to our students. Participation will cost them time, money and manpower resources. Hence it is a noble act on their part to serve the wider interest of the community. I hope more organisations in both the public and private sectors will take part. However, the key must be the principals and teachers. They must be convinced that these are desirable programmes and will support them fully.

The community, too, has its role in the moral development of our young. The young learned from what they see going on around them. If adults behave responsibly and show care for the community, such as protecting and properly using common properties, in showing care and respect for one another, our young will emulate these behaviours. In the debate on last year's Budget, I called upon grassroots organisations to work with the schools to give our students the opportunity to do community work. The recently announced Community Involvement Scheme for our secondary school and junior college students will make this task easier. Grassroots organisations like the CCCs, CCMCs, RCs, Town Councils and CDCs should seize the opportunity to work with the schools to provide more opportunities for students to serve the community. Besides making our young better and caring people, some of them may well stay on to become the next generation of grassroots leaders. The lament that not enough residents are coming forward to serve may, in a few short years' time, be a thing of the past.

Sir, the ultimate responsibility for the moral development of a child rests with the parents. Parents must accept this responsibility. Some have tended to put the blame on society and the schools for their children going wayward. Parents must find time to spend with their children, and during these times to discuss and impart family and social values. They must realise that the children grow up to be like them as the children emulate not just what they advocate, but more, what they do. Parenting is a heavy task and responsibility. Unfortunately, society does not impose any qualifications to become a parent. We learn from experience and our mistakes, but by which time our children would have grown up. I believe that courses in parenting are necessary and important and will help many to be better parents. I would like grassroots organisations to take up the challenge to conduct parenting seminars and courses for young parents in the community. Some community organisations like AMP, Mendaki and Family Service Centres are already doing this. These efforts will help our schools and teachers in doing their work.

The Minister for Education (RAdm Teo Chee Hean): First of all, I would like to thank Members, especially Mr Loh Meng See and his GPC members, for their feedback, comments and suggestions so far. I am grateful that so many Members have taken such an active interest in education. It is always refreshing to have ideas coming from different perspectives, challenging our assumptions and triggering off even more ideas on how we can do better.

We have a good education system which has been developed over the years through strong leadership, clear foresight and determination, and through the commitment and hard work of teachers, students and parents. We have achieved good results by international standards. Nevertheless, we are often our own harshest critics; and that should be the way. We should never be satisfied with what we have. We need to continue improving our education system, building upon the solid foundation that we have. We must maintain the rigour and high standards of our system as we make adjustments and improvements. This principle undergirds all our efforts.

Providing a good education is our investment in Singapore's future. The currency crisis and its ripple effects underscore the importance of sound fundamentals.

Sound fundamentals extend beyond prudent economic and financial management to include preparing the next generation to face any combination of possible future scenarios. In times of prosperity, it is the people of Singapore who must seize the opportunities and even create new opportunities. In times of adversity, it is the people of Singapore who must turn adversity into opportunity.

In our schools, our young must learn not just the knowledge and skills for the economy of the future, but also values and instincts so that when they come of age, they, collectively, will be able to face the future with confidence and steadfastness, identify the real problems, find the best solutions and chart Singapore's destiny. The better we develop their talents and abilities, the better will be the home that we build together for the future.

Our young people are the future of Singapore. And the Government has shown its commitment to invest in our future through good times and through not so good times. This year, although the Minister for Finance has allocated a significantly larger budget for education, we should not imagine that funds are unlimited. The Minister for Finance still keeps a tight rein on things. Nor should we go away with the idea that more spending is the solution for all our problems.

Spending more money does not ensure that we will have a better system. I agree with those Members who have expressed the view that it is the "software" in our system that counts. What we spend on, and how we spend, is more important. In June last year, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong unveiled the vision of Thinking Schools, Learning Nation to prepare our young for the future. Allow me to provide an update on what the Ministry of Education has done to move towards this vision.

The first step is to define our goals. In any long journey, we need to set out with a purpose in mind. We need to ask ourselves what is it that we want formal education to achieve. Given our transition to a knowledge-based economy, given the demands of life in the 21st century, given a likely picture of the social environment in the future, what attributes do we want Singaporeans to have? What characteristics should our community, business, professional and national leaders possess? What intermediate outcomes should primary, secondary and junior college education achieve?

In January this year, the Ministry of Education published a document called "The Desired Outcomes of Education" and Members have a copy of it before them. I need not read it out to you. Some Members have already done this favour on my behalf. This document defines the aims of a holistic education by giving a comprehensive yet succinct list of values, skills and attitudes our young at different stages of their education should possess. The press has dubbed this the "88888" list, which I think is quite appropriate.

"The Desired Outcomes of Education" is a reaffirmation of what educationists, parents, teachers and students have all along wanted a good education to provide. The list was drawn up after extensive consultation with our principals and teachers.

You will notice that explicit academic achievement targets are conspicuously absent from the list. This is not an oversight. Cognitive development is one of the desired outcomes. And academic performance is one of the ways, and a well-accepted, objective and rigorous one, by which we can measure cognitive development. It is a good indicator, but by no means a comprehensive one nor the only one. But we can all agree that we are looking for more than that from education. Our intention is to deliver holistic education in partnership with parents and the community.

Some wonder if the pursuit of holistic education will mean a drop in academic standards. I do not think so. I cannot see why a more morally upright, socially responsible student should perform less well academically. I cannot see how a more independent, creative thinker can do worse than someone who relies on reproducing facts and content. This is not a matter of sacrificing academic standards to nurture students with high moral standards and community spirit. This is not an "either-or" situation. Holistic education is entirely possible with high academic achievement. Getting good grades in examinations should be a product of holistic education, but I agree with Mr Peh Chin Hua that it should not be an all-consuming passion in itself, pursued to the exclusion of everything else.

An organisation sets itself performance targets for two purposes: to focus the efforts of the organisation, and to measure the progress they are making towards achieving their targets. Focusing efforts is important to the Ministry of Education because in the provision of education, as we can hear today, there are many `good' things we can do. We want to make sure we direct our efforts at those activities that go furthest in achieving our aims. But the issue of measuring our achievements does pose some problems. How will the Ministry of Education know if we have achieved these desired outcomes? What are our yardsticks?

The measure of success will not be easily quantifiable. How, for example, do we quantify compassion for others? How can we objectively measure a student's love for his country or his commitment to the nation? Perhaps we will know, not when we have succeeded, but when we have failed. However, the fact that we have no reliable measure does not mean that we should give up delivering holistic education. Ten or twenty years down the road, if we succeed, our economy will be more prosperous, our nation will be more united, our society more gracious, our people more creative, our community more cohesive. These outcomes may not be easily quantifiable nor tangible, but they are no less real, and are absolutely critical for our future.

May I now update the House on the progress of various specific initiatives my Ministry has undertaken in the past year to achieve the goal of Thinking Schools, Learning Nation, and The Desired Outcomes of Education.

First, National Education. Members will remember that the objective of National Education is to foster a Singapore identity, and to help our young understand the challenges and constraints confronting Singapore. Efforts are ongoing to infuse National Education into different subject syllabuses. You will have learnt through the media about the imaginative and engaging ways our schools are bringing the National Education messages across, even in extra-curricular activities. 5.15 pm

In October last year, we also launched the Community Involvement Programme. Through this Programme, we hope that our young will learn to be active participants in community and national life when they grow up.

Our schools have also started to commemorate key historical events in Singapore's history. Besides National Day, schools now commemorate three other events. These are Total Defence Day, Racial Harmony Day and International Friendship Day.

At the end of last month, `Learning Journeys' were launched. Pupils from Primary Four to JC2 will visit key national institutions at least once a year. We hope that our students can understand the country's constraints and vulnerabilities, develop a sense of pride in Singapore, and a confidence that with ingenuity, determination and hard work, Singapore will remain an exceptional island-nation for a long time to come.

Next, the Masterplan for Information Technology in Education. Phase 1 of the IT Masterplan has been successfully implemented in 22 demonstration schools, comprising 10 primary schools, 10 secondary schools and 2 junior colleges. On 4th April, these schools will be holding an open house, and I invite Members to drop by and have a look. We are now embarking on Phase 2 involving 100 schools. In 1999, we will move on to the remaining 240 schools.

However, buying and installing hardware is relatively simple compared to the training of our teachers and providing our teachers with the necessary guidance and support. This is most critical to the success of the Masterplan. And it is here that the Ministry of Education has focused its main effort.

All trainee teachers in NIE now undergo a course in IT. Basic IT literacy training for all serving teachers has also been completed. As their schools come on stream under the IT Masterplan, teachers will receive further preparation and training which will include the design of lesson plans and the use of different kinds of software. IT instructors from the Ministry of Education go to the schools to work with the teachers and sometimes even co-teach in classrooms so that our teachers are able to learn by observation and practice.

We have also set up a Media Services Section which reviews and recommends software titles and websites. These are classified by subjects and by levels. Teachers have access to this via the Ministry of Education Intranet. There are currently about 350 software titles posted on this site. I hope this goes some way to address the concerns raised by Dr Tan Boon Wan.

The introduction of new technology at such a pace into the schools is a little daunting. But this is the pace at which the IT industry is moving. Our schools, which must prepare our students for the world of tomorrow, cannot be behind what is already commonplace in the workplace. We need to put computers into the hands of our teachers. After an initial one or two years of learning, experimentation and experience, I am confident that our teachers will be able to use computers as a powerful tool to enhance the learning and teaching that goes on in our schools.

We also pressed on with initiatives in school administration. The School Cluster scheme was piloted last year to devolve greater autonomy to schools in order to enhance school management. In November 1997, the Ministry introduced five more clusters: 2 primary and 2 secondary clusters, with one mixed primary-secondary cluster. A junior college was also added to one of the original clusters formed in early 1997. The reason for mixing different schools in the same cluster is to add variety and richness of experience to the cluster.

The final and fourth initiative, perhaps the most important one announced last year, is fostering creative thinking and reviewing the curriculum. The curriculum is important, as it is the medium through which most initiatives in teaching and learning take place.

There is no shortage of ideas as to what we should add to the curriculum - everyone has his or her pet topics to put in: modern art, Singapore literature, astronomy, even swimming and life-saving skills. There are comments that our students today are not as knowledgeable or as well prepared as their predecessors, ergo, they should be better prepared. Several have commented that our curriculum is too narrow and should be broadened.

However, many have also expressed the view that our national curriculum is too content-heavy, and does not lend itself to the development of creativity and critical thinking skills. But we must not forget that each topic already there in the curriculum was put there for a good reason - to achieve a specific learning outcome. The problem then is not a shortage of good ideas as to what to put into the curriculum. The real question is the opposite one: among all these wonderful ideas, what should we leave out? That is the real challenge. After all, there is only so much time in a day and so much that we can ask our children to cope with.

When we look at the various curricula in different education systems, and I visited a number of countries this past year, it does not mean that one with more subjects, more topics, more content is better. For example, if someone tells me, "Look, the curriculum of this school system covers all that is taught in our school system in Singapore and much more. It must be better, let's follow it." I would say, "Stop, think a while, think very carefully.". Most parents would agree that what their children are now doing in school is already quite a heavy load, and we should beware the "more is better" syndrome. In our case, teaching less may allow us to teach better. If anyone has found a magic formula to teach our national curriculum and more without over-stressing our kids, please let me know. I would like to find out how it is done.

The British have decided that they are trying to do too much in their primary schools and are failing to provide sufficient focus on the basics. In January this year, the British Education and Employment Secretary Mr David Blunkett announced that from this year, British primary schools will focus on just four things: English, Mathematics, Science and Information Technology. Minimum teaching hours are mandated for these four subjects. The prescribed programme for the six other subjects in the curriculum have been suspended, and primary schools are no longer required to follow them.

However, the solution obviously is not simply to slash our syllabuses. We have to balance breadth and depth. We want to maintain the rigour in our curriculum and the high standards in our schools. We need to develop and to deliver an essential core of knowledge in each subject, and to overlay this with higher order thinking skills. Creative and critical thinking cannot occur in a vacuum, they can only be learnt and applied in the context of some content knowledge. We also want to design a curriculum that adequately stretches our most able students. At the same time, we must be mindful of our less able students. We must not leave them way behind, unable to catch up, discouraged and disillusioned with school.

In October 1996, the Ministry of Education invited a senior academic, Prof. Hang Chang Chieh, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the National University of Singapore, to lead an external review of our curriculum and assessment system. The objective was to provide a fresh perspective; a perspective of recipients of the products of our school system - universities, polytechnics, and future employers of our students - as to what they would like to see being taught in our schools. The committee submitted its report to the Ministry of Education in August 1997.

The Report has been studied by the Ministry of Education. One of the main themes in the report is that the syllabuses are generally too heavy and should be cut back to allow more time for creative thinking and application of knowledge through activities such as project work in the schools.

The Ministry has decided to implement the recommendations which the committee has made on the curriculum in a major review which we are now undertaking. But this review will take several years as it is a major review that will involve not only what we teach, but how we teach it and how it is assessed. In this review, we want to make sure that not only do our students acquire content and factual knowledge, but also process skills. These are significant changes, and we will need some time to study them carefully, consult experts and users, orient teachers, make course materials and design assessment systems. We can only introduce the bulk of these changes into the schools from the year 2001 onwards.

In the meantime, we have decided to take some interim measures to reduce the curriculum load on our students. With very few exceptions, most syllabuses will be reduced by 10% to 30%, most of them in the range of 10% to 20%. However, there will be no change to the structure of the syllabuses, nor to the examinations nor the type of questions that will be set. These interim curriculum reductions can therefore be introduced into the schools from next year. Some schools may already have selectively omitted teaching certain topics; these curricular cuts make it official.

Content which has been reduced or cut include those which focus mainly on recall, or technical details not critical to students' understanding of the topic. Content inconsistent with real world practice, too difficult or too broad has also been cut. Content which is repeated either at other levels or in a different subject may be retained in one subject at a particular level, and removed from the others.

This will lighten the load so that teachers and students can have more time to implement the initiatives that we introduced in the last year. This will free up time for more collaborative learning, more self-directed research, more independent investigations, to develop process skills, thinking skills, and communication skills.

These reduced syllabuses will take effect next year, and students will be examined on these reduced syllabuses from the year 2000 onwards. This is the first step we are taking, so that there can be an immediate reduction in curriculum load. Teachers and students should have no difficulty adapting to this reduction, as it only involves removing some topics, while the remaining topics and the examination system remain the same.

This immediate reduction will allow a lightening of the load from next year, while we do a more thorough review of the curriculum and our assessment system to see how we can better bring out the creative spirit and thinking ability of our young. Changes to the curriculum, if not accompanied by corresponding changes to assessment modes, teaching methodologies, learning resources and learner attitudes, are likely to be futile. The Ministry of Education will continue to work on these other areas. As I said earlier, we will not be able to introduce these major changes earlier than 2001 into the schools.

All the progress described above would not have been possible, or will come to naught, without the teacher. Teachers are key to everything that we do in the education system. As I said last year, teachers are the heart and the soul of our system. They are out there in the classrooms, in the science laboratories, in the school field, delivering total education. The best physical facilities and most innovative curriculum will not come to life without dedicated and competent teachers. 5.30 pm

I fully endorse the support that Mr Loh Meng See, Mr Peh Chin Hua, Mr Lim Swee Say and others have given to our teachers. We will take their comments and suggestions on how we can improve the teaching service into account. The teacher plays a crucial role in nation-building. The teacher's role goes beyond ensuring the employability of the next generation. It covers the development of his charges in all areas described in the Desired Outcomes.

Teachers shape the values of their students, and instil in them a strong sense of social conscience. Teachers are role models of lifelong learning to their students. Teaching is not an easy job, but it is highly rewarding. It requires people who are caring and nurturing, those who have a sense of mission and calling. There is an immense satisfaction in moulding young minds, shaping lives, helping and encouraging people who will go on to help and encourage others. It almost certainly involves tears and heartaches, but ask any teacher, and he or she will tell you that it is a job that it is totally rewarding.

Despite the many demands placed on them, the vast majority of teachers like what they are doing. The Ministry of Education recently conducted a Teachers' Survey and I would like to share some of the preliminary findings with this House. As I expected, the vast majority, 83%, of teachers indicated that they like the type of work that they do. Teaching is intrisincally satisfying. This is befitting of a people-centred, people-development profession. 83% indicated that their job makes good use of their abilities, and 88% feel that they can count on support and assistance from their colleagues when faced with a difficulty.

As some Members in the House, Dr Tan Boon Wan, Dr Toh See Kiat, Mr Iswaran, Mr Lim Swee Say and others have said, they have heard of teachers feeling stressed by the rapid pace of change and the amount of work in the schools. In this past year, I visited many schools and I have talked to many teachers. Yes, there is stress and there is worry. Our teachers work very hard. Our teachers have a tremendous sense of responsibility towards the young under their charge and want to do the best for them.

I am encouraged by the response of our teachers. They are convinced that the changes that we are making to the education system are important and necessary. But change is unsettling. Even as our teachers do their best to deliver high quality education today, they worry about how they will continue to do their best with infusing National Education, or learning to use IT, or dealing with more demanding parents.

Perhaps because we have consciously announced initiatives to all teachers way before implementing them in schools, some of our teachers suffer from the stress of anticipating stress! I would like to assure the House that it is not the Ministry of Education's intention to simply think up these initiatives and load them on to the schools. We will guide our schools and teachers each step of the way. As I said earlier, when introducing IT in the demonstration schools, we sent experts from the Ministry to work together with and guide our teachers. And as more schools and teachers get into the IT habit, the scope for shared learning and faster learning will be enlarged. In National Education, we also have guided our principals and National Education coordinators through various teething problems of implementation.

The early and timely announcement of our various initiatives gives principals and teachers time to adapt and adjust. For example, the IT Masterplan will reach the majority of our schools (two-thirds of them, or 240 of our 360 schools) only next year, two years after we launched the IT Masterplan. These principals and teachers have two years to prepare themselves for this change. Those schools and principals and teachers who felt more ready have been those who have come in in Phase I and Phase II.

The Ministry of Education is committed to providing teachers with the support for personal and professional development so that they can in turn do their jobs well. It is useful for me to highlight some of the key improvements we have made to help teachers to do their jobs better.

In recent years, the Ministry of Education has implemented a series of measures to alleviate teachers' workload. These include the posting of school administrators and operations managers to perform certain administrative and support functions, the streamlining of work procedures (mundane things like payment of school fees is now done by GIRO, centrally issuing student travel passes so that teachers do not have to keep on sticking these things on), and leveraging on IT to improve work efficiency (like pre-printed class registers).

At the beginning of this year, the Ministry of Education reviewed the staffing needs of schools and allocated an additional 1,000 posts. This works out to an average of three posts per school. Larger schools with more urgent needs got up to seven extra posts; others got fewer; some got none. Principals are free to decide how best to use these posts, whether to have additional teachers or other support staff to help with the administrative and other duties.

But getting additional posts is only the first step. We need to reward our people well, and recruit and retain enough people to help us do the important work that we have before us.

In 1995, Members will recall that the Ministry of Education did a major restructuring of the teaching service, improving salaries and advancement prospects. I like to give a brief update on what has happened since then. Since then, 15,285 teachers have been promoted to GEO1A/2A grades, 1,766 into Senior Education Officer grades, 454 were promoted within the Senior Education Officer grade and 95 into and within the Superscale grades. Approximately, 1,300 officers will be promoted this year. Altogether, over 80% of teachers would have been promoted in these three years.

In the last two years, we managed to recruit an average of 1,900 teachers per year. This compares with the 1,000 teachers per year we were recruiting prior to that, which was just enough to replace those who had retired or resigned. After accounting for retirements and resignations, the net increase in teacher strength over the last two years was 1,366 in total. We are making progress. In this current recruitment cycle ending in June, we can expect a good intake as well.

Recruitment and retention of teachers is crucial. If we can get a net gain of 500 teachers a year (we have 360 schools) we can add one or two more teachers to every school per year. This does not sound like a lot. But if we can sustain this after five years, every school can have 10% more teachers - 6 or 7 teachers per school. This will make a big difference and help to ease the load of our teachers.

Not only has the better recruitment allowed us to post more teachers to schools, it has also enabled us to let many more go on study leave to improve themselves. Mr Hawazi and Mr Lim Swee Say have asked about this. We are seizing the opportunity of better recruitment to make an investment in the future by allowing more teachers to study and improve themselves. This year, 386 teachers have been granted (in-principle) undergraduate study leave, as compared to just 80 in previous years. They will be emplaced appropriately when they return.

With more teachers in each school, better upgrading prospects and greater support given to schools and teachers, we should be more able to improve retention rates. This is a healthy upward trend for the Education Service. We cannot change things overnight, but over several years, we can post more teachers to the schools, and that will make a real difference to the workload of teachers and to the quality of education that schools can deliver to our children. Parents and the public can help in this matter by giving teachers the support, respect and regard due to the profession.

My call to fresh school leavers and graduates and working people who have the passion to teach is to come join the teaching service. There is no cap on how many people we will take in each year as long as you demonstrate the qualities which we look for in a good teacher. The Ministry of Education will provide the necessary training, both foundation and in-service training, to help you to become a superior teacher.

Sir, what can be made of any student in our education system depends primarily on the interplay of three factors: character development, motivation and ability. Character development is most important because the student must decide how he wants to use his knowledge and abilities - to serve only himself or to serve others, to do right under all circumstances or only if he stands a high chance of being caught. But character formation takes place almost from the time of birth, so that children in Primary 1 comes to school already with values ingrained in them in their homes, by their parents. Our schools conduct moral education and civics, but these lessons cannot exist in a vacuum. They will either be reinforced or thwarted by messages from home.

Motivation is important because it determines how the student decides to use his time, talents and his abilities. The school encourages children to learn, mostly by coaching, reward and building self-esteem, but sometimes by punishment and discipline. At times, our principals and teachers may be pushing too hard. They want to do their best for their students. And parents expect them to. You will all have heard of parents who complain that the teacher has not given enough homework, whether it is on a normal school day or over a school holiday. May I add that the Ministry of Education has designed the workbooks such that doing every single page in the workbook is not necessary for all pupils. Yet some parents would not be satisfied unless the teacher has assigned the child to do every page, and the teacher marks every page. This is unnecessary.

Dr Lily Neo, Dr Tan Boon Wan, Mr Iswaran, Mr Zulkifli and others have talked about mindset and parents' education. I do not want to broaden the scope of the Ministry of Education to include teaching parents as well. I agree that self-help groups and other community groups could introduce parent education to help orientate parents on how they can best help their children in school. 5.45 pm

Motivation is strongly influenced by what happens at home. Which parent does not believe that his child can do better? Which parent does not believe that if they just urge or encourage his child to work just a little harder, do one more exercise, one more worksheet, spend one more hour, that the child will get one or two more marks in his examination?

Our young must reach out to be the best they can be, and they must be encouraged and urged to do so. But they must not be pushed beyond the brink by unrealistic parental expectations and demands. A child who fails to achieve that which is not possible for him to achieve in the first place, will be demoralised and will have his self-esteem dampened.

Ability is what schools try to bring out in the student. We start with the premise that every student has some talent or ability. Teachers, together with parents, do their best to identify these talents and help the child develop them. Every child is different, and we should do the best for each, rather than expect to make them all the same.

Ability without motivation achieves nothing. Motivation without character development is at best misguided, at worst downright dangerous. Of these three, character development and motivation are the most crucial, and these are the two qualities that can be most highly influenced by what happens at home and by parents.

I wholeheartedly support Members' call for a more holistic, a more wholesome education for our children. Education is a partnership between schools and homes. Our teachers will do their best in our schools with what parents put in their hands. Let us each play our part for the sake of our children. [Applause.]

Sir, I have spoken at length about our school system today. There are other points, especially on higher education which I will deal with at a later time before the end of this cut. I will ask Dr Wong and Mr Chen to deal with some of the other issues that Members have raised today.

The Senior Minister of State for Education (Dr Aline K. Wong): Sir, Mr Zulkifli and Mr Iswaran talked about special education, especially from the perspective of integration of children with special education needs in the mainstream or normal schools. Generally speaking, it is desirable that children with special educational needs are given the opportunity to receive an education which is most suited to their disabilities. I would like to point out that disabled students who are able to benefit from mainstream education, such as the hearing impaired, the visually handicapped and the physically handicapped, do and are already attending mainstream schools. Those who are likely to benefit from attending special education schools (SPED) with specially customised programmes are encouraged to enrol in SPED schools. These schools not only give them customised educational programmes, they also provide para-medical professionals who can help in the rehabilitation of the children. These include speech therapists, psychologists, physiotherapists, social workers and so on.

Some of the SPED students, although not many, are able to join the mainstream schools after they make significant progress. Although it is more expensive to cater to the disabled in SPED schools, we will continue to encourage parents of disabled students to enrol their children in SPED schools so that they can benefit from the special education that they offer.

I know that in some countries in the West, children with special education needs are said to be fully integrated in the mainstream schools. But the fact is that many of them have to be taught separately from the rest of the class, some of the time or for a certain portion of the time-table, because they require special assistance. And not all the schools are able to give these students the required resources or attention. I read recently that some parents in the United Kingdom are demanding that their disabled children be taken out of the mainstream schools in order for them to receive specially tailored education. This is in the UK, after many years of integrating disabled children in the normal schools.

Mr Zulkifli suggested that perhaps we can set aside some classrooms in the mainstream schools for SPED children. We can look into his suggestion on a pilot basis. We will see whether this is feasible and what kind of resources we need to give them. But I would like to point out from the start that the voluntary welfare organisations are facing tremendous constraints, because of the shortage of trained teachers and para-medical professionals. It would be easier, in fact, for them to run the SPED schools whereby they can concentrate their resources in these places. And they are also building purpose-built schools to suit the needs of the different disability groups.

I suppose if disabled children are integrated in mainstream schools, it will enable students to learn to live with each other and help each other. However, it is a matter of balancing the educational benefits and the social benefits to the disabled students. There are already many opportunities for students to interact and help the disabled. I think some schools send their students, mainly from the secondary levels, to visit the SPED schools regularly, some of them even on a weekly basis, to attend and to help the special children in music lessons, in swimming, in sports, in arts and crafts. And students from the SPED schools are also regularly invited to the mainstream schools to attend National Day functions, Children's Day and so on. So there are plenty of opportunities for them to interact with each other and learn to care for each other.

Mr Iswaran wanted to know what more have we done for the special students in the mainstream schools. As I said, many of the visually impaired and hearing impaired students are already attending mainstream schools. Last year, in FY97, we have given these students additional resources. Now we are giving the hearing impaired students 2.6 times and the visually handicapped 3 times the per capita recurrent cost of secondary education. We have added resource teachers for them. For the visually handicapped, for example, they are given assistance with braille, assistance with the lessons, test, examinations and so on. For the hearing impaired, they are taught in sign language, etc.

The latest MOE initiative for children with special educational needs in mainstream schools is with regard to the dyslexic and the autistic pupils. Since the beginning of 1996, we have been working with the Dyslexic Association of Singapore (DAS) to set up its learning centre at Ping Yi Primary School, and provide financial and physical resources to the Association to expand its learning centres in other parts of Singapore. And since the middle of last year, we have also been offering assistance to a new voluntary parent group, the Autistic Association of Singapore (AAS), which has set up a project called the Reach-Me-Project for autistic children who study in our mainstream schools. We are prepared to render even more assistance to these two groups of high-functioning children with special educational needs who are studying in our mainstream schools. Beginning in FY98, we will help the AAS secure classrooms in a functioning school and co-fund up to 90% of the one-time renovation cost, subject to a cap of $90,000 for the DAS Clementi and north zone learning centres as well as the Reach-Me-Project of the AAS. So we will help them secure classrooms and renovate them.

Secondly, we will fund their recurrent cost on a one-to-one matching basis, subject to a cap of 50% of the per capita recurrent cost of primary education. This means MOE will fund dyslexic and autistic pupils in mainstream schools up to 1.5 times the cost of primary education. In addition, we will help them identify suitable teachers for secondment to these associations.

The one-time renovation grants will cost the Government $300,000, while the total recurrent cost to the Government for helping dyslexic and autistic pupils in mainstream schools is estimated to be at $1.3 million per year at the steady state.

Mr Iswaran also talked about the need for qualified people and the need for professional training of teachers at SPED schools. There are, right now, almost 400 teachers and 60 teacher aides in the 16 SPED schools. Of the 400 teachers, about 300 have received special education training, while another 60 are currently undergoing training at the NIE. The NIE has recently upgraded its training course to a diploma course, and it has shortened the amount of time required for this course, so that the throughput of trained teachers can increase at a faster pace.

Generally, there is a shortage of teachers in SPED schools. Mr Iswaran is right in pointing out that one major reason is the disparity in the salaries as compared to teachers in mainstream schools. But I would like to point out that the salary scales of teachers and promotion guidelines are set by the National Council of Social Service itself. MOE has seconded some teachers - 18 of them - to the SPED schools upon their request. Their salaries are paid for by the SPED schools, but their salaries follow the salary structure and promotion guidelines for MOE teachers. Four of the principals of SPED schools are MOE-seconded teachers and they have been promoted to the SEO grade for principals.

Besides the teachers, as I said, the SPED schools need para-medical professionals. But there is a shortage of physiotherapists, speech therapists, music therapists and occupational therapists in Singapore in general. So it is very difficult for the SPED schools to secure such teaching resources. Hence I would not downplay the role of the teacher aides. They play a very important role in the schools. Special education for children with disabilities, especially those with multiple disabilities, is a very labour intensive process. Sometimes it calls for a one-to-one kind of teaching requirement. So, in face of the shortage of trained teachers, teaching aides play a very important role in providing the special education required by these children. 6.00 pm

The Senior Minister of State for Education (Mr Peter Chen): Sir, first I would like to touch on an important point mentioned by Mr Zainul Abidin who reminded us of the growing expectation for higher education. Indeed by the year 2000, we expect that 25% of each cohort would enter university, 40% will enter the polytechnics and 25% the Institute of Technical Education (ITE). So, therefore, 65% of each cohort will enter either the polytechnics or ITE, this bulging middle segment, and the Government is providing amply for all those who so aspire.

The growing opportunity for a polytechnic or ITE education is reflected firstly in the increased intakes into these two institutions in the last two years. Between 1996 and 1998, intake into the four polytechnics increased by nearly 1,000 students, from 15,780 to 16,800 this year. Over the same period of two years, the increase in student intake into the ITE is even more dramatic. Student intake nearly doubled, from 5,988 in 1996 to 11,800 expected this year.

As I have said, 65% of each cohort will therefore enter either the polytechnics or ITE. Including the 25% going to the university, we will be providing post-secondary and tertiary education opportunities to 90% of our young people. I should point out here one important fact. Each year, there are 1,200 ITE graduates who move on to obtain a polytechnic diploma and, similarly, about 1,000 polytechnic graduates go on to obtain a degree at our universities. There are no cul-de-sacs. Our education system is full of bridges and ladders for all those who seek them.

The growing expectation for a polytechnic or ITE education is not just by more students wanting a place in these institutions. As our economy restructures and businesses restructure, there is an inevitable demand for new skills and new knowledge. Quite apart from this pull factor, many working adults themselves would wish to continue to learn and to upgrade themselves in order to keep themselves relevant in a changing economy. To help raise the education levels and professional skills of working adults, the polytechnics and ITE offer part-time continuing education and training courses specifically for them. Currently, there are a total of 41 advanced diploma courses and 7 specialist diploma part-time courses offered by the polytechnics. In the ITE, there are also a wide-range of courses covering the academic areas like BEST (Basic Education Skills Training) and WISE (Work Improvement through Secondary Education) and technical areas like ACTS (Adult Cooperative Training Scheme) and MOST (Modular Skills Training).

The enrolments of continuing education courses in the polytechnics and ITE in 1997 are 7,965 and 75,747, respectively. You have heard Mr Lim Swee Say talk about the importance of Skills Redevelopment Programme (SRP). I will add that nearly 90% of the training places under SRP will lead to ITE certification and are conducted at ITE training institutes.

I can perhaps next address the issues raised by Mr Hawazi, together with the questions that Dr Tan Boon Wan has raised, concerning the Normal (Technical) students and their recent enrolment into ITE. Members will recall last July the fate and welfare of the first batch of Normal (Technical) students was a subject of much discussion here. As this was the first batch, we actually did not know what to expect and like expectant fathers, a number of MPs spoke with some anxiety on the subject. All expressed care and concern and encouraged them to join ITE on completion of their Normal (Technical) course. I would like to thank all those who have spoken on the subject. I would also like to thank the media for their full support in the publicity given to ITE and the encouragement given to the Normal (Technical) students and their parents urging them to continue their education in ITE. I am happy to report that we have been extremely pleased with the results of the enrolment.

The first batch of the Normal (Technical) students who completed their secondary education in December 1997 was about 20% more than the projected annual output of Normal (Technical) school leavers under a steady state. This is because the first batch included students from the old primary school system. Out of a total of 6,740 students in the first batch of Normal (Technical) stream, 5,593 or 83% of them applied to ITE for technical training. In addition, another 2,900 applications were received from the Normal (Academic) stream. In response to the overwhelming number of applications, ITE had to take special measures to expand the training capacity. A total of 8,846 training places, comprising 6,431 full-time places and 2,415 positions under apprenticeship programmes, were made available to accommodate all the students. This amounts to a 30% increase compared with the previous year in ITE's training capacity.

The number of Normal (Technical) school leavers who eventually took to ITE training in January 1998 was 4,918. This represents an intake rate of 73% of the GEC Normal (Technical) pool available and it exceeds the target intake of 70%.

Let me now address Mr Hawazi's question on these 600 Normal (Technical) students who applied but did not join ITE. Some of them changed their mind and went on to do something else or to work. Some decided not to join because they could not get into the course that they want. In fairness, this is actually, proportion-wise, not a frightfully big number. It is 10% of those who applied and I do not think that it is something which we are terribly alarmed with.

We must accept that the interests of school leavers vary widely and some courses, which are important to support the growth of our industry, may not be appealing to the school leavers. In terms of the number of first choice applicants vying for places in specific courses, some courses were over-subscribed. It is not always possible to accommodate every first choice applicant as the number of places in each course is planned to meet the technical manpower needs of Singapore's economy. It is unavoidable that some applicants will have to be offered places in courses not of their first choice.

Mr Hawazi also referred to the apprenticeship places not being fully taken up. I am told that the requirement of a 2-year bond is a factor for this. I think we have heard enough about bonds over the last week in this House and I shall say no more on the subject this time. But I agree that there is a selling job, as Dr Tan Boon Wan has mentioned. There is a selling job for courses that are less popular but, nevertheless, important. ITE had in fact put in place career counselling facilities for students to make informed choices even before they enrol. This is to provide advice to parents and students in choosing courses based on the student's aptitude, inclination and interest, instead of just the popularity or glamour of the course, or a job.

The preparations made to receive the first batch of Normal (Technical) students into ITE this January started almost the day the students entered Secondary One, Normal (Technical) four years ago. Over the last few years, ITE has painstakingly carried out a comprehensive programme of promotional activities to share with the students and the parents the full range of training offered by ITE and the career opportunities in industry. They have brought both students and parents into the various institutes of ITE to get a good feel of an ITE education.

And finally, their efforts have been well rewarded. The first batch of Normal (Technical) students started their ITE training in January and in the last two months, the feedback on their performance has been positive. We have the report that the students are motivated and keen to learn, they are quick in practical hands-on training and they are adept in the use of computers and are able to learn better through the computer mode of instruction. We will continue to monitor their progress closely and provide maximum assistance to help them complete their courses successfully. Measures taken so far to assist these students include counselling and guidance to sustain the interest of the students, use of computer-based teaching and learning materials, simplifying the language used in lesson notes and integrating more theories into practical lessons. We will spare no effort to bring the best out of our Normal (Technical) students because we believe that the ITE graduates that they will become are an essential constituent of Singapore's human resource capital.

Sir, may I now go on to address Dr Toh See Kiat's question on education of returning children and what help is given to them to settle back into our system. In any area we can think of, there is no shortage of anecdotes. But there is no doubt that the first concern of Singaporean expatriate parents is to find a school back home for their children. It could be to rejoin a former school, to join at Primary One or to join at other levels. The Education Information and Guidance Unit (EIGU) was created by the Ministry in 1991. The Unit provides an advisory service to the Singapore expatriates on matters concerning the children's education in Singapore and assist them in the placement of their children in Singapore schools upon their return. The Unit of course can advise parents before, during or after their assignments. There is no time limit on that.

The key question raised by Dr Toh See Kiat is what help can be given to the child to settle back into the Singapore school system, especially with the demands for the mother tongue. He asked if exemptions can be given. It is known policy that all Singaporean pupils are required to study an official mother tongue language, Chinese, Malay or Tamil, or a non-Tamil Indian language, in our primary schools. However, pupils who have been overseas for a number of years may apply for exemption from offering a mother tongue language at national examinations when they return to join Singapore schools. The Ministry is sympathetic to parent's concerns and has been flexible in considering applications for exemption on a case-by-case basis. Decisions are based on professional judgment on what can be reasonably achieved.

Generally, pupils rejoining mid-stream at the primary or secondary level and who have not had the opportunity to study the mother tongue overseas will be considered favourably for this exemption from mother tongue language at the primary level, that is, the PSLE, or the "O" level or "N" level, or the "A" level examination. But the exemption is granted for only one examination. This means that the pupils who are exempted at the PSLE are expected to offer an official mother tongue language or a minority Indian language or their approved foreign language, French, German or Japanese, when they are promoted to Secondary One. The pupil will then offer this language at GCE "O" level and at the GCE "A" level examinations.

These concessions are only to help the child's transition back into the Singapore school system. They do not by themselves bring about any improvement in the child's proficiency in the language. The parents and the schools must ultimately provide the help and encouragement for the child to catch up and improve. Schools too exercise a certain degree of flexibility in helping the returning pupils settle in. As the pupils rejoin Singapore schools at different times of the school year, parents are understandably concerned about the performance of their children in the school examinations. Principals are given the discretion to decide on a case-by-case basis whether a child could be exempted from examination and/or promoted to the next level. 6.15 pm

What might also be helpful are our immersion programmes. Arrangements can be made for children returning during their vacation to attend classes in Singapore schools to ease their re-entry into the system at a later date. Singapore expatriates who wish to have their children participate in these immersion programmes can write to EIGU for assistance or apply directly to the schools concerned.

But how serious really is the general problem? A study among returned pupils from overseas and parents was conducted by the Ministry and it shows that generally pupils adjust well and quickly to the situation they are in. Existing efforts and induction by schools are adequate. Pupils' personality and family background contribute to the rate of adjustment. Parents' main areas of concern include finding a place for their children in a suitable school, streaming and assessments.

Singapore parents are a resourceful lot. They use a variety of coping strategies, including widening the circle of friends, keeping in touch with the Singapore education system through friends and relatives and the Ministry of Education website and the use of textbooks and assessment books.

As I said earlier, all the help that others give can only be to buy time to enable the child to acclimatise and catch up. Nothing can replace the help and encouragement which the parents and the schools have to provide and, of course, the child's own efforts.

Dr Teo Ho Pin: Sir, my topic is on Quality Education. Sir, I would like to declare my interest as a staff of NUS.

To develop a national attitude of "Thinking Schools and Learning Nation", we need to adopt a holistic quality approach to education. Although the Education Ministry has an internal quality system, we need to develop an internationally recognised quality assurance system.

To achieve world-class standing and recognition, we must adopt the ISO 9000 approach to our educational institutions. Clear quality policies, objectives and procedures must be documented to ensure that quality services are provided in our Ministry and schools.

The ISO 9000 quality assurance model provides a systematic approach to ensure that quality services are delivered. It has a structure whereby regular periodic quality audits are conducted. We should conduct external audit to ascertain the quality of students produced. For example, secondary schools should audit primary schools, pre-university institutions should audit secondary schools, the tertiary institutions auditing the pre-universities, and finally, employers auditing our tertiary institutions. In this way, we can always be assured that our students are receiving quality education.

Sir, I understand that the cost of education is rising and the operating budget of the Ministry is tight. But we should not compromise on the quality of education. Thus, I hope the Minister can update the House as to how he proposes to achieve low cost and high quality education in Singapore.

Dr Michael Lim Chun Leng (Cheng San): Sir, the Ministry continues to build new schools in new estates and sometimes even in the established estates. I am certain that the schools built by the Ministry are good schools. However, there can be no denying the fact that some schools are better than others. Even the Ministry has a ranking system for the schools. Over the years, many schools have developed good standards and have established excellent track records. Many of these schools are either Government-aided schools or SAP schools. Some, like Raffles Institution, are Government schools. Many of these schools have a long tradition and established system and strong alumni which contribute to the development of the school.

It is time that the Ministry considered tapping on these schools for their expertise when they build new schools in new estates. There is, of course, the concern that if the SAP schools or Government-aided schools are involved in establishing new schools, the minority races may avoid SAP schools for either language or religious reasons. And this will result in uneven distribution of minority races in neighbourhood schools.

I think the solution is not to prevent good schools from establishing their tradition and good system elsewhere but rather to ensure that they open up and encourage people of all races to join the schools. Many of these schools have an established system, a very strong school spirit and a loyal alumni which together make a strong recipe for success.

In new estates, like Sengkang and Punggol, where several new schools can be built or accommodated, the Ministry may want to consider allowing some of these well established schools who want to share their success to set up new schools and manage these schools. After all, you want to provide the best environment for our pupils and to build not only good schools but better schools. If we can tap on the value systems, the academic record and alumni spirit of these schools, it will help the Ministry to establish better schools and not just good schools. The Minister has just said in his speech earlier on about the importance of character, motivation and ability. And these very schools which have these records and established traditions are the best schools to establish these areas of character, motivation and ability in our school children.

So, therefore, I hope that the Ministry will consider this.

Dr Lee Tsao Yuan (Nominated Member): Sir, I rise to speak in support of single session schools.

It is commendable that $150 million or 17% of development expenditure on education in fiscal year 1998 will be spent on converting secondary schools into single session schools. I would like to propose that the Ministry go one step further to extend single session schools to primary schools.

The same reasons which apply to single session secondary schools also apply to primary schools. These reasons are: first, students can spend the morning covering the curriculum and the afternoon in enrichment programmes, extra-curricular activities or remedial lessons. Not only does this give students a more all-rounded education, it also offers students from different classes greater opportunities for interaction. This promotes bonding among students and helps develop a stronger sense of community in the school. Often, the learning which occurs outside the classroom can be just as important as the academic learning within the classroom. Attributes such as the give-and-take, of being a team player, learning to win and lose gracefully in sports and games, are important in the development of the overall person which the Ministry has announced as the aim of education in Singapore.

The second reason is that teachers have a greater flexibility in arranging their schedules. They could concentrate on the academic syllabus in the morning and spend the afternoon in a variety of ways, such as helping the weaker students or overseeing the students' enrichment programmes. The same would apply, of course, for afternoon school at present.

The third reason is that this would also benefit parents. Single session primary schools, by keeping children in school for a longer time, will fulfill an important component of child care. It will take the worry off the parents' minds, regarding what the children were doing after they finished the morning session or before they started school in the afternoon. This would be particularly relevant in the case where both parents work and there are no relatives or maids to look after the children during the day.

In 1987, 38% of married women worked. Today, 47.5% of married women work. Broadly speaking, then, nearly half of all households in Singapore are already dual income households. In 10 years' time, it could well be that 60% of households could be dual income households. In the eventuality that all schools are converted to single session schools, I have one more suggestion - start school one hour later at 8.30 am, instead of 7.30 am. Then, there will be greater coincidence of parents' working hours with children's school-going time. This will enable parents to spend a longer time with their school-going children in the mornings and will take care of the child care aspects as well.

For these reasons, I urge the Ministry to consider extending single session schools to primary schools.

Dr Teo Ho Pin: Sir, my topic is on School Cluster. Sir, I must commend the Education Ministry for introducing the six hours per year per student community service requirement for school children. This exposure will definitely inculcate community service values among our students. In fact, a further step will be to encourage more principals and teachers to be involved in community work.

Thus, I would like to urge the Ministry to restructure the school cluster management committee so that both the schools and grassroots organisations can work together for the benefit of the community. To facilitate closer collaboration, the Committee should be headed by the advisor of the grassroots organisations or a person appointed by the advisor. Members should include principals, School Advisory Committee chairmen and other appointed members.

With this structure, the advisor will be able to harness the resources of both the schools and grassroots organisations. The advisor will also be able to deploy staff and resources to ensure the smooth running of the schools. Principals, teachers and grassroots leaders will thus have the opportunity to work together and share their experiences. In this way, we not only develop the community service value system in our students, but also that of our teachers and principals. At the same time, we can develop a community culture in our neighbourhood schools.

Mr Chiam See Tong (Potong Pasir): Sir, my cut is on Boarding Schools. There are very few schools in Singapore which have boarding facilities. Unlike in England, the boarding school system is prevalent there. May I suggest to the Minister to set up boarding facilities in some of the better schools, in particular, to cater for students who have to travel long distances to attend those schools.

At the moment, one of the problems in Singapore is traffic congestion. If large numbers of students can be housed in the school compound or within walking distance of the schools, where the boarding schools are sited, much of the traffic congestion can be mitigated. I am not suggesting setting up boarding schools to solve our traffic problems.

The more important reasons for setting up boarding schools are for social and educational reasons. When students stay in boarding school, they are living in a community. They learn good social habits. They learn to give and take. This means that they learn not to be selfish. They learn always to care not only for themselves but take into consideration the interests of others around them. As Dr Lee Tsao Yuan has said, in one session schools the possibility of bonding between the students is great. I think in boarding schools, the bonding would even be greater. They also learn to be disciplined. They cannot do things as they like. They are to a certain extent regimented because in boarding schools, they shall have fixed hours for studying and other times for games. I think at home, this kind of discipline is less because most likely both the parents are working. They also learn to be self-reliant, tolerant and independent. 6.30 pm

Sir, the boarding school system in England has produced great leaders, both in government and in politics, and also great administrators. It was said that the Battle of Waterloo was won at the playing field of Eton. Sir, Eton is a famous English public school. Eton is also a boarding school. What the saying means is probably that in this type of school environment, the qualities of leadership, courage, cooperation, discipline and physical fitness are inculcated. All these qualities probably help in the winning of the Battle of Waterloo where many of the generals and leaders in the battle came from. Of course, these qualities will also assist in helping to build men later in their work.

I am not saying that we should have an Eton school duplicated in Singapore. But good boarding schools can inculcate in our students those extra values which a normal day school would not be able to do so. The ordinary day school lacks the element of communal living. Communal living is perhaps the essence of boarding school. Sir, I believe that money spent in building boarding schools shall benefit Singapore in the long run.

Mr Lim Swee Say: Sir, I would like to start by commending the Minister and his team for coming out with this excellent document, The Desired Outcomes of Education. A lot of insightful thinking has gone into this document and I think it is a first-class piece of work. There is one particular line that caught my attention and I would just like to read it loud here:

"The foundation of a person is his value system, from which springs his outlook on life and his goals in life."

Sir, I think this is a very important statement. It is something that is worth discussing further. With globalisation and technology, the world is getting more and more complicated. For the young Singaporeans to survive in the future, obviously you need to have more knowledge. But with technology, you can actually have access to knowledge in a just-in-time manner. Many people say that we should not worry too much about what we learn in school because when we need the information or knowledge we can always have it, when we need it. This is the just-in-time concept.

But in the case of the value system, there is no such thing as a just-in-time value system. With globalisation, the young Singaporeans are now exposed to the world. We are seeing all kinds of influences, bad or good, that are influencing the young Singaporeans. My view is that for young Singaporeans to think straight in the future, it is very important that they have a stronger value foundation. In that regard, I am very happy that value system is being highlighted and given the right emphasis in this document.

Having recognised the importance of value system, the next question is: how can we do even more to inculcate a stronger value system in our young? Here, I would like to present just one small suggestion. I believe that there is a limited time for us to teach our students and whatever time we can spend to strengthen the teaching of a value system is something we should not forgo. Take, for example, the learning of second language in the school. I noted that in our Chinese textbook, this is a photocopy taken from a Primary 6 textbook [indicating], the article is an excellent one. It is a story about a father and son and the kind of love and care between them. It is a very moving story. But at the end of the lesson, what was highlighted in the revision section is: what are the new sentences you have learned in this lesson and what are the new words you have learned in this lesson. My humble suggestion is, why not add another section, and ask the students what are the moral values they have learned from this lesson. I believe that, in so doing, by combining the learning of a language and the strengthening of the value system, we can go a long way to further strengthen the inculcation of a stronger value system in our young.

Mr David T.E. Lim (Aljunied): Sir, after that very stirring speech by the Minister on what the Ministry has done, is doing and will be doing for our students, I feel somewhat like Oliver Twist coming back and asking for more. But it is nonetheless an important subject and if the Minister will bear with me, I would like to talk about pre-school education.

The key issue is whether the way we teach our very young and what subjects we teach them makes any difference to the development of a child both academically or socially. There are at least three reasons why I believe that a higher quality of early childhood education is beneficial and why we should pay attention to this area.

(1) Over the last 20 years, our knowledge of how the mind works and how it develops has increased. We now know that the stimulation of the mind at a very early age facilitates learning, especially of language. It is also well accepted that there are different forms of intelligence and that different children learn in different ways. What this research tells us is that a child who is seen to be slow may simply be a child that is forced into a mode of learning that does not fit him or her. Conversely, in a right environment, a child's development might well be enhanced and accelerated.

(2) Over the last one or two decades, many educators have pioneered teaching methods to take into account a better understanding of how the mind works. Admittedly, some early research showed that improvements to IQ scores tested at Primary 1 washed out after two or three years in primary school. But later studies have also shown that benefits can be sustained depending on the approach used. These benefits may not necessarily show up just in academic scores, but also in the form of social benefits such as lower drop-out rates from schools or a lesser degree of trouble with the law. The results show that learning effectiveness at an early age is linked to the way we teach the young child. But whether or not these results can be sustained may depend on whether we are able to provide the same supportive environment as the child grows up.

(3) Across all cultures, social norms or customs or practices and values are inculcated from a very early age. It is true that formal learning, like mastering Mathematics, Science or Economics, can only take place when the brain has sufficiently matured and is capable of certain abstract constructions. But we also cannot deny our instinctive belief that habits and values and attitudes are formed not so much by formal instruction alone, but shaped by early childhood experiences. Indeed, two of the three pillars which the Minister spoke about, character development and motivation, are formed by the time the child enters the formal school system.

Sir, the approach which early childhood educators take today is based on the notion that the mind is not a vessel to be filled up but a fire to be kindled. By creating a safe, caring but challenging environment, these educators stimulate young children to reach out for new knowledge and not to wait for knowledge to be dished out to them. In the process of learning, the children also build self-confidence. And in discovering knowledge, they also discover the sameness and differences with other children, learning both acceptance and leadership; both teamwork and challenge. By helping children to build a foundation for learning, early childhood educators prepare them to become more self-actuating and hence more successful when they enter the formal school years.

For these reasons and reasons given by other Members of the House who have spoken on the subject, I hope that the Ministry of Education would take a closer look at this important matter.

Sir, at the early ages, from two to six, child care and child development are hard to separate. Learning is integrative and whole life. It cannot be separated into discrete subjects or periods. The Ministry can rightly argue that child care is not the State's responsibility and should rightly be left to parents and market forces. But it should play an active part in a young child's education. If we can more fully realise the potential of our young and produce youths with a greater sense of social responsibility or reduce juvenile delinquency, then our efforts would have been worthwhile. Our money would have been well spent. I realise that the education of the very young is still a relatively new area. There is much we need to learn and understand about which methods are effective and how we should go about providing better early childhood education.

I would therefore like to make two proposals on how we can make progress in this area. Firstly, I would like to propose that the Ministry of Education set up a research and teaching centre to look into early childhood development and education. The centre should gather from other countries those programmes in early childhood learning which have worked and also study those programmes which have failed. It can promote greater understanding of how children learn at an early age and do research into how effective learning can be achieved in the early years and sustain as the child grows up.

Secondly, the centre should set up or work with a number of prototype schools to gain first-hand experience and to see in practice what works and what does not in our cultural context. Some private schools and kindergartens who have already made a pioneering start in new learning methods could be brought under this prototype programme. MOE could provide them with funding assistance for them to take an active role in research and development into early childhood learning and also to reach out to a more representative mix of children. The funding and staffing for these two efforts will not be large compared to the overall school programme. But it would be well worthwhile if this would lead to a better educational foundation for our very young.

Sir, not every child is a genius though many mothers may think so. But there is a genius in every child. By recognising the importance of early childhood development and the effectiveness of early childhood learning, we can set this genius free.

Mr Lim Swee Say: Sir, I would like to touch on this subject of ranking of schools. There is a saying that if you feed peanuts, you get monkeys. I am not saying that the teachers are monkeys. But I am saying that if we rank the schools according to results, then we are likely to have all the teachers concentrating their efforts on producing results.

I heard that there is a junior college whose principal and school teachers actually responded to the call by the Ministry to promote creativity, and so on. What they did was to try some new methods of teaching, but as a result the academic performance dropped because whatever new knowledge that they had passed on to the students was not tested. As a result, the school had now decided to go back to the old way of teaching. I would urge the Minister to consider changing the way of ranking. If you are talking about producing a whole person, then I think ranking must reflect the criteria of the whole person.

The Chairman: I knew you could do it. If everybody keeps his speech to three to four minutes tomorrow, everybody should have a chance to speak. It is 6.45 pm.

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

RAdm Teo Chee Hean: Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to report that the Committee of Supply has made further progress on the Main and Development Estimates for the financial year 1998/1999, and ask leave to sit again tomorrow.

Mr Deputy Speaker: So be it.