INCLUSION OF MARKS FOR PUPILS OFFERING INDIAN MINORITY LANGUAGES

Mr Shriniwas Rai asked the Minister for Education if his Ministry will allow marks for pupils offering Indian minority languages to be included as a subject for the purpose of promotion at all levels of examinations.

RAdm Teo Chee Hean: Non-Tamil Indian students are allowed to opt to study a non-Tamil Indian language as their Mother Tongue. Instruction in the non-Tamil Indian languages is not provided by the Ministry and parents are required to arrange for instruction for their children. This instruction is provided by a variety of tutors ranging from centrally organised classes, to personalised tuition. Grades obtained in the non-Tamil Indian languages in the national examinations, namely the PSLE and the GCE examinations, where there is a common benchmark, are counted for placement in and admission to the next level of study.

As there are no standardised curriculums or tests at the various other levels the Ministry does not currently count the marks awarded by tutors in these languages for promotion at other levels. However, schools place students in the appropriate classes according to the ability demonstrated by the students in their other subjects. Pupils are therefore not unduly advantaged nor disadvantaged by this.