EDUCATION SCHEME OF SERVICE

Mr Tay Beng Chuan asked the Minister for Education (a) what is the rationale and special justification for the recent upward salary revision for the teaching profession despite the current need for wage restraint in both the public and private sectors; and (b) whether his Ministry has introduced any new or innovative measures other than salary increases to enhance the status, working conditions and job satisfaction of the more deserving school teachers so as to attract the right individuals to join the teaching profession as a long-term career.

RAdm Teo Chee Hean: The revisions made to the Education Scheme of Service since 1st January 2000 was not a general salary revision. Instead, new intermediate salary grades were added to the scheme of service. The objective was to improve the structure of the service to allow enhanced promotional opportunities and more timely promotional opportunities to improve retention. These changes were part of civil service-wide changes to the structure of Division 1 services. New salary grades were introduced for both the General Education Officer (GEO) and the Senior Education Officer (SEO) salary schemes. Previously, classroom teachers were only eligible for one promotion to the career grade of GEO 1A and GEO 2A. With the new intermediate GEO salary grade, they now have an additional promotion opportunity, ie, 2 promotions, before they reach the career classroom teacher grade. GEO officers can also look forward to faster and earlier first promotions. The new SEO grade was introduced to offer better salary progression in the Upper Timescale levels before officers reach the Superscale levels.

The Ministry agrees that we need to provide an overall conducive environment to help attract and retain teachers. It is not salaries and promotions alone that determine retention ability. We have a strong focus on training and development. The Ministry encourages and supports its officers to upgrade themselves professionally. The National Institute of Education has recently announced a comprehensive framework for continual training of teachers. We have also implemented various schemes such as the Study Leave Scheme and the Professional Development Leave Scheme to enable officers to upgrade themselves academically through full-time graduate and postgraduate programmes. Financial assistance in the form of sponsorships, half-pay leave and interest-free study loans are available. Since 1998, an average of 230 teachers per year have been granted study leave to pursue a first degree or a Master's degree.

In recent years, various awards have been instituted by several organisations and the nation to recognise outstanding teachers. These awards, viz the Outstanding Youth in Education Award, the Caring Teacher Award, the Inspiring Chinese Language Teachers award and the pinnacle award, the President's Award for Teachers - are reflective of the community's recognition and nation's regard for the important role that teachers play. There is no greater affirmation for our many dedicated teachers than when the community seeks to recognise their good work.

MOE has also implemented several measures to alleviate teachers' workload. These include the creation of School Administrator and Operations Manager posts at all schools to perform administrative support functions, the streamlining of work procedures (e.g. payment of school fees by GIRO, central issuing of student identification passes), and leveraging on IT to improve work efficiency. Since 1998, MOE has allocated more than 1,500 additional teaching posts and more than 380 administrative and support posts to schools.