EARLY SECONDARY SCHOOL LEAVERS

Mdm Cynthia Phua asked the Minister for Education, from 1997 - 2001 (a) what is the number of early secondary school leavers who did not complete their education; (b) what are the reasons causing them to leave school early; and (c) what is the number of students falling within each of the reasons.

RAdm Teo Chee Hean: The number of students who dropped out of our schools between Secondary 1 and Secondary 4 has been on a downward trend over the years. It has decreased from 1,656 in 1997 to 1,059 in 2001. In percentage terms, it has dropped from 3.3% of the Primary 1 cohort to 2.7% over the same period of time.

Students drop out of school for a variety of reasons, including loss of interest and financial or family problems, or they may have found employment or are seeking employment. The number of students falling within each of these reasons is given in the table below. Table: Number of dropouts by reasons Reasons 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 1059 851 693 774 817 Loss of interest Found/Seeking 462 273 175 172 144 employment Financial difficulty 66 63 69 41 35 Family problem 69 61 76 75 63 Total 1656 1248 1013 1062 1059

When students show signs of dropping out, principals and teachers will dissuade them from doing so. Their efforts include counselling the students, monitoring their attendance and contacting their homes when they are absent, inviting parents to school, and making home visits to discuss the matter with the parents. Where the reason for dropping out is financial, schools are prepared to extend financial aid to the students. Annex 1 - Changes to ARF, ED and PARF for Cars and Taxis (Cols. 727-728) Annex 2 - New Excise Duties for Liquors (Cols. 729-730) Annex 3 - New Excise Duties for Other Tobacco Products (Cols. 731-732) Annex 4 - Tax Measures to Promote Philanthropy (Cols. 733-734) Annex 5 - Tax Incentives for the Financial Sector and Enterprise Development (Cols. 735-742) Annex 6 - New Personal Income Tax Structure and Rates (Cols. 743-744) Annex 7 - Not Ordinarily Resident Taxpayer Scheme (Cols. 745 - 746) Annex 8 - Changes to Tax Treatment of Stock Options (Cols. 747 - 748) Annex 9 - Rebates for Service & Conservancy Charges and Rent (Cols. 749 - 750) Annex 10 - Impact of Economic Restructuring Package on Households (Cols. 751 - 752)