CHANGES TO EDUCATION SYSTEM (Update)

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CHANGES TO EDUCATION SYSTEM:

(Update): 11.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo asked the Minister for Education if he will (i) update the House on the impending changes to the education system and (ii) explain how teachers, parents and students are being prepared to embrace these changes.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Mr Speaker, Sir, the changes taking place in education are not new. They reflect the stepwise implementation of the broad initiatives that the Ministry of Education has embarked on in recent years.

First, we are introducing greater flexibility and diversity in the education system. We have introduced new types of schools and programmes, such as the Integrated Programmes and the Specialised IndependentSchools. We are also broadening the choices that students have across the system, to help them build on their strengths and interests. This includes introducing greater choice in the subjects they take, and in the study of the mother tongue language. It also includes greater flexibility in the implementation of streaming into different courses in schools. Further, the Normal (Technical) curriculum is being customised and will offer electives to better match the learning style of this group of students. Primary schools will be able to develop stronger niche programmes, supported by a Pro-

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gramme for School-Based Excellence from next year. At the post-secondary level, the ITEs and polytechnics are also broadening their offerings. The university sector is moving towards a more competitive and diversified landscape.

Second, we are refocusing our efforts to provide a broad-based, holistic education for our students, with an emphasis on academic training, on CCAs and on character development. This is being reinforced by a broadening of admission procedures. Secondary schools, junior colleges and universities are being given a greater degree of flexibility in admissions, to allow for a broader measure of student talents and achievements. These changes have also been complemented by the new School Achievement Tables, which replace the old ranking tables. Within the academic curriculum, we will also be introducing a broader and more flexible junior collegecurriculum from year 2006.

Third, we have a series of continuing initiatives to support our teachers in their efforts toraise the quality of education that we provide our children. We are reducing class size in the early primary years starting from next year, and reducing the pupil-teacher ratio across the board over the nextfive years. Schools are being given increased manpower grants and counselling resources, to provide greater support to teachers. These initiatives, taken together,will give teachers more space to reflect on their teaching, experiment with new techniques and upgrade themselves professionally. And each time we change our curriculum, we engage teachers in briefings and training to ensure that they are well-equippedwith the necessary skills and knowledge to implement the changes well.

We have consulted our stakeholders extensively on the changes that we are

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making. There is broad agreementon the intent and direction of these changes, as being essential to providing a conducive environment to developing our students to the fullest. In September, we started a series of Education Forums with students, teachers and parents respectively, as well as with leaders in industry, to communicate the intent of educational changes as well as obtain views on what we should do. Their feedback has been valuable in thinking through our policies and how they are implemented on the ground. This process of regular engagement with our stakeholders in education will continue.

MOE also spends effort and time to communicate with teachers and school leaders. The Director of Schools has regular meetings with all school leaders to discuss and clarify policy and implementation issues. School leaders, in turn, communicate these changes to teachers and students in the school, and, where necessary, to their parents. Schools are also engaging more actively with parent support groups, which areuseful channel to help parents understand how the school's programmes benefit students, and to draw on their support and ideas.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo: I would like to ask the Minister, from the positive feedback that he has received with regard to all these communication sessions that have been organised for stakeholders, how does he assess the position of the ownership of these changes in the education system with regard to these stakeholders? In other words, does he feel very positively that these stakeholders indeed feel owners of these inherent changes that are going on?

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Ownership is a process. It starts, in fact, before we finalise any policy changes. If you take the major changes that we are talking about, for instance, the new junior college

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curriculum, the new Normal (Technical) curriculum, changes in the admission procedures and the changes to the teaching of the Chinese Language that Parliament will soon be debating, there is a process of consultation thathas beendeep and wide. Inparticular, we have involved teachers themselves, getting their ideas and, as we develop new policies, getting their refinements of the policies.By the time we announce the policy, it is not something thatis going to be new to teachers.

But post-announcement, there is also awhole processcascading down through school leaders to teachers andto parents. It is hard to say when full ownership has been achieved. But my sense is that on the ground, there isa belief that these are the right things to do, these are the right directions for us to proceed in. It takes a bit of time for every teacher to acquire the requisite skills and knowledge to implement changes well. That is why we provide them with not just a one-off briefing but a series of training programmes and exposure.But there is a certain confidence in the system that these changes make sense, and we will make them work.

Mr Zainudin Nordin (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Mr Speaker,I am very happy to hear about all these changes that the Minister is doing for the education system in Singapore. I would also like to ask the Minister if he is going to take a look at the pre-school education sector to see what can be done or improved in this area.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: I would like to thank the Member for his question. About a year and a half ago,we did take a fundamental look at the pre-school sector and, in fact, provided the pre-school industry with a broad framework for curriculum development that we felt was appropriate for our children at that age -from 4 to 6. Theresponse from the pre-school sector has beenpositive,

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both the major pre-school providers as well as the various smaller operators. Our main initiative is really to improve the quality of teaching in the pre-school sector. Our guidelines are known. We provided the pre-school sector some time to be able to achieve the required guidelines and provided them with some incentives to also achieve them in time. That is still work-in-progress. At this point, we are quite

confident that by 2008 we would have met our key objectives in upgrading the quality of teaching in our pre-school sector.

Assoc. Prof. Ngiam Tee Liang (Nominated Member): I would like to ask the Minister: in view of all these very drastic changes - it is a major overhaul of the education system - when will the Ministry come up with a comprehensive publication that setsall these out? With all these bits and pieces of changes, many parents are very confused now. Their mindset is still on the old system, and we need to educate the public in a very systematic and holistic way.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: First, I would not describe the changes as drastic or representing an overhaul. Our system is basically functioning quite well. There are some new initiatives that mainly build on previous initiatives, but they basically boil down to a few very simple points. We are introducing more flexibility and more diversity. It is what parents and students want. A student with a special talent in the arts, for instance, is keen that we are providing new opportunities, both within the mainstream, for certain schools to have stronger niche programmes in the arts, starting from primary school, as well as to have a specialised school for the arts, which is going to be set up.

So, for each of the changesthat we are introducing, there is demand anda keenness on the part of the people for whom these changes were meant, people with that particular interest or talent.

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When we add them all up together, it looks like many changes. But they appeal to different groups of students with different learning styles, talents and interests. And that is the whole idea. We have a system that is rock solid and that allows us now the flexibility of providing more options and choices.

We will have to continue our communication process. SomeMembers may have noticed over the last few weeks that the Straits Times , for instance, had put out quite extensive summaries of all the policies that have been introduced, with their own examples and colouring, but quite an effective set of articles that summarises what we are doing. The Ministry itself is also undertaking this communication.Some time early next year, we intend to put out fact sheets for every parent, to be distributed through the schools for each level, ie, primary, secondary and so on, so that parents know, for different levels, whatall the changes are about, and howthey add up. It is a continuing process.