Head K - Ministry of Education

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Head K - Ministry of Education

The Chairman: Head K - Ministry of Education. Mr Gan Kim Yong.

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Education Policy

Mr Gan Kim Yong (Holland-Bukit Panjang): Sir, I beg to move,

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

Sir, our policy of offering greater variety and customisation according to the capability of the students is a correct approach. We ought to produce a few peaks of excellence while maintaining a high general level of academic achievements. However, I would like to stress that our education policy cannot be focused only on academic achievements. We must provide a holistic and balanced education for our children. In Chinese, there are five words that describe the five key aspects of education, de zhi ti qun mei , meaning moral values and character building, intelligence and knowledge, physical development, social skills and artistic skills.

Sir, we have done very well in the academic aspects. But I feel that we should strengthen our moral education and character development programmes. Moral values are important as they provide a sense of responsibility, accountability and respect for others. This is the basis of any interpersonal relationship, without which we cannot build a strong community. Character development, on the other hand, is important as it gives the person strength and determination to overcome obstacles and realise his dreams in life. I would like to repeat my call to the Ministry to review the moral education and character development programmes in our schools, such as the co-curriculum activities, the community involvement programme and the National Education programme. Perhaps, it is time that we revamped these programmes to make them more relevant and more effective. We could use the tsunami incident to teach our children values and character. Perhaps, the older children may even be able to be involved

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in part of the relief and rebuilding efforts. This would help reinforce what they learn in the classrooms. I think more can be done in this area. And it would be useful to form a taskforce to review our present programme.

Sir, in our strive for excellence, we must also be mindful not to neglect students that need additional help. This is in line with our philosophy of building a caring and inclusive community. There are three categories of students whom we need to pay more attention. Firstly, slower students. We need to help slower students make progress and achieve success. We need to give them encouragement and build their confidence. In this regard, I would like to urge the Ministry to consider doing away with the remaining EM3 streaming at the primary level. We can give schools more flexibility to decide how to differentiate among its students and provide learning support for them, without explicit streaming.

Secondly, disabled students. We must improve our facilities to allow greater integration of students with disabilities. I have run kindergartens which include autistic children, and it is tough. They need more time and more attention. These students will also need greater financial support as they would require additional therapy to help them cope with the normal education programme. The Government has provided additional funding for them, or perhaps more could be done.

Thirdly, delinquent students. We must provide counselling and support for students who have disciplinary problems. Our objectives must be to try to keep them in schools, rather than to keep them out, so long as they do not affect other students in the school. Therefore, I would like to urge the Ministry to take a more lenient approach in re-admitting students who have dropped out of schools. The Minister has explained that these students must demonstrate a sincere desire to

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return to school before they are re-admitted. I feel that this somewhat punitive approach is counter productive and I would like to urge the Ministry to reconsider. If at all, the penalty should be on the parents, not on the children.

Sir, education is the key to our future. It is for this reason

that many changes have taken place over the last few years to finetune our policy and programmes. However, education is a partnership. Parents play a crucial role in this partnership. It is therefore important that we communicate to the parents, explain to them and convince them. The confusion during the recent registration exercise is a case in point. Although the Minister has apologised, to be fair, it is not entirely the fault of the Ministry. Parents and students are also partly responsible.

Therefore, I would like to suggest that there should be a communication department within the Ministry that focuses on communicating its policies to the schools and to the parents. This way, we can strengthen the educational partnership and make our education policy more effective.

Dr Tan Boon Wan (Ang Mo Kio): Sir, bold changes have been proposed for and made to our education system. In part, due to complaint of excessive stress on our students, adjustments are being made to the syllabi and course content. Yet, it may seem ironical that some people, probably who had also asked for the changes, are now concerned that these changes could undermine its quality. Yet others are concerned that this could be seen as an attack on our work ethics, which could send the wrong signal to our young that their traditional emphasis on hard work and efforts is wrong, and that one only needs to be creative and entrepreneurial to be successful. Yet, we all know that hard work and efforts are important factors of success. These

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concerns are genuine and not misplaced. There are thus calls from the public to the Ministry to ensure that the changes do not lead to a reduction in the quality of our education system and the erosion of the value of hard work and efforts.

There is also the perception that despite the announced changes, things are not really different, and children are working just as hard as before, if not harder. This, they say, is aggravated by the shift to the 5-day week. Schools are perceived to cram the 5 1/2 days' workload into five days. As a result, some parents of secondary school children told me that their children who used to leave school at 3.00 pm now do so at about 6.00 pm. Another told me that his son leaves his school even later, after 7.00 pm. Because of this development, the family now has even less time together. Parents perceive different causes for the problem. But they all have one plea to the Ministry and schools: please look into ways to give time back to the children and the family. Some parents are impatient with the pace of change. They felt that the time between the announcement of the change and the implementation is too long. A case in point is the change to the teaching of the Chinese language. The proposed changes will not take effect until 2008. They do not want their children to miss out on the changes. Can the Ministry thus reduce the time lag between the announcement and the implementation of our policy change and hasten the changes already announced?

Some employers have also expressed their concern over the perceived fall in young job applicants' mastery of the English language. They asked: how could this be happening when students are getting better grades in the subject? They asked whether the examination grades are suffering from high inflation. Yet another group of the public has expressed concern

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that our young lack the appreciation of our history and the life experiences of our older generations. They wonder what is happening with National Education in schools. They asked whether National Education is achieving its purpose.

Dr Michael Lim Chun Leng: Sir, three major points.

(1) Certainty in syllabi. While Singaporeans often complain that the school system is stressful, the question is often whether the stress is from the school or whether it is from outside the school, namely, the parents. My children tell me that their schoolmates from China find it more relaxed and less stressful when they study in Singapore as compared to their schools in China. The Ministry may take measures to reduce workload on children to reduce stress. It has initiatives, such as "Teach Less, Learn More". When there is an announcement on syllabi reduction, instead of being happy, parents get frantic. When you tell parents that examinations will not be based on the standard textbooks, they panic. Parents will tap into their intelligence network to find out the right tutor who had helped a friend's child get solid grades for the last year's PSLE. It is the element of uncertainty that drives parents bananas in their endeavour to over-compensate for that void created in the reduction in school work. What the Ministry and the schools must do is to communicate to the parents as to what is required and spell out clearly what is in the syllabi at the beginning of each year. Nothing causes more stress and drives up the level of kiasu-ness than uncertainty.

(2) Outcomes of education. As the education system evolves and we churn out more diploma and degree graduates, the Ministry will need to assess the quality of graduates that come into the workforce. Employers' feedback provide an excellent source of feedback. Only

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then can we assess the outcomes of our education system.

I would like to take the case of medical technologists who graduate from Singapore Polytechnic. Compared to medical technologists from overseas, our graduates are armed with theoretical knowledge but have very little practical skills. More often than not, we have to get our foreign-trained technologists to give further practical training to our local technologists. The main reason is that when they are posted to the public hospitals for their practical attachment, the technologists there are too busy to teach them to allow them hands-on training. Examinations do not tell everything. Performance in the real world does.

(3) Learning Malay. Sir, I remember that, as a primary school child, I had to attend Malay classes for the first four years. Most of us thought that it was a waste of time as it was a non-examination subject. However, in the course of work, the basic foundation I had in Malay became important. Today, I converse in Malay with many of my foreign patients, and it has made a difference. With Malaysia and Indonesia as our neighbours, it will certainly be useful to foster better relations with our neighbours by being able to communicate with them in Malay. We need to allow an avenue for our school children to be exposed to basic conversational Malay. However, learning has to be made interesting. As one student put it, "No one will pay attention to non-examination subjects." Therefore, the onus is on the Ministry to come up with better creative teaching tools.

The Chairman: Mr David Lim has withdrawn his cut. Mdm Ho Geok Choo. Six minutes.

Education System

Mdm Ho Geok Choo (West Coast): Sir, the education system has been going

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through a strict diet regime. When it is deemed to be too full, it gets trimmed, as in the latest "Study Less and Learn More", and when it is deemed to be too lean, it gets loaded, as in the past when the curriculum was beefed up to ensure that our students stay all-rounded. All these measures were so targeted to keep our education system in good shape. But, just like any dieting programme, the best results are obtained from a combination of a regular exercise regime and an accurate diet prescription.

I am glad to note that MOE is slowly evolving to that desirable state of outcomes. For this, we need to engage all stakeholders. To date, we have been engaging academic staff, parents and students in some of the policy matters. I say some only because it is only in recent times that the MOE has made the conscious effort of holding dialogue sessions to hear out the views of students on matters pertaining to their education or to the society in which they live in. I have three issues to raise.

On the first issue, I would like to comment on the CCA/CIP for JCs and the schools in general. Sir, I understand that the PEARLS system framework has been provoking the outcries of students for many years since its implementation in 2000. I note in several of the tea sessions that I conducted with the ITE, polytechnic, JC and university students in 2003 and 2004, under the Feedback Unit, students did not hesitate to share the downside of a system that served to inculcate and perpetuate a paper chase mentality, except that this time they literally chased points. This is a sad state of affairs, as we know that CCA/CIP should throw up desired attributes, such as leadership, passion, commitment and time involvement, which are less quantifiable than the descriptors of "Participation", "Achievement" and "Representation" under the PEARLS system.

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In fact, the emphasis on the points to be attained had driven students to the point that some students had learned to "outbeat" the system by taking advantage of the score descriptors. The score descriptors "Representation" and "Achievement" under the PEARLS system are not an accurate reflection of the bigger purpose of what the CCA/CIP should be inculcating in a character. For example, two students A and B could both be engaged in a school approved-initiated outside club activity.

Student A displayed top ratings in all attributes of leadership, commitment, passion, time and effort devoted to the activity. Unfortunately, under the PEARLS framework, he failed to fulfill the descriptor of "Representation", as points given under "Representation" are only for competitions. Moreover, more points are given to MOE-organised competitions. Being in an outside club activity, even if it was possible to organise competitions, the fact remains that the scoring will be at a lower rating because they are not MOE-organised.

Student B may be less involved in the outside activity, so that some time could be spent in the school activity, such as the chess club. He would have fulfilled the descriptors of "Representation" and "Achievement". All that student B needed to do was to attend a few chess games, then sign up for a competition. In this instance, student B would be allocated points for "Representation" and "Achievement" even if he did not win the competition, whereas student A who excelled in the outside activity would have gotten a zero for both "Representation" and "Achievement".

Sir, many students have been affected negatively by the PEARLS framework, especially if their scores are at the border of an upper and lower grade, eg, between

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an A and B because of failure to fulfill the "Representation" and "Achievement" descriptors.

Sir, on the recognition of CCA and CIP for scholarship awards, I would like to ask whether the PEARLS framework would be the only evaluation tool to be used. I would request that, as a supplement to verify the true involvement of a student in an activity, perhaps a testimonial written by the mentor or coach of the activity and verified by the school could be used.

Next, on CIP assessment, I understand that under this scheme, students had also learnt to "outbeat" the system simply by going round to chalk up hours but not actually getting involved in a meaningful way. Sir, I would like to know what is MOE's proposed implementation process to ensure the continuous involvement and feedback of all stakeholders on matters that impact them.

On my second issue, I would like to raise about teachers in school. It has been reported that teachers have left the profession because they could not cope with the additional administrative demands imposed on them. How does MOE intend to go about helping these teachers to cope?

Thirdly, I would like to touch on students with disabilities in learning. I would like to relate the experience of one particular Primary 2 student who has a learning disability. In the eyes of his project team mates, he had become responsible for slowing down the work of his class because of his slowness. This child undergoes the Learning Support programme in school. His classmates have creatively changed the label of Learning Support to "Lousy and Stupid" and he is called lousy and stupid by them. This has affected him much, such that he has developed eating disorders.

Sir, I am not against integrating children with disabilities in the main

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school. But I would like to know what are MOE and the schools doing about situations like this.

Streaming

Mr Low Thia Khiang (Hougang): ( In Mandarin ): Sir, in the year 2000, MOE launched the subject-based pilot classrooms plan. I would like to ask the Minister whether his Ministry is ready to fully implement the plan with a view to ultimately replace the current streaming system. I think the true spirit of "teaching according to students' ability" is to respect individual students' natural endowment and strength and teach them the corresponding contents and methods. Give them the corresponding space and opportunities so as to lead students to realise their potential.

By euphemism, the current streaming system is described as "teaching according to ability". In reality, it favours the two subjects of English and Mathematics. The Mathematics examinations seem to test the students' proficiency in English to comprehend the questions that are set rather than their mathematical skills. This type of elimination system based on the command of English fails to fully assess and discover the students' natural endowment and aptitude.

If a student should lose the chance to go on studying their strong subjects such as Chinese or Science just because their English is poor, can it be said that we are streaming them according to their ability? Worse, the superficial elimination system has left in the minds of many students the intangible branding or inferiority complex.

School rankings have caused principals to avoid putting resources and attention on such students. This makes them feel rejected and hopeless, consequently giving up on themselves and become a

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social problem aggravating juvenile delinquency.

At the same time, the polarisation of streaming results in elitist education and "elite schools". Many parents push their children to learn with intensive tuition hoping for their children's admission into these elite schools. This jeopardises the health of students and the meaning of the quest for knowledge is distorted. Streaming system also results in serious social contradictions. There is this student from one of the "elite schools" who sparks a war of words with the neighbourhood school students over the issue of boy-girl relations. They use words full of class discrimination and set up the alarm bell of social segmentation.

If we sit on the fence and do nothing, then this will become a heavy price to pay later. Year in and year out, I have repeatedly asked for a review of the streaming system because its ill implication is far-reaching. I sincerely hope that the Education Minister will boldly deal with the present streaming system to fully meet the demand and concept of teaching according to the students' ability. To truly develop our talents, we must resolutely abolish this narrow and rigid streaming system and expand the concept of subject-based classrooms by implementing the subject-based teaching system that is customised based on students' ability and interest. This will provide greater opportunity to maximise the potential of students, allowing the full play of maximum ability of each student. This is in contrast to the current system of streaming in determining one's fate by English language.

Development of a society depends on development of each individual within that society. An education system which is flexible with a customised system of teaching to foster individual development is helpful in building a reservoir of human capital for our nation. This will enable us

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better face the challenges of this rapidly changing world. The current streaming system lacks these positive factors.

Recognising Excellence and Helping the Academically Challenged

Mr Zainudin Nordin (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Mr Chairman, Sir, I have said in the Chamber before that I am glad that we are beginning to recognise excellence in education in all its possible forms and not only in academic performance. But I have a small concern which I would like to ask MOE. Once we have recognised our brightest, whatever field it may be, should we not continue to develop them even further? I would like to ask MOE what are the resources that are being allocated to further develop our young in whatever area apart from academic.

There is also the need to develop the balanced individuals. Holistic education is what we want, as what Mr Gan has mentioned earlier. A child whose only strength is academic will exhibit inadequacies, some of them may be disruptive to family and society.

Emotional development is extremely important, for instance, compassion for others, culture awareness and appreciation, especially in a multi-racial Singapore. This must be imbibed in our young during their early years. We do not want a lopsided emphasis on the academic aspect of education at the expense of other important areas like character building, soft skills, appreciation of the arts and others.

Sir, I would like to ask MOE what are we doing to enlighten parents in this area. I know that it may not be MOE's view to seek to educate parents, but as partners in education, parents must be made to understand that their children must be educated in all aspects, not only on

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academics. This overwhelming emphasis on academic education is something we have created in our desperation to develop as a nation, something we must unlearn and discard.

My third point, Sir, is in relation to the academically challenged. Our teachers must be given proper resources and skills to identify the academically challenged children at their early age. Time may be of the essence in these cases. What more can be done to assist this group of children apart from the LSP programme that has been mentioned many times? I would like to know what MOE is doing and what kind of resources is being provided to assist our teachers and the system to assist the young who are academically challenged. Addressing this early will bear us fruits in the long term.

Mindset Change

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, there is a need for MOE to promote a mindset change in our people with regard to stressful education in Singapore. Stress of education is still being faced by students and parents despite the announcement of MOE for significant cuts in curricula, change of teaching and examination systems, modified ranking and admission procedures.

There should be more effort put in to better inform parents and teachers about the recent initiatives of MOE. MOE should step up public education to enhance a positive approach and correct attitudes of parents and teachers alike. Should there not be more emphasis on preparing our young children to be the successful individuals of tomorrow who are innovative, confident, inspired, informed and globally savvy citizens? Parents must be convinced that there are the attributes that their children need for a leg-up in the job market and for success in their careers.

Innovative skills and creativity in our children, the attributes which we want to

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cultivate, will not come from just getting good academic scores. Young children may lose the joy of learning, questioning, exploring if they are overloaded with school work and other extra-curricular activities with no free time of their own.

There is a need to promote a mindset change that every child will be given the opportunity to develop his or her best potential, albeit not limited to just the few popular professions. Success must be further defined without stereotyping of certain professions only. MOE must ensure that teachers observe the guideline changes that were announced. It would certainly defeat the purpose of cutting the syllabus of various subjects if the teachers still insist on teaching them.

The Chairman: Dr Neo, your time is up. Dr Loo Choon Yong.

Student Development

Dr Loo Choon Yong (Nominated Member): Sir, we have allocated $6.16 billion or 20.8% of total expenditure of Government to education. This is the second largest expenditure. I believe it is a very worthwhile one.

Education for our children rightly deserves our attention and resources. They are our future. More importantly, education provides social mobility that the meritocratic society must have. It is a social leveller. A boy from a poor family can make it to the top. He can be educated at the finest university at public expense. This is something I am very proud of Singapore.

I support the Government's spending on education and the PM's Edusave top-up for every student. I know I am speaking on the cut, but I actually hope we can spend even more money on educating our children because this is virtuous welfare.

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Sir, the Prime Minister has promised that our schools will teach less so that the students can learn more. And I agree with Minister Tharman that we should nurture and inspire the next generation of Singaporeans. And through their ideas, convictions and passions, we will make the future of our country.

But how is the Minister going to make all these noble ideals a reality? The teachers, principals as well as many MOE officials have grown up in our schools and universities that have emphasised content, grades, rote learning. Can the Minister share with us his plans and strategy and methodology for retraining the teachers and principals to the mindset that my colleague, Dr Lily Neo, talked about?

I know it is a lot easier to teach content than to inspire and nurture students to new habits of mind. Contents are more tangible and measurable. So teachers, principals and inspectors will find it easier to account for their work. But we all know that the content rapidly becomes outdated in this fast changing world. Even medical knowledge has a half life of seven years only.

Sir, I urge all of us to be brave, the teachers especially, to be bold, as we embark on this new course. This is a bold fundamental shift of direction for our education system. Or in sailing language, it is a tack and not just trimming the sails. For myself, if at the end of the 10 years' education, we have instilled in our youths the curiosity and passion for learning and impart to them the arts and skill of learning, we would have succeeded and all the money would have been worth it.

Sir, recently, I re-read PM's Address at the National Day Rally last year - 23 insightful and inspiring paragraphs, the result of his conversations with 10 school principals and, of course, his own

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experience. I recommend that the Minister make these 23 paragraphs compulsory reading for every teacher and principal if he has not done so. It will inspire teachers and principals to be bold and creative and be agents of change and not obstacles to change.

Sir, I am optimistic. Last Sunday, I am sure we have all read about the " zi cha " man - a hawker who sells seafood guotiao or whips up a 10-course dinner, shark's fin, suckling pig, etc. This is a hawker who has a dream to sail around the world. He is forking out $8,000 to sail from the Caribbean to Liverpool. To prepare for this sail, he has to learn about navigational rules in the Atlantic, sail routes, currents, coastal, coordinates, hazards and so on. He continues to nurture his passion - to learn and grow. He is a hawker. This is the kind of people we hope our schools will produce. We will then have a learning nation and we will excel. Workers will no longer need REAP and other retraining programmes because if workers are constantly improving themselves, they will actually be ahead of the curve.

Now, parents. Most parents are interested in the education of their children. Would the Minister be considering new and novel ways to tap this large resource of adjunct teachers free of charge? Parents want their children to do well and get ahead. Unfortunately, many of them are responsible for killing their children's interest in learning when they force-feed them with assessment books, home tuition and, in recent times, enrichment classes.

Sir, can the MOE not work out ways for parents to participate more constructively in the education of their children and have a stronger parent-teacher partnership in experiential

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learning? For a start, may I suggest MOE prepare materials to guide parents so that they can bring their children on outings where they can bond as a family, as well as learn things together?

Opportunities abound in Singapore - visit the Arts Museum for art appreciation, tree-top walk to learn more about nature, flora and fauna and protect the environment, visit Sungei Buloh to learn about mangrove swamps and the life forms there, visit the Wax Museum to learn about Singapore's history, and Chinatown and Little India to learn about our heritage. The materials should contain information, learning opportunities, learning points, highlights and thoughtful questions, not the assessment book type of questions, one question only one answer. This will equip the parents for the task so that they would not find it too daunting. If we do this well, we will kill three birds with one stone. The children's curiosity gets aroused or stimulated. They will feel loved, parents will feel purposeful in educating their children and the joy of doing that is a great experience. And maybe even the fourth bird, some parents may actually be rekindled to want to learn again. We can also extend this to the area of community service.

The Chairman: Your time is up, Dr Loo. Mr Chiam See Tong. Four minutes.

Foreign Students

Mr Chiam See Tong (Potong Pasir): Sir, I wish to address on two issues: one, the competition in local schools for foreign students; and two, the admission of foreign students to our recently opened Music Conservatory.

Recent reports in local press indicate that the students in Victoria Junior College are not coping well with the challenge from foreign students. One pupil complained, "When I see them getting better results than me, I feel inferior and

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pressured." Others suffer emotions, ranging from jealousy and envy to awe and admiration. A local parent commented that, "Foreign students would also take away jobs from our kids at the end of the day."

What disturbs me is that we have taught our pupils almost everything in school, except confidence - how to be confident in oneself. I think confidence in oneself is an important element which could determine whether a person succeeds or fails in his life's journey, which is a long one. It is often said that life is a marathon. So the success or failure in junior college examinations is only a very small part in the life-long journey. The important point is that it must not be able to destroy the confidence of a student.

In response to the said newspaper report, SM Goh said that, "What the junior college students experience is nothing. Wait till they go out into the globalised world. They shall meet challenges which are many times stiffer than what they experienced from the foreign students in schools."

Whatever it is, our students must be brought up to have confidence in themselves. If they have that kind of positive attitude they shall have better chances of succeeding in life. Maybe a good example is what Dr Loo has said, the z i cha man, he has got so much confidence he is willing to sail alone around the world.

I hope the Minister could arrange for regular talks by successful Singaporeans in schools to inculcate confidence in the students.

My second point is on the enrolment of foreign students in our newly opened music conservatory. Singapore has only one conservatory and has proven to be very popular. The enrolment to the conservatory is high and competition for places is keen. I know Singapore observes

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meritocracy. In the case of admissions to the conservatory, I am certain that only those who qualify could get admitted, yet, I read in the newspapers that parents are complaining that too many foreign students are enrolled in the conservatory and their own children, who are Singaporeans, have missed out. Has the admission procedure not been made clear to those parents? Could the Minister explain whether there is a policy to gain foreign talents in our conservatory at the expense of local students?

Character Development

Dr Lily Neo: Sir, with the recent changes in the education system, I would like MOE to give more emphasis to character building of our students to develop values in them that will enrich their lives as individuals, and as members of society. Desirable basic character traits, such as courtesy, honesty, responsibility, fairness, filial piety, consideration for others and obedience to legitimate rules, in other words, knowing the good, desiring the good and doing the good, should be fostered. May I ask MOE what steps are being taken to ensure the character building of our students?

It is important that such values be reinforced without being indoctrinated and made interesting through interactive modes instead of being a study subject. Could MOE ensure that such character building education yield effects that students could relate to and apply to themselves?

The character traits should permeate the students' environment. How does MOE ensure that students see good examples in all aspects of school life such as through the behaviour of teachers, the administrative staff, the faculty and the policies of the institution?

Mr Ong Ah Heng: ( In Mandarin ): Mr Chairman, Sir, in October 1997, MOE

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implemented the student Community Involvement Plan (CIP). I support the scheme because, apart from inculcating knowledge to the students, the teachers also have the responsibility of teaching the students how to become good citizens. Such community involvement would build up the students' sense of responsibility and their compassion for the old.

During my visits to my constituency, I notice that younger people are now more willing to be involved in community activities. Now that it has been seven years since we implemented this scheme, what has been the progress? Are we encouraging more young people to become volunteers? During the tsunami episode, we find that Singaporeans are more concerted in their efforts to help others. I know that some schools have also mobilised their students and rallied their support for such a charity work. I think we should have more such activities so that our people could work towards a caring society for all.

Religious Knowledge

Dr Ong Seh Hong (Aljunied): Mr Chairman, Sir, I rise to speak on the importance of deepening the teaching of religious knowledge in our schools.

Sir, our students in school are at an age where they are most receptive to learning. Our educators have made excellent progress in imparting a wealth of academic knowledge to them in their formative years. Recent changes in the education system envision that our students will become thinking adults. I applaud this approach and look forward to seeing more thinkers than rote learners.

Sir, while we are in the midst of effecting these changes in how our young are taught, I ask that their personal development too be considered. Our

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multi-cultural, racial and religious heritage demands that we develop a more mature society through imparting knowledge about how we live in harmony. Religious knowledge, imparted in a way that is not politicised, will be an effective tool because it teaches our youth to recognise and respect the beliefs of their fellow citizens. I understand that currently, in higher primary schools, the students are taught a little bit about the festivities celebrated by other races, while the secondary school students learn some very basic information on religions. I find that inadequate.

I hope the Ministry will consider the introduction of teaching more about the different religions and starting them in early primary school years. We should not just touch on religions superficially. We should gradually build up the students' understanding of all the major religions in Singapore. We must aim that, at the end of the lower secondary schools, our students understand the fundamental principles and values of each religion, such as the five pillars of Islam, the four noble truths of Buddhism, and so on. We should let students know the significance of one another's religious practices. In addition, we should also arrange for our students to visit places of worship of the different religions. In so doing, we could nurture cultural and religious sensitivities of our students and build a more gracious and even more harmonious society.

Sports as Co-curricular Activities

Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman: Mr Chairman, every year, we hear repeated calls to make the system less stressful, less competitive, allowing our children to enjoy school, etc. I used to hear them but was not able to fully appreciate the extent of these calls until my children started going to school.

Stress level is high, not only in classrooms but also outside the

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classrooms, not to mention in our own homes, especially outside the classrooms during CCAs. Sir, my concern is how these CCAs are conducted, the spirit behind it and the implications on the children. Specifically, I would like to focus on CCAs for sports.

When I was in school, I remember that the policy then was to have every student to be members of one uniformed group, one sports and another from another category. This ensured that students had a well-rounded exposure to the different categories of CCAs, or ECAs then, which offered diverse and unique experiences. Sir, this does not seem to be the case today. In fact, in the spirit of decentralisation of MOE, my fear now is that every school has its own way of managing their CCAs. Sir, while I appreciate the value of providing school autonomy, I urge the Ministry to keep a close tab on what is happening on the ground and its impact on the children.

I understand that in some schools the focus on sports CCA is primarily competitive sports. Thus, in the old times, we joined a particular sport as a CCA because we enjoyed the game. Today, at least in some schools, students can only join the CCA for a particular sport, only if they are competitively good at. They have to undergo a trial or an audition, and only those who are good at, and who will be able to represent their school competitively, will be selected.

Sir, within such a system, obviously there will be a sizable number of children who will end up not being selected as the school will only take in the numbers that are necessary to focus their resources that will bring glory to the school. The end result is that you have students, eager initially, to be part of the sports fraternity, being rejected from one sporting group to another. Rejection is an understatement. I know it personally because I have seen it in my daughter and

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several of her friends. I know I am not the only parent who is saying that.

Sir, I would like to ask the Minister to ensure that the Ministry has a consistent policy with regard to CCA for sports in school so that we do not have a situation where sports is seen only in the competitive sense but rather that one can actually enjoy the sport. This is very much in line with our approach of encouraging sports for all.

The Minister for Education (Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam): Sir, first let me thank the Members who have spoken so far for their constructive comments and the broad support that they have expressed for the directions that we are pursuing in education. I should also thank them for the passion that never escapes a debate on education in this House, a passion that is really not surprising because, as Mr Gan Kim Yong has said, children are our key asset in Singapore . So, if we prepare them well, if we help them each to discover their own strengths and talents, and nurture in them the qualities they need to do well in life and to play a responsible role in the community, we will be preparing Singapore well for the future.

Mr Gan, together with Dr Tan Boon Wan, Dr Lily Neo, Dr Ong Seh Hong, Mdm Ho Geok Choo, Mr Zainudin Nordin and Dr Loo Choon Yong, had a common theme in their comments. They all spoke about the need to develop our students holistically. I agree with them that education is much more than about grades. The knowledge that our students acquire in school, and are tested on, is important. It is often the building block for future knowledge and learning. But more important is to nurture an enquiring spirit, a certain zest for learning that carries them through life. And just as important, we want our children to be imbued with sound moral and social values - especially the compassion and respect for others that

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make for a cohesive society - and to develop the strength of character that allows them to ride over difficulties and live life to the fullest. Values and character development have always been integral to the education our schools provide and are now more relevant than ever. So I fully agree with Members who have spoken about the need to keep in focus these broader dimensions in education.

There have been several changes in our education system in recent years. There are not too many and they are not taking place too soon. If we do not keep evolving, as Mr Gan Kim Yong put it, our children will grow up unprepared for the world - a fast changing world. In the leading Chinese cities, major changes are taking place in curriculum every year, even in the learning of the Chinese language and in the way the schools and universities are being freed up to pursue new paths. They are looking outwards, taking ideas from around the world and implementing them quickly.

In the UK , Germany , Japan and the US , there is great dissatisfaction with the state of schools, and the desire to move ahead with reforms. But their problems are complex, the ideological currents often run deeper and their teachers are often organised to oppose reforms.

So our ability to move ahead with educational reforms in Singapore is a major advantage - our ability to revise the curriculum, to keep it relevant, to train our teachers, recruit new ones and to let some schools run ahead with the new models of education.

The recent changes in our schools are summarised in the blue booklet that Members might have picked up before the debate. But the thrust of the changes and refinements we are making in education

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can be summarised in two words - opportunity and flexibility. Across the system, we are opening up more choices, more doors and paths to help our young discover their talents and develop them as far as we can. That is the essence of what we are doing, and we will keep communicating this to parents and students so that they understand the options being put before them and which are open to them.

Our schools now provide far more diverse opportunities than they did five years ago. It is most clearly evident amongst our secondary schools and junior colleges, but now our primary schools are also developing distinct strengths in diverse areas, from sports and arts, to outdoor adventure, and in the way we are bringing IT into teaching and learning. This is a new phase of diversity that we have embarked on. It is diversity that will be built on a common commitment to a high quality core curriculum that every primary school will deliver to prepare every child well for secondary education. We have just awarded 16 primary schools additional resources, up to $100,000 a year, to develop their own special strengths under the Programme for School-based Excellence. We will scale the number up in the coming years as more good proposals come through for schools wanting to develop niche programmes.

We are also recognising more diverse strengths amongst students, beside their performance in national examinations. This is an important step in education. Last year, we introduced the discretionary school admission system for our integrated programme schools which were given the flexibility to take in students on their own merit-based criteria. This year, we will be extending the discretionary scheme to our independent schools, our autonomous schools, other schools with well-established niches and our junior colleges for between 5-20% of their total

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intake of students. This will take place at the end of this year for admission 2006.

Mother tongue language learning is also being reformed to help students develop an abiding interest in the language. We have been making refinements to our system of ability-based education by introducing more flexibility within the streaming system.

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Mr Gan Kim Yong and Mdm Ho Geok Choo also spoke about the need to cater to students with special needs

in our schools. We will continue to find ways to provide them opportunities, encourage and spur them on, and to help them reach the full potential. We have committed $220 million by 2008 to improve the special education schools and accelerate the redevelopment of nine existing special education schools. And we are looking at new ways to include certain groups of special education children within mainstream schools. My colleague, MOS Chan Soo Sen, will elaborate on this later.

MOE shares Members' views on the importance of character building, as part of the holistic education that our children should get. We want to give them a broad range of experiences as they grow up which provides them with the opportunities to develop character, to learn critical life skills and imbibe values.

To provide this, we have to do less of some things in education. The system is already full to the brim. So if we want to provide more space for character education, sports participation, independent learning or research, we have to reduce some other things that we do in education. Otherwise, we are overloading our schools and teachers, and run the risk of turning off our students.

We, therefore, have to make careful choices on what to take out as much as

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what to put in. And as we do so, we have to avoid eroding the core strengths that have got us here. We have to achieve a new balance in education that provides broad-based holistic education for our students without compromising the rigour of learning in school that prepares our students well for post-secondary education wherever they go.

Our basic approach, as we go forward, is to go for more quality and less quantity. We will focus on the quality of learning, quality of CCA and community engagements and the quality of the whole school experience that the student goes through. We will seek to cut back on quantity, careful and calculated cuts, so as to provide more "white space" in the curriculum, space which gives schools and teachers the room to introduce their own programmes, to inject more quality into teaching, to reflect more, to have more time for preparing lessons and to give students themselves the room to exercise initiative and to shape their own learning.

We are reviewing this thoroughly in MOE and in our schools. We are working towards a 10-20% cut in our secondary school syllabuses in 2007-2008, similar to what we will do in the new JC curriculum from next year. We will do this judiciously. I absolutely agree with Dr Tan Boon Wan that any cuts should not undermine the core knowledge and skills that our young should have, or lead to an erosion of an ethic of hard work. And I should clarify that our objective is not to reduce stress per se. Our objective is to redistribute the load that students currently occupy themselves with, from an excessive focus on the academic and on examinations towards a broader focus consistent with our holistic aims in education.

Our schools are moving ahead with their own initiatives. Victoria Junior College decided this year to shorten

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teaching periods and end school an hour earlier each day, to signal students the importance of engaging in their own learning. They also created on-line discussion forums instead of regular General Paper lessons to encourage students to express their views freely. They now find that, on their own, students participate more actively in the on-line discussions.

Schools are also reassessing the number of tests and examinations that they conduct. Tests and examinations have an important role to play in giving both teachers and students a sense of how they are progressing, and in motivating our students to go over what they have been taught to make sure they have understood it. But an excessive focus on examinations tends to narrow teaching and learning. It discourages students from venturing beyond what might be tested.

Many schools have gone ahead to experiment with different approaches to assess how pupils are progressing, particularly in the primary school years. Ms Eunice Olsen had asked during the Budget debate whether MOE would consider removing examinations for Primary 1 and 2. These are decisions which the schools will have to make. This year, two-thirds of our primary schools have decided to remove at least one of the two continuous assessment (CA) tests that they had conducted for Primary 1 students. Many have done likewise at the upper levels. Most schools have retained their mid-year and year-end semestral examinations in order to get timely feedback on student performance.

I agree fully with Mr Gan Kim Yong and Dr Lily Neo that we have to keep up communication with our stakeholders, especially our parents, as we proceed with changes in education. We will keep

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doing this, first and foremost, through our schools themselves. We will also continue to use the media and MOE information booklets like the one we have just distributed. We want parents to know where we are heading, and how they can help their children and guide them in making choices in education. Parents should not equate large amounts of homework and frequent tests with effective learning. We should also not have unrealistic expectations of our children's abilities and push them so hard that they lose all joy in learning.

There are encouraging signs. A growing number of parents are looking at success in education more broadly than by examination performance alone, just as schools are recognising more diverse measures of success. Parents are helping their children find their own strengths and selecting schools that can best develop those strengths. We will keep up our communication with parents so that they support the schools' efforts to give children a holistic education and provide room for them to pursue the things they have a talent in or enjoy doing.

Dr Michael Lim asked specifically whether schools will keep parents informed of changes in the school syllabus before the start of the year. Our syllabi are posted on the websites of MOE and the Singapore Examinations Assessment Board. Syllabuses of the various examination subjects are also updated on the Internet for the public to access at the start of the year. And schools also keep parents and pupils informed on the parts of the syllabus to be assessed.

I will now turn to issues raised by Members concerning character development. Let me first address the specific point raised by Mr Gan Kim Yong on students who drop out, before I move on to the broader issues that he and others raised on character building. Mr Gan wanted the Ministry to be more lenient in

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re-admitting students who had dropped out. Fortunately, our drop-out rates are low. And the majority of those who left school because they were expelled or for other reasons, and who want to return to school, are able to do so. But I am not keen to change our stance, that students should only be re-admitted if they show a genuine desire to learn and abide by school rules. It is not a “punitive approach�? as Mr Gan puts it, but one that preserves a culture of discipline in our schools. If we were to let students move in and out of school at will, we would demoralise the majority who remain. We will also lose the happy situation we have where the vast majority of students are keen to remain in school.

We should do all we can to keep this culture of discipline and avoid the drop-out and delinquency problems we see in many other countries. In the UK, the government has spent more than S$2.7 billion since 1997 on schemes to tackle truancy in schools with virtually no success. They now intend to spend an additional $1.7 billion in the coming two years to try to entice 50,000 students who skip classes every day back to school. About 40% of schools in the UK reported pupils bringing weapons into the playground or classroom at least once a term - previously thought to be an American problem, it is now British.

In the US, a recent Harvard University study found that 32% of American youths do not complete high school. In Japan, there has been a rising tide of serious crimes among students - crimes including pre-meditated homicide. Violence in school grounds is reported to have increased five-fold over the last decade. There is a sense of crisis in the Japanese society as a growing number of students seem to behave in ways that are completely alien to their parents, let alone their grandparents.

We are fortunate that our social fabric is still intact and strong. The number of

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serious disciplinary cases in schools has not risen in recent years. We should keep the culture of respect for school rules and respect for fellow students. But we will do more - to help students at risk of dropping out or of falling into delinquency, and to help students who are keen to resume their studies and observe school rules after they have dropped out and want to come back.

By next year, we will have provided every secondary school with a full-time counsellor. By 2008, all primary schools and Junior Colleges will also have a full-time counsellor. This is in addition to the two teacher-counsellors we have already trained in our schools, and the two more we will train in secondary schools. They will help schools identify and assist students who need help.

Let me move on to the broader agenda of character development in our schools. It is an agenda we are giving more importance to. But while the Ministry provides various platforms and resources for character development, such as through the Civics and Moral Education Programme (CME), pastoral care programmes, co-curricula activities (CCA) and Community Involvement Programmes (CIP), we cannot be too prescriptive about the specific activities we expect to see in schools. There is no single fix, no formula in education to impart sound values or to develop strength of character. Schools have to see what works for their own students - students with different backgrounds and needs - draw on their own school traditions, and develop their own programmes and practices over time. And it will take time. As the Chinese saying goes, it takes a hundred years to raise a man of character.

So we will encourage schools to explore their own ways to develop the character of their students - ways that have to work in their own context. We

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will recognise schools that work consistently and effectively at character development through the new Character Development Award that we will be introducing in year 2006. These schools can then share their best practices, particularly their processes, with other schools.

But schools will have to rely on the support of parents and the community, without which the job is always incomplete. It is the total experience of the child - how he is raised at home, the experiences and relationships he develops in school, right through his years of schooling, his encounters in the community, what he sees in the media - as he grows up that shapes his character, quietly, in unseen ways, in the classroom, in the playing field, on the performing stage and in the cinema theatre. Schools cannot do it alone.

I agree with Dr Lily Neo that character education can be more authentic where we engage our students in interesting and meaningful activities. It cannot be a textbook subject. One way is to expose the students to real-life stories - stories of men and women who have shown strength of character in difficult times and who have made significant contributions to society.

This is what Yangzheng Primary School did recently. It got 50 students to interview 20 prominent ex-students about their life experiences, and especially on how their personal values helped to make them what they are today. Some of the students were so inspired by the project that they hope to publish a book about these real-life stories. The stories brought to life for them useful lessons on hard work, thrift, honesty, uprightness and community spirit.

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CCA and CIP programmes are integral to character education in all our schools. Mr Ong Ah Heng asked about the effectiveness of the CIP. It is now in its seventh year. On the whole, the CIP has been a very positive experience. The results of our annual CIP surveys and direct feedback from students in dialogue and feedback sessions indicate that CIP has made an impact in developing a spirit of volunteerism in our students during their school years.

The tsunami relief effort that Mr Ong also asked about was a good expression of this. Because you can really tell what is working when you see it happening, and not in what they tell you. Our schools raised a total of $3.5 million for aid agencies helping in the relief efforts.

The students did not just stand with tins in street corners. They organised bazaars and charity fairs, washed cars, painted faces, and all kinds of other things. They were also active in mobilising other schools. Pioneer JC, for example, led other schools in its cluster to collect tents, clothings and blankets for Sri Lanka. And tomorrow, 10th March, National Junior College will send some of its students to the Maldives, as part of its Overseas CIP to help rebuild some of the IT infrastructure that previous NJC students had in fact helped to build and which was destroyed by the tsunami.

We are making changes that will give JC and CI students greater ownership over their CCA and CIP programmes. I agree with what Mr Gan and Mdm Ho Geok Choo have said about the need to adopt a more qualitative approach. Student's CCA performance in JC is currently scored under a points system called PEARLS, as some Members know, for the purpose of applying to NUS and NTU. The CCA points are included in the applicant's University Admission Score with a weight of 5%, the remaining 95% being computed from their "A" level grades.

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Since last year, we have also allowed NUS and NTU to select students on their own independent criteria, under a new, discretionary admission scheme. It allows the universities to consider students on the basis of a broader range of intellectual and character attributes, besides their "A" level scores. NUS and NTU are currently allowed to admit up to 10% of their students under this discretionary scheme.

The universities are now ready to take a further step that will allow for a more holistic and meaningful assessment of students' qualities. A student's CCA, which is currently given a single numerical score, will instead be assessed qualitatively under the universities' discretionary admission scheme. This change will take place in year 2007 which is when the current cohort of first year JC students applies for university. NUS and NTU will look at the student's involvement and achievements in CCA and CIP for evidence of desired attributes, like leadership, creative flair, perseverance and the pursuit of excellence. This would be similar to the qualitative assessment of CCA that SMU has had from the outset. It is also similar to the way in which many reputable overseas universities consider applicants, ie, a holistic qualitative assessment, besides their academic scores.

MOE agrees with the universities' decision. With NUS and NTU's move to a more flexible and qualitative approach for considering CCA, there will no longer be a need for a fixed system or points for CCA in the JCs and the Centralised Institute. Starting from this year's JC1 students, we will no longer score the CCA achievements and involvements of junior college students. The junior colleges will also move towards a more qualitative record of students' involvement in CCA and CIP, by reflecting their involvement and any special achievements and contributions in the School Graduation Certificate. In line with these changes, the

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Public Service Commission (PSC) will continue to look at scholarship applicants' achievements and participation in CCA and CIP within the new qualitative framework that JCs will implement.

We will also remove the present six-hour minimum requirement for CIP in the junior colleges from this year. The CIP scheme, introduced in 1998, as I mentioned, is now a vibrant feature of junior college life. MOE is therefore comfortable with giving the junior colleges full autonomy to integrate CIP into their schools' curriculum in a way that best meets the needs and interests of their students. CIP will however remain an integral component of the junior college curriculum. The shift from a minimum time requirement for CIP is expected to help students to focus on authentic and enriching involvements, as many already do.

The changes in CCA and CIP are consistent with feedback, extensive feedback, from students and the junior colleges over the last year. They would encourage students to take greater ownership over these activities, follow their passions and build camaraderie, rather than engage for the sake of getting points for university admission. The moves are also timely as they come before the new "A" level curriculum that will be introduced in 2006, which aims to give students greater room and more "white space" to pursue their passions and interests.

However, for secondary and primary students, we will continue to keep the requirement for six hours of CIP. For secondary students, we will also continue to have a grading system for their CCA which counts for entry to junior colleges and polytechnics. They are still young and will benefit from some structure and guidance to ensure that they get a holistic education, and to help them get the most

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out of their school years through CCA and involvement in the community.

Dr Maliki asked about sports in schools. Our aim is to promote sporting excellence among students through training programmes and inter-school competitions, as well as sports for recreation for as many students as possible. Schools plan their own sports programmes, depending on the available manpower and physical infrastructure and the school's tradition. A school would typically offer some sports at a competitive level and others at the recreational level.

While we aim to provide every student the opportunity to take a sport that he or she desires, the reality that we are faced with is that we do have resource constraints, both in terms of infrastructure and trained teachers and coaches. But I would like to reassure Dr Maliki that I am equally concerned about this, and that we are studying ways to overcome these constraints.

We are making progress. The number of students participating in sports, outdoor activities and other physical fitness activities increased by 9% last year. This year, more than 80% of Secondary 1 students were also assigned the CCA they most wanted to do, in other words, their first choice CCA. That is a significant improvement. I will give you an example, Loyang Secondary School. This year, Loyang Secondary was able to give all Secondary 1 students their first choice of CCA. The school also has a sports programme that aims to involve all students who do not do a sport as a full CCA with some exposure to sporting activities. Even its operational manager has got into action and started a weekly Floorball session. And from term 2, the school hopes to introduce two other sports, Pushball and American football, for mass participation. I am sure Members

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know the differences between each of these games - Floorball, Pushball, American football!

Our schools are also pooling their resources to enable students to take part in mass sports events. For example, the North Zone Primary School Sports Council has set aside funds that schools can use to organise fun activities for pupils not representing their school in sports.

At the zonal level, we are organising many activities and competitions for students who do not take a sport CCA. In fact, last year, we had 12,000 primary school students and 700 secondary school students benefiting from these zonal activities organised by the Sports Development Committees.

Another theme that has emerged in today's debate is the issue of how we should meet the learning needs of different ability groups in our schools. Mr Gan Kim Yong suggested that we remove the EM3 stream in primary schools. Mr Low Thia Khiang asked if we could not adopt a modular system, instead of streaming, in our schools. Mr Low's suggestion accepts that we need differentiation in the system to cater to students with different strengths.

Let me first say that streaming in schools is not an article of faith in MOE. It is a practical approach aimed at helping every student to develop himself to the best of his abilities. It is an approach that we keep refining. And it has worked well. By differentiating the curriculum for students of different abilities, it has allowed us to motivate all our students to sustain an interest in learning, work hard to achieve realistic learning targets and get recognised, get some form of merit, for their achievements. It has helped us avoid the large drop-out rates that you see in many other countries or the fact that large numbers of students are graduating from high schools without

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basic competence in literacy and numeracy. We have avoided the pretence of inclusiveness in undifferentiated school systems. We have focused instead on getting real outcomes and real learning among all our students. It is not done perfectly and we can do better. But the vast majority of students in Singapore leave school with a real foundation of skills, ready for post-secondary education and to pick up further skills that they need in the workplace.

It also happens to be the way the rest of the world is moving. I give you the example of Korea, because it is a driven society, Asian society, Confucianist majority, not very unlike us. Korea has historically not differentiated its students much by ability. They had minor variations but, by and large, they had an egalitarian approach. I quote what a recent editorial in a leading daily said in January this year, "It is already a proven fact that the standardisation policy of 30 years has failed at nurturing exceptionally bright minds. It is now clear that the policy is also not effective in increasing scholastic abilities on the whole."

What are the Koreans doing? They are now setting aside 1% of pupils in elite classes, something like our gifted stream, and they are setting aside 5% of pupils who will take more advanced classes so that they can graduate faster than the others. And they are going to differentiate pupils in 50% of their schools by ability; they are moving towards streaming. I cite them because they are, as I mentioned, a driven and competitive society. It would be much easier for me to cite examples of societies which are not particularly competitive or efficient. The Koreans have found out after 30 years that it does not work, and that they need to do better. Because they like us face the same competition, from China. And in China, the top schools, the elite schools, the elite streams are moving faster than us. And the Chinese have absolutely no

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compunction about putting the best resources - better facilities, better gymnasiums, heated swimming pools, the best teachers from universities coming down for their brightest students. Why? Because they want their brightest to help China leapfrog the competition.

So we are up against that. Korea is up against that. We are lucky we did not make the same mistakes they did in the last 30 years. We have got a system that is imperfect but working fairly well, constant refinement, constant need to make it more flexible, but we are on the right track.

Mr Gan has suggested doing away with EM3 and letting all students take the same PSLE examinations. To put matters in perspective, let me provide a few facts. Our EM3 pupils comprise just 7-8% of each age cohort. Students who fail every subject are given the option of taking the EM3 curriculum when they get to Primary 5. It is an option given to parents. And parents who accept this option do so because they know their child will benefit from a pruned down curriculum, that they can master at their own pace. To illustrate, the EM3 Mathematics curriculum is pitched at about 60% of the content of the regular PSLE Mathematics curriculum. Further, EM3 students spend 30% more curriculum time on Mathematics as other students do on Mathematics. They get good teachers. In fact, some of the most committed teachers I meet on my school visits are often the EM3 teachers. So it is not true, as Mr Low says, that schools have neglected the EM3 group as there are fewer resources for them. It is simply not true on the ground.

Altogether, it is an arrangement that helps the majority of them pass their EM3 Mathematics examinations. However, some 20% of EM3 Mathematics students still fail to get a grade in the EM3 final Mathematics examinations; in other

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words, they get what we call Ungraded, in their final assessment. Would EM3 students do better if they had stayed with the regular curriculum, and taken it at the same pace as other students?

Our differentiated curriculum through streaming was, in fact, one of the strengths highlighted in a recent study by the American Institutes of Research funded by the US Department of Education, that is, their Ministry of Education, entitled “What the United States can Learn from Singapore's World-Class Mathematics System�?. In contrast to the Singapore system of ability-based learning, the authors noted that in the US, “we expect all students to meet the standards in state frameworks, but the standards do not help teachers address the needs of slower students. In fact, US standards do not acknowledge that students learn at different rates�?.

There is no reason to give up the EM3 stream. It keeps our weakest pupils keen on attending school, gives them a foundation of knowledge that they can master or pass, and prepares them for secondary school. Some EM3 students when taught at a slower pace in Primary 5 and 6, in fact, catch up and do well enough to go to the Normal (Academic) stream. Some make it to polytechnic

and a handful even make it to JC. That does not mean that it was a mistake to have streamed them. It is often because they were given the opportunity to step back, start from basics again, get their foundations in place, gain confidence because they pass an examination instead of failing repeatedly, and then go on to their secondary school years with more enthusiasm for learning.

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What we are doing, however, is to introduce greater flexibility into the

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streaming system wherever practical. Streaming need not be absolute, where a student takes every subject within his own stream. Some students will have strengths in specific subjects, which may allow them to study those subjects at a higher level or at a faster pace. We are letting them do so, both at the primary and secondary level. We have, in effect, been allowing for increased modularity and flexibility within the streaming system. We are doing it in steps, and learning as we go along.

In primary school, we now allow EM3 students who are strong in their mother tongue language to take the subject at a higher level. Some are already doing so. But Mr Low mentioned that there is a bias in the assessment system towards English and Mathematics instead of the mother tongue. I have an interesting bit of feedback to relate to him which I get from schools quite often. There are, in fact, some EM3 students who can take advantage of the scheme we have opened up for them to study the mother tongue at a higher level. But their parents choose for them not to do it. Why? Because their parents want them to spend more time on English and Mathematics at the foundational level rather than mother tongue at the higher level. That is a valid parental choice and we should respect it.

Schools are also taking a more flexible approach to how they deliver the EM3 curriculum. We have given schools the flexibility to integrate EM3 pupils with their peers for specific subjects where there is educational merit in doing so. This is similar to the way in which schools are banding pupils in the regular classes according to their strengths and weaknesses in a specific subject. For example, many schools band their pupils by Mathematics ability and then, during the mother tongue period, they take them out and rearrange them in mother tongue classes in a different order. This is banding by subject strength.

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This year, eight out of 10 primary schools no longer have "pure" EM3 classes, where EM3 students take all their subjects together. In other words, EM3 students are now integrated with their peers in regular classes in subjects such as Social Studies, Art and Craft, Music, Health Education and Project Work, and Physical Education and Civics and Moral Education (CME), all of which are not examined at the PSLE. They are then taught in separate classes typically in the four core academic subjects, where their gaps in ability, compared to the regular students, are usually greatest. Depending on the profile of the EM3 students and the size of the class, sometimes the EM3 students also join the regular class for some other core academic subjects. But we leave it to the school, trusting their judgment as to what is educationally sound.

What we will also do is to focus on early interventions that can help bridge some of the deficits in learning in the early primary years, as Mr Zainudin pointed out. The Learning Support Programme (LSP), which caters to students who are weak in their language and literacy skills in the early primary years, is working well. It has helped many of our weaker students catch up with their peers after one to two years in school.

Mr Gan and Mr Zainudin have asked if we could do more for the academically weaker pupils, besides the Learning Support Programme. At the end of Primary 2, schools determine the most appropriate form of support for those students who continue to face difficulties in learning and reading, usually through customised remediation programmes as they go on to Primary 3. Where schools have the additional resources, the Learning Support Coordinators would actually cater to selected groups of Primary 3 students, typically those who

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were ex-Learning Support Programme students.

Besides the Learning Support Programme, we have the Enhancing Achievement and Better Learning (ENABLE) Programme which provides support to Primary 2 and Primary 3 pupils with at least average academic or intellectual abilities but whose academic performance is not commensurate with their abilities. Here, too, the scheme is progressing quite well. What can we do further? We are providing more teachers to our schools and, through a variety of schemes that schools have, for example, “buddy reading�? programmes, various customised remedial programmes, parallel teaching that allows two teachers to split up a class in a particular subject or lesson in order to train the students at a different pace, or take them through different topics, all these things will become more the norm, as schools get more resources. But it will take time and, over the next four to five years as we recruit more and we are able to put more teachers into schools, there will be greater scope for differentiation and a more refined system of ability-based learning. So we are getting there.

Our approach, therefore, is to recognise the diverse talents and needs of our students, and find practical ways to motivate them to go as far as they can. We will keep refining our methods and keep the system flexible, and never assume that anything is an article of faith in education. We will also provide schools with more teachers in the coming years and improve teacher-student ratios, so that they will have, as I have explained, more room to experiment with flexible classroom arrangements.

Mr Chiam asked about our students showing lack of confidence and fearing the competition from foreign students. There will always be soundbites to that effect. In every society, you will find that

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if you put a microphone in front of an average local, some nasty things will come out about the nearest foreigner, be it Indian, Chinese, Korean or Vietnamese. The most liberal, open and confident societies have that latent, not far beneath the surface. We are no different. But I think the weight of opinion in Singapore, youths and students included, is one of broad acceptance, not just of the need for foreigners from an economic point of view to be part of our system, but also the benefits the students themselves get by having foreigners in the class, pushing them on in their Chinese, sometimes edging them out from the table tennis team but which spurs them on to train harder and get back in. They like the fact that we have a more diverse international climate in our schools than we would if we were a parochial and closed society. Our students know they benefit from the exposure to the world that comes from this easy way, of bringing foreigners in. And if we were to rely only on Singaporeans to compete with each other, we will never make it.

Dr Tan spoke about the five-day work week, and I will explain very briefly that it is not the policy of the Ministry to move all Saturday activities to the weekdays. The five-day work week was implemented as part of the larger civil service move to be more pro-family. Our teachers are parents. They have their families, so they deserve their Saturday off as well. But we want to make sure we do not compromise on the quality of education we provide our students, including depth and quality of their CCA, CIP and the informal curriculum of the schools. So, in implementing the five-day work week, we have to balance these two considerations. We would not overburden the teachers, but should not compromise on the quality of education, particularly the quality of holistic education that we have been talking about.

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The school day has indeed lengthened in some schools and junior colleges. Many students are getting home later, and getting home more tired, and that is not good for family life. So, schools are learning from the initial experience, first few months, and are re-calibrating their approach.

In general, I am encouraged by the progress of schools to rationalise their existing activities, and not merely shift all Saturday activities to weekdays. It will take a bit of time to settle, but I think there is good sense and a pragmatic attitude that our schools have on this matter. They are trying to find creative ways of using their teachers where they are most needed, relying more on external coaches, parent volunteers and, in the secondary schools and junior colleges, relying more on student leaders themselves to organise CCAs, so that we can still deliver a high-quality broad-based education without overburdening our teachers.

Finally, Sir, Dr Lily Neo asked whether we are preparing the teachers adequately to implement the changes we are making. That is absolutely important. We have found that one of the most effective ways to implement changes in policies in education is to engender ownership amongst our teachers and our schools. But the implementation of our policies will seldom be perfectly even across the board. Some of our schools are ready earlier to take on the changes we are making. We will let them press on, and not hold them back until every school is ready. These leaders will set the pace for the rest to follow. What is important is that we should be able to encourage innovative teachers and innovative schools to share their best practices with each other. In that way, we level up the system over time.

I must say that, in the midst of all the changes that are happening and in the

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midst of the seeming stress that we often hear about on the part of both teachers and students, I am quite heartened by some of the tangible results that we are getting. Our recruitment programme is going very well. Last year, we recruited 2,000 teachers, right up to target, despite the recovery of the economy. So far this year, we are well on target, in fact, slightly ahead. We had a recent survey commissioned by MOE of members of the public, a large sample. They ranked the teaching profession as that which contributes the most to society, above doctors and lawyers. This positive perception of the teaching profession is what helps us in our job, and it becomes a virtuous circle. As we get more teachers into the system, push them out into schools, improve the teacher-student ratios, give them more time to deliver quality teaching, the attraction of the profession also goes up.

Members have raised a few other issues that I have not dealt with, including Dr Ong Seh Hong's point about religious knowledge and several points on Special Education which my colleagues, MOS Chan and SPS Hawazi will be dealing with later.

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 3.50 pm.

Sitting accordingly suspended

at 3.25 pm until 3.50 pm.