Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings...
1
By ROBIN CHAN THE Government will invest heav- ily to improve the quality of pre- school education and bring costs down for middle-income families, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said in a Face- book post yesterday. He described this as “one of the most important educational and social priorities for the future”. He posted his comments on his Facebook page one day after Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced plans to improve pre- school education, and a new statu- tory board to oversee the sector. “We have to make opportuni- ties more equal, and provide every child with the best chance to find his strengths as he grows up,” Mr Tharman wrote. “It’s also the best chance to sustain social mobility, which will otherwise slow down over time,” he added. He also wrote that parents who are better off financially cannot be stopped from wanting to give their children the best, but it is happening more and more and well before they enter Primary 1. “We have to do all we can to help the kids from less advan- taged homes in their early years – to develop and to gain confidence in themselves.” Mr Tharman, who is also Fi- nance Minister, spoke of help for middle-income families because those on lower incomes already re- ceive large pre-school subsidies. These moves are part of an overall effort to keep the Singapo- rean core strong, with social poli- cies centred on them. “We must keep up the effort to strengthen our Singaporean core – by providing the best opportuni- ties for Singaporeans to develop their potential when young and have good jobs, and by ensuring that our social policies place Singa- poreans at the centre.” [email protected] By STACEY CHIA SET up a pre-school in a primary school. And give priority to chil- dren from lower-income families. These were some ideas thrown up by experts and parents yester- day on what a new pilot project of government-run pre-schools should focus on. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, in his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, said the Gov- ernment will run a few pre-school centres to test new concepts. More details are expected to be announced this week. Mr Philip Koh, an early child- hood freelance trainer and consult- ant, proposed setting up these cen- tres in primary schools. This way, the pre-schoolers can familiarise themselves with what children need to know by Primary 1. By setting up these centres in or near primary schools, the chil- dren can also tap the resources of these schools. Others suggested that the link-up can also be in the form of a tie-up with a primary school. “They may not share the same physical compound but they func- tion as a united team with their primary school counterpart,” said Mr Lee Poh Wah, chief executive of the Lien Foundation, which commissioned a recent study of the pre-school sector. When it comes to who these schools should target, experts felt that those from the lower-income or disadvantaged family back- grounds should be given priority. But there should also be a healthy mix of children from other back- grounds for better interaction. Said pre-school education con- sultant Khoo Kim Choo: “While the lower income would be target- ed, we should also include kids from the general population.” This idea is not entirely new. In the early 1990s, 35 primary schools offered a preparatory pro- gramme for five-year-olds. But it was scrapped in 1993 to allow these schools to focus on formal education. The pilot scheme, however, should not be an attempt to turn pre-schools into mere preparato- ry classes for primary education, experts warned. Said Dr Christine Chen, found- er and president of the Associa- tion for Early Childhood Educa- tors: “Formal education is about going to school to sit down and learn, pre-schoolers should not start this routine at that age.” Parents also welcomed the pilot project. “Parents spend a lot of money on pre-school educa- tion, but there’s no guarantee that it’s sufficient for primary school,” said bank officer Eugene Teo, 37 who has three children aged six, three and three months. On Sunday, PM Lee also said a new statutory board will be set up to oversee pre-school education. More operators will be roped in to provide programmes for the mass market. Yesterday, pre- school players such as EtonHouse and Knowledge Universe said they were keen on the idea. But some like MP Denise Phua asked if having more operators would help. She said: “The sector actually needs more consolidation of already scant resources such as teachers, curriculum and physical facilities.” [email protected] By KEZIA TOH, CHIA YAN MIN and LUA JIA MIN WE WANT our pre-schoolers to enjoy their childhood too, but if we do not send them for extra les- sons, they will lose out as almost everyone is doing it. This was the cry of 37 out of 40 parents who spoke to The Straits Times outside enrichment centres yesterday – a day after Prime Min- ister Lee Hsien Loong said in his National Day Rally speech that hothousing pre-schoolers can result in unhappy childhoods. Citing research by child devel- opment experts, he said sending kindergarten-age children to tui- tion can lead to “over-teaching”. “Instead of growing up bal- anced and happy, he grows up nar- row and neurotic. No homework is not a bad thing. It’s good for young children to play, and to learn through play.” Parents yesterday, however, argued that setting a good founda- tion for a child helps to build their confidence in primary school. “Having a childhood is impor- tant, but unfortunately, so are grades,” said part-time teacher Serena Foo, 45, who sends her five-year-old son for Mandarin classes four times a week. “If you’re in Singapore, you cannot take a laissez-faire attitude.” Others say they have “no choice” because other parents are doing the same. Some teachers “go over things very fast”, said housewife Adeline Wu, 40, who enrolled her two chil- dren in classes when they were one year old to learn how to count and identify basic shapes. “I don’t want my son to be sin- gled out in school for not being able to catch up – that is more stressful for him than attending these extra classes,” she said. With many of the parents polled citing peer pressure, sever- al enrichment centres that cater to children as young as 18 months said that they are not expecting demand to drop any time soon. Some of the popular programmes among parents are Mandarin and reading classes. Parents do not sign up for class- es blindly, but pick programmes that help their children in specific areas – such as hanyu pinyin, said curriculum specialist Nurliza Shah of Enfant Educare, a child- care centre that provides phonics and abacus classes, among others. Mr Wong Ju Ping, the owner of Lynn Tuition Centre, said one way to prevent “over-teaching” is to be clear about what level of knowledge is required of pre-schoolers before they enter Primary 1. A recommended textbook by the Ministry of Education (MOE) for pre-schoolers, for example, would help parents understand exactly how prepared their chil- dren should be, he said. MOE said that in its view, the focus of pre-school education should be a “well-rounded” educa- tion that “builds a child’s confi- dence and desire to learn”. The ministry currently sets out a broad framework for kindergarten curricula. But it does not spell out specifics. It is, however, reviewing the framework to state the core com- petencies a child should possess, such as in language and numera- cy, at the end of pre-school educa- tion. Having such guidelines would help, said some parents. “I realised P1 is not that scary after all, after my eldest kid went through it,” said housewife Pame- lia Tng, 31, who has three children aged seven, six and three. Still, she feels the need to enrol her three-year-old in phonics and Mandarin classes. “There is only so much you can cover in a few hours in pre-school – especially for Chinese as they don’t teach that every day,” Ms Tng said. But there are some like Ms Ruth Soh, 41, who does not be- lieve in sending her five-year-old daughter for extra lessons. Said the marketing communications director: “If we just put them to books, they won’t learn how to handle life, how to socialise or be creative. My philosophy is that we don’t need to pressure them. When they are adults, they will be on an equal level eventually.” [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Parents who hothouse their young children blame it on peer pressure ‘Without extra lessons, our kids may lose out’ ‘Vital to boost quality of pre-schools and lower costs’ One idea: Link up pre-schools with primary schools Pre-schoolers (from centre) Titus Neo, four; Max Gibson-Tullberg, five; Kylie Tan, four; Mya Ella Gumpert, four, and Samuel Christopher Chua, 3 1 /2, with their teachers at Chengzhu Mandarin Centre in Rochester Mall yesterday. Mandarin classes are popular among parents as enrichment for their pre-schoolers. ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2012 N A T I O N A L D A Y R A L L Y : R E A C T I O N S A7 Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Reproduced with permission.
Transcript of Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings...
By JANICE HENG
THE National Trades Union Con-gress (NTUC) yesterday wel-comed Prime Minister Lee HsienLoong’s willingness to legislate pa-ternity leave – one of the sugges-tions it made last month.
Paternity leave is now “almosta norm” in the unionised sector,said NTUC secretary-general LimSwee Say at the last of the labourmovement’s National Day ceremo-nies this month.
“We’re very happy that thismay become a national norm.”
During Sunday’s National DayRally, Mr Lee said paternity leavewas one measure the Governmentwas considering to boost birthrates.
The NTUC had earlier calledfor mandatory paternity leave oftwo days, along with other fami-ly-friendly measures.
But though paternity leave is a“big step”, it should not be the on-ly step, said Mr Lim.
“If the Government gives Xdays of paternity leave, it doesnot mean that the father onlyspends the X days to take care ofthe babies and the other days arethe duty of the wife,” he said.
Nor should fathers’ involve-ment in parenting end once the ba-bies grow older, he added.
Many of the 1,500 unionisedcompanies already offer two days’paternity leave, NTUC assistant
secretary-general Cham Hui Fongtold reporters.
But two days is “certainly notenough”, she said, which is whythe NTUC has also suggested aweek of paid infant care leave, tobe taken by either parent.
While welcoming the prospectof paternity leave, Ms Cham tem-pered this with caution: “We hopethat, should there be any paterni-ty leave, it should be in additionto the 16 weeks’ maternity leavethat the woman is already enjoy-ing.”
What the NTUC does not wantis for paternity leave to be includ-ed in those 16 weeks.
The Government may have tak-en one of the NTUC’s suggestionson board, but it has been lessopen to another.
On Sunday, the Prime Ministersaid keeping maternity leave at 16weeks “was about all right”. TheNTUC had proposed extendingthis to six months.
Ms Cham said that fellow fe-male union leaders were “quitedisappointed” by the Prime Minis-ter’s reaction, but noted that hehad not specifically said “no”.
The labour movement will con-tinue to push the idea, not leastthrough its ties with unionisedcompanies, she said.
“I think we will certainly talkto the more enlightened compa-nies to see if they can grant this.”
By ROBIN CHAN
THE Government will invest heav-ily to improve the quality of pre-school education and bring costsdown for middle-income families,Deputy Prime Minister TharmanShanmugaratnam said in a Face-book post yesterday.
He described this as “one ofthe most important educationaland social priorities for thefuture”.
He posted his comments on his
Facebook page one day afterPrime Minister Lee Hsien Loongannounced plans to improve pre-school education, and a new statu-tory board to oversee the sector.
“We have to make opportuni-ties more equal, and provide everychild with the best chance to findhis strengths as he grows up,” MrTharman wrote. “It’s also the bestchance to sustain social mobility,which will otherwise slow downover time,” he added.
He also wrote that parents who
are better off financially cannotbe stopped from wanting to givetheir children the best, but it ishappening more and more andwell before they enter Primary 1.
“We have to do all we can tohelp the kids from less advan-taged homes in their early years –to develop and to gain confidencein themselves.”
Mr Tharman, who is also Fi-nance Minister, spoke of help formiddle-income families becausethose on lower incomes already re-
ceive large pre-school subsidies.These moves are part of an
overall effort to keep the Singapo-rean core strong, with social poli-cies centred on them.
“We must keep up the effort tostrengthen our Singaporean core– by providing the best opportuni-ties for Singaporeans to developtheir potential when young andhave good jobs, and by ensuringthat our social policies place Singa-poreans at the centre.”
By STACEY CHIA
SET up a pre-school in a primaryschool. And give priority to chil-dren from lower-income families.
These were some ideas thrownup by experts and parents yester-day on what a new pilot project ofgovernment-run pre-schoolsshould focus on.
Prime Minister Lee HsienLoong, in his National Day Rallyspeech on Sunday, said the Gov-ernment will run a few pre-schoolcentres to test new concepts.More details are expected to beannounced this week.
Mr Philip Koh, an early child-hood freelance trainer and consult-ant, proposed setting up these cen-tres in primary schools. This way,the pre-schoolers can familiarisethemselves with what childrenneed to know by Primary 1.
By setting up these centres inor near primary schools, the chil-dren can also tap the resources ofthese schools.
Others suggested that thelink-up can also be in the form ofa tie-up with a primary school.
“They may not share the samephysical compound but they func-tion as a united team with theirprimary school counterpart,” saidMr Lee Poh Wah, chief executiveof the Lien Foundation, whichcommissioned a recent study ofthe pre-school sector.
When it comes to who theseschools should target, experts feltthat those from the lower-incomeor disadvantaged family back-grounds should be given priority.But there should also be a healthymix of children from other back-grounds for better interaction.
Said pre-school education con-
sultant Khoo Kim Choo: “Whilethe lower income would be target-ed, we should also include kidsfrom the general population.”
This idea is not entirely new.In the early 1990s, 35 primaryschools offered a preparatory pro-gramme for five-year-olds. But itwas scrapped in 1993 to allowthese schools to focus on formaleducation.
The pilot scheme, however,should not be an attempt to turnpre-schools into mere preparato-ry classes for primary education,experts warned.
Said Dr Christine Chen, found-er and president of the Associa-tion for Early Childhood Educa-tors: “Formal education is aboutgoing to school to sit down andlearn, pre-schoolers should notstart this routine at that age.”
Parents also welcomed the
pilot project. “Parents spend a lotof money on pre-school educa-tion, but there’s no guarantee thatit’s sufficient for primary school,”said bank officer Eugene Teo, 37who has three children aged six,three and three months.
On Sunday, PM Lee also said anew statutory board will be set upto oversee pre-school education.
More operators will be roped into provide programmes for themass market. Yesterday, pre-school players such as EtonHouseand Knowledge Universe said theywere keen on the idea.
But some like MP Denise Phuaasked if having more operatorswould help. She said: “The sectoractually needs more consolidationof already scant resources such asteachers, curriculum and physicalfacilities.”
By SANDRA DAVIE
PARENTS have welcomed the larg-er-than-expected increase in uni-versity places announced byPrime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
But economists and recruit-ment experts said the new coursesmust be rigorous and give young-sters an extra edge, otherwise Sin-gapore could end up with unem-ployed graduates if recession hits.
PM Lee surprised many par-ents on Sunday by announcingthat 16,000 undergraduate placeswill be available annually by 2020,up from 13,000 now.
He said the increase – which isbigger than in recent years – willbe achieved by expanding the pro-grammes run by the SingaporeInstitute of Technology and SIMUniversity (UniSIM).
Parent Alicia Tan welcomedthe move. The 39-year-old officemanager had been facing the pros-pect of paying for her daughter to
study business in Australia due tostiff competition for universityplaces here. “I expected a smallincrease, not the 3,000 that PMannounced,” she said.
But Mr David Leong, managingdirector of human resources firmPeople Worldwide Consulting,said the higher number of placesneeds to be matched by an in-crease in jobs for those leaving uni-versity. “The Government mustensure the economy is healthyand that more graduate-level jobsare created in a range of fields.”
Mr Leong welcomed theannouncement that the two insti-tutions providing the extra placeswill have a more hands-on, prac-tice-based approach than the oth-er four universities and take morestudents from polytechnics.
“We can’t have more of thesame type of graduates,” he said.
He added that many employersappreciate those who comethrough the poly route. “They are
more hands-on, practical andready to roll up their sleeves andget the job done. The universitiesmust build on these qualities.”
Labour economist RandolphTan from UniSIM said the Govern-ment must tread carefully. “How-ever dynamic the economy, at theend of the day Singapore is asmall economy. Even the largeeconomies like the US are facedwith graduate unemployment.”
He agreed with the plan for thenew programmes to produce a dif-ferent breed of graduates, adding:“They must be able to switch torelated careers or even go on tonew ones. And they must be ableto head overseas if the opportuni-ties here dry up.”
However, National Universityof Singapore economist ShandreThangavelu pointed out that theevidence showed educated work-ers are able to ride business cyclesbetter than unskilled ones. Theyare also able to secure better-qual-
ity and high-paying jobs.“Thus, increasing the opportu-
nity for Singaporeans to acquireeducation and life-long educationis in the right direction,” he said.
PM Lee’s announcement was asurprise as each time the Govern-ment has raised the university co-hort participation rate over thepast decade, it has usually been byabout 5 percentage points. Thistime, it is rising by twice that fig-ure, from less than 30 per centnow to 40 per cent by 2020.
The Singapore Institute ofTechnology, which offers nichedegree programmes in partner-ship with overseas universities,will increase its yearly intakebeyond the projected 2,000 in2015, and offer its own degrees.
UniSIM, which providespart-time degrees for workingadults, will start runningfull-time programmes but stay aprivate university.
By KEZIA TOH, CHIA YAN MINand LUA JIA MIN
WE WANT our pre-schoolers toenjoy their childhood too, but ifwe do not send them for extra les-sons, they will lose out as almosteveryone is doing it.
This was the cry of 37 out of 40parents who spoke to The StraitsTimes outside enrichment centresyesterday – a day after Prime Min-ister Lee Hsien Loong said in hisNational Day Rally speech thathothousing pre-schoolers canresult in unhappy childhoods.
Citing research by child devel-opment experts, he said sendingkindergarten-age children to tui-tion can lead to “over-teaching”.
“Instead of growing up bal-anced and happy, he grows up nar-row and neurotic. No homeworkis not a bad thing. It’s good foryoung children to play, and tolearn through play.”
Parents yesterday, however,argued that setting a good founda-tion for a child helps to build theirconfidence in primary school.
“Having a childhood is impor-tant, but unfortunately, so aregrades,” said part-time teacherSerena Foo, 45, who sends herfive-year-old son for Mandarinclasses four times a week. “Ifyou’re in Singapore, you cannottake a laissez-faire attitude.”
Others say they have “nochoice” because other parents aredoing the same.
Some teachers “go over thingsvery fast”, said housewife AdelineWu, 40, who enrolled her two chil-dren in classes when they wereone year old to learn how to countand identify basic shapes.
“I don’t want my son to be sin-gled out in school for not beingable to catch up – that is morestressful for him than attendingthese extra classes,” she said.
With many of the parentspolled citing peer pressure, sever-al enrichment centres that caterto children as young as 18 monthssaid that they are not expectingdemand to drop any time soon.Some of the popular programmesamong parents are Mandarin andreading classes.
Parents do not sign up for class-es blindly, but pick programmes
that help their children in specificareas – such as hanyu pinyin, saidcurriculum specialist NurlizaShah of Enfant Educare, a child-care centre that provides phonicsand abacus classes, among others.
Mr Wong Ju Ping, the owner ofLynn Tuition Centre, said oneway to prevent “over-teaching” isto be clear about what level ofknowledge is required ofpre-schoolers before they enterPrimary 1.
A recommended textbook bythe Ministry of Education (MOE)for pre-schoolers, for example,would help parents understandexactly how prepared their chil-dren should be, he said.
MOE said that in its view, thefocus of pre-school educationshould be a “well-rounded” educa-tion that “builds a child’s confi-dence and desire to learn”. Theministry currently sets out abroad framework for kindergartencurricula. But it does not spell outspecifics.
It is, however, reviewing theframework to state the core com-petencies a child should possess,such as in language and numera-cy, at the end of pre-school educa-tion.
Having such guidelines wouldhelp, said some parents.
“I realised P1 is not that scaryafter all, after my eldest kid wentthrough it,” said housewife Pame-lia Tng, 31, who has three childrenaged seven, six and three.
Still, she feels the need to enrolher three-year-old in phonics andMandarin classes. “There is onlyso much you can cover in a fewhours in pre-school – especiallyfor Chinese as they don’t teachthat every day,” Ms Tng said.
But there are some like MsRuth Soh, 41, who does not be-lieve in sending her five-year-olddaughter for extra lessons. Saidthe marketing communicationsdirector: “If we just put them tobooks, they won’t learn how tohandle life, how to socialise or becreative. My philosophy is that wedon’t need to pressure them.When they are adults, they will beon an equal level eventually.”
[email protected]@[email protected]
Parents who hothouse their youngchildren blame it on peer pressure
‘Withoutextra lessons,our kidsmay lose out’
NTUC cheers opennessto paternity leave
‘Vital to boost quality of pre-schools and lower costs’
One idea: Link up pre-schools with primary schools
More varsity places and a new breed of grads
Pre-schoolers (from centre) Titus Neo, four; Max Gibson-Tullberg, five; Kylie Tan, four; Mya Ella Gumpert, four, and Samuel Christopher Chua, 31/2, with their teachersat Chengzhu Mandarin Centre in Rochester Mall yesterday. Mandarin classes are popular among parents as enrichment for their pre-schoolers. ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
In your tomorrow
Never-before-seenRaffleslettersgo on show
Retailersgear upfor newlemonlaw
Why aren’tHong Kongers
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T U E S D A Y , A U G U S T 2 8 , 2 0 1 2 NNAATTIIOONNAALL DDAAYY RRAALLLLYY:: RREEAACCTTIIOONNSS A7
Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Reproduced with permission.
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