Chai Chong Yii
Singapore
“The other problem is that manpower will not be fully utilised due to the reduction of routes or frequency. Now, the MRT is only running at about half of its full capacity. When fully completed and all the routes are fully used, it will affect the manpower even more.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head T be reduced by $10 in respect of Code TG 2000 of the Main Estimates. Sir, this morning the Minister of State explained the rationale for withdrawing the priority in the allocation of rental shop units. I have no quarrel over that point.”
“Sir, perhaps I did not make myself clear. The other park which the Minister of State mentioned is normally known as Xiao Qui Lin. It is more or less completed. But if he can put in some more facilities, like pavilions or running tracks around it, that would add to the facilities and it would make it an even better attraction.”
“The Government looks forward to cooperating with leaders of the Malay community to build a stronger multi-racial society, both in Singapore in general, and particularly in the Singapore Armed Forces.”
“Purchase of Properties for Overseas Missions (7) That the sum to be allocated for Head O be reduced by $10 in respect of Subhead OA-03-8101 of the Development Estimates. The sum of $56,192,200 for Head O ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $20,776,000 for Head O ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.”
“I would like to ask the Minister for Communications and Information to be bold and courageous in the formulation of land transport policies so that our successors in this Parliament, and our children, will not, 20 or 30 years from now, blame us for the problems that we have caused for them or for the lack of courage in opting for firm mea…”
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“To overcome this problem, a blanket exemption of dividend from income tax could be granted to all resident taxpayers whose highest tax brackets do not exceed 20%. This will save most taxpayers the burden of declaring dividends in their returns and the Income Tax Department the work of checking. For those resident taxpayers whose highest tax brackets exceed 20%, perhaps only half of the dividend received need to be declared in their tax returns, in order not to unduly increase their income tax burden. Sir, the proposed system is not meant to be a camouflage to increase income tax. It is put forth for consideration because it has the following advantages. It is simple and can be understood easily by the public. No complicated computations on tax credits are necessary. It discourages extravagant company expenditure. It encourages business expansion, as reasonable amounts of undistributed profits kept as reserves for the investment could be exempted from the additional undistributed profits tax. Our existing system of collecting company tax is, in fact, an advance payment with a big portion not being claimed. Those who know the tax law well will benefit. The average small taxpayers lose out because very often they forget to declare the small amounts of dividend received. This proposal for whatever merits it may have, when fully refined and implemented, is likely to pave the way for the introduction of a simpler tax system for corporations.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head N be reduced by $10 in respect of Subhead NF-02 Object Group 1210 of the Main Estimates. Sir, income tax collection for 1981 is equal to about 37% of the Government total revenue, or about $2.6 billion. This shows how important this source of revenue is to our country. Of this amount, about three-quarters were collected from limited companies. Under Singapore law, part of the 40% income tax paid by limited companies can be claimed back by shareholders if their highest tax brackets are lower than 40%. On the contrary, additional tax has to be paid. In view of the large amount of income tax collected from limited companies, one can imagine the tremendous volume of administrative work involved in the calculation, checking, collection and refund of income tax deducted at source. Our Income Tax Department, although very efficient, is well-known to be short-handed. We should try to simplify the collection procedures, wherever possible. I venture to suggest for the consideration of the Hon. Minister that the present 40% company tax be divided into two parts. The first part may be termed "Corporation Tax", say, 20% to be paid by a limited company on its annual taxable income and no refund or tax credit will be granted on this amount. The balance could be recovered from shareholders by way of income tax on the dividends they receive. If the company declares no dividends, an undistributed profit tax of, say, 20% could be levied on excess earnings retained as reserves. In case of non-residents, a 20% dividend tax withholding could be levied to make up for the loss. Under this system, income tax paid by residents is likely to be more.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, may I seek a clarification from the Hon. Minister? I take it that the old campus of Nanyang University will eventually become the property of the Technological University of Nanyang. Although it is not mentioned in the Bill where this Institute is going to be situated, the Minister did mention that it would be at the old University campus. However, the ownership of the land is not mentioned in the Bill. May I seek confirmation from the Minister that the land comprising over 500 acres at the Jurong Campus will be given to this Institute?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Oral History Unit is a new unit attached to the Ministry of Culture. In fact, it is still doing its first two projects. Right now, although they have a number of full-time interviewers, the staffing strength, as I understand it, is not enough to cope with the work and to move faster. We are trying to recruit more qualified persons to provide training to the staff who are not professionally-trained in oral history interviewing techniques. The Unit is under the supervision of a committee consisting of six persons, including the Acting Director of the Unit as secretary. Once the projects are completed, information will be made available to the public and others in a form of a printed catalogue with a synopsis of each interview. However, there will be a restriction of its use, as some interviewees are likely to impose restrictions on the use of the documentation of their interviews. So certain procedures and guidelines will have to be established. Right now, they have still to be drafted. Persons to be interviewed are selected by a committee which will take into consideration the various points that are relevant to the topic fixed for the particular project. I am afraid I do not have more information right now. I do agree with the Member that this is an important project. I fully agree with him also that unless we know our historical past, we may not have the confidence which any proud people should have. The money provided right now is sufficient. However, the present provision may have to be reviewed as more and more projects are undertaken by the Unit and more and more staff are recruited, I would be happy to provide him with more information if he were to file a question for oral answer on more specific points.”
“Sir, I agree with the hon. Member that there is room for improvement in our dubbing technique of the Cantonese films. Unfortunately, I cannot agree with his comment that we might as well not import these programmes. But I agree with him that the habit of speaking dialects can only be removed after a long period of sustained efforts. However, I am sure hon. Members will agree with me that the national policy of encouraging Chinese Singaporeans to speak Mandarin, wherever possible, is a correct policy. In fact, he has said so himself just now. I am aware that removing dialect films from the TV screen in the home will mean that those elderly Singaporeans who speak only dialects will enjoy somewhat less. However, this is only a small price they are paying for the long-term benefit of their children. Unless we are courageous enough to take such drastic measures as, eventually, to exclude dialect programmes from our TV completely, we will not be able to drive home the point that Mandarin is to be made the common language of the younger generation of Chinese Singaporeans. Those youngsters who have yet to master the language should learn it seriously.”
“Sir, that is really a bold attempt by a committee under the Ministry of Culture. We feel that since they are enthusiastic in doing something we should not pour cold water over them. After all, it is harmless. Encik Saidi Shariff: Sir, I would like to thank the Senior Minister of State for Culture for his explanation, and I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment by leave, withdrawn. Mr Ho See Beng( In Mandarin): Sir, I beg to move, That the sum to be allocated for Head J be reduced by $10 in respect of Subhead JD-01 of the Main Estimates.* *The same amendment also stood in the names of Encik Saidi Shariff and Mr Ch'ng Jit Koon. Sir, in order not to waste too much valuable time, may I speak on my next amendment as well?”
“They have been trying to, firstly, preserve and develop our cultural heritage derived from the main streams of the Malay, Chinese, Indian and Western civilizations, and, secondly, raise the general cultural level of our people by assisting in providing easy access to sources of culture and education as well as through the promotion of the arts and artistic creation, especially among our young. Within the limit set by budgetary allocation, the Ministry of Culture has been successful in activating various cultural organizations. It cooperates with a large number of such organizations in presenting arts programmes. Among the more important ones are the biennial Festival of Arts, the annual Drama Festival and Choral Festival. All these are multi-cultural in character. We hope through such efforts to stimulate a cross-fertilization of the four cultures and foster the growth of a natural cultural identity which we can call our own. However, I must stress that the promotion of cultural activities should not be the sole responsibility of the Government. The Government could only play its role in creating a conducive environment for such activities but much of the success of cultural promotion is dependent on the efforts of and support given by private organizations and our people as a whole. As for the suggestion by the Member for Kaki Bukit to promote traditional games, I shall ask my Cultural officers to look into this.”
“Sir, culture is something you cannot manufacture in factories. It has to grow from the people. As to what is our national culture or the identity of our national culture, I must say it is the sum total of the cultures that we have right now. The Member for Kaki Bukit spoke highly of the Chingay procession organized by the People's Association. I am sure they will carry on with the good work. As for cultural promotion, I would like to inform him that during the colonial period there was little or no local effort to integrate or to encourage a cross-fertilization of the various cultures that existed in the multiracial society of Singapore. We attained self-government in 1959. Multi-cultural shows, such as the Aneka Ragam Rakyat mentioned by the Member, began to be organized. The object was to foster mutual understanding and appreciation of different cultures as expressed by music, the arts and dances. Active Government promotion of the arts and their development began in earnest only more than a decade ago. The Cultural Activities Section of the Ministry of Culture was set up in 1970. It was recently expanded into a Division. It organizes a broad programme of cultural activities with popular appeals. Through its efforts there exists now a much greater cultural awareness among Singaporeans. 4.15 p.m. Cultural promotion and the inculcation of good leisure values are among the main functions of the Ministry of Culture.”
“Sir, the Ministry of Culture realizes the importance of the image that it has unofficially projected in the minds of foreigners about Singapore. That is exactly the reason why we would like to set up a separate unit to publicize Singapore's image. The objective of setting up this unit is to provide information on developments in Singapore, especially through foreign journalists resident in Singapore or visiting Singapore. This can be done through briefings, discussions and provision of suitable materials. Hitherto, such work has been done in a limited way by the Press Section of the Ministry of Culture. However, there is need to provide more and better information. This unit will be set up in 1981-82 to plan and implement a more active programme of external information work. It will do this in close liaison with other relevant Ministries and Government departments. Detailed plans will be worked out by the unit when it has been set up. On the specific question posed by the Member as to whether a pictorial magazine will be published to project a Singapore image, my answer is that we have not decided as yet. However, his suggestion will be looked into when the unit is set up.”
“Sir, in reply to the Member for Khe Bong, I will definitely check up the old records. As he knows fairly well, I was not in the Ministry of Culture then, and therefore I would not know. But I will look up the old records and see what actually happened. The Member for Radin Mas asked whether it is possible to start the Tamil feature film at 9.30 p.m. I said just now that I will ask the SBC to re-examine the schedule. That is the best that I can do right now. The Member also asked for a separate Parliamentary report. I remember the previous Minister for Culture explained why the Parliamentary report was scrapped. I do not think I can do more justification than that explanation. Unless there is an overwhelming request for this, I see no reason why we should restart the Parliamentary report programme.”
“It is true that Tamil feature films are now telecast about 20 or 30 minutes later than before. The main reason is the rescheduling of news in Chinese from 8.45 p.m. to 9.00 p.m. as from 8th August 1980. We must understand that the SBC faces certain constraints in scheduling the transmission times of the various programmes. The following factors are generally taken into account in planning the transmission schedules: (1) the station's responsibility to provide programmes which inform, educate and entertain: (2) the need to provide a varied and balanced fare of programmes; (3) the need to provide alternative viewing; (4) the provision of a follow-through audience; (5) the date of availability of programmes: (6) the cost of the programmes and, where relevant, the possible commercial returns. However, I would like to inform the House that other Tamil programmes are shown very much earlier. For example, on Mondays, a Tamil-dubbed documentary is shown at 6.20 p.m.; Tuesdays, Our Budding Artists at 6.15 p.m.; Wednesdays, a Tamil drama at 7.05 p.m.; and on Saturdays, Musical Variety at 6.00 p.m. However, in view of the appeal by the hon. Member, I shall ask the SBC to re-examine the schedule to see if they can advance the screening times. This is not a promise. I will ask the SBC to look into it and I hope that he can have good news, if possible. The Member also complained that Ministers' speeches are reported in detail but not those of MPs. I must say that this is generally not true. It may be because certain important policy speeches were made and that is why more details are extracted. When interesting speeches are made by MPs, sometimes fairly detailed reports are made. Sir, I hope I have covered all the points.”
“Members that the National Library is working on an expansion plan to build eight more branch libraries. These plans have yet to be submitted and approved by the Treasury. The first plan is for Ang Mo Kio New Town. I do not foresee any difficulty in obtaining the necessary funds for this project. But, unfortunately, I cannot expedite it. It is only expected to be completed in 1983. The other seven branch libraries, if the Treasury is generous enough to approve all of them, will likely be in Bedok, Geylang East, Jurong, Hou Gang, Tampines, Woodlands and Yishun. If approved by the Treasury, these projects will be completed before the end of this decade. The Member for Khe Bong complained that the Ministry of Culture requires applicants for public entertainment permits to also obtain a licence for the public address system. I think there must be a mix-up somewhere. As far as I know, they get it at the same time. But there are cases where people who apply for such permits are also required to get permission from different authorities for the use of the place. That perhaps must have been mistaken by the person that he has the permission to put up the show. Should he come across cases like that, I would appreciate it if he could bring it to my attention, because it is not sensible to do such a thing. 3.45 p.m. The Member for Radin Mas complained that the Tamil feature films which were shown at 9.30 p.m. previously are now shown at 10.30 p.m. He wanted to know why. Tamil feature films normally run for about three hours. So it is usually shown in two parts, on Thursdays and Fridays. It cannot be shown at one go because it is too long, and it will also mean that there will be no alternative viewing for non-Tamil speakers who may not wish to watch English programmes on Channel 5.”
“The Member for Kim Seng would like to see more libraries built and more efforts being made to inculcate the reading habit in our children. I totally agree with him that the reading habit of our people is still not strong enough and with more economic success by way of material comforts, we must allocate a reasonable proportion of our efforts and money to increase the number of cultured and educated Singaporeans. To achieve this aim, more library facilities will be provided and books purchased. However, physical facilities alone are not enough. We need trained manpower to look after these facilities. It is the shortage of professionally trained staff that prevents a faster rate of expansion which we would otherwise like to see. The National Library is working closely with the PSC to find a reasonable solution to the staff shortage problem. He has asked whether the UNESCO's recommendation of 4% of the education budget is excessive. I must say that, as far as Singapore is concerned, it is not possible for us to reach that figure. But we are not too badly off as far as expenditure on buying books is concerned. I have figures here supplied by the Director of the National Library. In 1979 Singapore's per capita book expenditure was 58 cents. This compares quite favourably with the following figures. In USA in 1978, the figure was 29 cents. In the UK in 1978-79, it was 33 cents: in Japan in 1979, surprisingly the figure was only 6.9 cents. In Hong Kong in 1978 - 79, it was 23 cents. Our expenditure on books compares quite favourably with similar expenditures in these countries. The Member would like to see more libraries built. The Member for Cheng San also asked whether more branch libraries will be built in new towns. I would like to inform hon.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, my Minister has just answered the Members on the topic of video tapes and film censorship. One point raised by the Member for Alexandra is that entertainment should be the prime objective of the SBC. I am afraid I will have to differ with him. That is only one of the objectives. There are two other objectives, education and information, which the SBC is trying to achieve. The Member for Mountbatten mentioned that when the Minister of Education's picture appeared on the TV screen, nothing was said about it. I must say that this must be a slip on the part of the programme monitoring section. He has also touched on noise control. I would like to advise the hon. Member that the Ministry of Culture issues licences under the Public Entertainments Act for the transmission of music in public places. The objective of the Act is to control the content of the songs and music transmitted. Noise control is not its objective. In actual fact, this subject comes under the purview of the Ministry of the Environment. However, with the concurrence of the Ministry of the Environment, my Ministry is helping to control noise by imposing the use of SISIR control unit as a condition with regard to licensing the transmission of music and songs in public places under the Public Entertainments Act. He also mentioned that he saw a filmlet in which children were seen queueing up to a kachang puteh vendor who was using his bare hands in vending out the kachang. I do not remember seeing it myself. But I am sure I can trust the hon. Member that it must have appeared on the TV screen. I must again admit, on behalf of the SBC, that this must be another slip. What to do! We are not perfect in life!”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, according to the Ministry of Education's school building plan, three sites in Ang Mo Kio New Town Neighbourhood Six have been reserved for schools. On Site 11, construction work for one primary school and one secondary school has already started. They are expected to be completed before December 1981. Site 10 is for two primary schools and one secondary school. Construction work is expected to start next month. The two primary schools are expected to be completed by December 1981 and the secondary school by February 1982. A third site is reserved for the construction of a junior college which is expected to be completed by the end of 1983. FULL-DAY SCHOOLS (Conversion programme) 22. Mr Sia Khoon Seong asked the Minister of Education (a) how many primary and secondary schools will be convened to full-day schools in 1981; (b) whether and when the teachers and parents of the pupils in those schools will be informed; (c) to what extent the curriculum and ECA load for the pupils will be increased and will be different from those in the two-session schools; (d) whether the teachers' teaching load will be increased; (e) whether principals and teachers will be given flexibility in implementing the full-day school programme; (f) how the additional hours will be utilized; and (g) whether adequate facilities, including proper facilities for lunch, will be provided to meet the increased demands of a full-day school programme.”
“As I am in the Ministry of Education and as I am also a parent, my answer is definitely "yes". ANG MO KIO NEW TOWN, NEIGHBOURHOOD SIX (Building of schools) 21. Dr Koh Lip Lin asked the Minister of Education (a) how many and what type of schools will be built in Ang Mo Kio Neighbourhood Six; and (b) when those schools will be completed.”
“As regards the second part of the question, the principals have the authority to run the schools. If the hon. Member feels that there are cases of grievance, perhaps he can bring them to my attention and I will look into them. As for the time taken to repair school fields, whether that is too long I cannot judge it as I am not an engineer. But the information given to me shows that there are four major factors which govern the length of time for repairing and reconditioning school fields. The size of the field is one factor. The other factors are the availability of materials, the efficiency of the contractors and, of course, the supervision of the work involved. I am, therefore, not in a position to say whether the time taken to repair school fields is too long or too short. But from the Ministry of Education's point of view, I definitely agree with him that we would like to have the fields repaired, if we can, within one or two months. But that is obviously not possible because grass takes time to grow and then it will have to be trimmed before the fields can be made suitable for re-use.”
“Sir, our school fields are repaired by the PWD (Schools Division) which looks after school fields. If the Member has that information, may I know from which particular PWD officer he obtained it, so that I can check it up?”
“Sir, the Member for Jurong has complained that the grass in certain school fields has not been cut for a long time. I would appreciate it if he would let me know the name of the school so that I could look into it immediately. For the general information of the House, I would like to let Members know that since 1st April, 1978, grass-cutting of fields in all Government schools, where the area exceeds one acre each, has been done by contractors. The tender cost is $19 per acre per cutting. That figure was considered reasonable at that time. But with inflation and increase in wages, the contractor did experience some difficulty and we have taken action under the terms and conditions of the contract. I would like to inform the Member for Jurong that the contract will expire at the end of this month and action is in progress to appoint a new contractor. On the subject of electricity, I fully endorse the sentiments expressed by the Member for Jurong that electricity should not be wasted. For his information, in April 1979, in support of the Save Electricity campaign of the PUB, my Ministry issued a circular to all principals advising them to take all necessary measures to ensure that there is no wastage in the use of electricity in their respective schools. Should the Member for Jurong come across any school that is unnecessarily brightly lighted at night, he could let me know and I would definitely ask my official to investigate and see whether there is any wastage. It is true that we do have a general understanding with the principals of schools that dark corners or certain corridors should be lighted at night for security reasons but there is no reason that they should be brighter than necessary.”
“I agree with him that right now, while we do not have a sufficient number of officers to fill these specialist posts, those principals who are currently working in headquarters are at a disadvantage because they are not paid the principal's post allowance. But we have tried to compensate them with faster promotions in view of their higher responsibilities in headquarters. Of course, our desire to give them faster promotion has yet to be proved. I think this is all that I have to comment on his two points.”
“A new subject known as Social Studies will be introduced to take over the History part and Geography part presently included in the subject Education-for-Living. As to the exact syllabus to be included in the subject, I am unable to tell him right now. The curriculum development officers in the new CDIS will have to look into this aspect of their work. As for Science, the gap is not so much on content as on the teaching methods. We hope to be able to reduce the gap when the CDIS is functioning, but personally I do not think the gap will be completely bridged because Primary 6 is the end of the first stage of education whereas Secondary 1 is the beginning of another. They are catering for a different group altogether. Those who are promoted to Secondary 1 have already completed their Primary 6 and are therefore considered more capable academically. Of course, we do realise that there may be students who are a bit slow. That is why we have introduced a fifth year in the secondary level. 4.45 p.m. His second point is that the principal's allowance is not being paid to those working in the Ministry headquarters. According to the revised scheme of service for Education Officers introduced in July 1979, specialist positions in headquarters are meant to be filled by two groups of Education Officers, i.e. graduates on Superscale H and non-graduates on Scale 4. Together with the scheme, allowances for principals and vice-principals were introduced. However, not all the principals and vice-principals are eligible for the allowance. The following categories are not eligible: primary school principals and vice-principals on EO Scale 4 and above; principals and vice-principals of secondary schools and junior colleges on EO Superscale grades.”
“Sir, I would just like to comment on the point raised by the Member for Jurong on the gap between Primary 6 and Secondary 1. It is true that there appears to be a gap between Primary 6 and Secondary 1. Three factors contribute to this feeling. The first is the Primary School Leaving Examination, where only four subjects are examined. The moment a student is promoted to Secondary 1, he will have to sit for eight subjects. The second factor is the difference in teaching emphasis between Primary 6 and Secondary 1. This is due to the fact that the pattern of examination at PSLE has all along been more on an objective test basis. This has resulted in teachers spending more time coaching them how to pass examinations. But when they are promoted to Secondary 1, they are expected to be able to express themselves and to answer open-ended questions. The third factor is the continuity of the subject matter. This applies especially to Geography and History, because right now in the primary level, Geography and History are included, but only briefly, in the subject Education-for-Living. But when a student is promoted to Secondary 1, the subject matter of History which he has to study concerns World History, from pre-History to 600 A.D., which is quite a big contrast. In Geography, the content covers physical geography and mapping skills. Quite a few teachers have recommended to the ministry that perhaps the curriculum for History in secondary schools should be looked into, and this is currently being studied by the Ministry. The Member posed the question whether History and Geography will be given emphasis in primary education.”
“Sir, on the question of immersion as a whole, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education has already answered that part. The Member for Bedok raised a specific point on ECA. The ECA of these immersion students is in the charge of the sending school. But there is no objection if the immersion students can manage it, i.e. to take part in ECA activities of the receiving school, but the principal must be careful not to overload the students. So there must be proper liaison between the receiving school and the sending school to ensure that the immersion students are not overloaded with ECA. Haji Sha'ari bin Tadin: Sir, in view of the explanation of the Senior Minister of State, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment by leave, withdrawn. The following amendments stood in the name of Mr Ch'ng Jit Koon - (8) That the sum to be allocated for Head J be reduced by $10 in respect of Project 8101 of Subhead Code JB-01 of the Development Estimates. (9) That the sum to be allocated for Head J be reduced by $10 in respect of Project 8102 of Subhead Code JB-01 of the Development Estimates.”
“Sir, on the question posed by the Member for Bedok on why ECA points are not included in the calculation for channelling students to the two-year and three-year courses, the answer is simply that this is done for the benefit of the students themselves. The cut-off point of 17, not including ECA, is based on the study of the relationship between Pre-U admission qualifications and the Cambridge GCE 'A' level examination performance. The study shows that for those students whose admission point is higher than 17, their failing rate is almost one-third. So having consulted the school principals in the junior colleges, the Ministry came to the decision that it is in the interest of the students that they should be given one additional year to pick up, thereby improving their chances of going to the university. On the other question of why the three-year course is in Pre-U centres, the simple answer is that we do not have sufficient junior colleges to accommodate all of them. Once we have junior colleges with a sufficient number of places to accommodate all, we will put them in the junior colleges too.”
“This shows that with the introduction of RSES a number of principals were too anxious to jack up the passing percentage at 'O' level of their pupils. As a result their marking standard has been raised. We feel that it is bad to retain students unnecessarily. 6.45 p.m. On the point of channelling those who are not yet overaged to ITB, the current policy is such that we do not prevent them from joining ITB if there are vacancies, but it is a matter of priority. I think my colleague, the Minister in charge of ITB, will be able to confirm the number of vacancies which ITB has at the moment. I have some information here. ITB has 5,000 vacancies for pupils from Secondary 1 and 2. Of these, 2,799 were filled by overaged pupils who failed in their school examinations. That means they have used up their time. They have failed thrice in their school career. 1,828 of the vacancies were taken up by pupils who responded to the advertisement in the press put up by the ITB.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, before the introduction of the Revised Secondary Education System, there was generally no retention at Secondary 1 level and at Secondary 2 level a maximum of 10% retention was allowed. However, the actual retention rate varied between 3 and 6%. In July 1978, the Planning and Review Branch collected data from the schools to study the impact of RSES on retention and channelling. The data was based on the 1978 mid-year examination results and continuous assessment and on the professional judgment of the principals. The data indicated that the overall retention rate could be 25% for Secondary 1 and 27% for Secondary 2, showing a sudden increase in retention rates at Secondary 1 and 2 levels as a result of the implementation of the RSES. The retention rate of individual schools varied from 0% to 60%. The Assessment Unit of the Ministry studied the problem and arrived at a reasonable retention rate for individual schools based on the PSLE intake of the schools as well as the 'O' level performance of the schools of past years. According to the study, 76 schools appear to have retention rates higher than what was indicated by the PSLE intakes and their 'O' level performance. The school advisors of the Ministry or inspectors brought this fact to the attention of the principals concerned and advised them to exercise greater care in retaining pupils after the final examination. As a result of the advice, most schools exercised greater caution in marking and moderating their final year examination papers. The actual retention in Secondary 1 turned out to be only 7,752 as compared with the projected figure of 10,617, a drop of 2,865. At Secondary 2 level, the actual retention was 9,000 compared with a projected figure of 12,134, a drop of 3,134.”
“Sir, we have known this problem for some years. But the Ministry officials have not been able to solve this issue. As the Member has said, one way to improve the performance of these schools is to give them better teaching staff. To a certain extent, this should improve their performance. But we are also quite short of staff. I agree with the Member that if we can send a few good teachers and a capable principal to a school whose performance is not good enough, in a few years its performance should gradually improve. I have to add here that most of these schools with poor performance are unfortunately mainly small schools in the rural areas and we face some difficulties in posting sufficient teachers to these schools. As I said, this issue is being studied by the education team.”
“Sir, we are aware of the situation mentioned by the Member for Kampong Kembangan. In fact, the Ministry is trying to establish the reasons why such a situation has arisen. Right now we can only guess that it is because of our free choice of school. To a certain extent, it leads to the congregation of bright pupils in certain schools. But this is not the full answer because no matter how average or how unintelligent the pupils are, there must be a certain level that they can attain. The Ministry is, in fact right now, trying to find out the reasons why certain schools cannot attain a minimum performance. Of course, we cannot expect every school to achieve the same result. It is possible that certain good schools with bright pupils could attain 100% passes. Personally, I feel that even the worst school should be able to attain 30 to 40% passes, not as bad as 0% in certain subjects.”
“We do actually encourage our teachers wherever possible to visit the parents of students who lagged behind in their studies. The teachers in quite a few schools have done this. But not all of them are able to do it. Assuming that they are able to do it, it would definitely help. I fully agree with that idea. When a student fails it does not necessarily mean that he is not bright. It can be due to the fact that no proper guidance has been given to him or perhaps it is because of the ignorance of the parents. The parents may not be well educated. They may not know where the trouble lies. The visit would definitely help. Just now I referred to the computer system. If we have the data on the family of the particular child, it will give us an indication of the child's background, and it will be easier to follow up on his case because our teachers are not in a position to visit every family. It will help somewhat to improve the situation.”
“Referring to the community education project, perhaps I have missed out the point about teaching the Primary 5 failures. On the whole, the Ministry welcomes whatever help any Member of Parliament or any community leader can give to our pupils. However, I have to admit that we do not have much time to look into these aspects because of recent changes in education policy. But, in principle, I would support this help which they can give to the students. But we must bear in mind that students should benefit from the system because if a student is involved in too many things, apart from having to attend to his regular school lessons and home work, he may not have the time to participate in the project. But for those who need the help, in principle, I would support the idea.”
“It is also very important to note that his peer group, including the friends he speaks to and plays with, has a great influence on his studies. In fact, the Ministry of Education has spent quite a lot of time trying to introduce an information analysis system whereby we can find out in advance where a student comes from, what his family background is, and how we can help him. This system needs a lot of analyses, and perhaps with a computerised system we might be able to do more in this respect. I hope I have answered the questions raised by the Member.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to answer the queries raised by the Member for Kampong Kembangan. It is true that school principals have often complained about the large number of returns they have to supply to the Ministry officials. These include statistics on pupils, teachers, examinations, admissions, finance, as well as the results of surveys, but all these are essential for educational planning and control. For the information of Members, some 33 types of statistical returns are supplied by school principals regularly. Most of these returns are required annually. Only one return is required weekly. This applies to Government schools and junior colleges only. It is in respect of School Revenue Cash Vote Return. Two are required monthly and four quarterly. However, what annoys most principals is not so much these regular returns as the ad hoc surveys. The Ministry of Education has since 12th May last year set out a procedure whereby all surveys and requests for statistical data from schools should first be cleared with the Planning and Review Division. This new procedure has improved the position somewhat, but it is still not very satisfactory. My Ministry is now planning to introduce computerisation so as to improve the Ministry's management information system. I hope approval will be given by the Ministry of Finance for the necessary funds. Once this system is installed, I am quite sure it will further improve the situation and lighten the workload of school principals. With regard to the community education project, I fully agree with the Member for Kampong Kembangan that home environment is very important to a student in his studies.”
“Mr Yeo Choo Kok asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Education whether it is considered necessary to set up a Board of Tertiary Education to be solely in charge of the two universities, the Institute of Education, the Singapore Polytechnic and the Ngee Ann Technical College so that the curricular planning, academic development, use of facilities, staffing and the allocation and distribution of students in the five institutes can be better co-ordinated and complemented in order to prevent wastage and unnecessary duplication or overlapping.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, in the Addendum to the Presidential Address for the financial years 1979 to 1982, the Ministry of Education has indicated that a pilot project on full-day schooling for secondary schools will be introduced in 1980. The objectives of this project are to allow a more thorough treatment of the curriculum and to provide better interaction between pupils and teachers. Salient features of the full-day school programme will be the provision of a wider choice of elective subjects; time for remedial teaching, small group tutorials, private studies with close supervision by teachers; and the provision of guidance and counselling to help pupils who have difficulties in their work. Pupils in full-day schools should be able to do all the work they may be given during the school day itself. Prerequisites for the successful implementation of the project include the commitment of principals and teachers to its objectives; the cooperation of teachers' unions; and the careful selection of schools that should be adequately equipped with all the necessary facilities required for a full-day school. Schools which are to pioneer this scheme should be preferably located in HDB estates so that teachers and pupils involved in the project need not travel far from their homes. The Ministry of Education is in the process of finalising the implementation details of this project. BOARD OF TERTIARY EDUCATION 6.”
“Sir, as at 18th January, 1979, a total of 122 officers were offered appointment as Vice-Principals. Of this number, 15 declined appointment and were not only released immediately but were posted back to their original schools. No officer will be compelled to accept appointment or suffer any penalty if he or she indicates a preference to continue teaching. However, it is incumbent on the Ministry to initially offer appointment to all eligible officers. The initial appointment of 122 Vice-Principals could not have had the effect of so disrupting schools that, as late as 15th January, 1979, they were not able to draw up time-tables. Of the 122, 22 remained in their same schools, 13 schools had two officers posted out as Vice-Principals, two schools had three officers posted out as Vice-Principals, one school had five, four were HQ officers and the remaining 52 schools each had one officer posted out. Seven of the officers who declined appointment have yet to be replaced. Although a few schools faced problems in time-tabling at the beginning of this year, these problems were due to factors such as posting of pupils and choice of schools for immersion classes. The problems of time-tabling have since been resolved. FULL-DAY SCHOOLS (Implementation) 5. Mr Ng Kah Ting asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Education what are the schools in which full-day schooling will be introduced, and how will the curriculum for those schools be worked out.”
“Sir, in addition to the 42 teachers transferred from other schools, another 32 were posted to the nine schools to meet curriculum needs. Of these 32, 23 were Institute of Education graduands and 3 cadet teachers, six were inter-transfer among the nine schools because of curriculum adjustment. Of the total of 74 teachers posted, 67 were of the English medium and seven were of the Chinese medium. APPOINTMENT OF SCHOOL VICE-PRINCIPALS (Numbers and effect) 4. Mr Ng Kah Ting asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Education (a) how many senior teachers have been appointed vice-principals; whether he is aware that some of them are unhappy over the so-called promotion, and if he will respect their wish to continue teaching in the schools without penalty; and (b) whether he is aware that, as a result of such exercise, a number of schools have as at 15th January, 1979, been unable to draw up proper time-tables resulting in pupils having nothing to do during certain periods in the schools concerned, and what steps he will take to ensure that no more precious time is lost to the school curricula.”
“They may study a foreign language from Secondary 1 as a third language in addition to the two official languages. The other category of pupils allowed to study foreign languages from Secondary 1 are those either one of whose parents is not of Malay, Chinese or Tamil ethnic origin. Since the mother tongue of such pupils would not necessarily be Malay, Chinese or Tamil, they are given the opportunity to take up foreign languages from Secondary 1 and may offer a foreign language either as a second language, in lieu of an official language, or as a third language, in addition to two of the official languages. In view of the select categories who may study foreign languages from Secondary 1, the numbers who did so in 1978 and who applied for and were selected to do so in 1979 are very small. In 1978 Cohort, 394 opted for and were approved to study French, 161 Japanese, totalling 555. In 1979 Cohort, the figure approved so far is French 239, Japanese 257, German 117, totalling 613. By virtue of the very selectivity, Members may be assured that those who are allowed to study a foreign language as a third language from Secondary 1 are those with special linguistic ability and well able to cope with a third language in addition to achieving bilingual proficiency in two of the official languages. 3.35 p.m.”
“Such programmes are not only for the purpose of maintaining good health but also to strengthen character training and social values through group activities in sports and games, uniformed organisations, school clubs and societies. There is no change in this policy of encouraging ECA and PE in schools. However, there is a limit to the curriculum time for each pupil or student. In the context of this, certain priorities must be accorded. Therefore, where pupils and students are required to spend considerable extra time in immersion or supplementary programmes to improve their English language proficiency in their own interests, this had to be at the sacrifice of some other school activities. In this context and for the interim only until such time as their proficiency in English has been brought to a satisfactory level. Principals have been advised not to compel such pupils and students to participate in ECA and PE. Of course, should there be exceptional pupils or students who are able to cope with the immersion or supplementary programmes as well as participate actively in ECA and PE, they should not be discouraged from doing so. Priority must, for the present, be given to improving the standard of English. The study of foreign languages from Secondary 1 was introduced in 1978. This does not in any way change the policy on bilingualism. Only a very few may study foreign languages from Secondary 1 but they would have to study two of the official languages at Primary levels. Those who may study foreign languages from Secondary 1 are those with special linguistic ability as shown by their performance in the two official languages taken by them in the Primary School Leaving Examination.”
“Current affairs magazines: Prospect, Changwan and Harapan, published by the Educational Publications Bureau, are widely read and discussed among secondary school students. Above all, national identity and pride are fostered daily through the singing of the National Anthem at flag-raising and lowering ceremonies and recitation of the loyalty pledge. Weekly assemblies in schools give principals the opportunity to speak about nation building, moral and social values and related topics. The Ministry is trying to identify Asian classics and literature which have strong cultural and moral values with a view to introducing these in our schools so as to counteract certain undesirable influences of Western culture. Appointments of Vice-Principals were planned to be implemented in phases starting with the new school year on 2nd January, 1979. However, the first of these appointments could not be made until the position of movements of other teachers had been decided on. Decision of the latter had to await the outcome of the Secondary 1 pupil and Pre-University 1 student admissions which this year were not available till late December. Appointments of Vice-Principals could therefore not be notified till around the end of December, 1978. It is not true that notification of these appointments were held back till January, 1979, to avoid those who were appointed "washing their hands of their old schools". Such an explanation attributed by some newspapers to "sources" cannot obviously be correct. I would like to state categorically that the Ministry of Education have full confidence in all our principals and teachers. The question of not trusting them should never arise. On ECA programme, the Ministry is aware of the need for a proper ECA, including PE, programmes in schools.”
“This would supplement the study, by way of good examples, of the usage of such languages. It would also enable the pupils to acquire familiarity with such works and help to inculcate in them the desirable Asian values and traditions which are part of their heritage. Mr Speaker, Sir, I have a Table (Cols. 277 - 278) with me but I do not want to take too much of Members' time. It more or less repeats what I have said. Anyway, this Table has been given to the Press and if they are interested, they will reproduce it. Should any Member want this, I will give it to him. Table - TABLES BASED ON 1977 GCE 'O' LEVEL EXAMINATION STATISTICS (Cols. 277 - 278) On the question of Asian values and national identity, since late 1973, Education for Living (EFL) has been introduced in all our primary schools with the specific objectives of - (i) ensuring that pupils are conscious of their responsibilities in nation building as loyal and patriotic citizens; (ii) enabling pupils to gain a clearer understanding of our historical background and geographical environment; and (iii) guiding pupils in perceiving the relationship between man and his place in society. The syllabus for EFL from Primary 1 to 6 spells out clearly the moral concepts, knowledge, attitudes and actions of lessons to be taught and learnt. Pupils' textbooks and teachers' manuals have been produced and teachers have also attended seminars and workshops to ensure the effectiveness of EFL teaching. In secondary schools, updating and revision of the Civics syllabus and textbooks is a continual process. The subject of Current Affairs from Secondary 3 upwards brings students to the forefront of contemporary economic, social and political events on the national, regional and international scene.”
“The Ministry has, in a statement on 5th January, 1979, offered to have one or more Malay-medium secondary schools modelled along the lines of the nine Chinese secondary schools, for pupils or parents who wish their children to have both Malay and English at first language levels. Alternatively, if there are enough Malay pupils who wish to offer the Malay Literature paper, it may be possible to gather them together in special classes in an English-medium school, where they could do both Malay and English at first language levels. However, only a small percentage, certainly not more than the best 8% of Malay pupils, can do this. For example, although all Malay-medium pupils study Malay as the first language and English as the second language, with greater exposure to the Malay Language, almost 40% of them still did not fare well in Malay Literature in the 1977 'O' level examination. 293 out of 1,420 candidates, or 21%, got grades 7 or 8, and a further 257, or 18%, failed. (See Table III) (Cols. 277- 278) Table III - MALAY LITERATURE RESULTS (Cols. 277 - 278) It is generally accepted that Literature enhances, to some extent, the proficiency of pupils in the language. Thus, pupils in the English medium become more proficient in English through a study of English Literature. Malay pupils in the English medium, with Malay as a second language, cannot cope with the 'O' level Malay Literature paper. They can only do it at the expense of their proficiency in English. The Ministry is currently looking into the feasibility of introducing selected works of Literature, particularly those reflecting Asian culture and desirable values, in the study of languages in schools. These works would be in simplified form and in translation where necessary.”
“Literature is available as a subject at the 'O' level in all the four official languages. The language level of Literature at 'O' level is that of the corresponding 'O' level first language. Literature texts are selected such that the level of difficulty in language of the texts is compatible with the level of proficiency of average pupils in that language studied as the first language. The language level in Literature texts is therefore above that of the corresponding second language. Accordingly, Literature is offered exclusively by pupils studying the particular language as the first language. (See Tables I and II.) (Cols. 277 - 278) Tables I & II - MALAY PUPILS, CHINESE PUPILS (Cols. 277 - 278) Pupils offering a particular language as the second language will have difficulty studying Literature in that language. Such pupils will have to upgrade the second language to the first language to be able to follow the Literature texts. This will mean that such pupils will have to study two languages at the level of the first language. Thus, Malay pupils in the English medium who choose to do Literature in Malay will have to study both Malay and English at the level of the first language. The study of two languages at the level of the first language is a very difficult task. It is probably within the ability of the top few percent but certainly beyond that of the vast majority. Should Malay pupils wish to study Malay Literature, they must stay in Malay-medium schools to have their proficiency in Malay as that of the first language.”
“Many had to forgo their weekends and holidays over the last December festive period to ensure the best possible planning and implementation, in the circumstances, of recent policy developments in the interest of the pupils and students. Members will agree that the success of Singapore depends on our willingness to take hard but rational options. This applies equally in the sphere of education, on the success of which will depend the continued success of Singapore. The successful implementation of education policies is, of course, ultimately dependent on the schools. To ensure as successful an implementation as possible, a number of orientation and retraining programmes for teachers in schools were conducted in 1978 and will continue to be conducted. These orientation and retraining programmes are related to the developments in the education system. In addition, recruitment of teachers for schools was stepped up in 1978 and more efforts will be directed towards increasing the pool of trained teachers so that all the requirements of schools and pupils and students may be adequately catered for. Data (Cols. 275 - 276) on orientation and retraining programmes and on recruitment exercises conducted in 1978 are tabulated and also circulated for information of Members. Data - RECRUITMENT FIGURES FOR 1977 AND 1978, NUMBER OF TEACHERS INVOLVED IN IN-SERVICE TRAINING PROGRAMMES (Cols. 275 - 276) The Member for Kolam Ayer suggested that the Ministry of Education consider including the teaching and elements of Literature in the Malay language papers to the extent of, say, 20 to 30%. He also suggested that the Ministry provide classes in Malay Literature in Secondary 3 and 4 so that Secondary 4 pupils may offer Malay Literature as a subject at Secondary 4.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, while joining other Members in congratulating the President on his re-election, I would just like to make a few remarks on education. There has been criticism by some Members as to what they term the "haste" in recent developments in the education system. It has been said that 1978 is the year for a record number of changes to the system. For the record, a tabulation (Cols. 265 - 274) of the developments that have taken place in the education system since the announcement by the Nanyang University Council on 23rd August, 1977. has been made and is circulated by the Clerk of Parliament to Members for information. That announcement by the Nanyang University Council is, in fact, a key to and the pace-setter for all the developments that have taken place since. tabulation - LIST OF CHANGES (Cols. 265 - 274) Once it was decided, in the interest of its future graduates, that English would be the medium of instruction for all courses and subjects in Nanyang University, consequential action had to be taken to ensure logical follow-through in the whole education system. Of course, it would be more comfortable to take the soft option and let matters run their own course. But this would have been at the expense of thousands of pupils and students already in the school system. The hard options had therefore to be taken in the interest of the pupils and students themselves and the pace of developments guided by the desire to help and benefit as many pupils and students as possible within the scope of our resources. No doubt the officials in the Ministry whom Members have accused of unseemly haste would, had they the choice, have liked to go slower.”
“With the consent of the Speaker and the general assent of Members present, Motion made, and Question put. Resolved, "That, notwithstanding the Standing Orders, this House do adjourn at 5.00 p.m. today." - [Mr E.W. Barker]. PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS (Debate on the Address) (First Allotted Day) 2.45 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I must admit that I am not quite sure of the formula used. I am not a statistician. But if the Member wants the exact information, I will ask the officer in charge to supply it to him. BILLS INTRODUCED 2.43 p.m. CIVIL LAW (AMENDMENT) BILL "to amend the Civil Law Act (Chapter 30 of the Revised Edition)", presented by the Minister for Law, the Environment and Science and Technology (Mr E.W. Barker); read the First time; to be read a Second time on the next available sitting of Parliament and to be printed. RUBBER ASSOCIATION OF SINGAPORE (INCORPORATION) (AMENDMENT) BILL "to amend the Rubber Association of Singapore (incorporation) Act (Chapter 200 of the Revised Edition)", presented by Mr. E.W. Barker; read the First Time; to be read a Second time on the next available sitting of Parliament and to be printed. JUDGES' REMUNERATION (AMENDMENT) BILL "to amend the Judges' Remuneration Act (Chapter 7 of the Revised Edition)", presented by the Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Finance (Dr Tan Eng Liang); read the First time; to be read a Second time on the next available sitting of Parliament and to be printed. VOCATIONAL AND INDUSTRIAL TRAINING BOARD BILL "to establish the Vocational and Industrial Training Board and for matters connected therewith and to repeal the Lembaga Gerakan Pelajaran Dewasa Act (Chapter 177 of the Revised Edition) and the Industrial Training Board Act, 1972 (No. 36 of 1972). and to amend the Education Act (Chapter 175 of the Revised Edition)", recommendation of President signified- presented by the Acting Minister for Social Affairs (Dr Ahmad Mattar); read the First time; to be read,a Second time on the next available sitting of Parliament, and to be printed. ADJOURNMENT MOTION 2.44 p.m.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Ministry of Education has recently conducted a stratified sample study of the performance of the 1972 PSLE candidates against their subsequent performance at the 1976 GCE 'O' level examinations. The study shows that there is a high positive correlation between the two sets of results; in other words, there is a close relationship between the performance of pupils at the PSLE and the GCE 'O' level examinations. However, things can happen to a pupil in the four years between the two examinations and they may affect his performance one way or another. Nevertheless, in view of the high positive correlation, the PSLE will continue to be used as a means for selecting pupils for secondary schools. A summary (Cols. 119 - 120) of the report is with the Clerk of Parliament who will distribute it to Members for information. SUMMARY OF FINDINGS OF THE CORRELATION STUDY BETWEEN PRIMARY SCHOOL LEAVING EXAMINATIONS (1972) AND GENERAL CERTIFICATE OF EDUCATION ORDINARY LEVEL (GCE 'O') EXAMINATIONS (1976) (Cols. 119 - 120)”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, it is difficult to say exactly when, but work on the new secondary school will start in a few months' time. STREET NAMES IN CHINESE (Correction of transliterations) 27. Mr Ng Yeow Chong asked the Minister for Culture whether it is intended to change some of the odd and peculiar transliterations in Chinese of street names, adopted during the colonial days, with correctly translated versions.”
“Sir, Ministry officials generally speaking are conversant with the policy or else they would not be fit to do their job. He said that there were certain officials who could be brow-beating students in their arguments as such. I do not have the full facts, although I do hear some rumours of that sort. But if he could be kind enough to give me the full facts of the particular case, maybe together with the name of the student, I would look into it further to see that this thing does not happen again.”
“We are looking into the possibility of getting land in places like Ang Mo Kio New Town, Woodlands, Tampines New Town, and Nee Soon, for the construction of a school, or maybe a junior college. But I cannot tell him right now. So far we have not got the land yet.”