Chan Chun Sing
Singapore
“Since 2002, the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) has worked with the autonomous universities (AUs) to establish arrangements that minimise disruption to National Servicemen (NSmen) who are pursuing full-time studies up to the undergraduate level, while meeting the Singapore Armed Forces' (SAF's) operational and training needs.”
“Secondments help to build up the range of competencies and work experiences of public officers to strengthen their longer-term employment relevance and resilience. The Public Service Division's guideline to agencies is to support public officers even while they are on secondment.”
“The priority of our National Servicemen must be their military duties and operational training, to meet the Singapore Armed Forces's (SAF's) operational requirements.”
“In January 2026, I had informed this House that the Government had convened an independent committee to conduct a review of the political salary framework that was laid out in 2012. The Committee has completed the review and submitted its recommendations to the Government in April.”
“All countries seek to develop mutually beneficial partnerships, and the United States-Indonesia Major Defence Cooperation Partnership is one such example.”
“Since the Singapore Armed Forces Volunteer Corps (SAFVC) was established in 2014, over 1,500 men and women have completed training and served as SAFVC Volunteers (SVs). Presently, there are about 1,100 in-service SVs, comprising 52% male and 48% female. About seven in 10 of our in-service SVs are new Citizens or Permanent Residents.”
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“Mr Speaker, Sir, can I have your permission to take Question Nos 21 and 22 together?”
“Elective subjects, such as Music and Third Language, are not offered in all schools, as the enrolment could be too small to form a class. Hence, MOE has designated music/language centres spread across Singapore for students whose schools do not offer these subjects. For students offering MTL as third languages, Malay (Special Programme) [M(SP)] and Chinese (Special Programme) [C(SP)] are currently available at 16 and five schools, respectively, in different parts of Singapore. There are also four zonal centres for M(SP) and two for C(SP) to cater to students from other schools. Foreign Language (French/German/Japanese/Spanish) classes are all held centrally at the two MOE Language Centres, as student numbers remain small. Music is offered to lower Secondary students in all schools. At the upper Secondary level, more than 25% of Secondary schools, well spread across Singapore, offer Music, as an elective subject, to their own students. Students enrolled in schools that do not offer Music at the upper Secondary level may choose to pursue it at 12 centres, also equally spread across the country. We will continue to monitor and assess if these centres continue to be accessible to interested students from all schools.”
“Around 43% have a Masters in Counselling, and the rest are graduates with a Diploma/Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling or other counselling qualifications with relevant experience. School Counsellors have opportunities to pursue further professional qualifications, such as a Masters or certifications by professional bodies. They also receive ongoing training, professional development and supervision. MOE is reviewing the resourcing of school counsellors to better support schools. We are also reviewing the resourcing required for the IHLs to meet the need for counselling support for their students. We recognise that counselling work is demanding and teacher counsellors have to balance their teaching and counselling workload. Schools have the flexibility to reduce teaching or CCA duties for teacher counsellors to provide them more time to spend with students. Training for teacher counsellors has also been enhanced to equip them not only to support their students’ well-being but also better manage their own well-being. MOE will continue to monitor the workload of teacher counsellors and further strengthen the support for teacher counsellors to ensure that they are well-supported and have a manageable workload.”
“All schools are resourced with at least one to two full-time school counsellors, while each Polytechnic and ITE college is resourced with five to seven counsellors. The Autonomous Universities are similarly equipped with a varying number of counsellors depending on their size and student profile. In total, about 550 counsellors are deployed in our schools and Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs). They are augmented by Flexi-Adjunct School Counsellors and teacher counsellors in schools, as well as para-counsellors in some IHLs. Flexi-Adjunct School Counsellors were introduced to better supplement schools’ short-term and ad hoc manpower needs, replacing the Part-Time School Counsellor Scheme in end-2020. About 100 Flexi-Adjunct School Counsellors are engaged in schools each month. Over 700 teacher counsellors are deployed in schools and we aim to increase this number to over 1,000 in the next few years. Similarly, some IHLs have para-counsellors to complement professional counsellors and strengthen the ecosystem of support for students. There are about 100 para-counsellors in total, who include both academic and non-academic staff with the requisite skills to provide counselling and socio-emotional support work. Between 2016 and 2020, about 190 applicants with counselling qualifications and 1,500 applicants without counselling qualifications applied to join the Ministry as School Counsellors each year. Applicants go through a careful selection process to ensure they have the right disposition and attributes to be School Counsellors. Successful applicants without counselling qualifications will be put through formal training and certification before being deployed as School Counsellors. All School Counsellors are professionally qualified.”
“In-person Co-Curricular Activities (CCAs) at the Secondary schools, Junior Colleges, Millennia Institute and the Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) have progressively resumed since 10 August 2021, adhering to prevailing safe management measures. For CCAs that are unable to do so given the higher risk settings, such as choir and wind instruments, schools have pivoted them online to continue the learning for our students. As most of our students in the Primary schools are not yet eligible for COVID-19 vaccination, in-person CCAs in Primary schools remain suspended for now as an additional precautionary measure. MOE will continue to monitor the situation closely and assess when in-person CCAs can resume safely for Primary school students.”
“On 1 July 2011, the Public Service introduced re-employment of officers from the ages of 62 to 65, ahead of national legislation which took effect from 1 January 2012. Over the past 10 years from 1 July 2011 to 31 December 2020, over eight in 10 officers who retired at age 62 were re-employed. Over the past five years from 1 January 2016 to 31 December 2020, the re-employment rate was similar.”
“As mentioned in our written response to Mr Abdul Samad’s Parliamentary Question on the inclusion of a module on tripartism for graduating students at our IHLs, the curriculum in our Secondary schools and Pre-University institutions expose students to the concept and importance of tripartism. The IHLs build on these foundational efforts to deepen students’ understanding of tripartism in Singapore. The IHLs place strong focus on industry and workplace exposure in their curriculum and programmes, such as internships and industry-sponsored projects. They offer a range of modules that cover issues, such as the role of trade unions and tripartism in Singapore, employment and workplace rights, employee relations, industrial relations, labour laws, manpower policies, collective bargaining and dispute resolution. There are also additional exposure opportunities for IHL students outside the formal curriculum, such as dialogues with representatives from Government, industry and the labour unions. The IHLs will continue to review their curricula, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, to ensure their curricula remain industry-relevant and equip graduates with the right dispositions and skills for the future workplace.”
“In my response yesterday to a Parliamentary Question filed by Assoc Prof Jamus Lim on a similar topic, I had explained MOE’s approach towards the issue of private tuition and enrichment. Based on the latest Household Expenditure Survey (HES) conducted from 2017 to 2018 by the Department of Statistics (DOS), resident households, on average, spend $112 a month on private tuition and other educational courses. However, we are concerned when parents send their children for tuition excessively, or to ace examinations even when their children are coping well with their school work. Implementing restrictions on the private tuition industry to address unnecessary reliance on tuition is unlikely to be effective, if the underlying reasons why students and parents take up tuition are not addressed. Overseas experience in countries, such as South Korea, thus far has shown that restrictions on tuition are generally ineffective at reducing demand. We continue to monitor new developments, such as the new regulations in China, that the Member has referenced. We have progressively introduced several policy changes under our Learn for Life movement, to address the fundamental issues that drive the demand for tuition, with the aim of nurturing the joy of learning in our students, reduce the overemphasis on academic results and change the mindsets and attitudes of parents and students to adopt a broader definition of success. Our reforms will take time to bear fruit. Reducing the over-reliance on tuition requires a long-term partnership between MOE, parents and the wider community to change mindsets and reduce students’ workload and mental stress.”
“MOE is committed to ensuring the well-being and building the capacity of our educators and staff so that they can rise to the demands and challenges, as they educate and support our students, especially in the context of the on-going pandemic situation. We will continue to refine our efforts and work with relevant partners in this endeavour.”
“As part of the Civil Service medical benefits scheme, school staff are eligible for subsidised medical treatment, including mental health consultations and treatment. MOE provides in-house counselling services by trained professionals and there is also a whole-of-Government counselling hotline for our teachers. These sessions are confidential and free for all staff. Our counsellors also organise workshops for staff in areas, such as managing difficult conversations and stress management. Second, MOE has structures in schools to support the well-being of our staff. School Leaders are guided by the Teacher Work Management Framework on staff deployment and measures to support staff well-being, including ensuring protected vacation time for staff to rest. In every school, the Staff Well-being Committee looks into staff welfare and bonding. MOE HQ supports these committees by offering professional knowledge, resources and sharing platforms for them to share their best practices and to learn from one another. We recognise that ground practices may vary. Leadership is thus crucial in setting the tone, and our school leaders are committed to supporting the well-being of our school staff by building a culture of care and openness. In addition, MOE also obtains feedback through various sensing platforms, such as engagement surveys and platforms, and school visits by MOE senior management. We take steps to provide support where needed, such as working with schools to review teacher workload, and organising workshops to address the well-being needs of staff. Key indicators are also shared with schools so they can implement interventions and adjust their systems to support their staff.”
“They work closely with school personnel, including educators and school counsellors, providing consultation, case assessment, training and resources in the areas of mental health and student well-being. Dr Shahira Abdullah asked about the issue of certification of MOE’s school counsellors by Singapore Counselling Association (SAC). MOE recruits both trained and untrained applicants for School Counsellors (SC). Untrained applicants undergo the Diploma in School Counselling (DSC) programme conducted by the National Institute of Education (NIE) before they are deployed as SCs in the schools. The DSC programme is specially designed for school counselling to equip the trainees to work effectively and meet the needs of our children and youths in the educational setting. NIE has a wealth of knowledge and experience in research and training in counselling psychology within the school context. They have been offering the Master of Arts (Counselling and Guidance) programme since early 2000, which is recognised by professionals and the Singapore Association for Counselling (SAC). Counsellors in Singapore are not required to register with SAC as it is not an accreditation or licensure body. MOE too does not require School Counsellors to register with SAC. Registration is voluntary. The next set of issues concerns educators’ well-being, which Ms He Ting Ru touched on. The well-being of our school staff has always been of paramount importance and, even before the tripartite advisory on mental well-being was issued in 2020, measures that were contextualised for schools and well-aligned with the advisory, were already in place to support their well-being. First, counselling services are available for school staff when needed.”
“Through the Mental Health Education lessons in our revised Character and Citizenship Education curriculum, students also learn elements similar to mental health first aid training, including recognising signs of distress, when and how to seek help for self and peers, as well as developing empathy and care towards people struggling with mental health conditions. Similarly, mental health programmes and activities for students in the IHLs seek to raise awareness on mental health issues and build their resilience. These include self-care and stress management workshops as well as a compulsory mental wellness literacy curriculum for all Year 1 students in the Polytechnics and Institute of Technical Education (ITE). Besides teachers providing the first-line support, teacher counsellors, who have additional counselling training, have been deployed in schools since 1996. They help to counsel students on school-related issues, such as friendship issues, emotion regulation, learning difficulties and stress management. They can also take on more complex issues, such as coping with grief and loss. To support teacher counsellors, schools have the flexibility to reduce their teaching or CCA duties to provide them with more time to spend with students. We will continue to monitor the workload of teacher counsellors to ensure that teachers are well supported. Ms Carrie Tan also asked whether the Ministry would set up an allied unit of specially-trained mental health staff to support educators in their mental healthcare for students. MOE has a team of Counselling and Education Psychologists, Specialist Officers and experienced Lead School Counsellors.”
“A number of Members of this House have raised questions related to the training of educators and counsellors to support the mental well-being of our students as well as concerns about teachers’ mental health. Let me address these related questions together. First, the issue of capabilities and deployment. Ms Carrie Tan asked about teachers taking on teaching-counselling hybrid roles, while Mr Darryl David asked on mental health first aid training. In our schools, teachers, teacher counsellors and school counsellors work closely together to provide a holistic support network for students. Teachers are in regular contact with students. They know their students well and serve as trusted adults whom students can approach for help in school. They are often the first to detect signs of distress in their students. Hence, all teachers are trained in basic counselling skills and mental health literacy, which include the key elements of mental health first aid training. They learn about common mental illnesses and their symptoms, facilitating help-seeking, addressing the issue of stigma and how to support students with mental health issues. These equip our educators in schools to detect signs of distress in students and take timely action to refer them to the school or other professional counsellors when necessary. With these basic skills and knowledge, they can also create a supportive environment in class and CCAs. In the IHLs, students also have access to pastoral support and our IHLs continue to strengthen their staff’s capabilities to support students’ mental well-being, such as by providing training to identify early signs of distress in their students.”
“NUS has formed a Planning Committee to work out the details of the New College, such as its common curriculum, staff matters, transition plans, admission, and residential and student life. MOE and NUS will discuss funding matters at a later stage based on the details of the New College. Nonetheless, MOE is committed to supporting the New College and expects the cost per student to be lower than for Yale-NUS College (YNC). The New College, while retaining the best elements of YNC, should benefit from better economies of scale and sharing of resources with NUS.”
“The Government provides substantial subsidies for all Singaporean students studying in our publicly-funded post-Secondary education institutions, including those studying part-time. Beyond Government subsidies, Government bursaries are available to support part-time and full-time students from lower- to middle-income families who need further assistance. As part of our efforts to enhance the affordability of higher education, we enhanced Government bursaries in Academic Year (AY) 2020 for part-time diploma students and undergraduates from lower- and middle-income households. For most part-time Nitec and Higher Nitec students from lower-income households, the annual bursary amount is sufficient to fully cover fees. For part-time diploma students and undergraduates from lower income households, the annual fees they need to pay after Government bursaries are $140 and $2,300 respectively. They can tap on the Post-Secondary Education Account or SkillsFuture Credit to pay this remaining amount. Part-time undergraduates also have the option of tapping on Government loans to pay the remaining amount. We will continue to review the Government bursaries regularly to ensure that the level of provision remains adequate for Singaporean students.”
“MOE and our schools have a multi-pronged approach to reduce the stigma for students seeking help from School Counsellors. Firstly, mental health education is featured strongly in the refreshed Character and Citizenship Education curriculum. Topics include understanding common mental health issues and symptoms, knowing when and how to seek help for self and others, destigmatising help seeking and developing empathy towards people struggling with mental health issues and conditions. Secondly, the counselling room provides a private, quiet and safe place for students to share in confidence. To help students feel more comfortable with talking to School Counsellors, they engage students beyond the counselling room. School Counsellors proactively reach out to students during morning assembly and recess time to interact with students. They also conduct school-wide or class-based talks to raise awareness of mental health issues and encourage seeking help from trusted adults. School Counsellors also engage parents during the schools’ briefing sessions for parents on supporting their children’s well-being. Thirdly, for students who prefer anonymity and support outside of the school setting, there are local online portals (for example, Tinkle Friend, eC2, SOS) available. Students are informed of these portals and encouraged to access them if needed. For those who prefer face-to-face support, they can seek help from family service centres or private counselling centres with parental consent if they are below 21 years of age.”
“Every public officer has a duty to maintain high standards of personal conduct and integrity. This includes living within one’s means so as not to become financially embarrassed. All officers have to make an annual declaration of their non-indebtedness. They must also immediately declare to their Permanent Secretary or the Chief Executive of the Statutory Boards when their unsecured debts and liabilities exceed three months of their monthly salary. To reinforce high standards of integrity, conduct and accountability, there are established internal channels for officers to report wrongful practices or behaviours they have observed in the workplace to their Heads of Department. Based on the reporting guidelines, officers can report their fellow officers who have become financially embarrassed in good faith.”
“Private Education Institutions (PEIs), including PSB Academy, are not part of the public education system and hence generally do not receive Government funding. We have likewise not extended Government-funded loans to PEI students. They may apply for financial assistance offered by PEIs, or tap on education loans offered by commercial banks, to finance their studies.”
“The safety and well-being of all our students is of paramount importance. MOE's approach towards physical confrontation is to de-escalate conflict or run to seek help. Students are therefore taught to avoid physical confrontations as an important strategy to keep themselves safe. In situations of emergency or sudden unprovoked acts of physical violence in school or outside of school, students are taught to use the "Run-Hide-Tell" response to move quickly away from danger, to stay out of sight and to inform the authorities about the danger. Self-defence lessons are currently not taught in our physical education curriculum. Teaching all students self-defence may encourage some students to physically defend themselves in response to a physical assault. In such instances, engaging in physical confrontations may potentially put students in greater risk even if they have attained some level of self-defence skills. Students who are keen and have an interest to learn self-defence can do so through co-curricular activities or enrol in other community-based programmes.”
“While there is a make-up examination for oral examinations as these are held well ahead of the year-end written examinations, there will be no make-up examinations for the other papers held in the later part of the year. Given the large number of written papers, providing make-up examinations for these would lengthen the duration of national examinations and impact downstream processes such as marking, results release and posting to schools. MOE and SEAB will monitor the COVID-19 situation and provide timely updates if there are further changes to the examination arrangements.”
“To enable as many students as possible to sit for the national examinations while ensuring that the examinations are conducted safely with stringent Safe Management Measures in place, MOE and the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) have updated the examination arrangements to include the use of Antigen Rapid Tests (ART) and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) for students who are placed on Leave of Absence (LOA), Approved Absence, on Medical Leave with Acute Respiratory Infection or Medical Leave due to fever. Similar to last year’s practice, schools will be implementing a study break for graduating cohorts prior to the year-end national examinations to minimise the risk of school-based transmissions and reduce the number of students placed on Quarantine Order (QO) and Leave of Absence (LOA). Each year, there will be students who miss some papers of a subject or sat for a paper under adverse circumstances at the national examinations, such as an illness. Under such circumstances, schools will apply special consideration for these students. Similarly, students who are affected by COVID-19 can apply for special consideration. Special consideration is a well-established procedure, used by many international examination boards, to project grades through an evidence-based and data-driven approach. To ensure that the projected grade is fair and accurate, multiple sources of evidence are considered which include the student’s performance in the other papers for that affected subject in national and school-based examinations as well as the school cohort's performance in national and school-based examinations.”
“MOE has concluded our review of the Primary 1 Registration Framework and will be making several changes that will take effect from the 2022 P1 Registration Exercise, as announced on 9 September 2021. We will increase the number of reserved places in Phase 2C to ensure more children with no prior connection will be able to get a place in a school near their home. The current Phase 2A1 and 2A2 will be combined into a single Phase 2A. We have kept Phases 2A and 2B to recognise the importance of maintaining the heritage and ethos of our schools and building closer links between community and school. Where the number of applicants exceeds vacancies in a phase, balloting will continue to be based on citizenship first, then Home-School Distance categories. This fine-tuning of our P1 Registration Framework seeks to strike a careful balance of many different considerations, where we are careful not to drastically affect the groups given priority under the current Framework. So, while we are now placing greater weight on giving our children access to a school near to their homes, we continue to recognise the efforts of our community, including school alumni who have contributed to the development of a school and its culture. What Mr Chua has proposed is a major departure from the current system and would cause significant disruptions to parents and the community, which we should avoid. Nevertheless, as circumstances and our society evolve, we will continue to refine our P1 Registration Framework.”
“As part of their educational mission, the Autonomous Universities (AUs) are committed to helping students develop holistically through academic and co-curricular programmes, including through arts and sports. Students have opportunities to appreciate and participate in a wide variety of arts- and sports-related activities. These include avenues such as arts and sports student groups, events and competitions, concerts and inter-faculty or inter-university games, and taking elective modules on the sports or arts. The AUs provide support for these activities, for instance, through the provision of theatres, sports halls or suitable equipment. The AUs further support student artists and athletes by providing them with arts and sports facilities and training; opportunities to participate in national, regional or international competitions; and facilitating their training and participation through arrangements such as Leave of Absences, adjusted academic loads and e-learning or e-assessment modes if they are overseas. Talented artists and sportsmen may apply for scholarships and grants, along with talent development programmes with networking and training opportunities. Aspiring artists and sportsmen who wish to further their education in the field can apply for sports and arts degree programmes at the AUs. In addition to the AUs, LASALLE College of the Arts (LASALLE) and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) offer publicly-funded programmes for students who wish to pursue tertiary arts education pathways. A new university of the arts will also be formed within the next three years by an alliance between the two institutions and will strengthen tertiary arts education pathways in Singapore.”
“Students may also progress to employment without formal certification, after completing internships organised by their schools, many of which lead to job placements after graduation. For work-capable SPED students who need more time to be work-ready, the School-to-Work (S2W) Transition Programme by MOE, MSF and SG Enable offers them customised training pathways-cum-work options. S2W includes up to two years of worksite-based, customised job training with support from Job Coaches and employment services such as job referrals after students graduate from their SPED schools. Each year, about half of the SPED graduating cohort progresses to IHLs or other forms of training or are successfully employed, in sectors such as Food and Beverage (F&B) and hospitality. Based on MOM’s Comprehensive Labour Force Survey (CLFS), 29% of resident persons with disabilities in the working ages of 15 to 64 are employed. This statistic would exclude those with milder SEN who do not require much support post-school and do not identify as a person with a disability. We encourage employers to be part of the whole-of-society effort to partner our educational institutions to provide internships, training and employment opportunities for young Singaporeans, especially those with additional, longer-term challenges.”
“Students with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities, whether in mainstream schools and the Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), or Special Education (SPED) schools, are taught life skills and where they are preparing for work, they are equipped with the necessary knowledge, skills and values as well as work exposure. Throughout their education journey, students in the mainstream schools and the IHLs have access to Education and Career Guidance (ECG) Counsellors who can advise on suitable education pathways, including post-Secondary education options and career pathways. This helps them to make informed decisions for successful transition from school or higher education to work. Secondary and Junior College students with additional needs receive further guidance and support from teachers and other staff such as Allied Educators (Learning and Behavioural Support). At the IHLs, dedicated SEN Support Officers prepare students with SEN for employment, by partnering the community and industry to identify internship opportunities and provide pre-internship and employment workshops. These cover workplace norms, communication skills, interview and resume writing. Students in SPED schools are given work exposure, experience and skills development through a structured vocational education curriculum from age 13. With the support and mentorship from teachers, vocational instructors and job coaches, students are equipped with everyday skills such as independent travel, to industry-specific skills. The current focus of the review of the vocational education curriculum is on soft skills to enhance SPED graduates’ job experience and sustain employment. Vocational certification is offered at Metta School, Delta Senior School and Pathlight School.”
“We continue to monitor new developments, such as the new regulations in China that Mr Yip Hon Weng has referenced. Therefore, our approach is to address the fundamental issues that drive the demand for tuition. In recent years, we have progressively introduced several policy changes under our Learn for Life movement, to nurture in our students the joy of learning, reduce the overemphasis on academic results and change the mindsets and attitudes of parents and students to adopt a broader definition of success. Since 2019, we have reduced school-based assessments significantly to provide students more time and space to deepen and pace out their learning. We are changing the PSLE scoring system this year to reduce fine differentiation of examination results and will roll out Full Subject-Based Banding across Secondary schools by 2024 to provide students greater flexibility to learn at a pace and rigour suited to their strengths and interests. We have also continued to broaden the definition of success by expanding Direct School Admission to Secondary schools, as well as aptitude-based admissions to ITE, Polytechnics and Universities. Our reforms will take time to bear fruit. Reducing the over-reliance on private tuition requires not just policy shifts, but a long-term partnership between MOE, parents and the wider community to change mindsets. Together, we can build a culture where our children are self-directed in their learning, develop more holistically and find joy in the process.”
“MOE does not track the total value of the private tuition and enrichment industry, or expenditure on such services. Based on the latest Household Expenditure Survey (HES) conducted from 2017 to 2018 by the Department of Statistics (DOS), resident households on average spend $112 a month on private tuition and other educational courses. MOE recognises that the reasons for taking up tuition are varied. It is important to be able to distinguish when it is desirable and when it is not. For example, tuition can benefit students who are genuinely in need of more dedicated help in coping with their studies. This is why our schools cater additional resources to students who need extra help and also partner Self-Help Groups to provide additional academic support to those who need it. We also know that, at heart, many parents send their children for tuition out of care and concern for their child, as they may worry about whether their children can cope with their studies and examinations. We are concerned, however, when parents send their children for tuition excessively, or to ace examinations even when their children are coping well with their school work. This diminishes our students’ ability to learn independently, adds to their workload and stress and runs counter to our philosophy of holistic education and nurturing lifelong learners. Introducing regulations to the private tuition and enrichment industry to address unnecessary reliance on tuition is unlikely to be effective, if the underlying reasons why students and parents take up tuition are not addressed. Overseas experience in countries such as South Korea thus far have shown that restrictions on tuition are generally ineffective at reducing demand.”
“And that is because simply, NUS takes in the best from every cohort. And as a society, as a country, we expect them to perform well, perform way above the average. That is to be expected. But in my own sense, I would like to see the success of NUS students defined in three ways. Number one, they define success beyond themselves for the country. Number two, they define success beyond themselves for our people. Number three, they define success beyond themselves for our future. And let me explain why. For NUS students to be individually successful, that is to be expected because they are the cream of the crop from every cohort in Singapore. But we want them to have a sense whereby their definition of success is not just about they, themselves, but how they can help Singapore defy the odds of history and continue to be a shining beacon, not just in Southeast Asia, but across the world and in history. Number two, we want NUS students not to only define their success of again how well they do for themselves, but how well they enable the rest who are less privileged, perhaps less talented than them, to come along so that we can forge one people together, we can forge a nation together, we can forge that solidarity together, notwithstanding the forces that threaten to pull us apart. Last but not least, we hope that the NUS students' success will be defined by not just how successful they are in this generation but by how successful they enable the next generation to be, perhaps to be even more successful than this generation. If the NUS students can embody this spirit of being successful beyond themselves for the country, for our people and for our future, I think NUS and NUS students would have done Singapore a great service for many generations to come. [Applause.] 1.03 pm”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, this question will take me quite some time to answer but I try to cut to the crux. I usually try not to have more than three key performance indicators (KPIs) for the organisations that I work with. But it is a serious question. What is my definition of success for NUS and what is my definition of success for NUS students? I would say three for NUS and three for the NUS students. First, to me, in time to come, I will consider it a success if NUS produces quality graduates that are much more global in their perspective, able to connect the East and the West, the North and the South; that these students will be able to provide unique solutions in context to the challenges that Singapore faces and if possible, to make a contribution to the rest of the world. So, first is the quality of our students in being able to be an integrative force for the world. Second, NUS will continue to be successful if NUS continues to remain humble and learn from the best in the world, while at the same time, being confident to chart out its own way forward, so that NUS is not just copying from the best in the world but instead, in the process, create something new, create something better that in and of itself becomes a valued partner to the rest of the world. Third, that NUS, as a University, will help to reinforce Singapore's standing in the world because we stand for openness, integration, inclusivity. That we provide solutions in context for the world just as we provide for ourselves. So, these are my three KPIs for NUS. How do I consider whether NUS students are successful? First, let me declare this. I do not measure NUS students' success just by how well they do for themselves in the type of income that they earn or the type of jobs that they get.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the answer is yes. NUS is in contact with the students who may want to consider other options and to see how we can best render help to them.”
“It does not mean that a highly ranked university is good for everything and another university that is not so highly ranked, there is nothing that we can learn. So, I think we must take a very open approach to considering partnerships with others to make sure that we continue to learn from them and to take the best aspects from these partnerships. On the other hand, as I have mentioned, when we go into a partnership with any foreign universities, we must also bring value to other people and we cannot just copy on the basis that they are better for us. Even if we try to learn from others, we must be prepared and be confident to chart out our own way to have our own unique value propositions. And that is how we will continue to go forward. At this point in time, I do not think this partnership coming to its natural checkpoint, will have any implications for any of the other partnerships that we are in or exploring with others. As I have mentioned in my Parliamentary Question reply, actually for every partnership, we have milestones to check to make sure that both parties find it mutually beneficial for both of us to continue that relationship. And at times, when it comes to a natural conclusion, we must be prepared to chart our own way forward, develop our own unique value proposition so that we can even be more attractive to other partners who would want to work with us and that we must continue to work together.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I thank Ms He for her two supplementary questions. First question: what other options have we considered? In fact, the President of NUS, Prof Tan Eng Chye had laid it out in his op-ed. There are various options to consider but the most important thing is to remember what are the guiding considerations in deciding on any option. There are two guiding considerations. One, to make sure that we develop a generation of students that are much more global in their perspective, much more able to apply interdisciplinary approach to problem-solving. Second is to make sure that the whole experience in our Universities is much more inclusive, much more affordable, much more accessible to a wider number of students. It is based on these that we decided that amongst the various options, whether to continue the current model, to merge the USP with YNC or to even develop a separate model as someone who would have said, that amongst all these different models, NUS has decided that the best way to achieve both objectives that I have just illustrated is to combine the USP and the YNC programme together to make it much more affordable and accessible to many more students. On the Member's second supplementary question about our posture towards the international partnerships with other foreign universities, indeed, as we speak today, we are in the process of building up new partnerships with other universities across the world. And why are we doing so? For two reasons. First, we must make sure that we continue to learn from the best. I am personally not very taken by ranking per se, because even if a university is ranked high or low, there are elements in the university that we can learn from.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, let me deal with the supplementary questions in order. First, the scaling up of the education. The more interdisciplinary approach to the education system will not be just confined to the 500 students in the New College. Some of the best elements that we have been able to learn from these two traditions is that we will be able to scale this even to students beyond those that are going to be at the New College. So, yes, for a start, I think the Planning Committee is looking at 500 or a bit more for the New College, but there are elements of this that will actually percolate to the rest of the NUS ecosystem. That is the first one. Second, today, YNC takes in about 40% of its cohort from the international student community; NUS takes in about 10%. Going forward, for the initial planning parameters of the 500, what is the balance between the international and the local students will still have to be decided by the Planning Committee. I would look forward to NUS coming back to us on this. On the third issue about the admission policies for the next batch, yes, indeed, NUS is now making clear the offerings for the subsequent batch as early as possible so that they have the maximum time before they sign up for the different courses – for the next batch which will matriculate next year. On the fourth question, yes, NUS will definitely provide assistance to staff and faculty, as I have mentioned, for those who want to make alternative plans.”
“Beyond the operating grant, MOE has also provided capital funding for YNC's infrastructure and matched donations to YNC's endowment fund. When NUS consulted MOE on its plan to merge the YNC and USP programmes together to form the New College, we were supportive of this for two reasons. First, because this is in line with our broader push for Institutes of Higher Learning to expand their interdisciplinary approach to education. Second, because it will make education much more affordable to many more NUS students in keeping with NUS' ethos and mission as a public university. Prof Tan Eng Chye, President of NUS has articulated the reasons for the merger in his recent op-ed over the weekend. I think it makes sense for him to have the interests of the wider NUS student population and the whole NUS at the forefront of what he is doing with his leadership team in NUS. Merging YNC and USP to form the New College therefore allows NUS to combine the best elements of both sides and to achieve economies of scale to allow us to scale this experience to many more students in part or in full across NUS.”
“In future, students from the New College will be able to enjoy immersive residential and interdisciplinary experience and access a whole range of about 50 possible majors across NUS, enabling them to interact with a greater diversity of students. Third, compared to the USP experience today, the New College students will potentially have a richer residential life component. And fourth, the New College facilities and resources will be accessible to all NUS students. The Planning Committee is now engaging the various stakeholders and I look forward to their report. On the second supplementary question by Mr Patrick Tay about the cost issue, let me first reiterate that the overriding reason for this move, as NUS has shared, is the vital role of a broad-based interdisciplinary education and our job to reimagine the higher education and how it will fit into our country's plans going forward so that we can develop a new generation of students that are much more global in their perspective, much more able to connect the East and the West, the North and the South. So, that is our higher goal. When YNC was first established, the Government recognised that education in YNC will cost more because of its smaller size and unique education model. But we were prepared to invest in building the new facilities for YNC and we accepted this because we saw value in having a liberal arts college in our tertiary education system. On the specific numbers, on a recurrent basis, YNC is more costly. In 2020, MOE provided around $48 million to YNC in operating grants per year for about 1,000 students in YNC. On a per student basis, this was more than double that of a Humanities and Science student in NUS on average, reflective of the higher cost in education.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, as an Autonomous College within NUS, YNC has its own governing board and it has autonomy to make decisions relating to student admission, curriculum and non-curricular matters such as student development, faculty and staff matters, as well as resourcing expenditure, hiring and other administrative matters. YNC takes in about 250 students a year compared to NUS' intake of about 7,000 students a year. As YNC is a four-year residential programme, students live in and are part of the residential colleges that are exclusively for YNC students. YNC students primarily take modules that are offered by YNC but they may opt to take modules that are offered by other NUS faculties. YNC's facilities, such as the multi-purpose hall, fitness centre, computer laboratory, study areas and lounges are dedicated to YNC students' use and therefore, only accessible by them. The New College will be more integrated with NUS compared to YNC. It will not have a separate governing board but will instead have an international advisory panel. This will become clearer as the Planning Committee engages stakeholders and formulates its vision and plans for the New College in due course. For now, NUS expects the New College to be more inclusive and accessible to students in four ways. First, fees will be lower than YNC fees, making it a more affordable and more attractive option for more students. Second, the New College can attract students from across a wider range of discipline. Today, YNC students who want to benefit from the immersive residential and interdisciplinary experience in YNC can only choose their majors from 14 options.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I invite Members to ask their supplementary questions together after this; and if Members are satisfied with the answers, Members may wish to withdraw their Oral and Written PQs slated for 14 September or after.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, may I have your permission to answer all the Parliamentary Questions (PQs) related to the merger of Yale-NUS College (YNC) with NUS' University Scholars Programme (USP) to form the New College together; and these will include: (a) the initial batch of Oral PQs that Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin, Ms Foo Mee Har and Mr Shawn Huang first filed on 27 to 30 August for the Sitting of 13 September; (b) Oral PQs from Miss Cheryl Chan, Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim, Ms He Ting Ru, Mr Raj Joshua Thomas and Mr Leon Perera filed on 31 August and 1 September for the Sitting of 13 September; and (c) Oral PQs from Mr Gan Thiam Poh1, Ms Mariam Jaafar2,3 and Mr Patrick Tay4 filed on 31 August for the Sitting of 14 September; and (d) an Oral PQ by Ms Poh Li San5 filed on 1 September for the Sitting of 15 September.”
“Based on actual vaccination rates to date and appointment bookings, by end-July, over 90% of eligible students aged between 12 to 18 in MOE schools and Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) would have received at least their first vaccination dose. Over 70% of these students would have received both doses. This figure is expected to reach 80% by early-August and about 90% by early-September. To take full advantage of the June holidays, students were prioritised and invited to sign up for their vaccination from 1 June 2021. Students sitting for the GCE "N", "O" and "A" Level examinations or equivalent qualifications in the second- half of 2021 were the first to receive their invitations to be vaccinated. This gave graduating students greater flexibility to schedule their vaccination appointments in view of their upcoming national examinations. By end-July, over 80% of the graduating GCE "N", "O" and "A" Level cohorts would have received both doses. Students in schools and IHLs whose vaccination appointments are during school hours, as well as those feeling unwell from the side effects of the vaccine, are given time off and assistance to minimise the impact of missed lessons. In addition, there is currently ample capacity in our community Vaccination Centres to allow for students to readily change their appointments to minimise disruptions to their school schedules.”
“To better support its students, NTU is also expanding the coverage and increasing the frequency of its island-wide shuttle bus services to support students’ travel from pick-up points near their places of residence to campus.”
“NTU has residential hostels which cater to students who wish to live on-campus. Staying on-campus is not guaranteed by NTU except for Years 1 and 2 students. For Years 3 and 4 students applying for hall places, they are prioritised based on their participation in hostel activities and co-curricular activities (CCAs). This year, NTU saw exceptionally strong demand, with around 20% more applications for hostel places, compared to previous years. Some of these applications are from incoming new students while the rest are from existing students who wish to continue staying on-campus and those who had previously been staying off-campus but now wish to move into the NTU hostels. In view of the higher risk of COVID-19 transmission associated with communal living arrangements, MOE has been working closely with the Autonomous Universities (AUs) since last year to put in place strict Safe Management Measures (SMMs) in the hostels to safeguard the health and well-being of students. This had reduced hostel capacity to minimise risks of transmission. With vaccinations now well under way and the expected strong take-up, MOE has worked with the AUs to allow more students to stay in hostels, with strict SMMs continuing to be in place. With this increase, NTU has allocated more hostel places to students, including international students and those who would have been previously guaranteed a hall space under NTU’s two years’ guaranteed hall accommodation guideline. Students with exceptional circumstances are also considered on a case-by-case basis. For students who have not been allocated a hostel space and have difficulty finding housing options, NTU has been helping them to find alternative accommodation.”
“MOH is currently reviewing the emerging international and local data on COVID-19 booster vaccination. Should booster shots be recommended to sustain a high level of protection among our population, MOH will determine how these shots are made available based on public health considerations and availability of vaccine supply. If prioritisation is required, MOE will work with MOH to determine how to prioritise eligible groups in the education sector.”
“There continues to be healthy interest in the Direct School Admission for Secondary schools (DSA-Sec) this year. There were about 31,400 applications received from 12,100 unique applicants, which was a slight increase from last year. In 2020, 30,500 applications were received from 11,900 unique applicants. The 2021 DSA selection is being held between end-June to mid-September. Similar to the 2020 DSA exercise, all shortlisted applicants will have their interviews and selection trials conducted via video-conferencing in their own Primary schools, using a standardised set-up and equipment. This ensures the safety and well-being of students and school staff by preventing the intermingling of students across schools. Secondary schools will continue to take a holistic approach to DSA selection, considering not only the student's achievements and performance at the e-interviews and e-selection trials, but also their interest and passion for the talent area, their potential and personal qualities. During the e-selection, students will be asked to perform suitable tasks that demonstrate their attributes and potential in their talent area. The format and task will vary, depending on the talent area and the Secondary school's selection criteria. With insights gained from their experiences in implementing the 2020 DSA exercise, the DSA schools’ selection panels, made up of staff experienced in talent identification, will, collectively, evaluate each DSA applicant to ensure objectivity and select students who can most benefit from their development programmes. Offers will be made by schools after assessing the relative merits of all applicants and taking into account the applicant’s passion, potential, personal qualities and suitability for admission to the school.”
“But at this point in time, we do not yet have that less intrusive testing capability for the younger ones. So, we have to continue to work together to make sure that we keep our children and our schools safe. But coming back to that, I would like to appeal to everyone that we need to make this work on a sustainable basis. And that is why we need to work together. We can do certain things in the short term, we can scale up certain measures but the question is how do we make such measures sustainable, bearing in mind the interests of the children, the families and also the educators, which was what I had explained to the public last Friday. The last question Ms He Ting Ru asked about was infant care and the preschool. Indeed, we all understand it is harder for the children of the younger ages to keep their masks on and it will take extra effort for us to make sure that we apply the safe management measures, keeping their personal hygiene good and, at the same time, cohorting them to minimise the chances of transmission, in case something should happen, in case one of them should be infected with this. Having said that, it is very important for everyone again to work together so that a child who is sick or a child who is from a family who has someone ill and not verified yet, to avoid sending the child to the school or the preschool so that we minimise the chances of this spreading to other people. And we would need everybody's cooperation to make this happen.”
“And I think, to this extent, the adults also have a role to play, which is why we encourage everyone to try to get vaccinated as soon as possible. Having said that, it does not mean that those people who are vaccinated are no longer going to transmit or be carriers of the virus. But what it does mean is that the chances are reduced and the symptoms are much less. That is also one way to keep our younger children safe. Beyond that preventive step, we are looking at the next step which we have also done: to make sure that we organise our activities in such a way that can allow our children to interact, learn in a group, but not having too many of them mixing around and just in case anything happens, which means that we have tight cohorting in the schools, preschools, to minimise the chances of this happening. The next ring that we must implement is that upon the detection of any of the cases, quickly ring-fence the affected parties so that we can minimise the chances of this spreading to the rest. This is where parents can also play a part to work with the schools and the preschools to keep our children safe. If, for whatever reasons, a member of the family is ill, please do not send the children to school until we have verified that the children or the family will not pose a risk to the other students in the school. So, I think, collectively, we can also do that. Going forward, if and when the day comes whereby we have other testing capabilities that are less intrusive, that we can conduct on a mass scale, that will give us yet another tool for us to see how we can safely have more activities by testing more people more regularly, including perhaps the younger ones.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, there are three questions. Let me deal with the second one first and that is, when can we expect EC19V to make an announcement. That very much will depend on the work that they are doing and also from the work that the manufacturers of the vaccines are doing now, worldwide. So, at this point in time, I am unable to give a timeline as to when this work will be completed. But as far as we know, the work has started to trial this, to see if it is appropriate for children below the age of 12. Let me deal with the first question. Like Ms He Ting Ru, I think all of us, as parents, are, of course, concerned with the safety of our children under the age of 12 who are unable to be vaccinated yet. And we also know that we are unlikely to have a vaccine for those under 12 years old, anytime soon. Having said that, what we need to do is to make sure that we put in place the safe management measures for our children to live their life as normally as possible so that they can continue to grow up and continue learning as much as possible. We need to do this in a sustainable way; and I want to emphasise this: "sustainable way". We do not know how long this disease will continue to ravage the world. We do not know when the vaccine will come. Bearing this in mind, we need sustainable solutions in order to allow our children, especially those below the age of 12, to continue learning and growing in as normal an environment as possible. As I have mentioned in my speech, what are some of the things that we can do? One, we want to make sure that we observe all the safe management measures that we can practise: personal hygiene, cohorting of the classes to minimise the chances of our younger children getting it.”
“Taking reference from the national posture and working closely with parents, we will continue to work hard to keep our schools and students safe.”
“The EC19V will assess if it is suitable to administer these vaccines to children under the age of 12 and make recommendations to MOH at the appropriate time. Ultimately, managing COVID-19, whether nationally or in our school setting, is about managing risks and balancing trade-offs. Over time, we have developed a better understanding of the virus and how to live with it in our daily lives. As we move towards a new normal of COVID-19 as an endemic disease, we are making a conscious move to adopt an appropriate risk management strategy and collectively determine what level of risk is acceptable to us as a society. The past few months have given us more confidence that we can strike a better balance by taking a more targeted approach to ring-fence cases and their close contacts. For example, by only having affected classes, levels or schools on Home-Based Learning (HBL), rather than resorting to full HBL for everyone on a nationwide scale. This has allowed us to isolate affected students and staff, and not close all Primary schools, where most students are not yet eligible for vaccination. The alternative of full HBL on a prolonged basis comes at the cost of the learning and especially the social-emotional development of our young. And it takes a toll on the mental wellness, places additional stresses on educators, parents and students, especially when not all students have home environments that are conducive for HBL. The negative impact also falls disproportionally on lower-income families. We will continue to finetune how we manage school cases and ensure its sustainability as we transit towards living with COVID-19 as an endemic disease.”
“Mdm Deputy Speaker, unvaccinated persons, generally, are at higher risk of COVID-19 infection compared to vaccinated persons of the same age groups. For children, international experience and data on COVID-19 infections have thus far shown that the disease outcome is much less severe as compared to older adults and the elderly. In Singapore, we have so far observed mild disease in local cases aged under 12 years, even with the Delta variant. We are also fortunate thus far that for our children under 12 years who have been infected, none of them has required ICU care nor oxygen supplementation. To keep our children safe in the school environment, we implement stringent safe management and surveillance measures, and have adjusted the conduct of school activities where necessary. All staff in schools and preschools are required to wear masks. Students in school are also required to wear masks, while in preschools, either masks or face shields are strongly encouraged for children above the age of two. For mask-off activities in schools, extra safe management measures are taken. For example, physical education classes are conducted outdoors or in well-ventilated venues and in small groups based on national guidelines. Mask-off activities are currently suspended in preschools. Preschools and schools also emphasise good personal hygiene and social responsibility. Staff in preschools and schools are also prioritised for vaccination. These measures collectively mitigate the risks of infection in our students. The Expert Committee on COVID-19 Vaccination or EC19V as we call it, is monitoring on-going vaccination trials for children under the age of 12.”
“Our schools and IHLs have also trained Peer Support Leaders look out for their peers and alert a trusted adult when they notice that their peers are in distress. During the COVID-19 period, MOE introduced further measures to support our students. For example, teachers conduct check-ins to closely monitor their students’ well-being and classroom time is used to teach students how to cope with the pandemic. Schools and IHLs have also stepped up efforts to proactively identify and look out for vulnerable students and reach out to them to provide early support. Ultimately, a culture of care is important, as well as mutual concern for each other. MOE will continue to strengthen our measures and work closely with all stakeholders to help ensure the safety and well-being of our students.”