Lee Chiaw Meng
Singapore
“" I think it is an opportune time for the Minister to examine the whole issue of statutory contributions rather than its individual components.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, may I seek clarification from the First Deputy Prime Minister. This is related to a certain provision in the Companies Act. I believe that section 69N of the Companies Act empowers a company to write to a member of the company to disclose the beneficial ownership of the shares.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I disagree. Is the Minister, therefore, saying that the HDB policy and the PWD policy is this: "We will cross the bridge when we come to it."? With such a policy they will not consider building any road until they have built a housing estate or until a big traffic jam occurs.”
“Sir, I believe the present differential between the Upper Timescale and the Superscale 'H' grades is about 33%. Whilst I appreciate the Minister's contention to retain the distinction between the Timescale officers and the Superscale officers, would not the Minister consider that 33% is too big a gap?”
“I think the best strategy s for us to adopt whatever development that is carried out elsewhere and provide our own innovations to it. The third question the Member asked is how successful we have been in developing Singapore into a brain and service centre, Sir, it is a bit difficult to quantify.”
“To reduce opportunity for cheating, the Bill requires instruments used for trade to be tested by an inspector of Weights and Measures and manufacturers and repairers of weighing instruments to be licensed. Further, shortweight and misrepresentation of goods sold will be regarded as an offence.”
The complete record
Every one of 341 lines we hold for Lee Chiaw Meng, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 6 of 7.
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I fully agree with the Member for Punggol. Unfortunately we cannot yet locate an ideal site for the Singapore Polytechnic. Of this $1½ million, not all will be lost when the Polytechnic moves to the new site - if we ever locate one - because the present facilities are of a movable nature. Incidentally, there is a vocational institute in Punggol Constituency.”
“Sir, to meet the increasing demand for technicians as a result of our industrialisation programme, there is a need to expand the School of Industrial Technology at the Polytechnic. As we are all aware, the Polytechnic is at present sited at Prince Edward Road, and it has no room for expansion. The only alternative is to put up additional buildings to cope temporarily with the increasing intake of students. Consequently the Polytechnic obtained permission to use the land opposite its present site for the purpose of putting up additional temporary structures for a workshop, draughting room, offices, and lecture rooms. The Polytechnic has agreed that emphasis in the teaching should be aimed at practical application rather than theoretical principles. This has resulted in the introduction of a new course known as the General Certificate of Industrial Technology. The intake for this particular course has increased substantially for the coming year. This has necessitated the provision of additional workshop and laboratory facilities, and additional equipment will be required for the new course. It is estimated that about $1.5 million will be required for works and buildings, and another $1 million approximately will be required for furniture and equipment. In addition, a sum of about $76,000 is needed to compensate the Ministry of Interior and Defence for vacating the land opposite the Polytechnic.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the building for the Institute will be completed by April next year.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Singapore Technical Institute will provide courses at craft-technician level, which I have explained earlier: there will be courses in mechanical engineering practice, applied electronics, furniture production, electrical craft technician, refrigeration, air conditioning, and engineering drawing. All these courses leading to the award of a Craft Technician Diploma which, as I have explained earlier, is slightly lower than that of a Technical College. Polytechnic and the Ngee Ann Technical College, in the sense that the courses that these Colleges conduct have a slightly higher theory content than those of the Singapore Technical Institute. The Singapore Technical Institute at the present moment is functioning temporarily in the Singapore Vocational Institute at Balestier Road. Proposals for its future development have been finalised, and it has been decided to house the Singapore Technical Institute permanently at a site provided near the MacPherson Housing Estate, which was formerly earmarked for the MacPherson Vocational Institute. Within this same complex, it will also house the Technical Department of the Teachers' Training College. As the Singapore Technical Institute was only established at the beginning of 1969, it has not produced any graduates yet. The present enrolment is 240, and when the Institute is fully operational on completion of the new building, it will have a maximum enrolment of 1,000 full-time and 1,000 part-time students.”
“In the case of academic/vocational schools, the conversion is of a slightly different nature. Since 1969 we have abolished all vocational schools and integrated them with the neighbouring academic schools into a bilateral school, which is a school consisting actually of two streams, one technical and the other academic. This will allow both streams of education to come under the same administrative head. And the vote asked for is to provide additional facilities to enable the student to go right up to Technical III and IV levels in the technical stream. Mr Ng Kah Ting: Sir, in that case, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I am not surprised that explanatory notes on this conversion are not found in the Development Estimates, because they are all contained in a booklet which was tabled in Parliament last year. In this booklet, entitled One Year of Technical Education, we did lay down the proposed reorganisation whereby all boys and 50 per cent of the girls in Secondary I and II are required to go for three hours' training per week in metal work together with either woodwork or basic electricity. As such, we have to provide sufficient workshops to cater for this new subject that has been introduced for the first time in the secondary school curriculum. As most of the academic schools do not have a work. shop, and as this subject requires only three hours per week of training, we find it is better to locate all the facilities in one central place to be known as a centralised workshop to cater for a cluster of schools in that area. There are some 14 administrative units of centralised workshop, each of which will consist of four metal, two woodwork and two electricity workshops, and will cater for some 3,200 students. The same set-up goes for the Multi-Purpose school which was first established in 1964. This, school provides, in addition to a classroom and science laboratory, facilities for art and craft work, domestic science teaching and technical education. This will enable all students to be educated according to their interest, ability, and aptitude. With the introduction of this new workshop training in Secondary I and II curricula, it was decided that the technical workshop at these Multi-Purpose schools should be converted into a centralised workshop to cater for Secondary I and II academic school students living in that area.”
“Sir, the vocational institute will teach more "how" and the technical institute will teach more "why". They differ in the skill and theoretical content of a particular trade. The technical institute will train craft technicians at a level which is slightly below that of a technical college and the vocational institute is for the training of craftsmen.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, actually I used the term "Vocational Institute" and not "Vocational Training Institute". With the introduction of the modular system of training at the beginning of this year, all the various types of training institutes have become unified into one type. In fact, all of them will henceforth be referred to as vocational institutes where instruction in a vocation will be given to the trainees.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, this sum is provided to pay for the land which belongs to the Housing and Development Board. It has been taken over by the Ministry of Education for the development of the Vocational Institute at Bukit Merah.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, some of the reports will be published. However, those which are usually of a survey or service nature will be very short and they will not interest anyone except the Ministry of Education Headquarters.”
“- that the Research Unit has a very important role to play in shaping our educational system. In fact, one of the tasks which this Research Unit is undertaking is to make a manpower study of the shipbuilding and repairing industry, the electronics industry, the examination and analysis of the existing programme on technical education and training, and to make recommendations for the long-term requirements of Singapore. These are some of the many duties which the unit is carrying out now.”
“I wish to thank Members for their very kind words about the Research and Statistics Unit, and their appreciation of the important role this unit has to play in the development of our educational system. 4.30 p.m. I must apologise for the fact that the work of the Research Unit has not been made known to Members. The reason is that it was formed only a year ago. I have a list here showing some 20 or more duties it is performing. Looking at it, we can see that it includes the analysis of the Chinese Secondary IV examination results, the vocational aspirations of school leavers, the study of curriculum and so on. The Research Unit also serves as the secretariat to the manpower group which I have formed recently; it co-ordinates the work of some half a dozen organisations involving manpower data collection and study. It is also involved in the carrying out of tests for the channelling of Secondary II students to Technical III classes and so on. It is also concerned with the study of the professional aspects of the teaching of the second languages, etc. As for the specific question raised by the Member for Katong, I can assure him that this unit enjoys a very good degree of independence. It is responsible to the Minister directly through me, and it does not have interference from any of the administrators. On the question of spotting of talent, I must admit that this has been the preoccupation of all educationists for centuries throughout the world. I can assure Members that we are also preoccupied with this particular problem. I cannot agree more with the Member for Punggol - unfortunately he is not here - Mr Ng Kah Ting at this point entered the Chamber.”
“Mr Teong Eng Siong asked the Minister for Communications whether and what action has been or is being taken against unscrupulous vendors who have unreasonably raised the price of crash helmets since the introduction of legislation making it compulsory for the holder of a provisional licence to wear a crash helmet while driving a motorcycle.”
“Sir, it is regretted that a certain amount of confusion arose over the introduction and subsequent suspension of the use of cards to mark the attendance of pupils at extra-curricular activities. The original intention was to introduce a system of recording attendance without involving expenditure for a trial period, at the end of which a decision would be taken whether a standardised printed card should be introduced. Only then would a circular on the subject be issued to schools. Unfortunately, owing to the lack of precise instructions, there was confusion over the conduct of the experiment and. a telephone message had to be relayed to schools to suspend the trial use of attendance cards pending further instructions. The Physical Education Advisory Committee of my Ministry is currently studying the problem and reviewing the whole scheme of awarding marks for extra-curricular activities. The revised scheme will ensure that, whilst pupils are encouraged to participate in a variety of extra-curricular activities, there is no excessive participation at the expense of their academic achievement and progress. Marks will be awarded fairly to reflect the effort put in and the quality of the performance. Such marks will be recorded in the report books of the pupils and converted into grades. The final grades obtained in extra-curricular activities in Secondary Four can be used in place of the grades obtained in an academic subject in the School Certificate Examination for purposes of applying for admission to Pre-University classes. CRASH HELMETS (Action against price increase) 6.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, when there is an increase of enrolment of students, we will consider the question of setting up Pre-University classes in these two constituencies. EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES RECORD CARDS FOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS (Particulars) 5. Mr N. Govindasamy asked the Minister for Education (a) when his Ministry decided to introduce Extra-Curricular Activities Record Cards for students in secondary schools, and what is the cost involved in some of the schools for printing those cards; (b) whether any officer or group of officers were assigned by his Ministry to work out the details for the implementation of such a scheme; and, if not, what arrangements have been made to ensure the uniformity in the maintenance of such records in every secondary school; (c) why his Ministry considers it not necessary to issue a circular when introducing such an important scheme; and (d) what steps have been taken to rectify the confusion that has been created among the principals and staffs of secondary schools by conflicting telephone instructions on the introduction and subsequent cancellation and reintroduction of such scheme.”
“Sir, our policy is to centralise Pre-University education as far as possible so that our limited resources of specialist teachers, teaching aids and other facilities may be used to the maximum advantage. At present, Pre-University education is available in the National Junior College and in 44 Government and Government-Aided secondary schools. The three secondary schools in the Sembawang and Nee Soon Constituencies had a combined enrolment of 834 Secondary Four students in 1969, of whom about 100 are expected to qualify for admission to Pre-University classes in 1970. In view of the need to distribute them according to language media and in Arts and Science courses, four Pre-University I classes would have to be formed for this small number of students, each class having an average enrolment of only about 20 students. This is not an economically-sized class to run, and there is therefore no case for setting up a Pre-University centre within the two constituencies. All the 100 students will be found places in Pre-University classes as close to their homes as possible.”
“Even if forms are distributed to parents for entry, they have to be verified by the schools concerned. Therefore, the documents have to be required by the school principals. PRE-UNIVERSITY CLASSES IN SEMBAWANG AND NEE SOON SECONDARY SCHOOLS 4. Mr Teong Eng Siong asked the Minister for Education whether he will consider the conducting of pre-university classes in any one of the three secondary schools in the Sembawang and Nee Soon Constituencies for students residing in those Constituencies who have completed their secondary education.”
“experts now attached to the State and City Planning Office to examine our long-term needs in public transport and to recommend ways and means to meet them, I do not think there is a need to set up yet another committee for the purpose, as indicated by the Member for Punggol. PAYA LEBAR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (Adequacy of facilities) 6. Mr Ng Kah Ting asked the Minister for Communications (a) whether the present facilities at the Paya Lebar International Airport are sufficient to cope with the anticipated increase in air traffic in the 1970s; and (b) whether there are any plans to meet the anticipated increase in passenger traffic with the introduction of the Jumbo Jets.”
“The Board submitted its first interim report to the Minister in February this year and Government's acceptance of most of the Board's recommendations was announced in his speech at the opening ceremony of the Transport and Communications Exposition on 1st August. The most important recommendation, being the compulsory wearing of crash helmets by motor cyclists, scooterists and their pillion-riders, is being implemented in stages as from November 1969. The Board is currently studying the problem of uniform legislation for bus companies in Singapore and also the possible re-routing of existing bus routes so as to provide more efficient and direct services for commuters from their homes to their places of work. As for long-term solutions of our transport problems, this needs the attention of better qualified professional experts and planners. Two senior officials from the London Transport Board have already submitted "a preliminary study of possible new measures to improve and expand Singapore's mass transport facilities", which report is being examined by officials from my Ministry and those from the Ministries of National Development and Finance. Furthermore, a team of United Nations advisers attached to our State and City Planning Office have in the past two years been studying and assessing Singapore's long-term needs in public transport, including the long-range aspects of providing a mass transit system for Singapore. In view of the existence of the Transport Advisory Board to find short-term solutions to our transport problems and the assistance of U.N.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the problem of a brain drain from the Republic has not been seriously studied because it is not regarded as a serious one at present, particularly in regard to scientists and technologists going to other countries. Persons going abroad for further education or specialised training are either government scholars or private students. For government scholars in respect of whom proper records are maintained, the percentage who have failed to return to Singapore in the past on completion of a course is insignificant. For private students, no specific records are maintained. But the number who choose not to return has not been noticeable. This is perhaps because the number is small. Appropriate measures will be taken to minimise the brain drain from the Republic should the problem become serious. PUBLIC TRANSPORT SYSTEM (Committee to review) 5. Mr Ng Kah Ting asked the Minister for Communications whether he will consider setting up a committee to review the public transport system in the Republic; to assess public needs in the next five years, and to make recommendations. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communications (Mr Phua Bah Lee) (for the Minister for Communications): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Member for Punggol may recall that in July 1968, the Minister for Communications announced in Parliament that he would establish a Transport Advisory Board to study ways and means to improve the present public transport service in Singapore. This Board was, in fact, set up the following month and has since been holding regular monthly meetings.”
“It appears to be so in certain subjects like English as a second language. BRAIN DRAIN FROM SINGAPORE 4. Mr N. Govindasamy asked the Minister for Education whether he is aware of any brain drain from the Republic as a result of persons going abroad for further education or specialised training and failing to return to Singapore on completion of their courses; and if he will consider taking steps to minimise this brain drain.”
“Sir, I would appreciate it if the Member for Telok Blangah could repeat his question. Mr Speaker: Mr Govindasamy, can you rephrase your question, please?”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, there are certain subjects which are not "hot favourites" with the teachers. As a result, certain incentives and bonuses have to be provided.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the reason why 17 teachers have done more than one such course is that they find that they are subject teachers for more than one subject and it is in their own interest to up-grade themselves. There are cases of drop-out of teachers who have undertaken in-service courses and who are not utilised for teaching the subjects in which they have been trained. In such cases, their incremental credits have been withdrawn. As to the last part of the supplementary question regarding the bonus scheme which my Ministry has proposed, the details are being worked out and a final decision on the matter has not been made yet.”
“They were told to keep watch on the applicability of the topics chosen and to note particularly any possible shortcoming in the syllabuses. All syllabuses are to be reviewed and, if necessary, revised for the second term. Since the syllabuses were being tested, it was thought unwise to prescribe textbooks for the students. However, teachers were required to use certain textbooks for their own use in the classroom situation in order to provide a control of the testing period. For certain subjects, teachers drew from several textbooks to find the most suitable material. By 29th March, every syllabus had undergone the planned testing and evaluation process under actual operational conditions and was redesigned accordingly. At the present moment, the syllabuses are being studied for detail and accuracy. With the issue of the revised syllabuses in the second term. all the students attending these classes will be required to buy certain textbooks which are considered to meet the requirements of the programme. The period of being without textbooks is thus coming to an end. However, the Member for Sembawang should be assured that there are certain merits in not prescribing textbooks, because teaching in such a situation would become pupil-orientated and not textbook-orientated.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, first, I have to point out that my Minister is fully aware of what is going on in the Adult Education Board. I must also point out that plans for the special classes were made towards the end of last year. Within a short period of 2½ months, after the decision to run these special classes was made, the Adult Education Board has successfully launched these classes for 5,000 students, which is a very outstanding achievement. Since these special classes would cater for students who were unsuccessful more than once in the Primary School Leaving Examination, it was agreed that the programme should lay emphasis on craft training and the acquisition of technical skills. While there was provision for academic subjects, e.g., the Language of instruction, Science, Mathematics and Civics, the content of these subjects would relate to the practical and real-life situation and not the abstract. Syllabuses were drawn up for each subject to indicate the items to be taught, the skills to be developed and the attitudes to be inculcated. Since the programme was being launched for the first time, it was felt that the syllabuses should be considered experimental, to be modified and adjusted in the light of actual experience gained in the teaching situation. Syllabuses drawn up covered (i) Language, (ii) Mathematics and Science, (iii) Civics, (iv) Dressmaking and Tailoring, (v) Homecraft and Cookery, (vi) Metalwork and (vii) Woodwork. Prior to 13th January, 1969, before the classes commenced operations, supervisors, senior assistants and teachers of the special classes were briefed on the objectives of the programme and the syllabuses introduced to them.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the appointment of relief teachers does not require a selection board. The work of the relief teachers is under constant review by the principals who make reports on their performances. There is no question of a renewal of contract, because no question of the offer of a contract arises. ADULT EDUCATION BOARD (Textbooks for special classes) 11. Mr Teong Eng Siong asked the Minister for Education whether he is aware that there are still no textbooks prescribed for the special classes of the Adult Education Board this year, and if he proposes to prescribe them.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the criteria for recruiting the relief teachers depend on the type of teachers required, if a teacher is required to teach a certain subject, a relief teacher with that special qualification will be recruited.”
“Mr Speaker. Sir, (a) The number of daily-rated relief teachers employed by my Ministry during 1968 is 2,302. (b) The period of employment of these teachers varies. In the case of relief teachers appointed to replace permanent teachers called up for National Service, the period of employment will be approximately two years: replacements for permanent teachers on maternity leave will be employed for a period of 42 days: as for replacements for permanent teachers who are on long medical leave (other than maternity leave), the period of employment will depend on how soon the permanent teachers can resume duty after niedical leave: as for replacements filling pure vacancies, the period of employment depends on how soon the vacancies can be filled substantively. (c) The number of daily-rated relief teachers employed by my Ministry from 1-1-69 to 18-3-69 is 1,000. Of this number, 268 have since resigned, thus leaving only 732 still in the service. The answer to what is the average period of employment is similar to (b) above. (d) The employment of daily-rated relief teachers is necessary on account of the following reasons: (i) To relieve permanent teachers who have been drafted into full-time National Service for a period amounting to two years or more. (ii) To relieve permanent teachers who are on long medical leave or maternity leave. (iii) To fill vacancies pending recruitment.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, as far as I am aware, all classes in Government primary schools are filled either be regular teachers or relief teachers who arc paid on a day-to-day basis. Teachers are posted to primary schools in accordance with the approved staffing quota. As second language teachers are included in the quota, some schools have to make use of them as form teachers. Whilst classes may be without first language teachers as form teachers, nevertheless lessons are carried out according to the class time-tables. As for the second and third parts of the question, there is now a shortage of regular teachers as vacancies arising out of terminations, resignations, dismissals, retirements, and increase of classes can only be filled in May/June 1969 when students of the full-time course at the Teachers' Training College will be available for employment. In the meantime, all vacancies are filled by relief teachers. DAILY-RATED RELIEF TEACHERS 10. Mr N. Govindasamy asked the Minister for Education (a) what was the number of daily-rated relief teachers employed by his Ministry during 1968; (h) what was the average period of employment of such teachers during 1968; (c) what is the number of daily-rated teachers employed from 1st January, 1969, up to the latest convenient date and their average period of employment; and (d) why is it necessary to employ the large number of daily-rated teachers for long periods.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I do not wish to take up the issue of teachers' salaries. But I would like to assure the Member for Telok Blangah that my Ministry is looking into various ways to reduce the burden of parents. In fact, the Department of Technical Education is now setting up a central pool of drawing boards which will reduce the burden of the students in this respect. We are also conducting a research into the number of drop-outs. or rather the wastage of education at the secondary level. In fact, by doing this, we hope, coupled with planned enrolment exercise, to be able, with a standstill budget, to improve - I will not say improve because we have reached the optimum stage - but to provide more or better educational facilities for people in the lower income group. Finally, may I quote a figure for the Member for Telok Blangah - that for a person earning $150 or $200 a month, the education cost for his children amounts to only about five per cent of his income. The Question having been proposed at 6.15 p.m, and the Debate having continued for half an hour, Mr Speaker adjourned the House without Question put, pursuant to the Standing Order. Adjourned accordingly at Fifteen minutes to Seven o'clock p.m. WRITTEN ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS Tuesday, 8th April, 1969 ABORTIONS 1. Mr L. P. Rodrigo asked the Minister for Health (a) how many abortions have been carried out by the Hospital Authorities from 1st January, 1967, up to the latest convenient date; and (b) how many cases of abortions have been treated or recorded by or reported to the Hospital Authorities, and how many of such cases have been fatal, during the same period.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, we are talking about the high cost of secondary education. Eighty-five per cent of the cost of secondary education goes to teachers' salaries. [Interruption].”
“I recall that when I was a secondary student, I paid $15 per month for fees while my teachers were drawing a salary of a hundred over dollars. Now they are getting over $1,000 and the school fees have come down to $4. Of course, the figure of 27 per cent does not include those students coming under social welfare relief cases. I must admit that I was unable to get this particular figure in time for this debate. Mr Speaker, Sir, due to the remarkable success of this Government in improving the social conditions of the nation particularly in the field of education. I am afraid some people have come to a stage where they are taking everything for granted. They expect things to be free. I must remind Members that nothing is free in Singapore. In fact, at very moment, the very air that we are breathing is being paid for. I also wish to inform Members that any further subsidy for secondary education has to be met by a corresponding cut somewhere else. Will the Member suggest that the teachers would volunteer to subsidise secondary education?”
“May I now come to the expenses borne by parents? As the Member correctly pointed out, parents pay $6 per month for their child's school fees and miscellaneous fees and every year pay some $60 on textbooks, exercise books, uniforms, etc. This works out to some $11 per month. May I ask the Member for Telok Blangah a question? Can anyone truly say that he has never foolishly wasted $11 per month if, in fact, that $11 can be wisely spent on the secondary education of his child? I also like to point out some wrong impressions the Member for Telok Blangah gave. First of all, remission of fees is for 15 per cent and not 10 per cent of the school student population. And in the less affluent rural areas, the percentage is much more. I also wish to point out that some 9.000 students are at present receiving bursaries at the secondary level, representing some six per cent of the student population at this level. In other words. a total of 21 per cent of the student population are not paying any fees. In 1968, 8,000 students obtained free textbooks; this makes up another six per cent. Therefore, 27 per cent of the student population at this level, one way or other, directly or indirectly, are being subsidised by the Government. This is over and above the $360 which the Government is paying for their education, I would like to draw the attention of the Member for Telok Blangah to the fact that while the cost of living has increased slightly - I will leave it to the Minister for Finance to contest the figure of 20 per cent which I recall was brought up in the last Budget debate the expenses borne by the parents of students at the secondary level have, in fact, decreased.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, for a moment, I thought the Member for Telok Blangah was going to give us new proposals whereby we can give everyone free secondary education. But, unfortu nately, they were not forthcoming. Before I reply to all the queries raised by the Member, may I just state some facts? In the past, the Ministry of Education had the largest share of the national budget. It amounted to nearly a quarter of the national budget. In fact, it is the highest in developing countries, if not one of the highest in the world. Even in Japan, it amounts to only 22 per cent. In the 1968 budget, of the $152 million allocated to the Ministry of Education, some $50 million was spent on secondary education. This does not include the cost of tertiary education, administration and the cost of training the teachers at the Teachers' Training College. The cost per student works out to $360 per student per annum. As far as Government is concerned, $1 out of every $4 is spent on education. The amount spent on a student also works out to about 15 per cent of the per capita Gross National Product for last year. Before I go on to the expenses borne by the parents, 1 would like to remind the Member for Telok Blangah, who, I believe, was a former committee member of the Singapore Teachers' Union, that our secondary school teachers at the present moment are working an average of 18 hours per week, which compares very favourably with secondary school teachers everywhere else who work an average of 22 hours per week. Their salary is one of the highest in the world and the highest in this region. In fact, I would like to add that some of the teachers and principals of secondary schools are drawing salaries much higher than those of Parliamentary Secretaries.”
“Inche Abdul Aziz Karim asked the Minister for Defence (a) how many Police officers have lost their service weapons from 1st January, 1968, up to the latest convenient date in 1969, and under what circumstances the weapons were lost; (b) how many of the lost weapons have been recovered; and (c) what disciplinary action has been taken against those officers who negligently or carelessly lost their weapons.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the award of bursaries and scholarships for post- secondary educational institutions is the responsibility of the Public Service Commission. The Secretariat of the Commission has informed me that the sum of $1,499,370 is available for the award of scholarships, bursaries and interest-free study loans to students in post-secondary educational institutions for the current financial year, which runs from January 1969 to March 1970. Worked on a proportionate basis the amount for this year is $1,199,500. The Member for Sembawang might like to know that last year a sum of $1,176,000 was made available for similar awards. The number of awards for this year will depend on the budgetted provision as well as on the number of applicants who have good records in academic work and extracurricular activities and who deserve financial assistance. The Member for Sembawang will appreciate that the actual number of awards to be made will only be known later after all the post-secondary educational institutions have admitted students for the 1968/69 session. As regards the basis of award of scholarships, bursaries and study loans, the Public Service Commission tells me this will vary with each type of award. President's scholarships and Merit scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic excellence in the Higher School Certificate Examination and on outstanding performance in extracurricular activities. Merit bursaries are awarded on the basis of merit alone irrespective of financial circumstances. On the other hand, special bursaries for Malays are awarded on the basis of financial need. Finally, interest-free study loans are awarded to students who are unable to get a scholarship or a bursary. POLICE OFFICERS (Loss of service weapons) 18.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, there are at present 15 Tamil-medium schools in Singapore. The teachers for these schools are recruited from amongst holders of the Government Tamil School Certificate and the Cambridge School Certificate with credit in the Tamil Language. They are trained in the Teachers' Training College in the Tamil medium. As a rule, the children who attend Tamil-medium schools are from Tamilspeaking families in the lower income group. Tamil-medium schools have been adhering to the common curriculum and syllabuses since 1960. Pupils from Tamil schools sit for the common Primary School Leaving Examination at the end of the six-year primary education and the Government Tamil School Certificate Examination at the end of the four-year secondary school education. The Government Tamil School Certificate has been recognised as equivalent to the Cambridge School Certificate for the purposes of employment in Government service since 1964. Since English is a compulsory second language in all Tamil schools, those in possession of a good Tamil School Certificate can compete with candidates from other streams of education for all Government jobs. They will be preferred, other things being equal, for jobs where a good knowledge of Tamil is essential. BURSARIES FOR STUDENTS OF HIGHER INSTITUTIONS OF LEARNING (Basis of awards) 17. Mr Teong Eng Siong asked the Minister for Education how many bursaries the Government intends to offer in 1969 to students in the University of Singapore, the Nanyang University, the Singapore Polytechnic and the Ngee Ann College; and the basis on which the bursaries will be awarded.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Member for Serangoon Gardens is correct in saying that the Vocational Guidance Unit should extend its activities beyond that of just counselling the pupils on job opportunities. I think the Member is aware that each school has a teacher responsible for the students' guidance on careers. The activities of this~ unit involve the dissemination of information on careers and job opportunities by news-letters, film slides, tapes, books, talks, etc. This is only part of its activities. The Vocational Guidance Unit has four types of services: information, diagnosis, orientation and counselling. The Vocational Guidance Unit will organise aptitude tests to ascertain the aptitudes of the Secondary II students as to their suitability for channelling into the technical or academic streams or into the Industrial Training Centre in 1970. A pilot project has been planned and will start operation in 1969 to conduct aptitude tests on pupils selected at random.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the bonuses in question are payable to non-Malay teachers who pass the Standard II and Standard III of the National Language Examinations conducted by the Ministry and the Permanent Examinations Board. The amounts payable to each teacher are $200 and $500 respectively. The award of these bonuses is to encourage non-Malay teachers to study the national language.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, relief teachers are short-time replacements for permanent teachers. The scheme of relief teachers was originally introduced to supply short-term replace ments for permanent teachers who go on maternity leave or medical leave exceeding four weeks. It has been subsequently extended to a few vacancies at the beginning of this year pending recruitment of teachers and also to cover replacements for teachers who are called up for national service. The qualifications of the relief teachers will depend on the qualifications of the teachers for whom they stand in. The qualifications of the various grades of relief teachers are as follows. The grad uate teachers are of two types - the qualified teachers and the under-qualified teachers. The qualified teachers are those graduates with a Diploma in Education and those non-graduates holding recognised teacher qualifications. The under- qualified teachers are university graduates without teaching qualifications or holders of the School Certificate, Senior Middle III or Government Secondary IV qualifications with three Credits, including a Credit in a language. As relief teachers are appointed as short-term replacements for the permanent ones, their duties are identical with those of the permanent teachers. For 1968, we have a total of 1,319 appointments of relief teachers.”
“--- which has both a building and a car park. As an alternative, the padang is available for use in the morning only by those schools. Mr Speaker, Sir, for 1969, this vote will not be used for payment of rent but, will be used to maintain the field in Farrer Park for extracurricular activities.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, hitherto, the vote was for two purposes: first, to pay the rent of a field belonging to the British Army which was, used by the Clementi School: and, secondly, to maintain the Shenton Way field for the use of Gan Eng Seng, Telok Ayer, Peck Seah, Ai Tong, Trafalgar, Yong Seng and Umar Palavar Schools. Both these uses have now ceased. Clementi School is now using the Pasir Panjang Primary School field, while the Shenton Way field is now occupied by the N.T.U.C. --- An hon. Member: That is correct.”
“Sir, the present remuneration of part-time teachers is unreasonably high, and we have to rectify it and put it on the same basis as and comparable with that of the full-time teachers engaged in the education service.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, first of all, I wish to thank the Member for Kampong Kembangan for his tribute to the work of the Adult Education Board. The Member is quite right in saying that the activities of the Board will be increased next year. In fact, there are many projects which will be implemented next year. Unfortunately, in view of the increased defence expenditure, economy has to be practised in many items of social expenditure, and the Adult Education Board is one of those which will be affected adversely. But with our vast experience, we feel that we can manage even with this reduction in grants. Sir, speaking for myself, I would definitely welcome a $2« million grant rather than $1.8 million, but these are the hard facts of life. However, I can assure the Member that the services provided by the Board will not be affected by this decrease in the vote. This will be met partly by a reduction in remuneration to part-time teachers and, in part, by an upward revision of some of the fees chargeable. With regard to the Malay students who are Singapore citizens or children of Singapore citizens, they will be granted a concession in that they need only pay half the rate of tuition fees, and for those who are attending special classes, they will be granted the same exemption.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the right hand of the Technical Education Department consists of a deputy director who is in charge of industrial training. 'This officer will be responsible for the organisation and running of the Vocational Institute, the Industrial Training Centres, the National Technical Institute, and he will also be involved in organising trade testing, apprentice training and in-branch training. In fact, it is proposed to form an advisory board for industrial training to replace the existing one at the Vocational Institute, and to work in co-operation and rapport with the industries and, for that matter, between these two deputy directors. Both of them are sharing the same room to make sure that they are in close contact.”
“Sir, the subhead refers to the Deputy Director in charge of institutional training. There are two Deputy Directors working under the Director of Technical Education. One is in charge of institutional training, and the other industrial training. Institutional training will involve the planning, administration and organisation of all training within the formal school system. It will involve the centralised workshops at Secondary III and IV levels of technical schools, the technical classes at pre-university level, the Teachers' Training College and also representation on the Board of the Singapore Polytechnic.”
“Sir, at present, there are no plans to convert the Kalaimagal Tamil School into a technical school.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the syllabuses are under constant review. With better facilities being available in our secondary schools, we will not only be teaching cookery and needlework but also, as the Member for Serangoon Gardens has said, home economics, the rudiments of sociology and other subjects. Of course, the Member is also aware of my Minister's speech on 12th December, 1968, that as from next year domestic science will be compulsory to all secondary female students.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I fully understand the Member's question. As I said, the questions are set by teachers who are specialists in their fields. They are graduate specialists teaching their respective .subjects. They have spent two years in the T.T.C, to be trained as teachers. Under the present system, such experiments as are necessary in practical questions are first tried out in the laboratory by those who set the practical side of the examination paper. This is to ensure that the experiments can be carried out. Of course, there may be a few instances where minor defects might arise. Perhaps the teachers, who have had so much train'ing themselves, will be able to answer and carry out the experiments faster than the students they teach. But remedial action is usually taken and such cases have always been reported to the examiners.”