What's been done

OUTREACH TO FIVE-YEAR-OLDS

• Pamphlets explaining the benefits of preschool education are sent out to parents early in the year.
• Grassroots leaders visit homes and suggest solutions to problems that families face in sending their children to preschool. OUTREACH TO SIX-YEAR-OLDS
• Parents declare whether their children have attended preschool during the Primary 1 registration exercise.
• Four self-help groups - the Chinese Development Assistance Council, the Eurasian Association, Mendaki and the Singapore Indian Development Association - work with parents to get their children enrolled in kindergartens.
• Since 2006, a four-week Bridging Programme has been organised by the four self-help groups. Children who have missed preschool or are weak in their studies are taught reading skills and basic numeracy concepts, as well as familiarised with daily school routines. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE SCHEMES
• Families with a household net income of $1,800 and below can apply for the Kindergarten Financial Assistance Scheme to receive subsidies for kindergarten fees.
• Families with a net income of $1,000 and below may be given a start-up grant of up to $200 per child to pay for the initial expenses of attending preschool.
• Working parents with a monthly household net income of $1,800 and below can apply for the Centre-Based Financial Assistance Scheme for Childcare. A monthly subsidy of up to $340 will be given to each child in a family. This is on top of the government childcare subsidy for all working mothers, which is $300 per month.
• Families can also receive help from community groups and self-help groups' funds such as the ComCare Fund, Home Ownership Plus Education Scheme and Mendaki Education Trust Fund.

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Fewer kids skipping preschool

FOLLOWING an islandwide campaign by grassroots leaders and educators, the number of children who skip preschool has halved over the past two years, according to recently released statistics.

Last year, about 870 children missed out on preschool, which is increasingly seen as an essential part of a child's education. The numbers, announced in Parliament last week, are down from about 1,600 at the start of the previous year.

Many children who miss out on preschool come from non-English speaking families and have parents who are unable to teach them. Attending preschool betters their chances of doing well at primary school and beyond, as they learn English and numeracy skills, and develop other skills, such as how to interact with other children in their age group.

The improvement follows a concerted effort by grassroots leaders to educate parents about the importance of preschool.

Since 2007, officials from the Ministry of Education (MOE), Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, and grassroots organisations have been identifying families who hold back their children from attending preschool.

Grassroots leaders follow up by visiting these families, who often either cannot afford to send their children to preschool, do not understand the importance of an early childhood education or are neglectful because of problems like divorce.

Grassroots leaders suggest solutions, such as applying for cash help via financial assistance schemes set up to pay for preschool (see box).

These efforts have allowed the MOE to cut the percentage of children who do not attend preschool to 2.5per cent at the end of last year, from 4.2per cent at the beginning of 2007.

MOE director of education programmes Sum Chee Wah said: 'These efforts require a door-to-door approach. Grassroots leaders have to commit time and effort, and at times carry out more than one home visit, to ensure the child is enrolled in a preschool.'

Grassroots leader Robert Tay, 41, of the Long Vale Residents' Committee in Bedok Reservoir View, has been carrying out home visits since 2007.

The 41-year-old, an assistant manager at an independent financial advisory company, said half the battle is getting parents to understand the importance of preschool. Some still have the entrenched perception that it is all about play.

He said: 'It is hard to change their mindsets if they don't believe in preschool.'

Mr Tay helped six-year-old Fitri Nur Fadillah Rosli to enrol at a PAP Community Foundation kindergarten branch in Fengshan this month. She missed a year of kindergarten last year because her parents could not afford the fees, which are about $100 a month.

Her father, Mr Rosli Idris, who lost his job as an operations supervisor with a building and maintenance company last March, said Mr Tay helped him understand the importance of an early start.

'I thought I should try my best to get her a place in kindergarten,' he said.

After applying for subsidies, the family now pays about $40 a month for the youngster's school fees.

While getting more children into preschool is a step in the right direction, educators said primary schools should follow up by closely monitoring the progress of children who are late in entering preschool, or who miss it altogether.

Said Seng Kang Primary School principal Lim Lan Chin: 'These children face two problems - they are slower in picking up language and mathematics literacy skills, and may not be socially ready for primary school.'

'To me, the priority is to help the children be socially ready. They have to feel comfortable interacting within a community. It is paramount to help them to start school as happy learners.'

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Pre-school centre spells out its method

I REFER to Monday's letter by Ms Lindy Ong, on the name change from NTUC Childcare to My First Skool and her concerns on our approach to preschool education ('NTUC shouldn't encourage mis-spelling'). I would like to clarify and elaborate on My First Skool's early childhood education approach.

In My First Skool, we avoid over-emphasis on absolute correctness, mechanics and memorisation when teaching young children to write. A quality preschool education, to us, ignites a young child's love for learning. It builds an all-compassing foundation for a child's intellectual, emotional, physical and character development, and goes beyond correcting errors.

Studies show that children commonly invent spellings for words by using what they know about letters, sounds and spelling patterns to spell words as well as they can. As Mr Charles Read, an acclaimed linguist, puts it, 'learning to spell is not a matter of memorising words, but a developmental process that culminates in a much greater understanding of English spelling than simple relationships between speech sounds and their graphic representations'.

Hence, we accept children's invented spelling to help them to express their ideas confidently. It is a progress towards standard spelling. They will spell incorrectly in their learning process, but they must not be fearful of making mistakes. Of course, our teachers will help them learn to spell.

In learning to spell correctly, tapping visual memory through seeing and using words is more effective than getting young children to memorise unrelated lists of words and rules. Therefore, our inhouse curriculum provides opportunities for purposeful writing, especially in five- and six-year- olds, such as writing messages, signs, letters and stories.

Our print-rich environment models the spelling of common sight words such as 'go', 'they', 'like'. Children are encouraged and guided by teachers to go to the classroom's word board to check the spelling if they need to. Language games also promote young children's awareness of word families, phonics and spelling.

Through frequent writing experiences, children transit to the next stage where they learn to recognise common patterns and structures in words and begin to use those patterns in their writing.

Confident and happy children are better prepared to embrace what life brings.

My First Skool aims to nurture young children holistically though our balanced curriculum. We invite Ms Ong, as well as interested individuals, to contact My First Skool directly. Our early childhood education experts are happy to share more on our curriculum and teaching methods.

Ho Yin Fong (Ms)
Deputy CEO, NTUC First Campus

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NTUC shouldn't encourage mis-spelling

AS EDUCATORS specialising in creative and analytical learning, we are perturbed by NTUC's rationale for its decision to change the name of its childcare centres to My First Skool. Last Thursday's report, 'New look & logo', explained that the group decided to use a mis-spelling of 'school' in the name to reflect its philosophy, which includes encouraging children to be creative and not penalising them when they make mistakes such as spelling errors.

The rationale shows a lack of understanding of the link between correcting errors and stifling creativity. Correction of spelling mistakes need not have a negative effect. In fact, there are important reasons to make students aware of their errors.

There are also many ways to correct mistakes without students regarding correction as a penalty.

Young students who form a habit of bad spelling take a long time to unlearn their unchecked errors. They face problems in school where accuracy in spelling is seen (understandably) as important. Preschool education, apart from encouraging students' creativity, should also prepare them for primary school.

Imagine a group of young children whose spelling errors are not corrected for fear of stifling their creativity. When they enter primary school they will be surprised and even upset at the expectations of accurate spelling. Why create the painful need to relearn?

Educational pedagogy recognises the need for creativity but also emphasises the critical role of accuracy. In the very young, imaginative spelling like 'skool' only confuses rather than encourages creativity. The very young need to understand that when it comes to rules (spelling rules, grammar rules), accuracy and precision are important.

Of course, adults who have mastered the rules of language can effectively play with rules to achieve clever, creative effects.

When it comes to encouraging accuracy without stifling creativity, teachers can employ a variety of methods. One example is where teachers encourage students to first write without worrying about spelling so story flow or creativity is not hindered.

Once the ideas and logic in their pieces of writing have been applauded, teachers bring attention to spelling inaccuracies in the works and help the students correct them. Students do not resent correction if they know the value of their work has already been recognised.

Students depend on teachers to lead the way, to guide them to good learning habits, to promote healthy learning styles. As teachers, we should not mistakenly think we are encouraging creativity by not correcting errors.

Lindy Ong (Ms)
Director
Creative Horizons Language Centre

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South West CDC's assistance schemes

Centre-based Financial Assistance Scheme for Childcare (CFAC)

• What: Provides childcare fee assistance to low-income families who want to place their children in childcare centres so that the mothers can work.
• Who can apply: The child must be younger than six years old, a Singapore citizen or permanent resident, and attending a registered childcare centre. The mother must be working, intending to find work, or be in a skills training programme within three months of the date she applies for the subsidy, which ranges from $50 to $250. Student Care Fee Assistance (SCFA)
• What: Provides fee assistance to parents who place their children in non-profit Student Care Centres (SCCs) for before- and after-school programmes, so that mothers can work.
• Who can apply: The child at the centre must be between the ages of seven and 14 and in school. At least one parent must be a Singapore citizen or permanent resident. The mother or single father must be working full-time or have a regular part-time job. The combined gross income of both parents must not exceed $2,500. Home Ownership Plus Education Scheme (Hope)
• What: Helps young low-income families and their children break out of the poverty cycle. The benefits include educational bursaries for the children from preschool to university, and a housing grant of $50,000, paid in annual instalments into the mother's CPF account to help pay the mortgage. Also available are a training grant of up to $10,000 per family to enable the parents to attend skills training, a one-off utilities grant of $1,000, and cash incentives ranging from $6,000 to $9,000 to help the couple with family planning.
• Who can apply: Married couples with one or two children; either one must be Singaporean; have a monthly household income of $1,500 or below; wife is 35 years or below and husband is employed. This scheme is also extended to widows. Kindergarten Financial Assistance Scheme (KiFAS)
• What: Subsidises 90 per cent of monthly kindergarten fees, up to $82 per month, whichever is lower. Families with a net monthly household income of $1,501 to $1,800 can get 70 per cent subsidy up to a cap of $65 a month for kindergarten, or $51 a month for nursery. Households with income of not more than $1,000 can get a start-up grant of up to $200 per child for the initial costs of kindergarten, like uniforms and registration fees.
• Who can apply: Children who are Singapore citizens or permanent residents. They must be attending a K1 or K2 programme (at least three hours long) or a nursery programme (at least two hours long) in an eligible non-profit kindergarten; and the family's monthly household income must be $1,800 or below. NTUC Fairprice Food Vouchers
• What: Provides food relief vouchers for low-income residents to defray basic household expenses. Given in place of or to supplement financial assistance to the needy.
• Who can apply: Granted on a needs basis. Interim Coping Package for Economic Downturn (iCOPE)
• What: Provides interim financial assistance, retrenchment workshops - a motivational workshop and recruitment exercise to help retrenched workers build resilience, and enable them to rebound from the impact of the economic downturn - and NTUC food and utilities vouchers to help tide needy and retrenched residents over their difficulties. Usually granted for one to three months.
• Who can apply: The resident must be a Singapore citizen or permanent resident and show documentary proof of retrenchment. The combined gross household income must also not exceed $2,500.

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