School merger sparks online war of words

When two become one, the union can be welcomed - or it can spark a war of words.

When news broke out late last month that Chai Chee and Bedok Town secondary schools will merge at the start of the 2011 school year, an online 'war' did break out.

Students from both schools penned in their personal blogs remarks like 'shocking news'. Some were worried about studying with 'unknown students'.

One Chai Chee student who posted her views on her blog, which was eventually picked up by Stomp - The Straits Times' online portal - and several discussion forums, drew sharp responses.

She had said her schoolmates would 'suffer' after the merger.

One Bedok Town student told her to 'brush up' on her English 'before even criticising my school' while another student said she should go to another school if she was that unhappy.

In their responses to The Sunday Times, both schools - which are coed - said such initial reactions were not unexpected, given the students' loyalty to their schools.

They did not offer reasons for the merger and declined to reveal enrolment figures.

But a Ministry of Education (MOE) spokesman said a decision to merge schools is based on factors like proximity to each other and the combined enrolment.

She added that school mergers optimise resources and enable more students to have access to the latest school facilities.

Since 2007, eight new schools have resulted from mergers involving 16 primary and secondary schools.

Come 2011, Telok Kurau and Broadrick secondary schools will also be merging, said the MOE.

Mr Ang Hwee Khoon, principal of Chai Chee Secondary, said the school has counselled students involved in the blogs.

The students were reminded blogging should be done 'in a responsible manner, showing respect for other users of the Internet'.

A spokesman for Bedok Town Secondary said both schools are working closely together so the merger will be smooth and beneficial to all the students and teachers.

Ideas and suggestions from students and staff on how to bring about a seamless merger have been sought too.

The MOE said matters like the school uniform for the merged school will be decided later.

Meanwhile, despite the online brouhaha, some students from both schools said they were looking forward to the merger.

Chai Chee Secondary 1 student Subhan Elahi, 14, said he was excited because he will get to make more friends.

Subhan, who is from Pakistan, said there are now only two classes in his level.

Secondary 2 student Jessica Ho, 14, also from Chai Chee Secondary, was keen about studying in a new environment.

She said: 'Anyway, after Secondary 4, we will have to move to a new school, so it's good to get used to such new experiences now.'

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Australia to review education sector

Sydney - Australia announced a sweeping review of its A$15.5 billion (S$18.6 billion) international education industry yesterday, as India's Foreign Minister met students rattled by a series of attacks and study scams.

Education Minister Julia Gillard said former Liberal MP and diplomat Bruce Baird would head the review, which is aimed at shoring up the nation's third-biggest export industry.

It took a hit following outcry over violence against international students, particularly Indians. The problem has been exacerbated by claims of suspect education providers exploiting their clients, Australian newspaper the Age reported yesterday.

Ms Gillard said: 'Mr Baird will review the Education Services for Overseas Students Act and report back to the government with changes designed to ensure Australia continues to offer world-class quality international education in this challenging and changing environment.'

Mr Baird told the AAP newswire: 'We'll be looking at the general welfare of students who come to our shores, as well as issues such as 'Have we got dodgy operators?'' He added that he will also examine perceptions of racism plaguing Australia.

He will provide an interim report by November.

The review comes as universities face a financial crisis triggered by the faltering market for international students, the loss of millions of dollars in investment income and the axing of a full-fee programme for domestic students worth more than A$116 million, The Australian newspaper said.

The crisis has already led to job losses at a number of campuses, including the University of Melbourne which two weeks ago announced that 220 places would go as it sought to fill a A$30 million black hole, The Australian reported.

More than 20 per cent of the higher education sector's income is derived from overseas students. The big universities such as Sydney, New South Wales, Melbourne, Monash and Macquarie each have more than 10,000 international students on campus, paying on average between A$20,000 and A$30,000 a year.

Most universities expect some loss of revenue next year from the Indian student debacle and its ripple effect throughout the Asian region.

Canberra has given assurances that India's 95,000 students in Australia are safe, with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Foreign Minister Stephen Smith both meeting Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna last week. A series of attacks on Indian students in Sydney and Melbourne boiled over into street protests last month, amid accusations from students that police were not doing enough to halt the violence.

AFP

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Students join N-Day event at the Istana

PRESIDENT S R Nathan, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, with more than 220 civil servants from the President's Office and the Prime Minister's Office, marked National Day in a ceremony yesterday.

Also present were 58 students from the choir of Dunman High School.

Together, they sang the national anthem, recited the Singapore Pledge and sang Stand Up for Singapore at the Istana's ceremonial plaza.

The students also sang several songs such as Lenggang Kangkong and Home, and later, chatted with the leaders before refreshments at the Istana.

Separately, officers from several government agencies at The Treasury building attended a similar ceremony at their High Street office.

They include the ministries of Finance, Law, as well as Trade and Industry.

Led by Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is Minister in charge of the Civil Service and Defence Minister, the officers and children from the Canossaville Children's Home sang the national anthem and recited the Pledge.

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Overseas scholarship trio all set for police career

THREE young men took their first step towards careers in the police force yesterday by formally accepting the Singapore Police Force Overseas Scholarship.

Justin Ong Wei An, Jonathan Au Yong Kok Kong and Wong Keng Hoe, who are all 19, will soon be heading to prestigious universities in the United States and Britain for their undergraduate studies.

They were picked from among A-level school leavers keen to serve in the police force and who have also demonstrated outstanding academic performance and leadership qualities.

They received their scholarship awards from Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng in a ceremony at the Istana.

Mr Ong and Mr Au Yong are from Raffles Junior College, and Mr Wong, from Dunman High School.

Asked how his interest in police work arose, Mr Ong said: 'I used to watch Jackie Chan movies and Hong Kong serials and thought the roles of the policemen there were interesting and cool.'

He will read biochemistry at University College London.

Mr Au Yong will study ethics, politics and economics at Yale; Mr Wong will take up economics at the University of Chicago.

WENDY HUI

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S'pore booster for aviation skills

SINGAPORE will spend more than US$1 million (S$1.4 million) to train 180 civil aviation officials from developing countries over the next three years.

This is on top of the US$2.2 million that has already gone into Singapore-International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) fellowships for 370 officials since 2001.

The tie-up was renewed yesterday in a memorandum of understanding inked by Transport Minister Raymond Lim and ICAO head Roberto Kobeh Gonzalez.

For Singapore, putting resources into the training of foreigners was a show of its commitment to aiding human resource development in aviation, said Mr Lim.

At the event at the Singapore Aviation Academy, both he and Mr Kobeh stressed the importance of training to increase standards within the industry, even during a downturn.

Mr Lim said: 'Training and re- training are needed as the aviation world undergoes tremendous change to cope with the effects of the economic downturn and prepare for the eventual upturn.'

Asked about the industry's prospects for recovery, Mr Kobeh was cautiously optimisitic.

'At this time, it is extremely difficult to forecast,' he said, but added that data from ICAO's member states and international financial institutions like the World Bank indicated that 'signals of stabilisation are showing'.

Both he and Mr Lim also addressed the issue of aviation safety, in the light of recent accidents such as the Bangkok Airways crash in Koh Samui on Tuesday.

ICAO figures show a cheering trend - that the air accident rate went down from 19 accidents per million departures in 1990 to four accidents per million departures last year. The absolute number of fatal accidents also fell from 29 in 1990 to 11 last year.

Nevertheless, Mr Lim called for aviation safety to be 'assiduously guarded'.

Mr Kobeh is in Singapore for the World Civil Aviation Chief Executives Forum, which ends today. More than 100 aviation officials have gathered to discuss the industry's issues and challenges.

On Wednesday, he visited Temasek Polytechnic, which now has almost 400 aviation and aerospace students.

Noting the next decade will bring a wave of retirements, he said planning was needed to avoid a potentially 'disastrous' lack of qualified personnel.

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