Half the 136 youths arrested in past 12 months were students

STUDENTS made up almost half of the 136 youths arrested for loan-shark and related harassment activities in the past 12 months, said Education Minister Ng Eng Hen yesterday.

He also stressed that parents, as primary caregivers, are responsible for what their children do after school.

However, schools, playing a complementary role, have been actively taking measures to prevent them from taking part in illegal activities, he said in his written reply to a parliamentary question from Ms Lee Bee Wah (Ang Mo Kio GRC).

Ms Lee had asked how the ministry prevents youths from becoming runners for loan sharks.

Replying, Dr Ng stressed that parents must be responsible for monitoring their children's after- school activities, and the company they keep.

'The reasons for school children being lured into working for such activities are complex,' he said.

'Even as we reiterate the responsibility of parents to mould their children's character, schools can play a complementary reinforcing role in this respect.'

Dr Ng said schools raise awareness of illegal activities through formal curriculum, and hold programmes to help students discern right from wrong.

When necessary, counselling and support are offered, while disciplinary action is taken as a last resort.

Other efforts include keeping parents informed of their children's needs and collaborating with relevant agencies to guide students on the right path.

He cited how his ministry works with the police to raise awareness by giving advice, including at roadshows.

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Senior educators appointed Sinda and Mendaki chiefs

TWO ethnic self-help groups have appointed senior educators as their new chiefs.

Veteran teacher T. Rajasegar will lead the Singapore Indian Development Association (Sinda) from December, while former principal Moliah Hashim will head Mendaki when the new year starts, said the organisations in separate statements yesterday.

Mr Rajasegar, 47, who will succeed Mr S. Manogaran, is currently No. 2 at Sinda.

He joined it last year, bringing with him 12 years of experience teaching in government schools, polytechnics and private institutions, and eight years serving in management roles at MediaCorp, the Institute of Technical Education and the Defence Ministry.

He told The Straits Times his main focus when he assumes the top job is to raise the standards of mathematics and science of Indian primary and secondary school students to the national level.

The passing rate of Indian students in maths is 10 percentage points below the national average, he said, and it is five points below for science, although the results gap has narrowed considerably since Sinda's formation in 1991.

It is important for the students to do well in both subjects because about 70 per cent of courses in tertiary institutions require maths and science, he said, adding: 'If you are not strong in these subjects, many doors are shut to you.'

Sinda helps about 10,000 members of the Indian community, providing primarily tuition classes and bursaries to needy students.

The current chief executive, Mr Manogaran, will return to the Education Ministry to take up a senior appointment on Dec 14, when he completes his three-year secondment from the ministry.

The 50-year-old was praised by Sinda president Balaji Sadasivan for his outstanding work and inspiring leadership.

He had, among other things, launched new programmes, including one to strengthen the reading skills of Primary 1 to Primary 3 pupils, said Dr Balaji, who is Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.

At Mendaki, Madam Moliah, 51, will take over from Madam Zuraidah Abdullah, who will return to the police force, said its statement yesterday.

Madam Zuraidah, 47, was Jurong Division commander in December 2006 when she was seconded to Mendaki.

During her three-year stint, she improved management practices and led Mendaki to win several awards, including a Manpower Ministry award last year for implementing work-life balance benefits for employees.

Reflecting on her stint, Madam Zuraidah expressed gratitude to community leaders for their guidance, ideas and support of efforts to help 'the disadvantaged exit from their cycle of hardships'.

Madam Moliah, a school cluster superintendent, said education was key to engaging the Malay- Muslim community.

'People don't know the choices they have. Values education, not just grades, is a social lever to better equip people for employment, parenting...and to enable people to make informed decisions about their own lives,' she said.

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Private pre-school cultivated happy staff and kids

I AM concerned about the recommendation by an expert study group to nationalise pre-schools ('Should pre- schools be 'nationalised'?', Oct 10).

As parents of two pre-schoolers, we were fortunate to find a pre-school that practises certain principles that we agree to.

One of these principles is that the school takes good care of its staff, providing them with sufficient rest and even organising a trip to a neighbouring country for them to attend an international seminar on early childhood education.

The autonomy that the pre-school has in exploring and setting its own curriculum has worked out well. While not all ideas were successful, the process of involving the children and their parents in the experiments meant that we benefited a lot through our active participation. My children are happy learners. They also receive disciplinary instructions and measures when necessary.

As the husband of a teacher in a primary school, I have observed that numerous Ministry of Education policies and directives contribute significantly to very high stress levels in schools. There are many goals and programmes set without sufficient consideration as to whether they are realistic. After prolonged exposure to unrealistic expectations, it is common for many staff to become jaded and to seek to complete the assigned tasks perfunctorily, without really achieving meaningful results.

If nationalisation of pre-schools means making their environment similar to that in primary schools, then please do not do it.

Chen Junyi

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Wii, it's time for PE

THE pupils were cheering. 'Whack it!' said one. 'Shake your hips, good,' their teacher encouraged.

The Primary 2 pupils of North Vista Primary School were practising their forehand and backhand tennis strokes yesterday, but not on a tennis court, or even outdoors.

Instead, their Physical Education (PE) lessons were spent 'working out' on a Nintendo Wii video game console, in a special galaxy- themed space at their school in Sengkang.

The school, which opened last year, is one of the first here to incorporate technology into its PE curriculum.

Sports, like tennis or basketball, are taught over five weeks, two of which are spent on the Wiis, where players use a motion- controlled remote in each hand and move their bodies to make their onscreen personas react.

The eight Wiis and 32- inch high-definition television sets, which were installed two weeks ago, cost the school about $10,000.

While waiting their turn, the children are encouraged to find out more about sports on the Internet using their mini laptops.

The school had wanted to connect on the same level with the children, who are 'digital natives', said principal Phua Kia Wang.

'The usual games concept in PE seemed insufficient, and may not be relevant when the kids go home.

'For instance, when they go home, does everyone have a basketball court (to play in)? Will they have the people to make up the teams to play with?' he said.

'We don't want what we teach in school to be so isolated from real life,' he said.

North Vista's subject head for PE and co- curricular activities, Mr Ahmad Zohri, added that while the Wii games were no substitute for real physical outdoor activity, they helped to simulate environments and places like tennis courts, bowling alleys or boxing rings, where he could not bring his pupils.

'Think of it like Formula One training -  a driver also uses a simulator to learn a route,' he said.

The indoor Wii stations also solve the very real problem of scheduling PE classes. Schools generally do not schedule PE lessons between 10.30am and 2.30pm because of the heat. This limits North Vista to holding two PE classes each morning.

Eight-year-old Sarah Lim said she liked the 'cute' characters. She has learnt to strategise, by picking strong assistant characters to support her.

Eugene Hirose, also aged eight, said the Wii games made PE 'seem like it's playtime'.

Besides the video game consoles, the school has invested in special heart rate monitors for classes with older pupils.

The monitors - similar to those used by professional athletes - make sure the pupils are not over- or under- exercising during PE class.

Separately, researchers from the Nanyang Technological University have been studying how video games can influence children's attitudes towards exercise.

A pilot project has been completed, while a fuller study has been scheduled for next year.

The Nintendo Wii, which made its debut in 2006, has set off a new fitness fad where people exercise using the consoles with resistance bands, and a balance board. Dumb bells and a stationary bike are on the way.

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Wii FORMULA

'Think of it like Formula One training -  a driver also uses a simulator to learn a route.'

Mr Ahmad Zohri, North Vista Primary's subject head for PE and co- curricular activities

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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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