Why not other school stereotypes?

I refer to the articles, 'Playing with stereotypes' (April12), and last Sunday's 'What's your type?'.

Any stereotype cannot continue to persist if it does not have at least some truth in it.

To me, two things contribute to school stereotypes - school culture and image. Both are inseparable.

I went to a neighbourhood primary school, and later to St Margaret's Secondary School.

The teachers at St Margaret's took great pride in the fact that the school had always turned out girls with a good command of English.

I remember our principal would correct every sentence we spoke, and even the way we pronounced certain words in songs we performed.

St Margaret's girls were also known to be bold (it takes guts to wear green polka-dotted uniforms) and adventurous, especially in the early stages of our performing arts.

This was largely a result of the school culture. Today, that culture remains. We may not be an elite school, but the school identity still holds.

The influence of one's school culture and image can be seen even years after one has left school. Take the students from

Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road), for instance. When I was a teenager, I used to admire ACS boys because they were seen as athletic and charming.

I found that image of them to be true too when I later mixed with these ACS alumni in junior college and university.

Some school stereotypes - such as analytical girls from Raffles Girls' School and smart boys from Raffles Institution - are based on grades as well.

But why do we go on about stereotypes of students only from elite schools? It is like churning milk over and over again. After a while, it turns sour.

Why not also create stereotypes of students from neighbourhood schools?

For instance, I find Evergeen Secondary students to be extremely polite and neat.

Whenever someone mentions the name Evergreen Secondary, the image of something green and clean comes to mind.

Mention the name Kranji Secondary and I think of future engineers because the students there seem to be analytical and are good in physics and mathematics.

Lingehswari Eisvran

Read More...

Primary school daze

Which school should I send my child to?

As my son nears the age for entering primary school, I find myself facing this question with increasing trepidation.

I've done my homework. I've trawled through the websites, investigated the schools and grilled parents with children in my targeted schools.

I've even resorted to stopping kids wearing the uniforms of the schools I'm looking into and interviewing them, all in an effort to come to a decision.

It's not easy. I've begun to realise that deciding on a school can be a nerve-racking exercise for many parents, Singaporean as well as expatriate.

My husband is from Greece and I am from the Philippines. I came here in 2001 to work at The Straits Times.

My husband joined me in 2003 and has since become an asset manager with a hotel company. We have two boys - one is five and the other, three.

One option for our children is an international school. In fact, to some expat families, the question is not whether to send Junior to an international school, but to which one.

Until recently, securing a place at a top-tier international school was like queueing up for a spot on American Idol, the high fees notwithstanding.

Until last year, the wait list for some international schools literally meant waiting for many years.

But with the current financial party pooper, many expats with hefty packages - that may have included generous schooling allowances - have been repatriated. Many of those who remain have stayed on with modest packages and are footing the school bill themselves.

Which leads me to the other option: Government-subsidised local schools.

For parents on modest budgets like me, it seems like a no-brainer. Do I mortgage my house and the rest of my working life to fork out the hefty sums for an international school - around $15,000 to $25,000 a year - or do I keep the money in my pocket and save for a nice retirement in Phuket by choosing a local school which costs next to nothing?

While going for a local school appears to be the easy choice, it very often is not for expats.

Foreign children who are not permanent residents fall at the bottom of the balloting barrel. This means they can get a place only after all the Singaporean and permanent resident children have secured places in schools.

Scratch out elite and branded schools. And cross out popular government schools. Be prepared for Junior to enter a school that is the last on any Singaporean parent's list.

'Nightmare, lah,' one of my Singaporean friends told me when I asked what was wrong if the child falls under Phase 3 of the balloting exercise.

There are also expat parents who won't even consider local schools as an option.

Singapore's education system, known for being achievement- oriented, is not everyone's cup of tea. The reputation of local schools as demanding, rigid and stressful has some expat parents regarding them as reminiscent of Dickensian sweatshops.

A few years ago, one of our good friends who had lived in Singapore for close to 10 years decided to quit his well-paying job, give up his and his family's permanent residency status and return to his native Australia.

His reason? Watching his then eight-year-old daughter spend her childhood toiling over worksheets and stressing over exams was giving him heartburn.

At one dinner I attended, I found myself embroiled in a heated discussion with another expat over the issue of international versus local schools.

All the verbal jujitsu I could muster couldn't convince her that I wasn't a nutter for contemplating sending my son to a local school.

Her reason? She cited her own niece who attends a local primary school - and who carries a bag almost as tall as herself and filled with her weight in books.

One expat father I know placed both his sons in an international school because the thought of them picking up Singlish with 'lor, lah, hor and meh' peppering their sentences made him and his wife cringe.

But for every parent who prefers international over local schools, there is another like the father I spoke with who is looking to pull his son out of an international school and place him in a local school because 'the lessons are much too easy for him. He's not being challenged enough'.

As for myself, having lived in Singapore for eight years, I've decided to go native.

I'm following that most hallowed of traditions practised by the most kiasu of Singaporean mums: I'm scheming one year ahead to get my child into the local school of my choice.

And which school have I decided on?

That's another tale.

Read More...

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.

Read More...

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.'

Read More...

Uphill task for kids who don't go to preschool

WHEN Tan Wanni's father enrolled her in primary school in 2006, teachers noticed that she had no kindergarten schooling.

Her father, Mr Tan Boon Heng, 54, could not afford to send her to preschool; he had not worked since suffering a stroke 14 years ago.

The family's financial woes were exacerbated by Wanni's mother's two-year battle with stomach cancer, which left her father grappling with thousands of dollars worth of medical bills. Her mother died in January 2007.

But with the help of the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC), Wanni was able to attend kindergarten for free, albiet only for the final two months of the semester.

Since then, help has continued for the girl, now in Primary 3 at Gan Eng Seng Primary School.

When she was in Primary 1, she received one-on-one coaching from a volunteer from the CDAC.

She is now attending free enrichment classes in English, Maths and Chinese three times a week at the CDAC's student service centre at Redhill.

This has allowed her to do fairly well in school. She passed all her exams and even scored about 80 marks for her favourite subject Chinese last year.

But the skinny, little girl, who lives in a spartan two-room rental flat at Lengkok Bahru in Bukit Merah with her father, still has a long way to go.

The late start that Wanni has had in interacting with strangers is evident. She is temperamental, guarded and hostile towards strangers.

Her father said he knows that Wanni can be ill-mannered but he cannot bear to scold her.

Mr Tan said in Hokkien: 'She does not have a mother. I feel I have to give her all the love of a mother and a father.'

The duo live hand to mouth. There are no tables or chairs in the flat and their kitchen is filled with instant noodles and biscuits.

Mr Tan receives $250 a month in public assistance but is left with hardly any money after paying rent and utilities.

He speaks to Wanni in a mixture of Hokkien, Mandarin and Malay. The lack of opportunities at home to practise English has hampered the child's proficiency in the language.

Mr Tan hopes that Wanni's intelligence will see her through to university but he is not sure how he will pay for it.

'I won't be able to afford the university fees. If she can't study, then that is her fate. She will have to work.'

Read More...