Singapore's New Education System: Education Reform for National Development 9789814379106

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SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

The Institute of Southeast Asian Studies was established as an autonomous organization in May 1968. It is a regional research centre for scholars and other specialists concerned with modern Southeast Asia, particularly the multi-faceted problems of stability and security, economic development, and political and social change. The Institute is governed by a twenty-two-member Board of Trustees comprising nominees from the Singapore Government, the National University of Singapore, the various Chambers of Commerce, and professional and civic organizations. A ten-man Executive Committee oversees day-to-day operations; it is chaired by the Director, the Institute's chief academic and administrative officer.

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM Education Refornt for National Developrr1ent SOON TECK WONG National University of Singapore

I5EA5

INSTITUTE OF SOUTHEA ST ASIAN STUDIES

Published by Institute of Southeast Asian Studies Heng Mui Keng Terrace Pasir Panjang Singapore 0511 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photo· copying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.

© 1988 Institute of Southeast Asian Studies Cataloguing in Publication Data Soon, Teck-Wong Singapore's new education system: education reform for national development. 1. Education- Singapore. 2. Education and state - Singapore. I. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. II. Title. LA1239.5 1988 ISBN 9971-988·91-7 (hard cover) ISBN 9971·988·88-7 (soft coverl The responsibility for facts and opinions expressed in this publication rests exclusively with the author and his interpretations do not necessarily reflect the views or the policy of the Institute or its supporters. TYpeset by Art Communication Workshop Printed in Singapore by Chong Moh Offset Printing Pte Ltd

Contents

List of Tables vii Preface ix I Introduction 1 II History of Education in Singapore 3 III Problems Facing the Education System 9 IV New Structure for the Education System 13 V

Implementation of the NES 15

VI Public Reaction to Streaming 19 VII Refinements to the NES 21 VIII

Impact of the NES 25

IX Conclusion 33 Bibliography 41

List of Tables

I Attrition Rates at Various Stages of Education in Singapore 11 II Streaming at P3 into the Various Courses, 1982-86 22 III Pupils Posted to Special Course 27 IV Performance in ELl of Special Course Pupils 27 V Overall Performance at 0 Level of Special Course Pupils and Non-Special Course Pupils from the Top 10% of PSLE Cohort 28 VI Performance in the 0 Level Examination 30 VII Educational Attainments of Cohorts 32 VIII Educational Attainments of Five Singapore P 1 Cohorts 32

Preface

The driving force ... [of a country's development] . . . lies in factors such as the education level of the population .. . Report of the Economic Committee, p. 5.

T

HE role of education in nation-building and economic development is generally well understood and accepted. For a small nation such as Singapore without a lot of natural resources, the importance of investing in human resource development cannot be over-emphasized. It is not surprising, therefore, for Singapore to place such high priority on education The major education reforms initiated as a result of Dr Goh Keng Swee's Report on the Ministry of Education marked an important phase in the development of Singapore's education system. As the first few cohorts of pupils affected by these reforms have now passed through the system, it is timely to present an objective and evaluative account of these reforms and their impact on educational attainment. ln doing so, I hope to contribute my little bit towards a better understanding of the education system. Twould like to express my appreciation and gratitude to my former colleagues in the Ministry of Education, particularly Mr Thn Yap Kwang, Deputy Director, Monitoring & Evaluation Branch, without whose help the writing of this monograph would not have been possible. I would also like to state that while I have gained much insight during my service at the

ix

Ministry of Education, the opinions and views expressed are my own and should not be attributed to the Ministry. Lastly, I would like to dedicate this book to my son, Qingyao, who has only just entered the education system. It is my hope that he, too, will have a meaningful educational experience throughout his years at school. Soon 'leek Wong

X

I

Introduction

I

1978, a study team led by Dr Goh Keng Swee (then Deputy Prime Minister) was appointed by the Prime Minister to study problems in the Ministry of Education, Singapore. The report submitted by the study team (often referred to as the Goh Report)' analysed the weaknesses of the education system and recommended many major changes to it. These changes, particularly those related to the introduction of streaming, were controversial at the time and attracted much public debate. The education structure arising from the implementation of the Report's recommendations is usually referred to as the New Education System (NES). Education and national development are closely related. Indeed, for many countries as for Singapore, social and economic changes often bring about substantial changes to the education system. To provide a better understanding of the impact of social and economic changes on the Singapore education system, this monograph first presents a brief history of the development of education in Singapore up to the ·release of the Goh Report. Bearing in mind that it was the perceived failure of the education system to meet the rapidly changing social and economic needs of the country that prompted its review, the problems facing the education system at the time are then discussed. This is followed by a description of the new education structure based on streaming according to ability, and the rationale for it. How the NES was actually implemented is discussed in N

1

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

Chapter 5. Public reaction to streaming and some of the subsequent refinements to the NES are outlined. The final chapters assess the impact of the NES in terms of the objectives spelt out for it in the Goh Report, concluding with a discussion of the possible future d irection of the education system.

2

II

History of Education in Singapore

The British Period

T

educational policy of the British in the Straits Settlements2 was spelt out in 1854 in a despatch from the Court of Directors of the East India Company Lo the GovernorGeneral in India, a copy of which was sent to the Governor of the Straits Settlements. The Court of Directors recognized that education was a "sacred duty" on the part of the British Government. The government, as the guardian of native rights and customs, held that this duty lay in catering for the natives in the vernacular. In a later despatch of 1857 the Court of Directors stressed that the primary object of the government was to provide elementary education in the vernacular, and that the indigenous population in the rural districts had first claim. However, though it was critical about learning English as an end of education, it recognized its utilitarian role of producing "intelligent, diligent and honest servants to work for the Company': Further, it encouraged private enterprise on the part of individuals and missionary societies, pointing out that the government could not possibly provide the means for educating the whole country.3 The result was parallel systems of schooling: one in vernacular for the rural Malays, which was established and maintained by the government; Chinese and Thmil vernacular schools HE

3

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

set up by their respective communities; and the English schools. 4 The English schools consisted of two main types: the "free" schools5 that enjoyed the patronage and support of the government until they were taken over completely, and the grant-in-aid English schools established and maintained by missionary societies with a certain amount of government aid. 6 The Chinese schools which were established and maintained through the generosity of individuals, district societies, or clan associations were left very much to themselves. After the 1911 Revolution in China, the Kuomintang saw the Chinese schools as incubators of the new nationalism and poured indoctrinated teachers and doctored texts into them. 7 Consequently, Chinese education became highly politicized.

Post-War Educational Development Post-war educational policy in Singapore as laid down in the Ten-Year Programme was based on the following general principles:s First, that education should aim at fostering and extending the capacity for self-govenment, and the ideal of civic loyalty and responsibility; second, that equal educational opportunity shou ld be afforded to the children - both boys and girls - of all races; third, that upon a basis of free primary education there should be developed such secondary, vocational, and higher education as will best meet the needs of the country.

Under the Programme, primary education was to be given in English, Mandarin, Malay, or Thmil according to the language of the home. However, this was later amended by the Advisory Council to allow parents to choose the language in which their chi ldren were to be instructed. As most parents wished to have their children educated in English, the government concentrated on building English schools and on recruiting and training teachers for them. Owing to the unprecedented growth in the number of children of school-going age, the Ten-Year Programme had to be reinforced by the Supplementary Five-Year Plan for the extensive provision of English-medium schools in addition 4

HISTORY OF EDUCATION IN SINGAPORE

to those provided under the Ten-Year Programme. In brief, the immediate post-war educational policy of Singapore was to provide English-medium education for all those who desired it and to encourage parents to send their children to those schools by charging smaller fees than would be charged in other systems. Implicit in all this was the attempt to draw children away from the Chinese-medium schools over which the government had little control. The exponents of this policy pointed out that in English-medium schools all races were brought together, and the curriculum and school activities were designed to produce loyal citizens of Singapore.9 However, the post-war period was also one of industrial unrest, growing unemployment, shortages of commodities, and inadequate housing. Given the already politicized nature of Chinese education, these conditions provided a political climate which was exploited by the Malayan Communist Party. Since the career prospects for students of Chinese schools were dismal, they could be easily agitated. Not only was unemployment high in the private sector but jobs in the public sector required a command of English which they did not possess. Communist Party cadres were therefore able to infiltrate into and control many of the Chinese schools. They organized their students to demonstrate against the government and to foment political and industrial disorder under the pretext of promoting the struggle for independence from British imperia1ism. 10 In 1955 the Legislative Assembly appointed an All-Party Committee to "investigate the situation in Chinese schools': The Committee recommended that: 11 ...Government should not only give Grants-in-Aid as on the present basis but also capital grants to Chinese schools, such that there will be no discrimination against vernacular schools; textbooks...approved by the Ministry of Education should be used in both English-medium and vernacular schools, to assist further in such integration; students should not participate in active party politics or actively participate in trade and industrial disputes; and through furthering the interests of education, bilingual and trilingual, everyone can assist in the overall aim to build a Nation out of racial groups with different cultural backgrounds and languages, whilst ensuring that 5

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

full educational opportunities will be given to all children, and progress towards self-government and ultimate independence.

Thus, for the first time in the history of education in Singapore the government offered the Chinese schools the same grant-in-aid status as the aided English schools. In September 1956, the government announced that the Chinese schools would have six months to decide whether to accept full aid from the government or to cease receiving government aid at all. No major school elected to remain outside the system. The extension of full aid to the Chinese schools exerted a stabilizing effect. 12 Even so, continuing political unrest made it difficult for the government to implement the Education Ordinance passed by the Assembly in 1957 to give the government added control over all schools - including Chinese schools. It was only in the mid-1960s that the Ministry of Education was able to assert the right to determine what was to be taught in the Chinese schools.ta

Period of Rapid Expansion One of the major problems facing Singapore after attainment of self-government in 1959 was that of high unemployment. As the old entrepot trade could not provide sufficient jobs, new economic activities based on manufacturing and other business services were encouraged. With the transformation of the economy and the creation of new jobs came the need for a better-trained and better-educated work-force. The commitment of the government towards making primary education freely available to all was reflected in an accelerated school building programme. Even with this programme, however, it became necessary for school buildings to be used by two sets of children (i.e., double sessions) in order to accommodate the rapid increase in enrolment which grew from 315,000 in 1959 to a peak of 522,000 in 1968. A further consequence of the transformation of the economy was the sharp rise in the demand for education in English. Increasing external trade, tourism, and the growing role of 6

HISTORY OF EDUCATION IN SINGAPORE

Singapore as a financial centre created many job opportunities for those fluent in English. This did not escape the notice of pragmatic parents who came to believe that an English education would give their children better career prospects. In 1959, only 47 per cent of the children entering primary schools registered in English schools. By 1979, the rate had risen to 91 per cent. The drift to English schools, however, created two severe problems for the government. First, there was the need to recruit and train large numbers of English teachers quickly and to send them to schools with little teaching experience. Second, there was the need to pay special attention to bilingual education, it being considered undesirable for Singaporeans to lose all connections with their cultural roots. At the same time, the government recognized the necessity of raising the standard of English in the Chinese schools. 14

7

III

Problems Facing the Education System

Ineffective Bilingual Policy Contributing to Low Literacy Levels

T

principal cause for many of the problems plaguing the Ministry of Education was identified by the Goh Report as the unnatural situation in which 85 per cent of our children were taught in languages they did not speak at home. 15 Nevertheless, as noted above, the desirability of bilingual education was long recognized. To this end, a number of measures were taken. In 1966, the policy requiring mathematics and science subjects to be taught in English in Chinese primary schools was introduced. Conversely, 1969 saw the introduction of the policy of requiring the instruction of civics in English schools to be taught in the mother tongue. In 1970, the teaching of h istory in the mother tongue was introduced in Primary Three classes and in 1973 double weighting was given to the second language for the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) at Primary HE

Six.

In assessing the success of the bilingual policy, the Report noted that surveys conducted in 1975 by the Ministry of Education on primary school pupils and by the Ministry of Defence on national servicemen suggested that literacy levels, particularly in English, were low. For example, only 11 per cent of the national servicemen with educational levels ranging from Secon9

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

dary Three to no formal education were able to handle fairly well situations in which English was the sole means of communication. Further, the great majority - more than 60 per cent of the pupils who sat for the PSLE (Primary Six) and 0 level examinations (Secondary Four) - had fail ed in one or both languages. Taking the system as a whole and tracing successive cohorts, the Report found that only 19 per cent of each primary cohort passed both languages at 0 level. The bilingual policy had therefore not been universally effective.

High Education Wastage The success of an education system is often measured by the extent of education wastage. For a country like Singapore whose only natural resource is its people, it is crucial that education wastage be minimized. In some affluent nations like the United Kingdom and Japan, where education is compulsory and automatic promotion is practised, there are no repeats or drop-outs. In Singapore, however, education is not compulsory. Hence, education wastage exists in the following forms: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv)

failure to achieve the expected standards; premature school-leaving; repetition of grades; and unemployable school-leavers.

Thacing the flow of pupils in the Singapore education system, the Report noted that 'about 71 per cent of the Primary 1 enrolment eventually passed PSLE. 36 per cent do not make the grade to 3 0 levels. Of the remaining 35 per cent, only 14 per cent enrolled for Pre-University education. Of these, 9 per cent passed the A level examination:'16 These figures are shown in Table I. Singapore's attrition (drop-out plus failure) rates at the Primary (29 per cent) and Secondary (36 per cent) stages were the highest when compared with those of France, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and Japan. The high attrition rates could be attributed to the high failure rates at the PSLE and the GCE 0 level examination. (In Taiwan and Japan where there is no 10

PROBLEMS FACING THE EDUCATION SYSTEM

TABLE I Attrition Rates at Various Stages of Education in Singapore

Stage

% Enrolled

Primary Secondary Pre-Unive rsity Te rtiary Education

% Attrition

%Left

29

0 21 4

100 71 14

36 5

9

NOTE: The 9% in tertiary education comprises 4 % at the universities and 5% at the polytechnics and the Institute of Education. SOURCE:

Goh Ke ng Swee et al., Report on the Ministry of Education 1978.

national examination, more than 80 per cent of their pupils were able to complete these two stages of education.)

Other Problems While the above are the major problems which the Ministry of Education faced at the time, the Report noted a number of other problems, for example, the large variation in the academic performance of schools, poor morale of teachers, and ineffective leadership of the Ministry. These problems aggravated the situation and had to be resolved quickly if the Ministry were to be effective in fulfilling its mission "to educate a child to bring out his greatest potential, so that he will grow up into a good man and a useful citizen'~ 17 Thus, measures had to be taken to address these problems. For example, the Report proposed that the Ministry of Education be re-structured to improve its organizational effectiveness. This was implemented soon after. Subsequently, teachers' salaries were revised and a new Senior Education Service implemented to improve the promotion prospects for teachers.

11

IV New Structure for the Education System

Introduction of Streaming

T

Report observed that the existing "single curriculum" 6-4-2 education system !that is, six years of primary, four years of secondary, and two years of pre-university) which required all children to cover the same syllabus within the same period and to sit for the same examinations, did not take into consideration differences in absorption capacities and rates of learning. Arguing that this system tended to favour the aboveaverage children and to penalize the below-average children and the slow learners, the Report suggested that the high failure rates at the PSLE and the 0 level examination18 could be reduced with an education system sufficiently flexible to cater for children with different abilities - in other words, by streaming them into different courses according to ability. Recognizing that no streaming system could be perfect, the Report recommended that the first streaming should be undertaken only after three or four years of primary schooling19 and that only those who fail at least two consecutive years would be streamed to the primarily Monolingual course. In addition, provision was to be made for lateral transfers between streams. The Report further recognized that "pupils who do not succeed in academic studies could succeed in technical or commercial training'~ zo It was therefore important for the VocaHE

13

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

tional and Industrial Thaining Board (VITBJ, the polytechnics, and other training institutions to expand their capacities.

Bilingual Education with Emphasis on English Considering that a basic objective of any education system must be to produce literate and numerate school-leavers, it is not surprising that the Report recommend ed that the first three years of primary schooling concentrate on the learning of languages and mathematics. This was to give pupils a strong foundation for learning of content, such as in Science, Mathematics, and other subjects. Mindful of the differences in ability of pupils, particularly in languages, the Report suggested that: 21 a. Those pupils who are ablest would be given the opportunity to do two "first languages" (ELl + CLl) and possibly a third language (like German). b. The average and the above average pupils would be given the opportunity to do a "first" language and a "second" language (eg., ELI + CLZ). c. Those pupils who cannot cope wilh two languages would be better off being literate in one language than attempting to learn two languages and being literate in neither.

With regard to the standard expected of the second language, the Report expressed the view that it had been pitched 'at too high a level for func tional purposes and for the purpose of university entrance requirement': 22 For pupils who would be unlikely to pursue university studies, the Report suggested that they concentrat e on English Language (ELl) and study a lower "second" language (L3).23 The system envisaged was therefore one in which great prominenc e would be attached to English at the cost of some reduction in standards in the mother tongue, be it Mandarin, Malay, or Tamil. This was in recognition of the importance of English and of the increasing trend of parents choosing to send their children to English schools.

14

v Implementation of the NES

Primary Schools

T

HE New Education System (NES) was implemented in primary schools beginning with the 1979 Primary Three (P3) cohort. As recommended by the Goh Report, all pupils would follow a common curriculum (which would place emphasis on the learning of languages and mathematics) during their first three years of formal schooling, that is, from P1 to P3. Pupils would be streamed at the end of P3 on the basis of their examination performances in P2 and P3. To avoid additional pressure through the introduction of a new national examination, the end-of-year P3 examination (sometimes referred to as the streaming examination) would be school-based. However, in order to ensure some uniformity of standards, this examination would be constructed from item banks to be maintained by the Ministry of Education. Pupils would be streamed on the following basis:

1. Those who passed P3 would be streamed to the Normal

Bilingual course leading to the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) in three years. 2. Those who failed P3 but passed P2 would be streamed to the Extended Bilingual course leading to the PSLE in five years. 3. Those who failed both P2 and P3 would be required to sit for an Achievement Test (AT) 24 set by the Ministry of 15

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

Education. If they passed the AT, they would be streamed to the Extended Bilingual course. Only those who failed the AT would be streamed to the Monolingual course leading to the Primary School Proficiency Examination IPSPE) in five years. With the provision for lateral transfers across streams, primary schooling would be completed within six to eight years. 25 The Normal and Extended courses are essentially academic courses in which pupils are prepared for the PSLE.z6 The Monolingual course is a non-academic course, the objective of which is to ensure basic literacy and numeracy for the less academically inclined27 and to prepare them for prevocational training at the institutes of the VITB.

Secondary Schools The NES was implemented for the secondary schools beginning with the 1980 Primary Six (P6) cohort. Pupils who passed the PSLE would be streamed as follows: 1. The top 10 per cent would be allowed to opt for either the

Special course or the Express course, 28 both of which lead to the 0 level examination in four years. 2. The next 40 per cent would be streamed to the Express course. 3. The next 10 per cent would be allowed to opt for either the Express or the Normal course. 29 The Normal course leads to the N ormallevel (N level) examination in four years. Pupils who perform satisfactorily in theN level examination may proceed to do the 0 level after an additional year of study. 4. The last 40 per cent would be streamed to the Normal course.30 Besides meeting the need for a lower level gualification,31 the N level examination would identify pupils most likely to succeed in the 0 level examination, that is, it would perform a screening function. However, in introducing this examination, the Ministry was advised by the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate that there had been problems associated 16

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NBS

with the U.K:s Certificate of Secondary Education (CSE) examination because its syllabus was independent of the 0 level syllabus. In order that the new N level examination would not experience similar problems, it was decided not to adopt the term "Certificate of Secondary Education" examination recommended in the Goh Report. Furthermore, the N level syllabus would be a sub-set of the corresponding 0 level syllabus.

17

VI Public Reaction to Streaming

T

streaming of pupils into different courses evoked strong emotional response. This was not withstanding the fact that pupils were at the time already being streamed according to ability into different classes. 1\vo major arguments were advanced against streaming. First, pupils streamed to a lower course, say the Monolingual course, would have reduced access to higher education. This argument derived from an egalitarian philosophy which did not recognize differences in human ability, thereby equating "equality of opportunity" with "equality of outcome'~ 32 It had as its implicit assumption that opportunity lies in exposure to a given curriculum. Hence, the higher the curriculum made available to a particular child, the greater would be his opportunity. However, this ignored the fact that most of the pupils streamed to the lower course would have left school prematurely under a rigid education system which sought to impose a curriculum not appropriate to their needs. Greater equality of opportunity would, in fact, be accorded to these pupils if they were allowed to follow a course specially designed for them. Second, as errors in streaming could not be avoided entirely, a child wrongly streamed to a lower course would, in addition to becoming demoralized, suffer from the social stigma associated with the lower course. The Goh Report had, in fact, recognized that for the NES to be implemented successfully, streaming had to be as accurate as possible. The Report had therefore recomHE

19

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

mended that the first streaming be undertaken only after three or four years of primary schooling, and that intelligence tests be developed to provide the opportunity for those with potential to prove themselves. In addition, there was to be provision for lateral transfers across courses to cater for late developers and to allow errors in streaming to be remedied. Where there were reasonable doubts as to the appropriate course for a particular child, his parents should be provided with the option to decide the course his child would be streamed to. Hence, when the NES was implemented in the secondary schools, a fairly wide option band (about 10 per cent of those who passed the PSLE} was created. Pupils with PSLE results falling within this band could opt for either the Express course or the Normal course.

20

VII Refinements to the NES

A Single National Stream

T

Goh Report observed the continuing trend amongst parents to register their children in English schools. By 1983, more than 99 per cent of the children were registered in English schools. This prompted the announcement in December 1983 of a single national stream whereby all pupils would offer English as a first language (ELI) and either Thmil (TL2), Malay (ML2) or Chinese (CL2) as a second language. 33 This announcement signalled the end of the parallel systems of education which arose during the British period. A similar trend in the proportion of pupils offering English as the medium of instruction in the Monolingual course (from 37 per cent in 1980 to 91 per cent in 1984Jled to a decision for the course to be offered only in English. In 1986, in response to requests from their respective communities, non-Chinese pupils whose PSLE results fell within the top 10 per cent were allowed to offer their mother tongue, i.e., Malay or Tamil, at first language level in secondary schools. Thus, as envisaged in the Goh Report, the attainment of an education system where great prominence was attached to English came about through the desire of pragmatic parents for their children to be educated in English and not as a result of directives from the Ministry of Education.34 HE

1

1

21

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

Streaming at P3 Even though great care was exercised to ensure that pupils were not streamed to an inappropria te course, public feeling against streaming persisted. This was due in part to ignorance of the safeguards introduced. For example, many of those who argued against the Monolingual course were not aware that a child would be streamed to it only if he had, in addition to failing both his P2 and P3 examinations, failed an Achievement Test set by the Ministry. It was also not generally known that almost all the pupils !generally about 90 per cent) in each P3 cohort would go to the Normal and Extended courses. Table II shows the numbers and percentages of pupils streamed to the various courses during the period 1982-86. During the first four years of the NES (from 1979 to 1982), parents could opt not to have their child streamed to the Monolingual course provided they did so in writing. This option was, however, removed in 1983 when it was observed that almost all the pupils originally streamed to the Monolingual course could not cope in the course their parents had opted for them. TABLE II

Streaming at P3 into the Various Courses, 1982-86 Year

Normal

Extended

Monolingual

All

1982

40,960 (87.4)

2,601 (5.6)

3,257 (7.0)

46,818 (100.0)

1983

38,872 (90.7)

1,670 (3.9)

2,304 (5.4)

42,847 (100 .0)

1984

36,398 (90.7)

1,904 (4.7)

1,829 (4.6)

40,131 (100 .0)

1985

39,733 (91.8)

1,948 (4.5)

1,602 (3.7)

43,283 (100.0)

1986

35,242 (91.2)

1,952 (5.0)

1.469 (3.8)

38,664 (100.0)

NOTE: Figures in brackets de note percentages .

SOURCE: Ministry of Education, Singapore.

22

REFINEMENT S TO THE NBS

The removal of this option was unfortunate in that it revived public unhappiness towards streaming. The option was restored in 1985 to stress the responsibility of parents for the education of their children, particularly at the early stages. It is useful to note that considerab le additional resources were invested in the Monolingual course. Besides the setting up of a project team specifically to produce materials for the Monolingual course, class sizes were reduced. Feedback from schools suggests that the course is gaining acceptance. This is further supported by the observation that the number of parents of children streamed to the Monolingual course opting for them to be in the Normal course declined steadily from 138 in 1979 to only 27 in 1986. The majority of pupils in the Monolingual course proceed to the VITB for pre-vocational training.

Streaming into Secondary Schools As noted above, since 1973 double weighting was accorded to the two languages in the PSLE to give emphasis to them in support of the policy of promoting effective bilingualism. With the introduction of streaming, performanc e in the PSLE not only affects a child's choice of school but also the course to which he is streamed. Consequently, there was much concern that by giving double weighting to the two languages, there would be an adverse effect on the accuracy of streaming. Studies were therefore undertaken by the Ministry of Education to assess the impact of double weighting on streaming into Secondary One. When the studies confirmed that the removal of double weighting would improve the accuracy of streaming, the Ministry of Education announced in 1985 the adoption of equal weighting for all PSLE subjects. It should be stressed that the removal of double weighting was motivated by the desire to improve the accuracy of streaming and did not imply a departure from the bilingual education policy.

23

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

Promotion of Normal Course Pupils When the NES was implemented, the general perception of the Normal course in secondary schools was that it was a five-year course leading to the 0 level examination. While it was generally known that pupils in the Normal course would have to sit the N level examination at the end of their fourth year, the general expectation was that most, if not all of the Normal course pupils, would be promoted to Secondary Five at the end of which they would sit the 0 level examination. When only 3,460 (or 24.3 per cent) of the first batch of 14,226 N level pupils were announced at the release of the 1984 N level examination results to be eligible for promotion to Secondary Five, there was general unhappiness over the criteria for promotion to Secondary Five. Many argued that the criteria were too strict and that more pupils should be provided with the opportunity to sit the 0 level examination. This was notwithstanding the fact that the N level examination had provided a useful lower level qualification to many who would otherwise have left school without any qualification. Responding to public sentiment over theN level examination, the Ministry of Education announced within two weeks of the release of the examination results that the promotion criteria would be relaxed slightly thereby allowing a further 782 (or 5.5 per cent) to be promoted to Secondary Five. When this did not stem public unhappiness, the Ministry initiated a review of the promotion criteria. Upon the completion of the review, the Ministry announced at the Schools Council's meeting of 13 July 1985 a further relaxation of the criteria for promotion of Secondary Four Normal pupils to Secondary Five.Js Consequently, the percentages of Secondary Four pupils eligible for promotion increased sharply to more than 70 per cent in both 1985 and 1986.

24

VIII Impact of the NES

General Consideration

W

the refinements introduced to the NES,36 streaming according to ability gradually gained public acceptance. While casual observation of examination results readily suggests that education attainment has improved substantially since the implementation of the NES, 37 it is useful to evaluate the improvements in terms of the objectives spelt out in the Goh Report. ITH

Effectiveness of the Bilingual Policy While examination results alone may not adequately measure literacy levels, in the absence of standardized tests of literacy, performance in standardized achievement tests such as the national examinations (PSLE, N, 0 , and A level examinations), they are the best indicators of proficiency levels in the two languages and, of course, the other school subjects. Prior to the implementation of the NES, more than 60 per cent of the pupils who sat the PSLE and the 0 level examination failed in one or both languages. Only 19 per cent of each cohort passed in both languages at 0 level. Under the NES, performances in the two languages at both the PSLE and 0 level examination have improved tremendously. For example, in 1984 25

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

which was the first year for the Extended course pupils to sit the PSLE, the overall percentage passes at the PSLE in English and the second language3s were 85.5 and 98.7 per cent respectively. In 1985, while the percentage pass in the second language remained high at 98.7 per cent, the percentage pass in English increased further to 90.2 per cent. That the percentage passes for both English and the second language increased to a level above 90 per cent is truly remarkable when compared to the pre-NES position. The improvements in the examination results for English and the second language were repeated at the 0 level examination. The percentage passes in the second language over the last three or four years have consistently been above 90 per cent. Performances in English improved dramatically in 1984, the first year in which pupils streamed into the Express course sat the 0 level examination, rising from 41.2 to 52.4 per cent. The percentage pass in English improved further to 64.8 per cent in 1985. That these improvements are real can be inferred from the fact that during the same period, the performance of pupils in both the home and overseas centres of the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate jUCLESJ did not show any improvement during the same period. Furthermore, it is worth noting that the pass rate in English is now as good as the 60 per cent pass rate of British pupils offering the UCLES English Language paper. In addition to the overall improvements in English and the second language, it is worth examining the performances in languages of pupils in the Special course. These pupils would be within the top 10 per cent of the PSLE cohort and offer both English and Chinese at first language level. In order that we may better appreciate the performance of these pupils, it is necessary to note that the percentage of pupils in the Special course coming from primary schools using English as the medium of instruction increased steadily from 35 per cent for the 1979 intake to 93 per cent for the 1986 intake jsee Thble III). The phasing in of the single national stream will eventually lead to virtually all pupils in the Special course coming from primary schools which offered English as a first language and Chinese as a second language. 26

IMPACI' OF THE NES

TABLE Ill Pupils Posted to Special Course

Year o( Intake

1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986

Chinese Medium• % No.

English Medium* % No.

513 506 752 821 753 1,398 1,830 1,957

942 870 876 564 502 364 351 137

35 37 46 59 60 79 84 93

Total No.

1,455 1,376 1,628 1,385 1,255 1,762 2,181 2,094

65 63 54 41 40

21 16 7

• "Medium" refers to the first language taken in primary school. SOURCE: Ministry or Education, Singapore.

Pupils in the Special course have performed well in both English and Chinese offered at first language level. For CLl, almost all passed the subject with about half of them obtaining distinctions. Performance in ELl showed an improving trend reflecting the fact that an increasing number of Special course pupils offered ELl in primary school {see Thble IV). Furthermore, the overall performance of Special course pupils in terms of the percentages obtaining five or more 0 level passes and of the mean aggregate point in Ll and best four other subjects39 are comparable to the performance of non-Special course pupils from the top 10 per cent of those who passed the TABLE IV Performance in ELl of Special Course Pupils

Year o( Examination

%Passed

% Distinctions

70 78 86 93

9 16 19 26

1982 1983 1984 1985

SOURCE: Ministry or Education, Singapore.

27

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

PSLE (Table V). This vindicates the assumption that some 10 per cent or so of each cohort of pupils would be able to cope with two languages at first language level. These pupils would be effectively bilingual at a fa irly high level of proficiency. TABLE V Overall Performance at 0 Level of Special Course Pupils and Non-Special Course Pupils from the Top 10% of PSLE Cohort Year o( Examination

1982 1983 1984 1985 SOURCE:

% with 5 or More

0 Level Passes

Mean Aggregate Point + Best 4 Subjects}

(Ll

Special

Non -Special

Special

Non-Special

94 98 98 99

94 96 97 99

10.7 9.0 9.0 8.7

12.7 11.5 10.7

9.3

Ministry of Education, Singapore.

Sharp Decline in Attrition Rates The high attrition rates at the Primary (29 per cent) and Secon· dary (36 per cent) stages of education noted in the Goh Report declined sharply after the implementation of the NES. Much of the decline in the drop-out rates could be attributed to the provision of curricula appropriate to the less academically inclined who, prior to the NES, left the education system mainly because they were unable to cope with their school work. At the Primary stage, the attrition (drop-outs and failures at the PSLE/PSPE) rate of the first cohort to be streamed at P3, i.e., the 1977 Pl cohort, was only 8 per cent, dramatically lower than the pre-NES attrition rate of 29 per cent. Similarly, the attrition rate at the Secondary stage of the first cohort to be streamed after the PSLE into secondary schools, i.e. , the 1975 Pl cohort, was only 6 per cent, again dramatically lower than the pre-NES attrition rate of 36 per cent. It is also worth noting that with the provision of additional capacity for vocational and industrial

28

IMPACT OF THE NES

training at the VITB's vocational institutes even the very low attrition rates of recent years overstate the level of education wastage. This is so because the majority of those who fail the PSLE/PSPE proceed to the VITB for pre-vocational and vocational training. In addition, the VITB also provides vocational training for N and 0 level school-leavers. The NES has, therefore, been extremely successful in reducing education wastage to an extremely low level. At the same time, the government has expanded the capacity of schools and vocational institutes to provide all pupils with at least ten years of education. That educational wastage has been minimized can be seen from the fact that in 1986, only 3,772 pupils (or less than 1 per cent of the total school population below 16 years of age)40 left school without having at least ten years of education. Considering that education is not compulsory, the very low incidence of premature school-leavers is truly remarkable.

Overall Improvement in Examination Results Provided that standards are maintained, performance in the national examinations provides a fairly objective and reliable measure of academic attainment. With regard to the standard of the Singapore-Cambridge GCE examinations which are set and maintained by an independent and well-established examination authority, viz., the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLESJ, it is fairly safe to assume that such standards are comparable over time and that improvements in examination results indicate higher levels of academic attainment. The validity of this assumption is supported by the observation that the overall performance of all candidates offering the UCLES 0 level examination has been fairly constant. The overall performance in the Singapore-Cambridge GCE 0 level examination remained fairly constant during the years prior to the implementation of the NBS with about 60 per cent of the school candidature obtaining 3 or more 0 level passes. Subsequent to the NES, the percentage of pupils obtaining 3 or more 0 level passes increased steadily reaching nearly 90 per cent in 1985, the year in which the first batch of Secon29

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

dary Five Normal pupils sat the 0 level examination. Even with the sharp increase in the school candidature from 29,129 in 1985 to 38,742 in 1986, the overall performance was maintained at a relatively high level with more than 85 per cent of the candidature obtaining 3 or more 0 level passes. The number of school candidates who obtained 3 or more 0 level passes increased from about 26,000 in 1985 to 33,000 in 1986. A more stringent and useful measure of the overall performance in the 0 level examination is based on the candidates obtaining 5 or more 0 level passes. The number and percentage of school candidates with 5 or more 0 level passes are useful in that they indicate the number and percentage of 0 level school-leavers proceeding to post-secondary education in junior colleges, pre-university centres, polytechnics, and the vocational institutes. Thble VI shows that these measures have been increasing steadily since the implementation of the NES. The number of school candidates with 5 or more 0 level passes reached an all-time high of 22,199 in 1986. The improving performance in the 0 level examination is reflected by the increasing number of 0 level school-leavers admitted to junior colleges, TABLE VI Performance in the 0 Level Examination

5 or more 0 level passes Year

Candidature

Number

Percentage

1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986

39,382 35,911 36,004 36,730 32,612 33,310 34,587 38,750 34,283 29, 129 38,742

13,161 12,721 13,017 14,104 13,073 12,936 14,985 16,495 17,350 18, 176 22,199

33.4 35.4 36.2 38.4 40.1 38.8 43.3 42 .6 50.6 62.4 57.3

SOURCE: Ministry of Education, Singapore.

30

IMPACT OF THE NES

pre-university centres, polytechnics, and the vocational institutes made possible by the expansion of capacity in these institutions.

Cohort Analysis Since the number of years taken to complete each stage of education may vary, cohort analysis is essential if we are to appreciate the efficiency of an education system. As a P1 pupil may take up to twelve years to reach 0 level, the latest cohort for which we can obtain attainment at 0 level is the 1975 Pl cohort. In order that we may have a proper base to evaluate the attainments of our most recent cohorts, it is necessary for us to examine the attainment of a cohort which is unaffected by streaming. It is also useful for us to compare the attainment of the Singapore cohorts with those of a cohort of pupils in a country with an education system similar to Singapore's. In this respect, statistics pertaining to the 1980/81 school-leavers published by the United Kingdom's Department of Education and Statistics can be used to estimate the attainments of the 1970 cohort of English 6;+ year-olds. These are compared with the attainments of Singapore's 1970 P1 cohort (Thble VII). It is worth noting from Thble VII that while the proportion of both cohorts with at least 5 0 level passes is the same (at about 25 per cent), a much higher proportion of the Singapore cohort did not have any secondary school qualification (44 per cent compared to 15 per cent for the English cohort). This confirms the need of a lower level qualification such as that conferred by the N level examination. Examining the educational attainments of the five most recent Singapore P1 cohorts for which 0 level attainment is available (Thble VIII). we note first the steady increase in the proportion of each cohort passing 0 level to 54.8 per cent in 1975, a notable achievement considering that the 0 level examination was designed for the top 20 per cent of an English cohort. Furthermore, the introduction of the N level examination provided a much needed qualification for those unable to pass the 0 level examination. The proportion of the 1975 Pl cohort (the first cohort to be streamed into secondary schools) 31

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

TABLE VII Educational Attainments of Cohorts (In percentages) England 1970 Cohort

Singapore 1970 Cohort

At least 5 0 level passes or CSE grade 1 •

25.1

25.5

1-4 0 level passes or CSE grade 1

26.5

31.8

At least 1 CSE lower grade**

33.9

n.a.

No 0 level/CSE

14.5

43.7

Attainment

• Computed on the assumption that all pupils with at least A level pass can be considered to have at least 5 0 level passes. * * CSE grades 2 to 5. TABLE VIII Educational Attainments of Five Singapore PI Cohorts Year of Cohort Attainment

1971

1972

1973

1974

1975

o/o passed at least 0 level*

39.0

44.2

45.8

50.7

54.8

5.5

16.6

31.4

48.7

33 .7

13.8

o/o passed at least N level** o/o without 0/N levels

61.0

55.8

* with 3 or more 0 level passes. * * with 1 or more N level passes.

without any secondary school qualification (i.e., without an N or 0 level certificate) was only 13.8 per cent, a commendable achievement when compared to the English cohort in which 14.5 per cent had no secondary school qualification. 32

IX Conclusion

W

is tempting to argue that the improvements in educational attainment following the implementation of the NES are entirely due to streaming, it would be simplistic to do so. The NES merely provided the system by which education could be made more effective. For the system to work, commitment, dedication, and professionalism are required of principals and teachers. In addition, it would have been impossible to implement the NES without appropriate curricula for the new courses being developed. Had the Ministry of Education implemented the NES without obtaining at the same time the commitment and dedication of the professionals, and without developing the necessary curricula and teaching materials, the NES would have met with little success. It should be stressed that concomitant with the implementation of the NES was the expansion of the tertiary institutions as well as the various training institutions to cater to the educational and training needs of pupils leaving the school system at all levels. The provision of a wide range of educational and training opportunities outside the school system together with the provision of the range of differentiated curricula called for by the NES required tremendous additional resources. That these resources were made readily available could be seen from the rapid increase in public expenditure on education which rose from about $550 million in the financial year 1979/80 to about $1.8 billion in the financial year 1985/86. The high priority HILE it

33

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

accorded to education emphasized the importance of education as an instrument for national development. With the successful implementation of the NES, the Singapore education system has reached a new phase in its development. The Singapore education system, like the education system of any nation in a process of rapid development, had to cater to the demands of each stage of development. Thus, in resolving the problem of providing access to education to all children in the initial stage, the "double session" system of using one school building for two sets of pupils was introduced. The need to promote national cohesiveness in the mid-1950s gave birth to the 1957 Education Ordinance to enable the government to gain control over all schools, particularly the Chinese schools. The high education wastage experienced in the 1970s prompted the Goh Report which gave birth to the New Education System. The success of the NES in reducing education wastage would provide Singapore with an educated work-force able to cope with the demands of a rapidly expanding and changing economy. However, the successful resolution of problems encountered in the earlier phases does not imply that all weaknesses have been eradicated. Indeed, the solutions implemented have in some cases introduced weaknesses into the education system. For example, the double session system imposes many constraints on schools by restricting the availability of its physical facilities to the session in which it is operating. Fortunately, the Ministry of Education recognizes this and has announced an accelerated school-building programme to enable all secondary schools to operate under a single session system by 1993.41 Centralization of control over schools provides another example whereby the resolution of a problem has introduced an inherent weakness in the system. Central control of schools by the Ministry of Education has brought about many benefits including the maintenance of minimum standards. However, the uniformity in curricula which central control imposes has the disadvantage of discouraging initiative and diversity. In this regard, the observation of a Commission set up in 1922 to examine the working of the aided schools is telling: 42

34

CONCLUSION

...on more definitely practical grounds the aided schools are also of advantage; they provide useful competition and comparison with Government schools...

Viewed in this light, the recent initiative taken by three schools (Anglo-Chinese School, Chinese High School, and St. Joseph's Institution) to become more independent of the Ministry of Education is appropriate. As the Prime Minister put it in his response to the Goh Report: 43 ... the most fundamental principle of good education is recognition by the Ministry that the basic teaching organizational unit is the school.

That explicit recognition is now given by the Ministry to this fundamental principle can be seen from its support and encouragement to schools wishing to become more independent. The initiative for the pursuit of excellence in education must come from the schools and not from the Ministry. 44 This is a challenge facing schools, particularly those going independent. If they succeed, they will bring about an education system in which initiative and diversity can flourish. The system will then be truly capable of meeting its mission of educating each child so as to bring out his or her greatest potential.

35

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

NOTES 1. Goh Keng Swee et al., Report on the Ministry of Education 1978

(Singapore: Ministry of Education, 1979). 2. The Straits Settlements comprised the three British possessions - Penang, Singapore, and Malacca - which were combined in 1826 for economy of administration. 3. D.O. Chelliah, A Short History of Educational Policy in the Straits Settlements, reprint (Singapore: G.H. Kiat, 1960), pp. 21 - 22. 4. The English school was so called not because it was reserved exclusively for English children but because English was the medium of instruction. 5. The "free' schools were "free' not because they did not charge fees but because no restriction of race, creed, or colour was placed on the admission of pupils. Chief among these was the Singapore Free School (1823), later renamed Raffles Institution. 6. The mission schools, like the ufree' schools, were open to children of all races and creeds. Their aim was to provide a general education and a better standard of moral life based on the tenets of Christianity. Their success can be gauged from the fact that by 1922 75 per cent of boys attending English schools in Singapore were in mission schools. See R.O. Winstedt, "The Educational System of Malaya': in The International Year Book of Education (New York: Columbia University, 1931), p. 137. 7. Dennis Bloodworth, The Tiger and the Trojan House (Singapore: Times Books International. 1986), p. 59. 8. The 11m-Year Programme: Data and Interim Proposals (Colony of Singapore: Government Printing Office, 1949), p. 5. 9. Wong Hoy Kee & Ee Tiang Hong, Education in Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur: Heinemann Asia, 1971), p. 61. 10. See "Economic Change and the Formulation of Education Policy': speech by Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam, Minister for Education at the Nanyang Thchnological Institute on 22 July 1986; reproduced in Singapore in the Nineties (Singapore: Ministry of Communications and Information, 1987). 11. Report of the All-Party Committee of the Singapore Legislative Assembly on Chinese Education (Singapore: Government Printing Office, 1956), pp. 47- 50. 12. First Education Thennial Survey Covering the (Singapore: R.D. Gillespie, 1959), p. 18.

36

~ar

1955-57 Inclusive

NOTES

13. See the Prime Minister's reply to the Education Study Team in the Goh Report. 14. Goh Report, p. 1- 1. 15. While the school languages are English and Mandarin, the majority of Chinese children come from a dialect-speaking home background. 16. Goh Report, p. 3-1. 17. See the Prime Minister's reply to the Education Study Team in the Goh Report. 18. In 1976, the failure rates at the PSLE and the 0 level examination were 41 and 40 per cent respectively. 19. Compared to streaming at Primary One in Thiwan and Canada. See the Goh Report, footnote on p. 6-5. 20. Goh Report, p. 6-1. 21. Goh Report, p. 6- 1. 22. Goh Report, p. 6- 3. 23. The standard of L3 would be lower than that of L2. The primary aim of studying L3 was to maintain the level of the second language attained in primary school. 24. The Goh Report had, in fa ct, recommended that intelligence tests should be used to confirm pupils for the Monolingual course. The Achievement Test was intended as a temporary measure pending development of the appropriate intelligence tests. 25. A child streamed to the Extended course but subsequently transferred to the Normal course would take seven years to complete his primary schooling. 26. Pupils offer four subjects at the PSLE, viz. First Language {English), Second Language, Mathematics, and Science. 27. Pupils in the Monolingual course sit for First Language, oral Second Language, and Mathematics. 28. The only difference between the Special course and the Express course is that pupils in the Special course offer two languages at "first" language level. The Goh Report suggested that the Express course be called the "Normal" course. The term "Express" course was adopted in recognition of the fact that while these pupils would take four years to prepare for the 0 level examination, pupils in the UK and other countries would normally take five years.

37

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

29. The Goh Report suggested that the Normal course be called the "Ordinary" course. 30. These are approximate percentages. The actual percentages streamed to the various courses vary slightly from year to year. 31. The 0 level examination was designed for the top 20 per cent of each cohort of British pupils. 32. This principle was formalized by Coleman in his article "The Concept of Equality of Educational Opportunity': Harvard Educational Review 38 (1968): 7-22. Coleman's fifth definition of equal educational opportunity used as its criterion the production of equal educational results for children from different backgrounds (in practical terms, for socio-economically different groups of children). 33. The exception was that pupils in the Special course in the nine Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools, and in the four primary schools affiliated with the SAP schools, could offer ELl and CLl. 34. When in the early 1987, reports in the Chinese press raised the suggestion that the standards of Chinese taught in schools were too low, the Ministry of Education issued a press release stating that if there were sufficient demand from parents, the Ministry would be prepared to open schools offering Chinese as a first language and English as a second language. 35. The original criteria for promotion were an aggregate of 8 points or better in Ll and two other subjects, and a grade 3 or better in Ll. The criteria were relaxed two weeks later to an aggregate of 9 points or better in L1 and two other subjects. The criteria were further relaxed in 1985 to an aggregate of 10 points or better in Ll and two other subjects and a grade 5 or better in Ll. 36. The refinements discussed here are those which attracted much public attention and which had an impact on the basic education structure. They are, however, not the only refinements introduced to the NES. Several other refinements and/or programmes were introduced, for example, the Art Elective and Music Elective Programmes, to cater to the needs of pupils with special aptitudes. In addition, a Gifted Education Programme was introduced to cater to the needs of the academically gifted. 37. According to Key Education Statistics 1986, the PSLE and 0 level pass rates in 1985 were 85.9 and 89.0 per cent. These compared with 59 and 60 per cent for 1976 cited in the Goh Report. 38. The percentage pass for the second language is taken to be the weighted average of the percentage passes for CL2, ML2, and TL2. 38

NOTES

39. As 0 level grades range from 1 to 9 with 1 being the best grade, the lower the aggregate point the better is the result. 40. Excluding pupils considered to be educationally sub-normal and

pupils who emigrated. 41. Announced by the Minister for Education during the Budget Debate in March 1987. 42. ''Report of the Wolff Committee to consider the working of system of grants-in-aid in the Straits Settlements and the Federated Malay States 1922'; p. 1. 43. Goh Report, p. vi. 44. 1bwards Excellence in Schools, A Report to the Minister for Educa-

tion (Singapore: Singapore National Printers, 1987).

39

Bibliography

Bloodworth, Dennis. The Tiger and the Trojan House. Singapore: Times Book International, 1986. Chelliah, D.D. A Short History of Educational Policy in the Straits Settlements. Reprint. Singapore: G.H. Kiat, 1960. Coleman, J.S. "The Concept of Equality of Educational Opportunity". Harvard Educational Review 38 (Winter 1968). First Education Triennial Survey Covering the Years 1955- 57 Inclusive. Singapore: R.D. Gillespie, 1959.

Goh Keng Swee, et al. Report on the Ministry of Education 1978. Singapore: Ministry of Education, 1979. Key Education Statistics 1986. Singapore: Ministry of Education, 1986. Report of the All-Party Committee of the Singapore Legislative Assembly on Chinese Education. Singapore: Government Printing Office, 1956.

"Report of the Wolff Committee to consider the working of system of grants-in-aid in the Straits Settlements and the Federated Malay States, 1922'~ Mimeographed. The Supplementary Five-}ear Plan: Data and Interim Proposals. Singapore: Government Printing Office, 1950. Thn Keng Yam. "Economic Change and the Formulation of Education Policy: In Singapore in the Nineties. Singapore:

Ministry of Communications and Information, 1987. 41

SINGAPORE'S NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM

The 11m-Year Programme: Data and Interim Proposals. Colony of Singapore: Government Printing Office, 1949. Tbwards Excellence in Schools. A Report to the Minister for Education. Singapore: Singapore National Printers, 1987. Winstedt, R.O. 'The Educational System of Malaya': In The International Year Book of Education. New York: Columbia University, 1931. Wong Hoy Kee and Ee Tiang Hong. Education in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur: Heinemann, 1971.

42

THE AUTHOR

SOON TECK WONG, Ph.D., is a Fellow in the Department of Economics & Statistics, National University of Singapore. After obtaining his doctorate from the London School of Economics & Political Science in 1980, he joined the Monetary Authority of Singapore where he served in various capacities including Head, Econometrics Division, and Research Assistant to the Chairman. He was Director of the Ministry of Education's Research & Testing Division from 1984 to 1987.