No Land to Build Schs for Sporns' Kids, Plenty for FTrash's. *Shake Head*

[makapaaa]

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=591 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=newstitle width=328>Singapore News</TD><TD class=newstitle vAlign=bottom align=right width=263 colSpan=3><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=259 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=right width=143> </TD><TD width=99> </TD><!--<td width="58"> </td>--></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cccccc" colSpan=4>

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=596 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=3 height=26> </TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=5> </TD><TD vAlign=top width=591 colSpan=2>Committee revamping primary education starts work
By Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 15 October 2008 1100 hrs
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SINGAPORE: The committee looking into revamping primary school education met on Wednesday for the first time, and some differences have already emerged as not everyone agrees with the plan to have all schools go single session.

Bukit View Primary School has introduced music and drama in language classes, as well as interactive whiteboards for students to cast their votes, in order to make lessons more engaging and to inculcate more life skills.

The Primary Education Review and Implementation Committee said this is exactly what it is looking deeper into.

Senior Minister of State for Education, Grace Fu, who is also the chairperson of the Primary Education Review and Implementation Committee, said: "Academic competence is not sufficient by itself. They must have the confidence to meet with changes, ambiguity or complexity.

"They must also have the ability to communicate and collaborate with people of different cultures or nationalities. This is the reason why we are rebalancing the education system."

Piyush Gupta, CEO of Citi, Southeast Asia Pacific Region, and member of the Primary Education Review and Implementation Committee, said: "Clearly, an inquiry-based education – less route, more creative education form – helps kids to develop a different way of thinking."

The committee is also studying the possibility of having single session for all schools to give children more time to do other things.

While a single-session structure has advantages such as more time for creative teaching methods, co-curricular activities and staff development programmes, some members in the committee feel it may not work for all schools - especially those that have limited space or large student numbers.

One view is that schools should have the option to achieve the same objectives, without going single session.

Professor Jackie Ying, executive director, Institute of Bioengineering & Nanotech, and member of the Primary Education Review and Implementation Committee, said: "My daughter is in Raffles Girls' Primary School... but the school, because of its location, is limited in space. I think it will be difficult for schools like that to go into single session.

"The plan has to be created in such a way that it will allow different schools to have different practices. Give them the resources and allow them to grow in different ways."

The committee is also tasked with looking into the plan to recruit only graduate teachers by 2015. It has clarified that 'A'-level and polytechnic students may still apply, but they will have to be qualified for acceptance into the National Institute of Education (NIE) for an undergraduate course.

The public can email their views to the committee, which will be submitting its draft report in January, at [email protected] or through www.reach.gov.sg.


- CNA/so

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[shelltox]

Sometimes it is not space alone but the manpower involved, the school involved may have to double to number of teachers. but with recession coming i think they could solved the manpower shortage easily. as for the shortage of facilities, there maybe alot of newly built condominium left empty with the downturn

 

[downgrader]

Yeah there will be lots of cheap teachers next year

Lots of former Minibond and High Notes salesmen will apply to become teachers

 

[halsey02]

Yeah there will be lots of cheap teachers next year

Lots of former Minibond and High Notes salesmen will apply to become teachers

Not to mention, eldery investors looking forward to retire on their egg nest, will now have to upgrade their skills to cleaners, sweepers, etc., in order to stay relevant & live out the rest of their years!:p

 

[sherrry]

They're probably adopting the built-to-order concept from HDB, so they only start building schools when the demand exceeds. Given the declining birthrate, schools may eventually down size in 10years time. Teachers would start losing their jobs too.

 

[Neh_Neh_Pok]

Should demolish some churches to make space for schools

 

[mockingbird]

This issue of single session in schools has been going on for donkey years. Until now, it's still lots of thunder but no rain.

 

[sherrry]

Churches? Be realistic, Churches are too small to accomodate. Military camps seem more befitting. There's parade square for the usual morning call for neighbouring residents, there's medical center for sick-bay, there's barracks that can be partitioned into class rooms, there's company office for respective teaching & non-teaching admin staff, there's cook-house big enough for canteen, etc.

 

[Microsoft]

Golf course ish the biggest land waster...

 

[zack123]

Who say no land for schools? Now the problem is no children to fill up the schools that's why the school at Serangoon Garden become dorm.

 

[eQuipment]

Golf course ish the biggest land waster...

golf course got many country club members paying to cover the costs. for now, the biggest land wasting plot of land is the national stadium & so many carparks surrounding it.