<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Review volunteer priority for P1 places
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I APPLAUD the Government's initiative to build a world-class education system, as highlighted in the Ministry of Education's addendum to the President's Address to Parliament.
One area that has to be addressed in the primary education sector is the transparency and relevance of the priority given to parent volunteers (PVs) under Phase 2B of the current Primary 1 (P1) admission exercise.
Volunteerism in schools should come from parents of its current cohort. Their intention for volunteering should stem from a desire to know what their child is involved in at school.
In the West, parents commonly choose from a wide array of school committees to be involved in supporting the school. Their involvement creates an informal parent-student network and their efforts are natural and socially encouraged.
While some schools here do have parent support groups formed by parents of existing students, the PV scheme for yet-to-be students of the school creates a highly competitive situation during the short-listing process in the case of 'popular schools'. It is common to hear of parents being rejected because their skill-sets do not match the school's needs. And for those who get through, the heartache comes when balloting is required even after the parents have put in significant amount of time and effort.
The ability to contribute based on skill-set matching may exclude children from lower- to middle- income families whose parents are often less affluent (to provide funding) or lack the time and skills that the school may be looking for.
The Ministry of Education ought to review the registration process so as to not to add to the stress of working parents who truly want to put their children in the best schools through a fair process.
Ho Sulin (Ms)
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I APPLAUD the Government's initiative to build a world-class education system, as highlighted in the Ministry of Education's addendum to the President's Address to Parliament.
One area that has to be addressed in the primary education sector is the transparency and relevance of the priority given to parent volunteers (PVs) under Phase 2B of the current Primary 1 (P1) admission exercise.
Volunteerism in schools should come from parents of its current cohort. Their intention for volunteering should stem from a desire to know what their child is involved in at school.
In the West, parents commonly choose from a wide array of school committees to be involved in supporting the school. Their involvement creates an informal parent-student network and their efforts are natural and socially encouraged.
While some schools here do have parent support groups formed by parents of existing students, the PV scheme for yet-to-be students of the school creates a highly competitive situation during the short-listing process in the case of 'popular schools'. It is common to hear of parents being rejected because their skill-sets do not match the school's needs. And for those who get through, the heartache comes when balloting is required even after the parents have put in significant amount of time and effort.
The ability to contribute based on skill-set matching may exclude children from lower- to middle- income families whose parents are often less affluent (to provide funding) or lack the time and skills that the school may be looking for.
The Ministry of Education ought to review the registration process so as to not to add to the stress of working parents who truly want to put their children in the best schools through a fair process.
Ho Sulin (Ms)
