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On 12 February 2004, Fairfield hosted the visit
of the Director of Planning, Mr Tang Tuck Weng. He had an
informal chat with the teachers, students, Heads of Departments,
our Principal, Miss Elaine Lim and Vice-principal, Mr Tony
Low. The Journalism Team was given the opportunity to interview
him on some burning issues that students, teachers and parents
may have.
| Journalists:
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Given the short notice to
schools to implement the Mother Tongue Syllabus B, what
measures will MOE take to ensure its smooth and effective
implementation? |
| Mr Tang: |
We held several discussions
with schools to understand the issues and concerns. So
far, the feedback is that there has been no problem and
the schools are able to manage. However, if there is any,
MOE is prepared to support the schools and help in whatever
ways we can, such as providing additional number of Mother
Tongue teachers. So far, schools are managing well.
The next batch of teachers will be graduating from NIE
this June and they can be deployed to assist schools that
are having problems.
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| Journalists: |
Why is there a need to introduce
entrepreneurship to schools? |
| Mr Tang:
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We want to promote the  spirit
of innovation and enterprise in the minds of students.
Being enterprising basically requires one to think inquisitively
and out of the box. It is tied to the bigger issue of
innovation. We want to better prepare students for the
fast-changing future. |
| Journalists:
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In what ways has MOE collaborated
with other ministries or the MNCs (Multi-National Companies)
to promote entrepreneurship in schools? |
| Mr Tang: |
There are already some
collaborations that are going on currently. Some examples
would be Citibank (City Success) and HP (Hewlett Packard).
The question should not only be how the government can
help schools. Instead, it should be the other way around,
having the students ask what more they can do for themselves.
The government is there to guide the students as they
progress. At the end of the day, what the ministry wants
is for the students to develop this mindset of enterprise,
and not a “do one time only” mentality.
Enterprise need not be about business. It just has
to be realistic and workable in schools. As long as
you have the passion and a clear vision, just do it!
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| Journalists:
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What does the government
plan to do to ensure that students are well prepared for
the changing work requirements where knowledge-based on
textbooks is not sufficient anymore? |
| Mr Tang:
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All stakeholders will have
to work on this aspect. The parents, the government, as
well as, the students. Students are encouraged to offer
a wider range of subjects. For example in 2006, all Junior
College students are required to take a contrasting subject.
 This
means that the students in the Arts Class will have to
take a science subject and vice versa. This is very important
for the students going out to work as it will broaden
their mind and cultivate a multi-dimensional response
to problems and ideas.
Assessments will include sourced-based questions where
the answers are not found directly in textbooks. With
sufficient exposure, our students will be better prepared.
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| Journalists: |
Will MOE be introducing
the Singapore brand of the ‘O’ and ‘A’
level Examinations and when will that take place? |
| Mr Tang:
|
Singapore is actually already
very much involved in the preparation of our ‘O’
and ‘A’ Level Examinations with Cambridge,
which MOE intends to continue. Cambridge is well-known
and established. This will give the certificates under
Singapore-Cambridge greater international recognition. |
| Journalists: |
I know that the (International
Baccalaurate Programme is implemented in ACS(I). May I
know whether MOE has plans to implement this prestigious
program to other schools, such as the good neighbourhood
schools? |
| Mr Tang: |
Yes, it is a well-known
programme. However, in the case of ACS(I)’s International
Baccalaurate Programme (IB programme), they had approached
the Ministry for it. Other interested schools can approach
the Ministry on this  programme.
MOE will assess the suitability and readiness of the school
for the programme on a case-by-case basis. Currently,
the integrated programme (IP), including the IB is deemed
more suitable for the top 10% of the student cohort. This
is to ensure that these students, who do not offer the
“O” levels, would be able to do well at the
end of the IP to qualify for university. |
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Finally, Mr. Tang has
this highly pertinent advice for our students:
“Focus on building the foundation first in your
studies. Once you have built a strong foundation, there
will be more options opened for you in the future.”
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Journalists: Evangeline
See, Helsa Seow, Elvi Bellina and Royston Teo |
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