Press Releases
Ms Grace Fu Forms Primary Education Review and Implementation (PERI) Committee
At the MOE Work Plan Seminar on 25 September 2008, Minister for Education and Second Minister for Defence, Dr Ng Eng Hen announced that Ms Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of National Development and Ministry of Education would be chairing a committee to review primary education. Ms Fu has convened a Committee to study ways to enhance primary education in Singapore. The Primary Education Review and Implementation (PERI) Committee comprises representatives from the public, people and private sector, including educators, academia, parents, and industry representatives, to solicit a range of views and inputs. The list of members is attached at Annex.
The PERI Committee held its inaugural meeting today at Bukit View Primary School. Members were also given a tour of the school to understand first-hand the facilities, innovative curricula and pedagogical approaches that a single session primary school can provide.
“We had a good discussion at the first PERI meeting today. Most of our members, whether educators or professionals, are also parents. We certainly appreciate that as the world around us becomes increasingly complex, competitive and inter-connected, there is a need to ensure that our children are equipped with the necessary values and skills beyond academic achievement, to thrive in a fast-changing and globalised future. We will take the next few months to engage stakeholders including school leaders, teachers, parents, students, employers and members of the public, to hear their views, suggestions and concerns. These will help the Committee to shape how and what we can do to enable our primary schools to strengthen their focus on holistic education ”, said Ms Grace Fu, Chairperson, PERI Committee.
The PERI Committee will review and recommend strategies to enhance primary education, and will study in detail the following areas:
- Recommendations to rebalance the learning of content knowledge and the development of skills and values so that our young are well prepared for the future;
- Moving all primary schools to a single-session structure to create more space and time for holistic learning;
- Moving towards all-graduate teacher recruitment by 2015.
The PERI Committee will meet regularly over the next few months to discuss the specific issues in detail. It will interview key stakeholders, conduct site visits to schools and seek views from parents, educators and the public through focus group discussions as well as various online platforms. It is expected to complete its review and to submit its report to the Minister for Education in March 2009. Members of the public who are interested to provide feedback can do so via contact@moe.gov.sg or the REACH website.
Annex
Composition of the Primary Education Review and Implementation (PERI) Committee
| Chairman |
|---|
| Ms Grace Fu Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Education and Ministry of National Development |
| Members |
| Dr Lily Neo Member of Parliament for Jalan Besar GRC Chairperson, Government Parliamentary Committee on Education |
| Mr Michael Palmer Member of Parliament for Pasir Ris- Punggol GRC Member, Government Parliamentary Committee on Education |
| Ms Yeoh Chee Yan 2nd Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education |
| Miss Seah Jiak Choo Director-General of Education, Ministry of Education |
| Mr Wilbur Wong Principal, Telok Kurau Primary School |
| Mr Harish Nim CEO, Emerio Globesoft Pte Ltd Member of Community and Parents in Support of Schools (COMPASS) |
| Mr Alfie Othman Managing Director, Ikhlas Holdings Pte Ltd Member of Community and Parents in Support of Schools (COMPASS) |
| Prof Jackie Ying Executive Director, Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology |
| Mr Piyush Gupta CEO, South East Asia Pacific, Citi |
| Mr Goh Sin Teck Senior Executive Editor, Lianhe Zaobao, Singapore Press Holdings |