Speech by Mr Gan Kim Yong, Minister of State, Ministry of Education, at the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) Graduation Ceremony on Saturday, 30 December 2006, 2.25 pm at the Spring Singapore Auditorium

SPEECH BY MR GAN KIM YONG, MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, AT THE DYSLEXIA ASSOCIATION OF SINGAPORE (DAS) GRADUATION CEREMONY ON SATURDAY, 30 DECEMBER 2006, 2.25 PM AT THE SPRING SINGAPORE AUDITORIUM

It gives me great pleasure to join you this afternoon to celebrate the achievements and good progress of two special groups of students. To the students graduating from the DAS remedial programme today, congratulations to you and your families, and to the students who will be promoted to Level Two of the programme, keep up the good work, and we look forward to your own graduation from the programme in the near future.

Support for dyslexic students in Singapore
2. Since its founding in 1991, the Dyslexia Association of Singapore has built for itself a reputation as a regional centre for the professional management of dyslexia. This is evident from its rising enrolment and from the many enquiries it receives from parents in neighbouring countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines and India. This speaks well of the range and quality of the services and programmes that DAS provides, which include specialist assessment and diagnosis, teaching, training and support for parents and teachers, as well as research.

3. I am glad to observe that the association continues in its unstinting efforts to help more students, and to reach out to them earlier. Just this June, DAS launched its Specialist Pre-School Service to identify children with literacy difficulties early, and to provide support before they enter mainstream schools. I understand plans are under way to expand this service to ensure that children with dyslexia and related learning difficulties have access to good and effective early intervention services. MOE has been working closely with DAS to provide remedial support for 866 students from kindergarten to secondary level at four learning centres.

4. MOE has also stepped up support for children with special needs in mainstream education. This is accomplished through the training of MOE teachers and Special Needs Officers (SNOs) to support children with dyslexia and autism, as well as increased funding for intervention at the school level. DAS has been involved in the training of the SNOs and to date, fifty SNOs have already received training at the Dyslexia Centre.

5. I am pleased to see strong support from organizations such as the Rotary Club of Raffles City and Deutschebank. The Rotary Club of Raffles City has been a stalwart supporter of DAS as a community service project. Deutschebank has also contributed time as well as money in support of DAS. The efforts and commitment of these two community partners are indeed commendable. I am certain the volunteers who helped out at the recent Art Competition have also found it a rewarding experience.

Helping children realise their potential
6. As we strive to help our children overcome their learning difficulties, it is also important to recognize and nurture the many gifts and talents of our children. Earlier, I had the opportunity to view the artwork of students for the Art Competition organized by the Rotary Club of Raffles City. I was impressed by the display of creativity. It is a showcase of the potential these children possess. What we do together to help them overcome their challenges could make a tremendous difference to their lives, to their future and to Singapore.

7. Today’s graduation ceremony is a testimony that with close collaboration between MOE, DAS, parents and community partners, students who are given the right form of support and intervention can also succeed and excel. One shinning example is Vittorio Carecci.

8. Vittorio has been on the remedial programme since he was diagnosed with dyslexia in Primary 2. He is now in Secondary 4 at Fairfield Methodist Secondary School and he will be graduating today. With the care and support from his parents, school and DAS, Vittorio has done well despite his learning difficulties. He topped his school in the Normal Technical stream both this year and last year. He has also been a school councilor. This year, Vittorio was awarded the S.T. Liu Memorial Scholarship from Fairfield Methodist Secondary for being proficient in his studies, active in CCA and of good character all year round. I understand that he will be studying in SHATEC from next year, in pursuit of his dream of joining the Food and Beverage Industry. With his strong personal qualities, I am confident he will achieve the goals he has set for himself.

9. To the boys and girls here, I want to encourage you to continue to adopt a positive learning attitude and strive to realise your dreams, just as Vittorio has been doing. Ultimately, patience and persistence will win the day. Witnessing your progress and your successes has been a great encouragement for us to continue working together and to institute new initiatives that will allow our children to do well, despite their learning difficulties.

Conclusion
10. Once again, let me extend my congratulations to all our graduates and award winners for your achievements. For each and every one of you, and for that matter, for all of us here, there will always be new challenges and new frontiers for us to conquer. With courage and determination, we will rise to the occasion. On this note, I wish you every success in your pursuits.