Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a second time."

The Singapore education system has always served both an economic and social function – to prepare our citizens for work and to provide a common educational experience to our young.

Over the years, with improvements and refinements, the participation rates in primary, secondary and post-secondary education have been rising. Achievement levels are high, and our education system enjoys a well-deserved international high reputation, especially in Mathematics, Science and IT.

For the future, the role our schools play will become even more critical, in providing Singaporeans with the necessary foundation to become knowledge workers, and in imbuing our young with a robust sense of national identity in the face of globalisation and rapid change.

As Singapore is a small country with limited resources, we need to ensure that children who would otherwise miss out on the full benefits of an education in national schools, will have the opportunity to get the education they need to develop to their fullest potential, and be ready for the future. The introduction of Compulsory Education in our national schools signals this intent.

CE will help assure that our children have firstly, the necessary common core of knowledge and strong foundation for further education, and secondly, a common educational experience to build national cohesion.

The duration and form of CE, proposed by the Committee on Compulsory Education chaired by Dr Wong, and accepted by the government, balances these two key objectives with the views and aspirations of the different communities in Singapore. The recommendations also re-affirm the appropriate balance in responsibilities of the family and of the state for a child’s education, while taking into consideration practical problems in terms of enforcement. Permit me to briefly go over the key recommendations of the CE committee.

CE up to primary 6 is recommended, even though 10 years of general education would be ideal. This is a pragmatic compromise given the practicalities of introducing and enforcing CE during secondary education. CE should therefore be seen as the minimum period of education for all Singaporean children, and not the ideal duration.

CE will need strong support from the various communities to be successful. The form in which CE is implemented should therefore give due consideration to how the aspirations and needs of the various communities can be taken into account in the implementation of CE. Hence we have provided for certain groups to be exempted from CE subject to certain conditions. These are children attending designated institutions which have a long historical record in our society, like madrasahs and San Yu Adventist School. Home-schoolers are exempted. Children with special needs are also exempted as their needs are catered for in accordance with their specific requirements.

Although some children will be given exemption from CE in national schools to receive alternative forms of education, we are putting in place mechanisms to ensure that we can try to meet the objectives of CE as best as practicable, like prescribing a minimum standard in the PSLE. All children who are given exemption to attend full-time madrasahs, San Yu Adventist School and home-schooling will be required to sit for the PSLE with their cohort. Each of these institutions must meet stipulated benchmarks in order to be allowed to admit children exempted from CE, and parents of home-schoolers need to satisfy MOE that the two key objectives of CE can be achieved for their children before they are granted exemption from CE.

As for children with learning disabilities, some are already admitted to mainstream schools if that is best for them. But others are much more able to develop their full potential if they attend special education schools where they can learn at their own pace. There they are taught by specially trained teachers who are assisted by medically trained personnel and support staff, with a curriculum and environment specially tailored to their needs. Children with special needs are therefore automatically exempted from CE.

Even with the introduction of CE, parents will still be responsible for ensuring their children attend school regularly. The family and community should play an active role in convincing and helping parents send their children to school before the state steps in to compel them to do so. This is consistent with the principle of self-reliance and sense of parental responsibility which undergird the family as the basic unit of society. At the same time, penalties, in the form of fines and in the extreme case, a jail term, will be provided under the law to allow effective enforcement of CE and to deter irresponsible parents. However penalties will need to be meted out judiciously to ensure that they are not to the detriment to the long term interest of the children and their families.

The CE Bill will provide the necessary framework for implementing CE. It sets out the key definitions, gives powers to the Minister and the Director-General of Education (DGE) to enforce CE, and lays down penalties. It will give regulatory effect to the key objectives of CE while operational details are regulated by administrative means. In this way, the Ministry can better respond to changes in environment and circumstances. Whatever can be facilitated by administrative measures and regulations have not been duplicated in the Bill.

Permit me to highlight the key clauses of the Bill:

1. Clause 4 makes provision for exemption from Compulsory Education. The conditions for granting exemption will be spelt out in the subsidiary legislation.

Mr Speaker Sir, the recommendations of the CE committee represent a considered and balanced response to the demands of the new knowledge based world. To succeed in the future, we will need Singaporeans to have the necessary educational foundations to undertake lifelong learning; and a keen sense of what it means to be a Singaporean.

CE, by providing a common core of knowledge and a common educational experience, is a first step for all communities to move forward together into the future. CE can only succeed in meeting its objectives with the strong commitment of parents and the various communities. I therefore urge MPs and community leaders to encourage all Singaporeans to give their full support to making CE a success, and help give all our children the best possible start in life.

Mr Speaker Sir, I beg to move.