2013 P1 Registration Exercise for 2014 In-Take
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meremortal:
Foreigners do have to pay school fees but it is a fraction of what international school costs - believe it is about a few hundreds as opposed to a few thousands. So our local schools are still attractive to them.
I dunno about the other countries, but Australia requires foreigners to pay about 4-6k a year if they attend a public/government school - which is why most foreign students opt for private schools as it is not that much more to pay and you get better facilities.av8trxx:
Dimsum - there are tons of countries who do not discriminate according to the nationality of the children registering for a place at a public school in their adopted country. Off the top of my head, Australia, USA, England and Canada - just to name a few...
I was surprised that we let foreigners study at our public schools without a similar scheme like Australia's! -
I can appreciate the frustration of SG over schooling yet equally or more worrisome its their resentment towards foreigners. The fees to locals schools are 500 a month i.e. 6000 a year so not exactly negligible. It is completely justifiable though ! the assumption however that all EP holders can afford 30,000 for international school fees is simply absurd. Not all Ep holders are bankers for whom companies are paying for these ludicrous schooling costs for international schools…
people should accept that societies are changing including singapore …Non singaporeans are brought in when local talents or manpower cannot fill in the positions for one reason or another.
foreigners are paying same taxes as PR or SG so should be getting a little something back like schooling with higher fees… it is not completely unreasonable… I am not sure if situation this year can be resolved but I am sure that Sg would be better prepared for next year…
Please do not respond by saying you can always back if you do not like. This is not constructive or useful in anyway. This xenophobic attitude shows no class or culture and is really unjustified as SG are very well treated by government and have no reason to show this hostility. -
Yes, I believe the birth numbers recorded annually already include those who live overseas since the child will be 'issued' a birth certificate regardless of the country of birth. Unless of course the parents did not register the birth here then there will no way the govt will know (likely? I don't think so)
pirate:
Is there any reason to think that the govt does not have records of how many citizens of a particular age are 'out there'. After all, all citizens have an NRIC no. Where does this figure of 5-6k citizens of pri 1 entry age come from? Also, apparently overseas citizens can still 'reserve a place' in the P1 registration exercise via the usual phase 1, 2A, 2B or 2C despite being overseas.ttk:
Say if next year 5-6K citizen's return home all of a sudden, then that 700+ number could be of citizen's, forget about PR or foreigners.. Then if one citizen ask to increase the seats in a class, then other citizens will not allow that to happen because the 'quality' will be degraded or his/her kid was balloted out from that school in the earlier phases...
For more information of MOE's commitment to returning citizens, see:
http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/admissions/returning-singaporeans/ -
Xenophobic is a term overused by the ruling party of the day. I understand that people want the best for themselves and their families and those who came in the last few years just took advantage of the loose immigration policies that was available to them. There has always been migrants into this country - the package of opportunities, a safe environment with low crime rates, perceived high level of education system, etc is attractive to many, ESP those from nearby developing countries. This main issue here is the poor planning and lacking of foresight despite the loose immigration policies, resulting in a public transport system that is overloaded, property prices spiraling out of control, insufficient hospital beds just to name some.
If you are a foreigner currently here, you feel the brunt of the so called resentment and label locals as xenophobic but asked the Malaysians and Indonesians who have been here for the last twenty years, schooling and now working, do they feel the same? I'm guessing the answer is no. As far as I can remember, relations between people in the earlier days were still good because there was still plenty to go around... But unfortunately things have changed since then. In many cases, there isn't even enough to go around, much less to be shared with outsiders. I'm guessing that even the Malaysians feel displaced. I believe many of them have lost their jobs to people from other countries. Spas and restaurants once staffed by Malaysians now see lots more people from China, Myanmar, Philippines and so on!
I quote you the example of HK - the people went on strike against the mainlanders for giving birth in HK and why? HK, like us, also have limited resources and they naturally want to protect their own interest too so why shdn't we?
I am fortunate that up till now, I never had to compete directly with foreigners whether its space on public transport and for jobs so I can't imagine how it hard it is for those who have to. But just listening to those around me makes me feel for them.
What is wrong with saying that those who are unhappy can go home? If SGs are overseas and they don't feel happy, they also can come home. The truth is these individuals made a choice to come here vs other countries (or maybe they do want to go other countries but can't due to other countries' stricter immigration policies). Whereas we are born here (not by our choice!). Otherwise, one can continue to work here and send home all your money so that your dependents there can live a better life. Nothing wrong with that right? Or could it be that one is unable to even find a decent job back home that pays as well as a job here and that is why he/she has 'no choice'? I don't think that its a secret that many are using SG as a stepping stone to better opportunities elsewhere, domestic helpers included! So if you have no loyalty towards this country, what gives you the right to demand benefits just by virtual of the fact that you are residing here?
Anyway, the few posts were totally :offtopic: (including this one) so I should just stop here. We can carry on this 'debate' elsewhere if anyone so desires.nadia:
I can appreciate the frustration of SG over schooling yet equally or more worrisome its their resentment towards foreigners. The fees to locals schools are 500 a month i.e. 6000 a year so not exactly negligible. It is completely justifiable though ! the assumption however that all EP holders can afford 30,000 for international school fees is simply absurd. Not all Ep holders are bankers for whom companies are paying for these ludicrous schooling costs for international schools..
people should accept that societies are changing including singapore ..Non singaporeans are brought in when local talents or manpower cannot fill in the positions for one reason or another.
foreigners are paying same taxes as PR or SG so should be getting a little something back like schooling with higher fees... it is not completely unreasonable.... I am not sure if situation this year can be resolved but I am sure that Sg would be better prepared for next year..
Please do not respond by saying you can always back if you do not like. This is not constructive or useful in anyway. This xenophobic attitude shows no class or culture and is really unjustified as SG are very well treated by government and have no reason to show this hostility. -
Lets be patient and see what creative solution or policy change will be introduced by moe to address the imbalance between demand and supply. We had seen changes in Hdb rules, free morning mrt rides, new hospitals among others for housing, transport and healthcare.
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I just find the system needs to improve. As a parent, it’s sad to see children being deny education here regardless of nationality. Moe should have the figures for sc, pr and foreigners with student or dependent pass. If immigration is to approve such numbers of foreigners, then Moe should make sure to cater enough placement for all children. All parents want the best for their child and that is why they choose to come singapore for studies. The kids are innocent, they shouldn’t be deprived of education.
I just find it’s very ridiculous to have such a huge number of balloted out children. That would also mean that Moe did not expect the huge demand. -
I just find the system needs to improve. As a parent, it’s sad to see children being deny education here regardless of nationality. Moe should have the figures for sc, pr and foreigners with student or dependent pass. If immigration is to approve such numbers of foreigners, then Moe should make sure to cater enough placement for all children. All parents want the best for their child and that is why they choose to come singapore for studies. The kids are innocent, they shouldn’t be deprived of education.
I just find it’s very ridiculous to have such a huge number of balloted out children. That would also mean that Moe did not expect the huge demand. -
echeok:
1. There is no breakdown of the number that were balloted out. So I won't read too much into the statistics given that phase 3 is free-for-all, including foreigners without any dealings in Singapore. I do believe, on good grounds, that school placements for all SC and PR have been accounted for.
I just find the system needs to improve. As a parent, it's sad to see children being deny education here regardless of nationality. Moe should have the figures for sc, pr and foreigners with student or dependent pass. If immigration is to approve such numbers of foreigners, then Moe should make sure to cater enough placement for all children. All parents want the best for their child and that is why they choose to come singapore for studies. The kids are innocent, they shouldn't be deprived of education.
I just find it's very ridiculous to have such a huge number of balloted out children. That would also mean that Moe did not expect the huge demand.
2. If the foreigners are living in Singapore due to their work, Immigration will issue them with an employment pass. They can request their dependents to be here on a dependent pass due to their dependency on the employment pass holder. A dependent pass, however, doesn't imply dependency on the state nor do the state agrees to provide for the dependent pass holder. Those conditions were clear from the onset. And yes, it is, therefore, unreasonable to assume that the state will take care of their dependents with regard to placement in primary schools (or anything else for that matter).
We should also be clear that the state doesn't discriminate nor deny anyone (regardless of nationality) placement in a public school should an opportunity be available (as far as I can recall, Malaysians and Indonesians have always been welcome to study in our public schools). However, we should also be clear that the state is not obliged to ensure that such an opportunity exist for anyone other than for its citizens or permanent residents.
While it's true that all parents want the best for their child and the kids are innocent, the parents of the dependent pass holder are ultimately responsible for the child, not the state. I see no reason to shift the blame to MOE or immigration for their plight, and neither should the fault even lies with MOE or immigration. After all, the rules of engagement have always been known before anyone decides to be involved in the game. -
echeok:
It will be difficult for MOE to cater for the foreigner's kids. Foreigners may decide to move on to other places to work for good and the children may go with them . I do see a few cases that my colleagues bought their children back after 1 to 2 yrs of education here . It will be a waste of resources . Teachers here are well trained and it takes years to train them .I just find the system needs to improve. As a parent, it's sad to see children being deny education here regardless of nationality. Moe should have the figures for sc, pr and foreigners with student or dependent pass. If immigration is to approve such numbers of foreigners, then Moe should make sure to cater enough placement for all children. All parents want the best for their child and that is why they choose to come singapore for studies. The kids are innocent, they shouldn't be deprived of education.
I just find it's very ridiculous to have such a huge number of balloted out children. That would also mean that Moe did not expect the huge demand. -
Did Singapore really do such a bad job in catering for our foreign frens' kids?
http://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/content/singapore-birth-rate-vs-available-primary-one-places
For this year's P1 registration, all 42,580 P1 places are filled, except for 700+ foreign frens' kids, which is only about 1.6 - 1.8% shortfall in the golden piggy year cohort. With 1504 places left for Phase 3,the nos. show that 1500+ foreign kids got places thru earlier Phases. (new SC or PR kids not born in Sg?)
As pointed out, Gov sch is not exactly cheap, at $6k /yr. The less costly intl schs start at $8-10k /yr which is reasonable. Sg is an Educ Hub, so our foreign frens have a choice, even to goto UWC at $30k/yr. They should not be too critical of the host nation. The 700+ kids will eventually find places at private schs n we wish them well.
SC patriots should be understanding at this time. We hv done our best to accommodate. Some foreign frens may feel otherwise n draw comparison with Western liberal nations, but we simply have to point out the Sg perspective of self reliance. No need for 'go home' remarks. Rem there are quite a no. of SCs living abroad. What goes round comes around.
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