Debated in Parliament on 7 Oct 2019.
Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling asked the Minister for Education (a) whether subsidies can be provided for dyslexic students who wish to take the basic Chinese programme offered by the Dyslexia Association of Singapore; and (b) if not possible, what are the reasons for the non-provision.
MOE is the major supporter of the work of the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS). Our focus is the evidence-based Main Literacy Programme for dyslexia, but we do not provide funding for the other programmes offered by DAS, such as Chinese, Mathematics, Speech and Drama.
Research into dyslexia for different languages, especially Mother Tongue Languages (MTL), and the specific learning support is a developing field. MOE monitors various research findings in MTL learning difficulties and is open to adopting evidence-based and effective targeted interventions for students with dyslexia.
In the meantime, MOE provides additional support for students with difficulties in learning MTL in schools, on a needs basis. Our Primary school curriculum ensures that MTL learning in Primary 1 and 2 focuses on listening and speaking. We will be implementing the Mother Tongue Support Programme for Primary 3 and 4 students in 2021 and 2022 respectively. After Primary 4, students who have persistent difficulties in coping with the standard MTL curriculum can consider offering Foundation MTL in Primary 5 and 6, and subsequently MTL "B" in Secondary school and Junior College.
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