Pre-school Education for Children from Low-income Families

Mr David Ong asked the Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (a) what is the current number of children from low-income families who are not receiving pre-school education; and (b) what can be done to ensure that these children be given such education.

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The Government takes proactive steps to ensure citizen children have access to pre-school education. We invest in public education to reach out to low-income families with young children. In addition, since 2007, we have implemented a specific outreach programme that reaches out to five- and six-year-olds from low-income families who are not attending pre-school. This programme is a joint effort by various agencies, including the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, People's Association, grassroots organisations and Voluntary Welfare Organisations.

The children are first identified using data from various agencies. Grassroots leaders and social workers would then conduct house visits to explain the importance of pre-school education to these families. They will assist the families to find a place in a childcare centre or kindergarten close to home. Those who need financial assistance will be guided and referred to the Community Development Councils. For families with multiple needs, social workers will assist them with casework support in areas, such as employment and family issues. The child's attendance in pre-school is also monitored to ensure that the child attends pre-school regularly.

We have achieved progress through these efforts. Only a small number of families were not contactable or did not to enrol. The percentage of Primary 1 going-aged children who did not have any pre-school education has declined from 5% in 2006 to 0.8% in 2012. Of the 261 children who did not attend pre-school, the majority were attending other enrichment programmes or were being home-schooled.

We will continue to work closely with our partners to further improve outreach efforts, and ensure that children from disadvantaged families are provided with pre-school education.

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