Parents who do not want to enrol children for primary school must submit documents to support request: MOE
Only a “small number” of children are not enrolled for Primary 1 by the start of each academic year for “non-valid reasons”, said the Education Ministry.
Primary school students in a classroom. (File photo: Facebook/Chan Chun Sing)
SINGAPORE: Parents who want to exempt their children from enrolling in primary school must submit the relevant documents to support their request, said the Ministry of Education (MOE) on Wednesday (Sep 27).
These include cases where the children reside overseas, or when parents prefer alternative education pathways for their children, said MOE in its statement.
The Education Ministry was responding to questions from CNA on whether it requires proof from parents who do not register their children for primary school for various reasons.
This comes as a 35-year-old Singaporean man was sentenced to 21-and-a-half years in jail and 18 strokes of the cane on Sep 19 for killing his daughter in 2014 and hiding the crime with his wife by burning the girl's body in a metal pot. The mother’s case is still before the court.
When MOE contacted them in 2017 to check why the girl, Umaisyah, had not registered for Primary 1, her mother lied that her estranged husband had taken the child away. The child's father then lied that his relatives were caring for the girl in Malaysia.
MOE did not respond to specific questions about this case.
For all children who do not register for Primary 1, MOE said it seeks to locate and reach out to them and their parents to “provide counselling and guidance on schooling matters” and facilitate their placement in a school.
Only a “small number” of children are not enrolled for Primary 1 by the start of each academic year for “non-valid reasons”, said the Education Ministry in its statement.
Parents not being aware of the registration, children residing overseas and parents planning to seek other education pathways for their children are some typical reasons for non-registration.
Under the Compulsory Education Act, parents are responsible for ensuring that their children attend school, MOE noted in its statement.
Where necessary, cases are escalated to the Compulsory Education Board, which may summon the parents and children for a formal hearing.
“Should there be further non-compliance and if deemed necessary, the State is empowered to take legal actions against them," said MOE.
"However, several levels of counselling and mediation procedures are in place to ensure that legal enforcement is taken only as a last resort.”
