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Wo ya boh? Am I reading it right? 61 schools, including Raffles Institution and Hwa Chong Institution, to get new principals Raffles Institution (RI) will be headed by Mr Frederick Yeo, who is currently principal of Crest Secondary School. Crest Secondary School is the first Specialised School for Normal Technical students in Singapore. It commenced its first year of operation in January 2013. http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/education/61-schools-including-raffles-institution-and-hwa-chong-institution-to-get-new?xtor=CS11-86 Really ah? MOE going for all schools are good schools? Walk the talk?LoL... Downgrading elitist schools into good schools? Could the teachers be next in the reshuffling exercise?

I am not exactly a dinosaur in terms of age but it was normal to get canned or whacked by my kampong school teachers those days. Mind you I got my knuckles knocked by a steel rule till they bled by my form teacher together with other rowdy boys in the class and when I told my mum what happened later, all she said was "Orbi good!" So much so for being a loving mother [laugh] No parents I know raised an eyebrow when their kids got corporal punishment in my days and the common reaction back then was something like well-we-are-busy-earning-a-living-&-good-that-the-school-help-us-to-discipline-the-little-rascal type of response. Well having said that we are in the modern age so the school authorities have to be extremely careful and of course tactful when dealing with parents especially the loud ones. If not later bo tai bo chi kena police report During the latest meet the parents session, our P2 gal's assistant form teacher provided a "feedback" that our princess was very talkative and not paying attention during lesson time. My exact words to her was "We are sorry that she disrupted your lesson and please discipline her on our behalf if she does that again. We will appreciate that. Thank you" Well that's just us. From ST Forum: http://www.straitstimes.com/premium/forum-...achers-20120926 Principals shouldn't be afraid to support their teachers Published on Sep 26, 2012 IT IS heartening that the Education Minister has taken a strong public stand against parents who are excessively and unreasonably demanding, and who intercede on behalf of their children over trivial issues of disciplinary and related matters at school ("Standing firm against unreasonable demands"; Sept 13). School principals should follow suit and stand by their teachers when parents demand explanation or redress for disciplining their children. Principals are the mentors, advisers, confidantes and role models to their teaching staff. It is their responsibility to provide the sense of understanding and strong leadership on any issue of parental or societal complaint made against their teachers. During my 40 years in teaching, I have seen principals turning white at the sight of aggressive parents visiting them to complain about teacher misconduct. The standard procedure was to cave in to the complainants' demands for apology even if there were strong extenuating reasons for the teachers' action or inaction. In my view, parental interference was trending up when I retired in 2003. This is not to say there were no principals who stood up for their staff and mollified parents at the same time. One school head, upon receipt of a complaint against his staff for the corporal punishment of a schoolboy, visited the parents the same night, with his vice-principal and the offending teacher in tow. He apologised to the irate parents on the teacher's behalf, offered to pay for the medical fees and also assured them he would ensure there would be no more corporal punishment in the future. His quick and decisive actions, and his powerful plea on behalf of the teacher, convinced the parents to drop their intended court action against the teacher. There was also no hair pulling on the principal's part. He counselled the teacher in private and made a general advisory on the issue at the following teachers' contact time. School principals can do much in the concerted effort to raise teacher-parent cooperation and synergy by playing the role of a resourceful, impartial yet compassionate facilitator. Also, a thorough, objective and calm investigation into any allegations against a teacher would go a long way in empowering our nation builders to discharge their duties and responsibilities with confidence, passion and conviction. Ho Kong Loon