PM Lee emphasises importance of raising pre-school standards

By S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsis, 20 Oct 2013

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has emphasised that every child deserves a good start in life.

Writing on his Facebook page, he said that is why the government is building more pre-school places and raising pre-school standards.

Post by Lee Hsien Loong.

The government had announced in Budget 2013 earlier this year that it would double its spending on the pre-school sector over the next five years to more than S$3 billion.

The extra funding will go to expanding the number of pre-schools and improving the quality of pre-school education.

More pre-schools will be built closer to homes and workplaces and more operators will also join the Anchor Operators Scheme resulting in 16,000 more pre-school places by 2017.

Mr Lee notes that parents often worry about their children's academic performance but he added there is a need to strike the right balance between studying, playing and spending time with the family.

Mr Lee advises parents to not pressure their children too much and let them enjoy their childhood and have fun.

On October 19, Mr Lee attended the PCF Teck Ghee Kindergarten graduation ceremony and said the children had put up a wonderful concert.

Mr Lee hopes they have enjoyed their kindergarten journey and will not miss it too much as they move on to primary school.