Special Assistance Plan
Encyclopedia
The Special Assistance Plan (Abbreviation
: SAP; ) is a programme in Singapore
which caters to academically strong students who excel in both their mother tongue as well as English
. It is only available in selected secondary schools. In a SAP school, several subjects may be taught in the mother tongue, alongside other subjects which are taught in English. Currently, SAP schools only cater to those studying the Mandarin mother tongue, although theoretically, future SAP schools for other mother tongues are a possibility.
(PSLE). To enter a SAP school, a student must achieve a PSLE aggregate score that puts him in the top 10% of his cohort, with an 'A' grade for the mother tongue and an A* ('A star', i.e. a score of more than 90 out of 100) in English. This means that only a relatively small group of students who are academically and linguistically strong may enter a SAP school. Consequently, SAP schools have a reputation of being the "elite" group of secondary schools in the country, alongside independent and autonomous schools. This stems from the Singaporean tradition of effective bilingualism in the education of the elite students from SAP schools. The best students in SAP school, i.e. the top 10% of the top 10% selected for SAP school admissions, i.e. the top 1% of each national cohort are offered a chance at effective trilingualism in secondary education starting from age 12. The first language, English, is the international language of commercial and the administrative and legal language of Singapore, a former British colony. The mother tongue reflects the cultural and ethnic identity or in recent times, the linguistic curiosity of the students, e.g. Malay and Indian students who opt to study Mandarin as second Language in Singapore. The "third languages" are foreign languages which are considered by MOE to be "economically, politically and culturally vital" , such as Japanese, German and French.
In 1980, the Ministry of Education (MOE) designated nine Chinese-medium secondary schools as Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools. These schools were intended to provide top-scoring primary school leavers with the opportunity to study both English and Mandarin to high levels of competence. Also, these schools were to preserve the character of traditional Chinese-medium secondary schools and allay fears that the Government was indifferent to Chinese language and culture amid declining enrolments in Chinese-medium schools.
synthesised these various situations and developed certain ideas that came to be known as the Asian Values
discourse.
According to this line of argument, Singapore, along with Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan, had succeeded so spectacularly in no small part because of their shared Confucianist cultural heritage, which emphasised values such as hard work, education, family unity, deference and loyalty to authority figures, community spirit (in contrast to Western individualism), etc. Some parallels were drawn between this Confucian ethic and the Protestant Work Ethic
. However, the West was seen to have fallen into a state of permanent decline, marked by cultural decadence, indiscipline and even impending social decay. As an English speaking country and, in some ways the most Westernised of the Asian NIEs, Singapore was seen to be vulnerable to cultural influences from the West.
To better sell this argument to a multi-ethnic population where the non-Chinese / non-'Confucianist' communities formed at least a quarter of the population, the discourse was re-branded 'Asian Values', rather than Confucian Work Ethic. In Singapore, traditional Asian culture was seen as a valuable bulwark against 'decadent Western values', as well as a source of the nation's economic success thus far. As such, the government embarked on programmes and campaigns to promote traditional culture, including the revitalised Speak Mandarin Campaign (targeted at English rather than dialect speakers, as was historically the case) as well as SAP schools.
Another, less mentioned, concern is that by virtue of sheer numbers and their proportions in the population, as well as the related issue of the relative economic value of different languages in Singapore, it would seem unavoidable that only SAP schools catering to the ethnic majority will ever be viable in Singapore. As such, the State effectively promotes special promotion of the Chinese language and culture only, whereas the ethnic minorities (Malays and Indians) receive no such State funding or other support.
Abbreviation
An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase...
: SAP; ) is a programme in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
which caters to academically strong students who excel in both their mother tongue as well as English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. It is only available in selected secondary schools. In a SAP school, several subjects may be taught in the mother tongue, alongside other subjects which are taught in English. Currently, SAP schools only cater to those studying the Mandarin mother tongue, although theoretically, future SAP schools for other mother tongues are a possibility.
SAP schools
- Anglican High School 圣公会中学Anglican High SchoolAnglican High School is an autonomous, Special Assistance Plan and Government-aided co-educational secondary school in Tanah Merah, Singapore.- History :...
- Catholic High School 公教中学Catholic High School (Singapore)Catholic High School ' is an all-boys Catholic school in Singapore offering a six-year primary, a four-year GCE 'O' Level education and a six-year GCE 'A' Level education starting from 2013. The primary school offers the Gifted Education Program in addition to the standard PSLE curriculum. The...
- CHIJ Saint Nicholas Girls' School 圣尼各拉女校
- Chung Cheng High School (Main) 中正中学（总校）
- Dunman High School 德明政府中学Dunman High SchoolOn 2 January 2009 the school opened to a new year with an opening ceremony named "Homecoming" （回家） to welcome students and staff to the upgraded campus.-Principals:Since its establishment in 1956, Dunman High School has had eight principals:-School song:...
- Hwa Chong Institution 华侨中学Hwa Chong InstitutionHwa Chong Institution is an independent school in Singapore for students aged 12 to 18 covering both secondary and pre-university levels. A Ministry of Education-designated FutureSchool, it operates under the Special Assistance Plan for bilingualism, and offers the Integrated Programme and also...
- Maris Stella High School 海星中学Maris Stella High SchoolMaris Stella High School is an autonomous, SAP, Government-aided, all-boys Catholic secondary and primary school run by the international Marist Brothers at Mount Vernon Road in Singapore. It was headed by Bro. Anthony Tan from 1984 to 2009. Mr Joseph Lim Choon Kiat, the former Vice Principal,...
- Nan Chiau High School 南侨中学Nan Chiau High SchoolNan Chiau High School is a secondary school in Singapore. It was founded as Nan Chiau Teachers' Training School in 1941 by Tan Kah Kee. Its first campus was built on a plot of land donated by Lee Kong Chian, at Kim Yam Road in River Valley. In 1947 the school became Nan Chiau Girls' High School. In...
(from Jan 2012 onwards http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/press/2010/11/nan-chiau-high-designated-as-11th-sap-school.php) - Nan Hua High School 南华中学Nan Hua High SchoolNan Hua High School is a secondary school in Clementi, Singapore. The school is operated by the Ministry of Education. It is the tenth Special Assistance Programme school in Singapore, in which both English and Chinese are taught as first languages...
- Nanyang Girls' High School 南洋女子中学校Nanyang Girls' High SchoolNanyang Girls' High School is an all-girls secondary school in Singapore. It participates in the Integrated Programme with Hwa Chong Institution under the Hwa Chong Affiliate Programme...
- River Valley High School 立化中学River Valley High School (Singapore)River Valley High School is a secondary school in Singapore which has been consistently ranked among the top secondary schools in Singapore in terms of academic results in the few recent years....
Admission
A student's admission to a SAP school (or any secondary school for that matter) is decided based on their results in the Primary School Leaving ExaminationPrimary School Leaving Examination
The Primary School Leaving Examination is a national examination taken by all students in Singapore near the end of primary six in primary school, which is also their last year in Primary school before they leave for secondary school. It is administered by the Ministry of Education...
(PSLE). To enter a SAP school, a student must achieve a PSLE aggregate score that puts him in the top 10% of his cohort, with an 'A' grade for the mother tongue and an A* ('A star', i.e. a score of more than 90 out of 100) in English. This means that only a relatively small group of students who are academically and linguistically strong may enter a SAP school. Consequently, SAP schools have a reputation of being the "elite" group of secondary schools in the country, alongside independent and autonomous schools. This stems from the Singaporean tradition of effective bilingualism in the education of the elite students from SAP schools. The best students in SAP school, i.e. the top 10% of the top 10% selected for SAP school admissions, i.e. the top 1% of each national cohort are offered a chance at effective trilingualism in secondary education starting from age 12. The first language, English, is the international language of commercial and the administrative and legal language of Singapore, a former British colony. The mother tongue reflects the cultural and ethnic identity or in recent times, the linguistic curiosity of the students, e.g. Malay and Indian students who opt to study Mandarin as second Language in Singapore. The "third languages" are foreign languages which are considered by MOE to be "economically, politically and culturally vital" , such as Japanese, German and French.
Historical context
Many SAP schools were historically Chinese language medium schools, i.e. they taught all academic subjects in Mandarin (including science and mathematics), and which may have taught English as a foreign language. Following Singapore's independence in 1965, the government recognised four official languages in Singapore (English, Mandarin Chinese, Malay and Tamil), but clearly designated English as the main language of basic and higher education, government and law, science and technology as well as trade and industry. While according official recognition to the languages of different ethno-linguistic communities in Singapore, it sought to promote English as a neutral common language to unite a culturally diverse nation of immigrants. English was also held to be the language of international higher education, science/technology and commerce. As such, it was indispensable to Singapore, given her ambition to become a 'Global City', articulated as early as 1972.In 1980, the Ministry of Education (MOE) designated nine Chinese-medium secondary schools as Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools. These schools were intended to provide top-scoring primary school leavers with the opportunity to study both English and Mandarin to high levels of competence. Also, these schools were to preserve the character of traditional Chinese-medium secondary schools and allay fears that the Government was indifferent to Chinese language and culture amid declining enrolments in Chinese-medium schools.
Asian values
With rapid economic development and exposure to Western, particularly American popular culture and values in the 1970s and 1980s, Singapore began to change from a lower income, poorly educated society to a more confident, educated, vocal and individualistic society. Around the same time, in the 1980s, the world was witnessing the rise of Japan and the Asian newly-industrialised economies or NIEs, of which Singapore was one. In contrast, the West and in particular the United States, appeared to be in a stage of decline, with rising drug use and crime, the transformation or collapse of the nuclear family and other social problems. Economically, American appeared unable to compete with rising Asian manufacturing competitors, especially Japan. The United States appeared lost and sinking under the weight of ballooning public and private debt, with large and growing trade and budget deficits. Singapore politicians from the dominant People's Action PartyPeople's Action Party
The People's Action Party is the leading political party in Singapore. It has been the city-state's ruling political party since 1959....
synthesised these various situations and developed certain ideas that came to be known as the Asian Values
Asian values
Asian values was a concept that came into vogue briefly in the 1990s to justify authoritarian regimes in Asia, predicated on the belief in the existence within Asian countries of a unique set of institutions and political ideologies which reflected the region's culture and history...
discourse.
According to this line of argument, Singapore, along with Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan, had succeeded so spectacularly in no small part because of their shared Confucianist cultural heritage, which emphasised values such as hard work, education, family unity, deference and loyalty to authority figures, community spirit (in contrast to Western individualism), etc. Some parallels were drawn between this Confucian ethic and the Protestant Work Ethic
Protestant work ethic
The Protestant work ethic is a concept in sociology, economics and history, attributable to the work of Max Weber...
. However, the West was seen to have fallen into a state of permanent decline, marked by cultural decadence, indiscipline and even impending social decay. As an English speaking country and, in some ways the most Westernised of the Asian NIEs, Singapore was seen to be vulnerable to cultural influences from the West.
To better sell this argument to a multi-ethnic population where the non-Chinese / non-'Confucianist' communities formed at least a quarter of the population, the discourse was re-branded 'Asian Values', rather than Confucian Work Ethic. In Singapore, traditional Asian culture was seen as a valuable bulwark against 'decadent Western values', as well as a source of the nation's economic success thus far. As such, the government embarked on programmes and campaigns to promote traditional culture, including the revitalised Speak Mandarin Campaign (targeted at English rather than dialect speakers, as was historically the case) as well as SAP schools.
Concerns and criticisms
The SAP school programme is periodically criticised in the national media by Singaporeans who are concerned about the ethnic segregation that it inevitably promotes. SAP schools only offer Mother Tongue lessons in one language (always Mandarin). In addition, several other academic and non-academic subjects may be taught in Mandarin (the academic subjects are usually related to Chinese culture - e.g. Chinese literature or the history of China). Sports, arts and music lessons may be held in Mandarin in some schools, and assemblies and other formal and ceremonial events (including the school song and motto), as well as routine public announcements, may be in Mandarin. These are intentional moves to allow students to be immersed into a Chinese speaking environment, notwithstanding the fact that the main academic subjects, especially all science and mathematics subjects, are taught in English, in common with all other Singapore schools. Consequently, SAP students tend to use Mandarin more frequently on a daily basis, for example, in canteen, during co-curricular activities (sports, games, societies, cultural events, etc) as well as when mixing with friends outside of school. Almost all students that attend SAP schools are ethnic Chinese, and those that are not usually study Mandarin. Critics are concerned that the effect of SAP schools is to take a group of academically strong students and to cluster them together academically and socially in an artificial, Mandarin speaking environment devoid of ethnic minorities. The concern is that these students will be less well equipped to integrate with non-Chinese in their later social and professional adult lives. However, future indepth studies and surveys are needed to confirm the validity of the concerns. A counter argument would be the SAP students with better academic results tend to come from better off families and thus were more likely to speak English Language more in their daily conversations. Thus it is not true that they tend to speak only Mandarin in schools.Another, less mentioned, concern is that by virtue of sheer numbers and their proportions in the population, as well as the related issue of the relative economic value of different languages in Singapore, it would seem unavoidable that only SAP schools catering to the ethnic majority will ever be viable in Singapore. As such, the State effectively promotes special promotion of the Chinese language and culture only, whereas the ethnic minorities (Malays and Indians) receive no such State funding or other support.