By Veena Bharwani

ALL primary schools should be single-session by 2016.

That is one of the recommendations put forth by the Primary Education Review and Implementation (Peri) Committee.

The idea was first mooted by Education Minister Ng Eng Hen at his ministry's annual workplan seminar last September.

Then, about 40 per cent of primary schools were already operating on a single-session time-table.

However, some schools like Yishun Primary seemed to have gone into reverse gear, as a result of merging with another school.

Yishun Primary moved from operating on a single-session arrangement to a partial single-session arrangement when it merged with Peixin Primary this year.

That means that Primary 1 and Primary 2 students attend school in the afternoon and Primary 3 to Primary 6 students attend school in the morning.

Prior to the merger, the two schools were single-session schools.

The merged school, called Yishun Primary, functions at the former Peixin Primary School premises at Yishun Ring Road.

These two schools were not the only ones to merge. Since 2006, 20 primary and secondary schools have merged to form 10 new schools.

Before that, between 1999 to 2004, 31 institutions had merged or closed. Falling enrolment is one of the reasons given for this trend.

But aren't such moves going against the grain of making all schools go single-session?

It will take time

In response, chairman of the Peri committee Grace Fu said that it will take some time before all schools become single-session schools.

Ms Fu, who is Senior Minister of State for Education and National Development, said: 'Schools are merging because of certain trends, namely falling enrolment.

'And it will take time to see if a new school with bigger premises is needed and is available. It is a massive project undertaken by MOE.'

In addition, a Ministry of Education (MOE) spokesman said in an e-mail to The New Paper that they are converting all primary schools into a single-session structure in various stages.

The spokesman said: 'Since 2003, it has been MOE's policy to move all primary schools from operating at double-session to partial single-session by 2013.

'MOE is in the process of planning for all primary schools to turn single-session within a reasonable timeframe. Yishun Primary will move to single-session once the implementation schedule is finalised.'

Why a timeframe of seven years to fully implement the single-session structure?

The committee explains that this allows time to expand the facilities of existing schools, build new schools and gradually redistribute their enrolment.

The committee also recommends that schools should have the flexibility to adjust their start and end times, and will work closely with the Land Transport Authority on school bus transportation issues.

Other Peri committee recommendations:

• Programme for Active Learning (PAL) to be introduced

• The New PAL programme will allow Primary 1 and 2 students to participate in fun sports, performing and visual arts activities, like speech and drama.

• Mid and end-year exams scrapped for Primary 1 and 2 students

• Instead, students will sit for bite-sized topical tests. This is to focus on instilling student's desire to learn to build confidence in them and not to worry them about major assessments too early on.

• Increase quality of teachers

• MOE will focus on mostly recruiting university graduates or those who qualify to do a degree by 2015. A-level and diploma holders can continue to join teaching through National Institute of Education's degree programmes. A-level and diploma holders who opt not to pursue degree but have a passion for teaching can become allied educators.

This article was first published in The New Paper on January 28, 2009.