[Photo: Catherine Tan (left) and Tan Fang tucking into breakfast at Jurong Primary, one of 17 schools on Loving Heart's scheme.]

By Amelia Tan

MORE students are starting their day with free breakfasts in school. The Education Ministry's School Breakfast Programme currently provides free breakfasts to 18,300 needy primary school pupils.

This is up from 11,200 pupils in 2006 when the programme was first rolled out. The ministry started the programme after receiving feedback from schools that many students started school on empty stomachs.

At that time, schools were providing free meals mostly during recess.

Voluntary welfare organisation Loving Heart Multi-Service Centre at Jurong Central, which runs its own breakfast programme for needy primary and secondary school students in the Jurong area, has also seen a steady increase in demand for free breakfasts.

It now foots the tab for breakfast for 595 students from 17 schools in Jurong. The scheme started in 2006 with 250 pupils from four primary schools.

Chairman Chua Song Peck said the organisation hopes to raise more funds so the programme can be expanded to 10 more schools next year.

While the recession has increased the need for free meals in schools, principals said they are nominating more of their students for free breakfasts because they want to encourage them to have proper nutrition.

Jurong Primary School principal Constance Yip said: 'We want to bring across the message to the children that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Unfortunately, many of them are missing it.'

At 7am yesterday, about 30 pupils at Jurong Primary School were tucking hungrily into the usual canteen fare of noodles, buns and nasi lemak.

Most reach school at 6.45am.

They collect meal vouchers from parent volunteers which they exchange for drinks and food in the school canteen.

Pupils said they were thankful for the food, as many get ready for school by themselves and skip the morning meal.

Primary 4 pupil Abidah Woon, 10, said: 'There is no breakfast for me at home because my father would have gone to work by 6am and my mother does not wake up so early. So by about 8am in class, I will be very hungry.'

Teachers said starting school on an empty stomach adversely affects a student's performance in class.

Jurong Primary teacher Noraidah Azman said: 'Those who have breakfast are full of energy and will ask many questions. Those who have empty stomachs are listless and are quiet.'

Yusof Ishak Secondary teacher in charge of pupil wellness Teh Yi Wen said: 'It is obvious who had breakfast before they came to school. The ones who come to class hungry look very tired and sleepy. '

The difference that a full meal in the morning makes is so great that principals said they will do all they can to make sure their pupils have them.

Parent volunteers note down who collects meal coupons every day and submit the records to the schools.

Pupils are encouraged to keep tabs on friends who miss their meals and form teachers will step in if they find out that pupils are skipping breakfast consistently.

Jurong Primary's Madam Noraidah said: 'We are willing to put in the extra effort as we see the difference that having a full breakfast makes.

'We don't want any of our children to miss out on having a good start to their day in school.'

This article was first published in The Straits Times.