I REFER to last Saturday's report, "Should preschools be 'nationalised'?".

With the Ministry of Education overseeing the preschool education sector, continuity from early childhood education to primary school level will be guaranteed.

Related link: » Why preschools should be nationalised

Research has shown that education should start at a preschool level as children are most receptive at a young age. Preschool education will then serve as the foundation to primary education.

In addition, if preschool education were to come under the MOE, it would raise public awareness on the importance of early childhood education. Consequently, more research would be dedicated to it and more focus placed on it.

This would lead to a rise in the quality of preschool education, meaning better teacher qualifications and better curriculum development. It could also lead to a moderation in the cost of preschool education, and this would make it more accessible to more families, especially those from the lower income strata.

Preschool education should be nationalised and made compulsory.

Its curriculum units would have to be structured around the existing kindergarten curriculum framework as developed by the MOE. At the same time, it would give all children coming from diverse economic backgrounds equal opportunities to quality preschool education.

In time, Singapore could be the leading educational pioneer in preschool education in the region. If Singapore's ultimate goal is to cultivate an industry of critical thinkers for the fast changing economy, our nation will need to recognise the development of our young and start their education early.

Samantha See (Ms)

This article was first published in The Straits Times.