IN HER letter on Monday, 'Special needs boy treated differently in Sec 1 posting', Mrs Tan Lee Kiang asked why her son, who studied in a special education school from Primary 6, was not posted to a secondary school of his choice in the Secondary 1 posting exercise after he received his Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) results.

Special education school students who pass their PSLE and are able to benefit from the mainstream curriculum can be admitted to our national secondary schools. However, because of their special learning needs, the Ministry of Education (MOE) tries to ensure they are admitted to a school which has the necessary support to cater to their needs.

Thus, a special education school student who sat for the PSLE and qualified for a course at the secondary level should approach MOE to facilitate his admission. If there are no vacancies in a secondary school of his choice, MOE will facilitate his admission to a suitable school near his home.

We regret any misunderstanding that could have arisen in our communications with Mrs Tan. We have since contacted her so we can assist in posting her son to a suitable secondary school.

In the meantime, we will review our admission procedures to see how they can be further improved.

Lim Huay Chih (Ms)
Director, School Planning and Placement Division
Ministry of Education