‘Difficult’ parents who expect too much of teachers may deprive children of ability to be resilient: Chan Chun Sing

SINGAPORE — Parents who expect too much of teachers may end up depriving their children of the ability to be resilient and overcome uncertainties and difficulties, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said in Parliament on Monday (Sept 12).

Parents and teachers must have a shared set of expectations on what the role of the teacher should be, so as to create a school environment where children can grow up to be independent, resilient and creative, he said.

He was responding to a question posed by Mr Seah Kian Peng, the Member of Parliament (MP) of Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency, on whether the Ministry of Education (MOE) could draw clear boundaries on the matters that parents can or cannot involve teachers in.

The minister cited an example of how one school had deployed teachers for "corridor duty": Keeping a lookout for children who fall down along the corridors, so that the teachers could inform children’s parents about accidents that occurred and how exactly they happened.

“(In) the larger scheme of things... it is useful for us to take a step back and ask ourselves what is the kind of environment we want in the schools in order for us to bring up our children who are independent, resilient and creative," Mr Chan said.

“And sometimes, if we overdo things by removing all uncertainties and difficulties, untidiness from the child’s life, it may not be the best way for us to bring up our children."

Mr Seah and several other MPs had filed parliamentary questions about the measures that MOE was taking to improve the work-life balance of teachers.

This comes in the wake of several news reports, including by TODAY, about the increasing pressures faced by teachers.

Mr Chan said in response that while MOE has taken steps to alleviate teachers' administrative work and put in place more resources to help them manage their time, parents also play a key role in supporting teachers’ well-being.

“By respecting teachers’ personal time and minimising non-critical communication with teachers outside work hours, parents and the public can work closely with teachers to establish positive partnerships and set appropriate expectations on the teachers’ responsibilities for our children’s development,” he said.

In a supplementary question, Mr Seah said that many teachers had informed him that one of the things that caused them stress was the direct and indirect expectations imposed on them by parents.

To this, Mr Chan said that MOE already has a set of rules and guidelines for all schools on issues that parents can involve teachers in. These rules are communicated to the parents, he said.

Among the guidelines on developing positive school-home partnerships released in 2019, parents are required to check on teachers' preferred modes of communication and to contact teachers only during school operating hours.

Mr Chan added that while not all parents cross the boundaries, there are still a “fair share of them” who do.

“One difficult parent can take up a substantial amount of time from the teachers, which then makes it unfair for the teachers to take care of the rest,” said Mr Chan.

He noted that there are parent support groups who help to build positive relations between parents and teachers, but there remain some parents who do not abide by the ministry's guidelines.

“Some of these negative examples would be going after the teachers for the slightest of issues which require the teachers to spend an inordinate amount of time to try to answer those questions,” said Mr Chan.

He added: “So I think we take Mr Seah’s points very seriously because such clear expectations on the roles of the teachers are very important for that healthy relationship between parents and teachers, and at the same time for our teachers to manage their time well."

MPS SUGGEST REDUCING TEACHERS' WORKLOADS

Later in the day, two labour MPs rose to put forward an adjournment motion providing more suggestions on how to better appreciate and support teachers.

MP for Pioneer Single Member Constituency Patrick Tay said that beyond the recent salary raise, more can be done to improve the mental wellbeing of teachers.

They should be allowed sabbaticals and gap years to go on industry attachments outside the education service to “recharge and refresh” their knowledge and perspectives, said the Assistant Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

Examination papers can also be set at a group or cluster level at all mainstream levels to save teachers’ time and ensure greater uniformity between schools, he further suggested.

Mr Tay added that unionised companies in the private education sector have adjusted salaries and said he hopes other players in the industry, including early childhood schools and autonomous universities, will likewise review their salaries to ensure that pay is competitive amid the rising cost of living.

Nominated MP Abdul Samad Abdul Wahab, NTUC vice-president, said he was compelled to speak after seeing how a St Andrew’s Secondary School student was recently caught on video threatening a teacher to “end your life right now”.

He called on MOE to give guidelines or even empower school principals or victimised teachers to report any rude or harsh incidents to the authorities to protect themselves from abusive behaviour from both parents and students.

He added that the school leadership must back teachers in disciplining students and stand firm when communicating disciplinary matters to parents.

Mr Abdul Samad added that the list of official duties for teachers should be curtailed and the expectations of their non-teaching-related workload calibrated and reviewed.

“Teachers need more time outside of classroom teaching to attend to marking, preparing for lessons, and working on student guidance,” he said.

“To then load them with committee work, non-teaching-related duties and meetings as well as constant, non-stop WhatsApp messages from multiple chat groups is unwise and untenable.”

In response, Minister of State for Education and Manpower Gan Siow Huang reiterated Mr Chan’s earlier comments that MOE has introduced initiatives to cut down on teachers’ workload and has worked to support their well-being.

Parents play an important role to support teachers’ well-being as well, said Ms Gan as she sought the assistance of parents to place appropriate expectations on teachers’ responsibilities.