SINGAPORE — While parents welcomed the Ministry of Education’s (MOE) direct involvement in the kindergarten sector — the ministry’s brand name was an assurance to them of quality and affordable education — mass market pre-school operators are bracing for a battle to keep hold of their teachers amid a severe manpower crunch.

All the 15 pilot MOE kindergartens to be set up over the next three years will be located in the heartlands, with some sited within primary schools. Of these, five will begin enrolment in January next year.

Parents TODAY spoke to said they were looking forward to the details which will be announced in about two weeks. Mr Shawn Koh, 33, a private tutor who has five children, said: “It would be quite good for the kindergartens to be located within primary schools. They have school halls, fields and other facilities ... Children’s social skills could be cultivated better as they are in a bigger environment.”

Ms Joanne Lee, a 31-year-old public relations professional, said the MOE’s move could address the “culture shock” that some kindergarten pupils face in transiting to primary schools. “However, what I fear is another round of queueing for kindergarten places, especially if they are tied to good primary schools. This would not be fair, as there will only be 15 MOE kindergartens,” she said. Ms Lee Su Mei, 40, a freelance editor, added: “The danger is that these (MOE kindergartens) may be like another version of primary school. I have the impression that (the) MOE would make it too academic, with not enough play.”

Operators noted that with less than 10 months to go, the ministry would likely turn to educators from existing kindergartens. Ms Patricia Koh, Chief Executive of G8 Education, said: “(MOE) will probably have to draw from the same (pool of) teachers in the industry ... They won’t have time to train (new ones).”

She pointed out that the MOE had embarked on a similar initiative many years ago — where five-year-olds could attend Kindergarten 2 (K2) classes in primary schools. While this was popular with parents — as it provided their kids with a through-train route to primary school — the initiative was scrapped after about a decade because the MOE could not train enough teachers, said Ms Koh, a 40-year veteran in the pre-school sector.

Operators and kindergarten principals said that the shortage of pre-school teachers remains dire, despite measures last year to offer more scholarships and higher pay. Mrs Leung Yee Ping, Executive Director of the Young Women’s Christian Association, said: “We are already competing with PAP Community Foundation (PCF) and NTUC for a very limited pool of teachers. Now, we may lose teachers to these MOE kindergartens.”

The bigger players said they are also facing stiff competition for teachers, with Ms Patricia Low, Principal of the PCF branch in MacPherson, noting that the “more expensive pre-schools ... can afford to pay teachers much better”.

Mrs Ng Gim Choo, Founder and Managing Director of the EtonHouse International Education Group, did not think that the MOE’s move will have a discernible impact on the current manpower shortage.

She added that she was not surprised by the announcement as the Government had said that it would take a more active role in pre-school education to enhance quality. Noting that there are government-run pre-schools in many countries, she said: “I am sure it will bring about positive developments for the early childhood profession as a whole.”

The operators said they were less concerned about any potential impact on enrolment numbers, given the fact that parents make the decision based largely on proximity or a preference for a particular pre-school’s methods.