~ Education in Singapore

Singapore is considered to be a country with one of the best education systems in the world, that is aimed to meet the needs of individuals & seeks to nurture talents. But has its educational journey been as linear as it is often made out to be?

Like many other colonial countries, Singapore’s colonial educational history, too, is characterized by ‘benign neglect, ad hoc policy making, and indifference to consequences’.

Initially, Singapore mostly had Indian schools. Most Indian schools were small private schools. There were also a few Chinese and Malay schools, but Indian schools were predominant in the primary section. Tamil and other native Indian tongues were taught in such schools.

The Chinese schools were entirely funded and set-up by private organizations, such as the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan. The Chinese community ran their own schools, employing China-born teachers and using textbooks imported from China. Malay schools were very few in numbers.

The first English school in Singapore was set up by Stanford Raffles on Jan 1, 1823 "to educate the sons of the higher order of natives and others, to such of the Company's servants & others they may desire it, to collect the scattered literature and tradition of the country."