Singapore's education system is "doing all right and on the right track" but it remains important for the country to continue striving for greater heights, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
It is only with such a self-improving attitude that the Republic can ensure that future generations have the necessary knowledge and skills to create more jobs and opportunities and build better lives, said Mr Lee at a bursary and scholarship awards ceremony at Townsville Primary School.
He said that although Singaporean students ranked among the top five countries for reading, mathematics and science in the 2009 Program for International Student Assessment survey, the competition posed by countries like South Korea and Hong Kong is "quite fierce".
Pointing to the Chinese students who topped the survey, Mr Lee said: "So it's not just that the Chinese are low-paid and cheap but they are very skilful and capable and they are going to make a lot of progress. And we are going to be competing with them ... So it is important for us to continue to improve and to make further progress with our education and our people."
Some 800 primary and secondary school students from Mr Lee's ward, Teck Ghee, received bursaries and scholarships yesterday.
Mr Lee also gave out certificates of appreciation and souvenir plaques to the Teck Ghee Seventh Month organisers and donors for their efforts in raising the funds, a record-high $128,000, for the bursaries.
Comments:
We are always told by our parents that with higher level education comes higher salaries. Importance of education in Singapore has really play a huge part in our life unlike others countries. From the age of 3 to 4 majority of the children has to attend kindergarden to learn and build up the foundation for their future education. However, we must agree that no education system is perfect as they will always be a few black sheep among the herd eg.Gangster. I would suggest that MOE to pump in more money for more advanced technology on all aspects of education. Also, they should focus in teaching of moral education to student on primary and secondary levels as they are more vulnerable to go astray at their age. Even though the competition between Singapore and other five countries is tense i think that our teachers and lecturers are doing a great job to fulfill their duties and our needs. Still, having to get good results are all based on the effort we put in as a student.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
Few takers for job of postman
Singapore Post is finding it tough to recruit postmen to boost its staff strength.This could be due to the physically-demanding nature of the job, it said.According to its vice-president of corporate communications, Ms Tay Poh Choo, its attrition rate stood at about 15 per cent in the last two months.
During a recent recruitment drive, out of the 100-odd candidates who attended the job fair, only 10 applied for the postman's position, SingPost, of these, six were suitable when it was looking to fill 20 positions.
SingPost said it will continue with its recruitment and will venture outside of Singapore, to places such as Malaysia, China and the Philippines in order to hire suitable personnel to join the company.
Currently Singpost have about 1,000 postmen with the average age of 50.
SingPost said the expected delays are due to the recent severe weather conditions in Europe and the United States as well as the year-end festive peak volumes.
SingPost is working with airlines and other postal companies to make sure that the delays are minimised.
Also, additional manpower and staff have been engaged and deployed to help speed up the processing of all inbound and outbound articles and to secure additional airline space.
Comment:
Let me relate a problem with Singpost. Recently, a package i ordered through the internet was delivered to me when i was away. I missed a phone call from singpost as i was doing some important work. So, the package got sent back to Singpost HQ. I got another call for new delivery time at around 6pm. But I could not make it on the next day as i have to work. So, I instruct the package to be delivered to the nearest post office near my house and finally i pick it up the next day when i was free. Having being a postmen is a hard job as they would have to carry the responsibilities of keeping the package safe until it's delivered to the recipient. Along with Singapore's economy doing well this might be the reason why SingPost has been seeing a fall in the recruiting of postmen.
Lin Zong Han
During a recent recruitment drive, out of the 100-odd candidates who attended the job fair, only 10 applied for the postman's position, SingPost, of these, six were suitable when it was looking to fill 20 positions.
SingPost said it will continue with its recruitment and will venture outside of Singapore, to places such as Malaysia, China and the Philippines in order to hire suitable personnel to join the company.
Currently Singpost have about 1,000 postmen with the average age of 50.
SingPost said the expected delays are due to the recent severe weather conditions in Europe and the United States as well as the year-end festive peak volumes.
SingPost is working with airlines and other postal companies to make sure that the delays are minimised.
Also, additional manpower and staff have been engaged and deployed to help speed up the processing of all inbound and outbound articles and to secure additional airline space.
Comment:
Let me relate a problem with Singpost. Recently, a package i ordered through the internet was delivered to me when i was away. I missed a phone call from singpost as i was doing some important work. So, the package got sent back to Singpost HQ. I got another call for new delivery time at around 6pm. But I could not make it on the next day as i have to work. So, I instruct the package to be delivered to the nearest post office near my house and finally i pick it up the next day when i was free. Having being a postmen is a hard job as they would have to carry the responsibilities of keeping the package safe until it's delivered to the recipient. Along with Singapore's economy doing well this might be the reason why SingPost has been seeing a fall in the recruiting of postmen.
Lin Zong Han
Sunday, January 2, 2011
New smoking laws takes force in Spain
Article:
MADRID (AFP) - – Smokers took a last legal puff and stubbed out their cigarettes in tapas bars and restaurants across Spain on Sunday as one of Europe's strictest anti-tobacco laws came into force.
After a one-day amnesty granted for New Year's Day, the new law banning smoking in all bars, restaurants and public places -- including even some outdoor areas -- took effect at the stroke of midnight Saturday.
It was a shock for many Spaniards for whom the cafe culture -- lighting up with a few friends while enjoying a drink and tapas -- has been an essential part of daily life.
"It is over already. We have taken away all the ashtrays. When you look at the health question I agree but I also think there should be a minimum zone where you are allowed to smoke," said Elena de Lucia, a 22-year-old waitress, and smoker, at the Variety Tavern, a pub in central Madrid.
Her fellow weekend bar worker, Cristina Madrid, 22, a non-smoker, welcomed the new law. "Really, I used to end up smoking a lot as a passive smoker and the next day it affects you," she said.
Spain had an anti-smoking law since January 2006 but the impact was barely noticeable.
It banned smoking in the workplace, on public transport and in shops. But it allowed owners of bars, restaurants and cafes to decide whether to ban smoking or not. Most, faced with a drop in business, naturally chose to permit their customers to light up.
The new law bans smoking in all enclosed public spaces, including bars, restaurants and nightclubs and makes it illegal to smoke in children's parks or anywhere on school or hospital grounds.
The catering industry worries it will take a hit.
Jose Luis Guerra, vice president of the Spanish Hotel and Catering Association, said bars and restaurants had taken a beating for the past 31 months because of the economic crisis.
He estimated the ban could lead to a further 5.0-percent drop in sales in restaurants, about 10 percent in bars and 15 percent in night clubs.
Working at the door of central Madrid's Capucho cocktail bar, 60-year-old Juan Manuel Casado, a former smoker, predicted a slight drop in business at the start of the ban.
"But then people will get used to it as they have done in Italy, Greece, Ireland, every country. When you want to go out with friends to have a few drinks you will have to go to a bar, and when you want to smoke you will have to go out to the street."
None of the cocktail bar's staff smoked, Casado said. "It is going to be great."
Further down the road at street corner beer bar El Diaro, customers were still puffing away after the midnight deadline had passed.
Marta Teruel Romero, 26, a student and social worker, shared drinks and tapas with friends, enjoying her last night of freedom to smoke indoors in public.
"They are discriminating too much," Teruel Romero said. "The law the way it is is fine. There was space where you could smoke and space where it was smoke free."
But the new law would not be enough to persuade her to stay at home. "I will have to get used to it."
Anti-smoking campaigners in Spain, where there are an estimated 50,000 smoking related deaths each year, were overjoyed.
"This year, 2011, I can say the Three Wise Men have brought a great gift for Spain: the publication of this new law," said Jose Luis Diaz-Maroto Munoz, a family doctor and expert on the effects of smoking.
He said it would discourage children taking up the habit, encourage smokers to quit and "allow us all to breathe air that is not polluted by smoke".
Comments:
After reading this article, I believe that Singapore should also impose this new law in the country. This will not just reduce the number of smokers but also help prevent younger generations from smoking. Smoking is like a habit. This habit can be passed from the adults to their own children. By imposing this law, it will reduce the number of smokers significantly. Also, smoking causes air pollution and second-hand smoke is detrimental to one's health. The new law will help stop the air pollution and allow Singapore itself to be a cleaner environment. In conclusion, I feel that this law should not just be imposed in spain itself but also around the whole world. This will prevent cigarettes company from earning an income and allow more people to lead a healthier lifestyle.
Done by : HANS LIM WEI XIONG
MADRID (AFP) - – Smokers took a last legal puff and stubbed out their cigarettes in tapas bars and restaurants across Spain on Sunday as one of Europe's strictest anti-tobacco laws came into force.
After a one-day amnesty granted for New Year's Day, the new law banning smoking in all bars, restaurants and public places -- including even some outdoor areas -- took effect at the stroke of midnight Saturday.
It was a shock for many Spaniards for whom the cafe culture -- lighting up with a few friends while enjoying a drink and tapas -- has been an essential part of daily life.
"It is over already. We have taken away all the ashtrays. When you look at the health question I agree but I also think there should be a minimum zone where you are allowed to smoke," said Elena de Lucia, a 22-year-old waitress, and smoker, at the Variety Tavern, a pub in central Madrid.
Her fellow weekend bar worker, Cristina Madrid, 22, a non-smoker, welcomed the new law. "Really, I used to end up smoking a lot as a passive smoker and the next day it affects you," she said.
Spain had an anti-smoking law since January 2006 but the impact was barely noticeable.
It banned smoking in the workplace, on public transport and in shops. But it allowed owners of bars, restaurants and cafes to decide whether to ban smoking or not. Most, faced with a drop in business, naturally chose to permit their customers to light up.
The new law bans smoking in all enclosed public spaces, including bars, restaurants and nightclubs and makes it illegal to smoke in children's parks or anywhere on school or hospital grounds.
The catering industry worries it will take a hit.
Jose Luis Guerra, vice president of the Spanish Hotel and Catering Association, said bars and restaurants had taken a beating for the past 31 months because of the economic crisis.
He estimated the ban could lead to a further 5.0-percent drop in sales in restaurants, about 10 percent in bars and 15 percent in night clubs.
Working at the door of central Madrid's Capucho cocktail bar, 60-year-old Juan Manuel Casado, a former smoker, predicted a slight drop in business at the start of the ban.
"But then people will get used to it as they have done in Italy, Greece, Ireland, every country. When you want to go out with friends to have a few drinks you will have to go to a bar, and when you want to smoke you will have to go out to the street."
None of the cocktail bar's staff smoked, Casado said. "It is going to be great."
Further down the road at street corner beer bar El Diaro, customers were still puffing away after the midnight deadline had passed.
Marta Teruel Romero, 26, a student and social worker, shared drinks and tapas with friends, enjoying her last night of freedom to smoke indoors in public.
"They are discriminating too much," Teruel Romero said. "The law the way it is is fine. There was space where you could smoke and space where it was smoke free."
But the new law would not be enough to persuade her to stay at home. "I will have to get used to it."
Anti-smoking campaigners in Spain, where there are an estimated 50,000 smoking related deaths each year, were overjoyed.
"This year, 2011, I can say the Three Wise Men have brought a great gift for Spain: the publication of this new law," said Jose Luis Diaz-Maroto Munoz, a family doctor and expert on the effects of smoking.
He said it would discourage children taking up the habit, encourage smokers to quit and "allow us all to breathe air that is not polluted by smoke".
Comments:
After reading this article, I believe that Singapore should also impose this new law in the country. This will not just reduce the number of smokers but also help prevent younger generations from smoking. Smoking is like a habit. This habit can be passed from the adults to their own children. By imposing this law, it will reduce the number of smokers significantly. Also, smoking causes air pollution and second-hand smoke is detrimental to one's health. The new law will help stop the air pollution and allow Singapore itself to be a cleaner environment. In conclusion, I feel that this law should not just be imposed in spain itself but also around the whole world. This will prevent cigarettes company from earning an income and allow more people to lead a healthier lifestyle.
Done by : HANS LIM WEI XIONG
Saturday, January 1, 2011
More Singaporeans are staying single
Singapore’s resident Total Fertility Rate (TFR) fell to its lowest at 1.22 in 2009. This is in line with the general trend of higher singlehood rates and later marriages.
The "Population in Brief 2010" publication also noted that marriages between citizens and non—citizens have gone up.
Singaporeans are having fewer children. The National Population Secretariat said this might have to do with the global recession in late 2008.
It added that the impact was smaller compared to previous economic downturns.
This perhaps explains the lowest TFR of 1.22 last year.
The Chinese continued to have the lowest TFR followed by Indians and Malays.
The rate for Malays showed the most significant decline over the past decade.
The median age of citizen mothers at first birth increased from 28.6 years in 1999 to 29.6 years in 2009.
The decline was more pronounced among the younger cohorts aged 30—39 years.
Based on current trends, the National Population Secretariat said this group is less likely to achieve an average of two children by the time they reach 40—49 years old.
Overall, the fertility rates for the prime childbearing age of 20—34 years declined between 1999 and 2009.
The peak childbearing age group also shifted from 25—29 to 30—34 years.
The low TFR may also be due to more Singaporeans staying single.
Last year, of those aged 30 to 34, 42 per cent of men remained single, up from 33 percent ten years ago.
Likewise, 30 percent of women remained single compared to 22 percent in 1999.
Singlehood rates were the highest among males with below secondary educational qualifications and among females with university qualifications.
The secretariat added that those who marry are doing so later.
More are also marrying foreigners from around Asia.
The general marriage rate for male citizens dropped from 53 per 1,000 unmarried males in 1999 to 42 per 1,000 unmarried males in 2009.
Similarly, marriage rates for female citizens also fell from 56.0 to 38.2 over the same period.
The NPS said between 1999 and 2009, the median age of citizens at first marriage increased by one and a half years from 28.4 to 29.9 years for males, and from 25.9 to 27.4 years for females.
Proportionately, more Singaporeans are marrying non—citizens.
Such marriages increased by 10 per cent over the past decade from 31 per cent in 1999 to 41 per cent in 2009.
In particular, close to 80 per cent of such marriages were between Singapore men and foreign brides.
The majority of non—citizen spouses came from Asia, although non—citizen grooms came from more diverse regions.Source - Channel NewsAsia
The "Population in Brief 2010" publication also noted that marriages between citizens and non—citizens have gone up.
Singaporeans are having fewer children. The National Population Secretariat said this might have to do with the global recession in late 2008.
It added that the impact was smaller compared to previous economic downturns.
This perhaps explains the lowest TFR of 1.22 last year.
The Chinese continued to have the lowest TFR followed by Indians and Malays.
The rate for Malays showed the most significant decline over the past decade.
The median age of citizen mothers at first birth increased from 28.6 years in 1999 to 29.6 years in 2009.
The decline was more pronounced among the younger cohorts aged 30—39 years.
Based on current trends, the National Population Secretariat said this group is less likely to achieve an average of two children by the time they reach 40—49 years old.
Overall, the fertility rates for the prime childbearing age of 20—34 years declined between 1999 and 2009.
The peak childbearing age group also shifted from 25—29 to 30—34 years.
The low TFR may also be due to more Singaporeans staying single.
Last year, of those aged 30 to 34, 42 per cent of men remained single, up from 33 percent ten years ago.
Likewise, 30 percent of women remained single compared to 22 percent in 1999.
Singlehood rates were the highest among males with below secondary educational qualifications and among females with university qualifications.
The secretariat added that those who marry are doing so later.
More are also marrying foreigners from around Asia.
The general marriage rate for male citizens dropped from 53 per 1,000 unmarried males in 1999 to 42 per 1,000 unmarried males in 2009.
Similarly, marriage rates for female citizens also fell from 56.0 to 38.2 over the same period.
The NPS said between 1999 and 2009, the median age of citizens at first marriage increased by one and a half years from 28.4 to 29.9 years for males, and from 25.9 to 27.4 years for females.
Proportionately, more Singaporeans are marrying non—citizens.
Such marriages increased by 10 per cent over the past decade from 31 per cent in 1999 to 41 per cent in 2009.
In particular, close to 80 per cent of such marriages were between Singapore men and foreign brides.
The majority of non—citizen spouses came from Asia, although non—citizen grooms came from more diverse regions.Source - Channel NewsAsia
Comments:
With the economy progressing and having higher expectations among Singaporeans, this is hardly suprising. The pursuit of a desired lifestyle means most to people. With women having equal opportunities in employment, they no longer need the financial support of their husbands. The high costs of living in Singapore and greater opportunities to work overseas, the lure for a more vibrant, relaxed and tolerant lifestyle is too great for one to resist. And regarding the matter of more people marrying to foreigners, it is neither surprising too.
Singaporean men may be too engrossed in their work, causing them to neglect their wives. This causes the relationship between the pairs to be worsen as time passes. This would eventually it cause their marriage to end up in a divorce.
Singapore moving fast at its pace developed too much stress in the working environment. This stress towards men may be the cause of violence at home. News about marriage breaking up due to husbands beating up their wives are common as seen on the news. As time goes by, women will develop a mindset that Singaporean men cannot be trusted ,and thus would not entrust the rest of their lives with them. In conclusion, most would rather stay single than getting married or may engage thier marriage to foreigners that they feel are of a better choice than Singapore men.
Done by: HANS LIM WEI XIONG
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Beware, night owls
SINGAPORE - This festive weekend, Yan Zhengrong will be at work till 5am every day. Working night shifts is a common occurrence for the 26-year-old chef. During the festive period, he is lucky to get by with four hours of sleep each day.
Likewise, Karen (not her real name), a shop assistant, often works overnight. And even though she is dead tired after work, Karen has difficulties falling asleep in the daytime due to the many errands she has to run.
When she wants to sleep, she is often kept awake by the noise from the daily activities of her family members. As a result, she is often tired and listless.
Shift workers like Zhengrong and Karen are not uncommon in Singapore. Amid the festivities in the coming weeks, those working in the food and beverage, sales, entertainment and security industries are likely to be rostered to work during odd hours.
While pulling an all-nighter occasionally is harmless, sleep experts TODAY spoke to warned that irregular sleeping hours can disrupt a person's sleep quality in the long term, putting him or her at high risk of developing circadian rhythm sleep disorders (CRSD).
Shift workers tend to sleep fewer hours than people who work regular office hours, so they are more prone to long-term partial sleep deprivation, said Dr Lim Li Ling, director of Singapore General Hospital's sleep disorders unit.
She added: "Our bodies operate optimally on a regular internal 'clock'. For instance, most people sleep best between 10pm to midnight and 6am to 8am, with about six to eight hours of sleep daily."
Personal Opinions:
If a person who works on a shift system, his body's natural sleep-wake system goes haywire. The body won't know when to sleep and when to stay awake. Due to rapidly changing of work times; changing shifts every few days; makes it difficult for the body to adjust and can be very stressful on the body. As a result, those who don't get enough good quality sleep suffer poor work or school performance and they have difficulty concentrating in tasks which require attention and vigilance. Furthermore, a host of health problems would occur such as an increased in risk of heart disease, depression, weight gain and, at worst, a shorter life span. Hence, with restful of sleep is essential for good health. In addition, by having regular exercise, avoiding alcohol and excessive caffeine could help you sleep better. After your night shift, try to avoid bright light by wearing sunglasses while commuting home from work in the morning.
Yanling
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