Private schools to face tougher checks

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New rules and standards to be set to improve the way they are run
By Jane Ng and Amelia Tan

PRIVATE school operators who leave students in the lurch will face tougher penalties, including imprisonment, under a new Private Education Bill to be introduced in Parliament later this year.

They will also need to show that their teachers, examination procedures and finances are up to scratch.

An expected outcome of the changes is that many smaller schools unable to meet the new benchmarks will have to go.

The changes are the latest attempt to govern and raise standards in an industry rocked by numerous school closures – including two in the past month alone – shady operators and shoddy practices.

The changes will bring regulation of the sector here in line with that of other countries strong in private education.

Giving details of the Bill yesterday, Mr Lin Cheng Ton, the chairman of the pro-tem Council for Private Education which will oversee the implementation of the new regime, said the changes will ensure that standards as a whole will go up.

He is chief executive officer of Nanyang Polytechnic International, the poly’s global consulting and training arm.

When the new rules kick in, more than 1,000 private schools here will have to meet a list of criteria before they can register with the Education Ministry.

These include showing that they have proper systems, such as independent academic and examination boards to develop and review academic policies; giving information on their finances, teachers and facilities; and ensuring that foreign institutions they link with are up to par.

To keep standards high, they will have to renew their registration: some annually, while others with better practices can go longer between registrations – between two and six years.

This is a big change from the current system, which only requires new schools to register once. Current registration standards are also lower – schools need only give basic information about their courses, teachers and facilities.

Schools taking in foreign students face stricter rules and will have to get a new EduTrust mark, which replaces the current CaseTrust one.

The ministry will look at a school’s corporate governance, management responsibilities and student protection programmes before awarding the mark.

Schools will also be assessed in areas like financial management, curriculum design and development and student satisfaction – all not covered under CaseTrust. The Education Ministry will step up checks on the schools, and will boost the size of its private education department from nine officers previously to 53.

Bigger players in the multi-billion-dollar industry yesterday cheered the moves.

They say their reputations are hit each time a school winds up, as 11 have done so over the past year alone.

Mr Edwin Chan, principal of Cambridge Institute, said it was ‘high time’ the rules were made stricter.

‘News of school owners running away with their students’ money affects other private schools because parents will think twice about sending their children here,’ he said.

Foreign students were also pleased, though for some, the changes do not come soon enough.

Vietnamese student Dang Thuy Chi has been trying to claim $9,425 from the Britannia School Of Education, where she was learning English before the school closed suddenly in January.

Said Miss Chi: ‘Students like myself who have been cheated have no way to get our money back. To ensure that the new law works, schools should be checked regularly. Currently, everyone is passing the responsibility around.’

janeng@sph.com.sg

ameltan@sph.com.sg