My letter in the TODAY newspaper

THERE’S AN EQUAL NEED
MANY POLYTECHNIC STUDENTS COULD USE REDUCED RATES

11:57 AM February 18, 2009
Letter from Chen Khin Wee
Academic Associate, Republic Polytechnic

I FOUND Transport Minister Raymond Lim’s remark in “Households spend less in 2008” (Feb 13), that “some polytechnic students are better off than others”, rather mystifying. Does this fact not apply to junior college (JC) students as well? Is he saying that all polytechnic students are well off and all JC students needy and therefore need the student concession more than their polytechnic counterparts?

I teach at a polytechnic and I can say for sure that my students are not rolling in money. I estimate that at least half of the students in my classes have to work part-time after school and during weekends to make ends meet. When I join them for meals I can see how carefully some of them choose the food they buy to conserve their limited pocket money.

While I am very proud of their self- reliance and financial independence, I am sure this extra-curricular activity also affects their school work.

There are about 20 JCs in Singapore but only five polytechnics. Unlike JC students, who have a greater chance of enrolling in a school near their home, the average polytechnic student has to travel some distance to attend classes.

Some of my students travel an average of three hours a day, often taking a complex “combination” of bus, MRT, and walking — students proudly refer to this as their B-M-W — just to get to school and home. This adds up to considerable travelling time and expenses.

Before writing this, I checked with some of my students to see how many benefited from the “targeted assistance” that the minister referred to. They looked back at me blankly and asked “What’s that?”

If the minister’s argument holds, then concession for JC students should be removed as well, and the real needy ones identified and given assistance.


http://voices.todayonline.com/letter/EDC090218-0000001/there_s_an_equal_need.html#