The Evolution of Singapore’s Chinese School Education

Authors

Tai-Chee Wong

Abstract

In colonial Singapore, all ethnic groups were allowed to use their mother tongue to teach their children in their self-run schools. After independence, however, the PAP-led government started to transform the multi-language school system into a single English-medium system. This article focuses on the evolution of Chinese school system in Singapore from its peak in 1960 to its disappearance in 1986. Three factors of different impact intensity have been identified which have led to such an outcome. These include the choice of the English-educated ruling elite backed by a unified education rationale, use of English as an economic survival instrument, and the defeat of pro-socialist left-wing Chinese-educated groups. The paper first traces the colonial laissez afire approach which gave way to a strong post-independent state using language as a form of power to exercise its political mandate. The choice of English has been supported by Singapore’s successful export-led industrialisation and integration into the global chain of capitalist West, which has brought in high-paying jobs. Success has convinced pragmatic Chinese families that English schools offer better prospects than Chinese schools. Ultimately, Chinese language is forced to take the back seat as a mother tongue in Singapore’s English medium schools.

Recommended Citation

Wong, Tai-Chee (2023) "The Evolution of Singapore’s Chinese School Education," Malaysian Journal of Chinese Studies: Vol. 12: No. 2, Article 5.
Available at: https://mjcs.newera.edu.my/journal/vol12/iss2/5