Lecture 1 Singapore An Unlikely Nation

Define Nation-building
Cohesive political community
An abiding sense of identity and common consciousness
Process prominent in new states after decolonization and in post-conflict states

Indicators
Economic
Political
Social

Challenges
External
o Globalization: compression of the world and the intensification of consciousness of the world
as a whole Internal
Internal
o Keep Singaporeans rooted to Singapore
o Maintain mutual trust among communities: The discovery of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI)
network after 911 shocked our people. I was worried that it could break the trust between our
Muslim and other communities. (Goh Chok Tong, 2004)
o Ensure Singapores economic survival
Economic globalization may be defined as the process of accelerating economic
integration which privileges market capitalism and which places considerable economic
power in the hands of transnational corporations.
Re-structure the economy
Strengthen external linkages
Embracing competition

Singapore
A city-state
Undoubted success
Weak state but strong city
o Strong in the way we maintain law and order
o Very little control over the conditions of its existence
Three distinguishing features
o PAP is probably the only party in the world to have had competing moderate and Communist
wings, with the moderates coming out on top
o Singapore is the only country in Southeast Asia that has consistently held free elections since
independence and also has not resorted to the imposition of military or emergency rule.
o Singapore has been remarkably successful economically, despite its lack of natural resources
and its almost complete dependence on the skills of its population.
Lecture 2 History

Importance of history
History as the shaper of national identity
o The long-term survival of a country, especially a small one, depends in large measure on a
strong sense of identity. (Lee Hsien Loong, 1989)
History as the teacher of political lessons
o History need not repeat itself if we are able to draw lessons from it. Singaporeans [should]
have a sense of the past so that they can have a better appreciation of the present. And it is
with this historical perspective that they will be able to set a direction for the future.

The case of Singapore

History teaching given low priority: 1965-1978
o Educational priority was therefore geared toward imparting scientific and technical skills to
support Singapores industrial drive.
o History had no practical value and the past was perceived as a hindrance (no golden past,
national glory; reveal vulnerable) to nation-building: Colonialism, corruption, racialism,
poverty, unemployment and squalor were clearly not worth preserving
o In 1972, history was dropped from primary school curriculum.
History teaching reemphasized: 1979-1995
o By 1979, Singapore had achieved full employment and double-digit growth
o But there was concern that the preceding decade of rapid modernization and growth had
taken their toll on the countrys cultural heritage and contributed to the erosion of its
undergirding Asian values, with Western materialistic culture threatening to infect the
younger generation.
o In 1984, a new history syllabus was implemented at lower secondary level
o Efficienty-driven phace in education: history education serving the political agenda of
promoting nationalism among the multiethnic Singaporean youth
History teaching given high priority through National Education: 1995-present
o National Education (NE) launched in May 1997
o Evaluate sources, come to judgments
o Contribute to their understanding of moral, cultural and social issues relevant to their own
and other societies
o Value and relevance of learning about the past and its relationship with contemporary events
Lecture 3 Origin of Nationalism

Define nationalism
Sentiment of loyalty to a nation
Ideological movement for attaining an maintaining autonomy, unity and identity

Define nation
A single people
A well-defined territory
Speaking the same language
Possessing a distinctive culture
Shaped to a common mould by many generations of shared historical experience

The provision of a Singaporean nationalism

Pre-1941: The British and Ethnic Nationalism
o No strong indigenous Singaporean nationalism had developed to challenge British rule.
Desire was to strength ethnic identity
Drawn to political developments in motherland
Distracted by being given a voice in public forums
Displaced by Singapores peace and prosperity
Disallowed by the British, too valuable to give up
1941-1945: The Japanese and Ethnic Nationalism
o No strong Singaporean nationalism developed.
Ethnic tensions and rivalry increased.
Enthusiastic reception for British liberators.
Encounter no nationalist war of liberation.
Post-1945: The onset of Territorial Nationalism
o The process whereby a nationalist movement arises among the heterogeneous populations
within the confines of a colonial state with the aim of taking over from the colonial power,
and adopting the latters administrative unit as the basis of the projected nation
Post-1965: The onset of Singaporean Nationalism
o A deliberate effort in 1959 to develop some national symbols for Singapore.
A national anthem was commissioned a national flag designed
A pledge of allegiance was written
These symbols were prominently displayed and rehearsed on ceremonial occasions
and were introduced into the primary schools as part of the daily routine.
o An emphasis on Chinese ethnicity as the basis for nationalism would have excluded a quarter
of the population, exacerbated relationships with neighboring states, and contradicted the
explicit ideology of the ruling party at that time.
o To develop a local identity, as opposed to Chinese, Malay, Indian identities
Lecture 4 A nation forged by war

In Singapore, the Japanese occupation during the Second World War, in particular, has been often been
portrayed as a defining moment in the making of the Singapore nation

Why did Japan invade Singapore?

Japans rise to power was brought about by the interplay of a series of international and regional
forces that propelled Japan, through a programme of modernization and colonial expansion, to
become the paramount power in East Asia
Japans moves brought her into conflict with the US, the other major Pacific power. The US saw
Japanese expansionism in Asia as linked to German expansionism in Europe and responded by
imposing economic sanctions on Japan

Why fortress Singapore fell?

Local failure to construct defences, position forces correctly, mobilize local menpower
Britains inability to provide adequate resources to Malay led to the swift defeat

Period of Japanese Occupation

Japanese policy, no less than Britains, institutionalized ethnic distinctions and ossified communal
differences.
Food was always scarce.
The Japanese Occupation and the making of the Singapore Nation
The Transformation Perspective
o Destroyed the myth of western invincibility
o Precipitated the rise of new anti-colonial elites: The war also led to the emergence of new
mindset. This view has been widely supported by many of Singapores post-war leaders (like
Lee Kuan Yew, S.R. Nathan, S. Rajaratnam, Said Zahari, Fong Sip Chee), who traced their
political awakening to the Japanese Occupation.
o The war led to the launch of the Malayan Union scheme in its aftermath that resulted in
Singapores severance from its Malayan mainland.
o Unleashed a territorial nationalism in its aftermath spearheaded by a new set of nationalist
leaders.
o The war provided valuable lessons for Singapores subsequent nation-building process,
particularly in the importance of asserting its own responsibility in defense and not depending
on outsiders to defend its sovereignty. (Again taking the longer view, it may be said that the
Syonan years made a deep impression on those who, a generation later assumed leadership of
an independent Singapore. Among other things, they developed a realization that in a crisis
Singapore must rely upon its own resources, and a determination to ensure that the island
would never again be occupied and exploited by others.
The Continuity Perspective
o The myth of western invincibility was not really destroyed in some cases, old elites continued
to be in power
o Decolonization was not inevitable after the war. In fact, the British returned to Malaya and
Singapore as colonizers, not decolonizers.
o It is not at all certain Singapores wartime heroes were fighting for an independent Singapore.

Conclusion
The war produced its own share of contradictions.
Lecture 5 Struggle for Independence

Introduction
British post-war plans for redesigning Malaya and Singapore made what was previously implausible
territorial nationalism now possible.
The process of decolonization that begins in Asia in the aftermath of WW2 was brought about by a
combination of post bellum political and economic fatigue in the European capitals, a dramatically
altered post-war international landscape, and the rise of indigenous nationalism across the region.
London had hoped that as Singapore progressed towards self- government and eventual
independence, it would be governed by a moderate pro-British government that would ensure the
security and accessibility of British bases there. Singapores integration within Malaysia would place
intolerable limitations on Britains use of the base.

Onset of Territorial Nationalism

Look Left
o The Malayan Communist Party (MCP) Above Ground, 1946-1948
Increased potency: MCP exploited its war-time alliance relationship with the British to
increase its strength and power
Increased prestige among the Chinese also increased as it assumed the leadership of the
anti-Japanese resistance movement in Malaya.
Increased presence as a reward of fighting Japanese
MCP starts armed struggle 1948
The British passed tough laws to constrict MCP open front activities.
Look Right
o The Progressive Party (PP) in Power, 1948-1954
A gradual transfer of power, spreading over a period of years
Look Left again:
o Rendel Constitution that increased the number of elected seats from 9 to 25.
o Automatic registration of voters swelled the ranks of the electorate with non-English
speaking voters.
The Labour Front (LF) in Power, 1955-1959
o The Government of David Marshall (1955-1956)
Weak rapport with the British
Weak governance
Weak options
From April to May 1956, Marshall led an abortive mission to London to negotiate for
independence for Singapore. Failing in his mission, Marshall resigned on his return to
Singapore. He was in office for only 14 months.
o The Government of Lim Yew Hock (1956-1959)
Lim Yew Hock cracked down on the pro-communists before leading a more
successful mission to London from March to April 1957 that saw Singapore
being granted a self-governing constitution.
His repressive measures, however, cost him politically at the 1959 election.
His party was defeated by the PAP.
The Peoples Action Party (PAP)
(a) Its Dilemma
Collaboration with the pro-communists
Danger of subversion from within and suppression from without
(b) Its Deliverance
On numerous occasions, the moderate leadership of the PAP was nearly toppled by the
radical pro-communist elements within the party. Timely arrests of pro-communists
within its ranks helped the moderate PAP to overcome the internal challenges and to
survive politically.
In the May 1959 elections, the PAP won 43 of the 51 seats it contested and formed the
government that ruled a self-governing Singapore.
Lecture 6 Struggle for Independence

The Impetus for Merger

Singapores reasons
o Economic survival: Singapores economy was declining and facing intense competition. It
had too small a domestic market for its industrialization plans to generate jobs for its growing
population. without the addition of the bigger common market that the Federation hinterland
would afford upon merger
o Political survival: The ruling PAPs political position in Singapore would be untenable if
independence from Britain could not be secured by 1963.
Londons reasons
o Ensure their Singapore military bases should not fall into the hands of pro-communists.
o Ensure a measure of stability as the Malayan government would be responsible for
Singapores internal security
o British objective of a Grand Design or Greater Malaysia
Kuala Lumpurs reasons
o KL not interested at first
Retard Malayas independence struggle.
Complicate the consolidation of independence.
o But KL changed its mind
Risk of a Cuba situation in Malayas backyard
Real danger of the PAP moderates losing power in Singapore

Problem & Solution

The inclusion of the indigenous peoples of Borneo territories would act as a racial counterweight to
Singapores Chinese population.
Singapore to be only the Economic Centre of Malaysia: Control over Singapores revenue and
opening common market to Singapore

On 16 September 1963, Malaya, Singapore, North Borneo and Sarawak were merged and Malaysia was
formed.

The Impetus for Separation

Worrying signs of the deep suspicion and innate incompatibilities that divided them had already been
evident in the run-up to Malaysia, and especially in its immediate aftermath, as both sides bargained
hard and maneuvered tactically to improve their respective positions within the framework of the
new constitutional arrangements then being established.
Since Singapores separation from the Malayan Union in 1946, both territories had developed
separately. PAP was all that the Alliance was not
o PAP: left-wing and non-communal in outlook, although drawing its support base from a
largely Chinese constituency
o Alliance: right-wing and communal in its orientation, with a distinctly pro-Malay bias
Political Competition
o The 1963 Singapore State Elections: The Alliance party supported its Singapore branches
with the hope of replacing the PAP but lost badly
o The 1964 Federal Elections: The PAP fielded a token team in the federal elections to
challenge the MCA but won only one seat.
o The Race Riots in Singapore: UMNOs intense anti-PAP campaign after the 1964 federal
elections culminated in two race riots in Singapore.
Racial tension
o The predominantly Chinese nature of its population that just tips the balance in favour of
the Chinese would also cause anxiety amongst the Malays and cause them to be dispirited
and antagonized
o The Chinese in Singapore disdained being discriminated against by the federal policies. Other
financial and economic benefits that were preferentially given to Malays.
 Economic
o Despite earlier agreement to establish a common market, Singapore continued to face
restrictions when trading with the rest of Malaysia
o The Bank of China branch of Singapore was closed by the Central Government in Kuala
Lumpur as it was suspected of funding communists.

Separation
Singapores separation from Malaysia in August 1965 after fewer than 23months in the Federation
The emotional trauma and crisis of the separation, represented by its Prime Ministers teary moment
of anguish3 on national television on 9 August 1965
In a widely remembered quote, he stated: "For me, it is a moment of anguish. All my life, my whole
adult life, I have believed in merger and unity of the two territories."
Lecture 7 Defence

First and foremost, as Dr. Tony Tan put it, security is the basic foundation on which Singapore sustain its
nationhood and build its future. Simply put, without a strong army force, there is no Singapore.

Why SAF?
Ensure political survival
o Uncertain neighborhood
Uneasy access to sea lanes
Uncertain relations with close neighbors: Malaysia pressure by threatening to turn off
water in Johor
o Small size
Singapore is among the 20 smallest countries in the world, with an area of barely over
600 square kilometers
Little to no strategic defense, no buffer to give up and claim back later
Easy to be absorbed / conquered
No huge manpower
Ensure economic survival
o Protect asset
o Safeguard Singaporeans economic future

SAF
In the beginning, Singapores defense capabilities consist only of 2 battalions, 5000 men police force,
aging gunships and no air force
Seeking outside help: only positive response from Israel; they kept plugging at it and we kept on
learning by trial and error
NS: overcome public resistance
Expension of SAFs capabilities
o 1st phase: quantitative expansion: army, air, navy
o 2nd phase: qualitative development
Leveraging on technology: Strive tirelessly to upgrade its armory
Built from universal male conscription of two-and-a-half years, the Singapore
Armed Forces (SAF) is a high-tech military equipped with American built F-
l6s and advanced, locally produced infantry fighting vehicles.
Air force is also trained in other countries with air space much larger than that
of Singapore.
Infrastructure in Singapore is also designed in case of defense, such as many
roads can be cleared to become runway.
Focusing on its capabilities and operational readiness
o 3rd phase: quantum transformation, capability to address a broad range of security challenges
Singapores Security Strategy
o Not built on the premise of threat
o Total Defence

Institutional weakness of SAF

Personnel
o Singapores multiethnic but Chinese-dominated society and unique geographical and political
characteristics result in challenges in the recruitment of high-quality personnel into the army
forces
o SAF personnel are almost all extremely well-educated but are also very young, operationally
inexperienced, and restricted by training that sacrifices effectiveness for safety
Because the mandatory retirement age prevents any Singaporean from devoting his or her entire life
to the military, some scholars have suspected that many in the SAF leadership are more interested in
their career after the military than their time spent as an officer
 Failure to use its female soldiers and officers to their maximum potential
While militaries in countries as USA are willing to accept a certain level of training-related injuries
in exchange for a higher state of operational readiness in preparation of developments, this is not the
case in Singapore. Any major injury or death during training causes a very public uproar among
parents. Any such incidents quickly becomes a large scandal and frequently leads to the resignation
of senior officials.

Achievements of SAF
Despite all the criticisms, there can be no doubt that the SAF is the most competent, well equipped
and best trained force in all of Southeast Asia
SAF is more than capable of providing means to defend the territorial integrity of Singapore as well
as conduct limited peacekeeping and support operations in and out of Southeast Asia.
Singapores special-operations forces are especially capable and would not require outside assistance
in the face of terrorist activity inside its territory, as shown by the SAF Commandos expert handling
of the 1991 hijacking of a Singapore Airlines plane.

SAF and nation-building

Safeguard the nation-state
o SAF has deterred any potential aggressors from threatening Singapores sovereignty and
territorial integrity. Generations of NSmen have silently and effectively done their job. Lee
Hsien Loong
Fostering Singaporean identity
o Through the spirit of every man fighting, peoples national consciousness is awakened and
people are more willing to participate in defense.
o Common experience
o Inculcate in our citizen soldiers core values such as hard work, discipline, perseverance,
loyalty and commitment to excellence. Dr Tony Tan
Hinder
o Malay minority and NS
Difficulty in developing the proper role in the military for Singapores Malay
minority whom the government historically has seen as a security risk but who also
have a strong cultural inclination toward military service
If there is a conflict, if the SAF is called upon to defend our homeland, we dont want
to put any of our soldiers in a difficult position where his emotions for the nation may
come in conflict with his emotions for his religion, because these are two very strong
fundamentals. - Lee Hsien Loong
Lecture 8 Social Policy

Definition of Social Policy

Welfare system that alleviates social problems: Singapore has comparable or superior standards of
social welfare
Analysis of societies responses to social need, focused on aspects of economy, society and polity
that are necessary to human existence and the means by which they can be provided. These basic
human needs include: food and shelter, a sustainable and safe environment, the promotion of health
and treatment of the sick, the care and support of those unable to live a fully independent life, and the
education and training of individuals to a level that enables them fully to participate in their society
Healthcare, housing, education, social security

Colonial origins
Colonial plural economy and society
o The component sections follow racial lines, and there is a distribution of economic functions
between the racial groups.
o The mutual relations of these sections are confined to the economic sphere; and even within
this sphere there is no common standard of conduct, with the result that the economic motive
is the highest factor common to all groups and prevails in its crudest form.
o Tensions caused by economic forces between different interests - capital and labor, industry
and agriculture, town and country is aggravated by a corresponding cleavage along racial
lines
o Emphasizing of the material aspect of life. Labor regarded as an instrument of production
o The plural society is unstable for lack of a common social. Nationalism can provide an
effective counter to economic forces. Government should aim therefore at fostering the re-
integration of society through Nationalism. It should aim especially at bridging the gulf
between natives and the modern world, and at convincing capitalists that independence is in
the interest of economic progress

Central Provident Fund (CPF)

In operation since 1955
Structured for retirement purposes, not meant to cover social contingencies, e.g. sickness,
unemployment, work injury, maternity, death of breadwinner (contributory Social Insurance Scheme)
Post-1965 adjustments to CPF scheme
o Public Housing Scheme
o Residential Properties Scheme
o Medisave
o Education Scheme
A comprehensive social security scheme or level to manage economy?

Healthcare
Immediate postwar focus: on expansion of medical facilities
Minimal government presence: comparatively low in national priorities
The National Health Plan (1983): Life expectancy at birth has risen while infant mortality rates have
fallen steadily
Emerging social pressures
o Aging population with limited access to savings
o Raising healthcare costs
o Social discontent, leading to political pressures

Nation-building via Social Policy

If taking a purely political and territorial perspective, nation-building via healthcare or CPF seems
incompatible
Complicated by decolonization process and circumstances of gaining independence
Lecture 9 Economic

Implications of Economy building

Transform physical landscapes
Social impact
PAP understood that only through real and substantive social and economic improvements for the
working class could it survive electorally in the medium-to-long term

Colonial legacies
Entrepot trading center in Southeast Asia
Industry limited to processing raw materials for trade

Making Singapore economically viable

Late colonial period 1945-1965
o Anti-colonialism affected resumption of prewar economic activities, e.g. organized labour via
trade unions cannot be ignored; political instability and uncertainty
o High population growth and high unemployment
o Difficulties of merger and separation
Common market did not materialize due to competition from Malaysia and Tan Siew
Sin
National concerns, e.g. Indonesian confrontation, Malaysian hostility, withdraw of
British military and its impact on local economy and society
o Plans of Goh Keng Swee
1. an import-substitution industry
2. open economy to foreign investment, relaxed immigration for foreign managers and
technicians
3. attractive terms (e.g. Pioneer Industries status - relief from income tax)
4. expansion of technical education and job training programmes
Rationale: Despite the political uncertainty surrounding the island-state in 1960/1, that
Singapore has the basic assets for industrialization. With the resourcefulness of her
people, an active industrial promotion programme by the Government, and - this is
the main point - close co-operation between employers and labour, Singapore can
successfully carry out the expansion programme

Post-separation development
1950s 1960s
o Moving from entrepot trade dealing with staple products (e.g. rubber, tin, oil and straits
produce) to a labour-intensive industries
o Initially import-substitution (ISI) and after August 1965 export-oriented manufactures (EOI)
o Flagship organisations and landmarks: Singapore Airlines (1972), Changi Airport (1981);
continued development of the Port of Singapore
Mid 1970s
o From labour-intensive to capital-intensive (i.e. high-skilled, higher value-added) industries, to a
knowledge-based economy (e.g. research and development, higher education) by the 1990s
o 1970s to 1985: Second Industrial Revolution
witnessed refinements in the role of direct government investment
Some significant gains
Foreigh investment rose substantially
Industries such as electronics, machinery, chemical and aerospace underwent
major technological upgradeings
Singapore found some significant production niches, becoming a global center
for computer disk-drive industry
Yet, by the mid 1980s, it became apparent that there were structural limits to the
expansion of the manufacturing sector in Singapore
The opportunities for Singapore as an export-manufacturing base were not as
 extensive in middle level technology as they had been in the earlier phase of low
value-added production
o From 1990s: high-tech manufactures; exporter of capital - overseas investment
o Into 21st century
Expansion of service sectors
one-stop commercial and financial centre / international business hub
Important as the impact of 1997-1998 Asian crisis was, the enthusiastic official
embrace of globalization and the so-called New Economy is the most significant
feature of Singapores contemporary political economy
Features
o Changing landscapes
o Contributions and benefits: full employment by 1970s; material security, wealth, revenue for
social development: in terms of housing, health care, and education; contributed to social
cohesion and political stability for the first couple of decades of independence
o Continued from colonial period
Continued exposure to regional and global developments, increased competition from
other countries

Economy building and nation-building

Economic progress and national unity, which in an earlier era were mutually reinforcing, may now
run counter to each other.
o Free enterprise system, dependent on individual initiative, and hence focused on individual
needs;
o Inherent wealth inequality that is necessary for economic growth will not lead to unity and
contentment.
o This will make the Singapore population resemble more closely that of its colonial past, when
it was populated mostly by immigrants and transient workers, serving as a denationalized
regional hub for inflows and outflows of labour as well as of capital, goods and services
Lecture 10 Housing

Why housing?
Basic needs
Tangible outcome of nation-building

Colonial & before 1965

Priority given to housing low-income groups
Parts of places used for sleeping which during daytime was used for other purposes such as shops,
factories, offices, etc
Rate of building houses affected by postwar political flux and other circumstances
Concerns that demand will push up cost of construction, hence limited building projects per year
Bukit Ho Swee fire in May 1961

Post 1965
Before 1964 all HDB flats for rental not purchase; 1964 Home Ownership Scheme. Home-owning
society: Householders should become homeowners, otherwise we would not have political stability.
To give all parents whose sons would have to do national service a stake in Singapore that their sons
had to defend. If the soldiers family did not own their home, he would soon conclude he would be
fighting to protect the properties of wealthy. The sense of ownership is vital for our new society
which had no deep roots in a common historical experience LKY
Raising of monthly income ceiling to include more than low-income group
Relaxation of criteria
Opening of resale market in 1971
Focus on developing surrounding environments and provision of amenities and convenience
Social integration
o Resettlement issues
o Class integration: By removing class as a qualifying criterion, the state eliminated the
potential dissension of those who would have been excluded by the class-specific definition
of eligibility and expanded the incorporated constituency and its own financial responsibility
o Racial integration: public-housing program has been used to break up ethnically exclusive
communities and mix them in housing estates

21st century
Limited supply of housing, increasing demand
HDB flats priced out of reach of young generation
Income inequality
A symbol of national identity, a source of national tensions
Change of role since 1960: flat-builder, town builder, asset for investment/success symbol

Facts
In contrast to other developed countries, Singapore has successfully achieved near-universal
provision of public housing.
85% of the population in public housing and there remaining 15% in far more expensive private
buildings

PAP
Appreciation of the governments effort, is the very basis of building political capital, of maintaining
the popular support that legitimizes the government
That a successful national housing policy generates political legitimacy for the ruling government
should be a truism that defies challenge
To incorporate the population is very much the motivation behind the PAP governments promotion
of home-owning democracy with 100 percent home ownership. However, care is taken to avoid
any possibility that housing provision should become a legal entitlement of citizenship
Lecture 11 Education

Colonial society
Raffles ideas: education to keep pace with commerce; while one hand they carried to the shores of
the islands the capital of their merchants, with the other they should stretch forth means of
intellectual improvement
The period of 1900 to the outbreak of the Second World War was also the period which saw the
growth and extension of compartmentalization of education education in Christian mission schools,
government Malay schools, community and estate-run Chinese and Tamil school; education through
the media of English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil; differences in financial assistance, control and
supervision and types of management; differences in types of curricula, quality of teaching staff and
teaching method

Education for Self-Government and Independence

PAP
Parity of treatment for all languages
Bilingual education in primary schools, trilingual education in secondary schools
Use of Malayan-centered textbooks and syllabuses
Teaching of civics: In the area of education for national cohesion, reform measures which were
introduced in the previous period, such as the flag raising and pledge taking ceremony in all schools,
the integrated school system, the compulsory study of civics and the emphasis on extra-curricular
activities continued to be actively pursued

Education for a Nation

A real need to turn out a better educated and suitably equipped workforce to meet the new manpower
needs of an industrializing and modernizing economy
The aims and content of education are being reoriented to evolve an education system which will
support and develop the Republic as a modern industrial nation with a cohesive multi-racial society
Thinking School Learning Nation (TSLN) 1997 onwards: A nations wealth in the 21st century will
depend on the capacity of its people to learn. Their imagination, their ability to seek out new ideas
and technologies, and to apply them in everything they do will be the key source of economic growth.
Their collective capacity to learn will determine the will-being of a nation
Effect of Globalization to Education
The decade of the 1990s was also the time that the government began to realize the potential of
computers to enhance learning by providing access to new information sources, self-paced and often
interactive learning, and any-time-any-where learning. ITs potential contribution to enhancing
learning has been recognized with a commitment of two billion Singapore dollars to provide, in the
first phase one computer for every five students, and later on for every two students
The past four decades have demonstrated that education is central to the ways in which the state
makes itself relevant to its citizens, and to the ways in which it engages with the wider international
community
Lecture 12 Ethnicity and Language

Post 1965
Stark realities: Singapores geo-political position, i.e. Chinese-majority island state in a sea of Malay
Legal measures
o It shall be the responsibility of the government to care for the interests of the racial and
religious minorities in Singapore
o The government shall exercise its functions in such manner as to recognize the special
position of the Malays, who are the indigenous people of Singapore, and accordingly it shall
be the responsibility of the government to protect, safeguard, support, foster and promote
their political, educational, religious, economical, social and cultural interest and the Malay
language
o Malay as national language since 1959
Defence: no call-up to Malays for NS until early 1980s
Economy: inherited colonial division of labour, generally along ethnic lines
Education
o Equal treatment of four languages in education, bilingual policy
The basic strategy adopted by the government for dealing with the fact of pluralism
and consequent multilingualism has been the adoption of a policy of equal treatment,
to treat languages as a resource and to engineer language development to targeted
ends
Effective bilingualism is defined as communicative competence to speak, understand,
respond, read and write in English and mandarin as first language level
The requirement of school bilingualism, for instance, was implemented by a series of
detailed guidelines, involving exposure time subject-language matching, examination
and attainment requirements.

Late 1970s till now

Switch to English language
o The merger of Nanyang University with the University of Singapore to form NUS in 1980
effectively closed down a distinct achievement of Chinese-educated and a powerful symbol
of oppositional Chinese power
o Then, in 1987, the emergence of the national school system with English as the first language
for all students signaled the end of the Chinese school system
Development
o Creation of a national identity
o Return to cultural roots
Speak mandarin campaign 1979
LKY argued that the persistence of dialect use among school children
explained by mandarin had failed to become the more widespread language
among the Chinese
Television programs in dialect were replaced by mandarin to shape how
language use to better reflect official policy requirement
The effort to position mandarin as the preferred household language over
dialects is obviously paying off
By the mid-1980s, it was clear that dialect use was more persistent than had
been realized; yet another finding was that amongst the younger generation,
while less dialect was spoken, more in that group used English compared to
mandarin
o Increase ethnic consciousness within Asianisation 1990-1999
o Emphasizing common space in overlapping circles 2000-present
Multiracial electoral politics: In introducing the Group Representation Constituency (GRC) scheme
in 1988 to insure a racially balanced Parliament with adequate minority representation
Global development and local implications: economic liberalization of China
Summary
Multiracial peace has provided the foundations for meaningful socio-economic and political
development.
In such matters one has to find a middle path between uniformity and a certain freedom to be
somewhat different
Singaporeans have to seek greater understanding of the different races, religions and cultures with an
appreciation of our diversity
Today, racial and religious harmony is enshrined as one of Singapores five shared values
Recommendations for a more suitable and meaningful multiracialism
o Greater effort and resolve should be devoted to the development of the Singaporean-
Singapore identity
o The ethnic Chinese must also be conscious of their role as majority ethnic group their
commitment to multiracialism is critical
o There should be a concerted effort to reduce the role of ethnic self-help groups in socio-
economic life. A resolve to think in national, rather than ethnic, terms must be cultivated
o Put emphasis on civic education in schools and the promotion of genuine and sustained
interaction between different races
o Malay-Muslim Singaporeans loyalty should not be called into question