Sunday, August 12, 2012

Low fertility rate

Mr. Lee Kuan Yew laments the low fertility rate. In my view, he has to shoulder most of the responsibility for this bad outcome. It is not just the "stop at two policy", but the graduate mother's scheme, national service policy and many other government policies that were initiated by him. It is quite sad that after building up Singapore with his great leadership, he is now seeing the failure of this leadership ....


Anonymous said...

Question is how to go on from here? Low birth rate has been around for quite a number of years. I have 3 school going children and I live in a HDB flat. I graduate from NTU in the early 90s and presently spending $10,000 a year in covering my children tuition. I don't understand until I started studing their school books. My conclusion? Tough being a student in Sgp. A bit regret having to see them going through our education system. I don't see fun but work and more work. Even Primary School Maths questions are not easy to handle. A secondary school girl ever mentioned why study so hard on maths modelling method when they hardly use it in Secondary School.

I am just happy if my kids can achieve 75 marks and above but such expectation is consider high in Secondary School.

My point? The pressure on kids to do more and more in primary and secondary schools are robbing them of the joy of study, their EQ, need to wear specs and no desire or time to excel in Sports other than study.

CCA is to balance study and other activities but if CCA is been organized in the form of KPI, then you have children being push hard to excel in studies and CCA. Some will make it while those who do not have that extra x factors will crack under pressure.

Having more children to see them suffer like that? No way. We have again and again telling MOE that our education system is a problem but it is falling on deaf ears. Personally, I am lucky not to be a student in this generation, it is a mad house thanks to MOE....

Lye Khuen Way said...

We were introduced to Marslow's Hierarchy of Needs in our younger days.
How come none of the Elites in PAP see the link of "affordable " housings to this poor TFR among other factors?

Anonymous said...

[It's His Fault!]

"We reap what Lee Kuan Yew sow. With his highfalutin' ideas and policies on eugenics, we now have Lee Kuan Yew to thank for a "physically, intellectually and culturally anaemic" population imported recently, mostly from mainland China and some from India and elsewhere!"

michael13 said...

To understand well about low fertility rate is often beyond the incentives and disincentives. The couple relationship is one of the main factors too. I have seen the married couples who know how to communicate at the feeling level, they tend to produce more babies. The couples involve in the church programmes like "Marriage Encounter"(ME) or "Marriage Preparation Course"(MPC). Not only they enrich love of marriage but also they produce more babies on average.

Anonymous said...

[The New Social Ethos]
"Let's ignore for a moment that he (LKY) was the first to penalise Singaporeans for having more kids if they fall short of his graduate mother expectations. He may deny authorship for nipping the procreative drive, but he cannot evade responsibility for the alien invasion.

Anonymous said...

The solution:
1. Stop abortion at KK, gov help to arrange some childless couple to adopt the baby.

2. Import more 'pei tu ma ma' and her child by x%.

Anonymous said...

There are numerous reasons why it is not feasible to make a baby in Singapore.
1. The primary school education system is completely flawed. A previous comment in this thread, is absolutely correct.
2. There is no more room to be educated in. The primary schools are bursting to the seams. After 50 years, they still pack 40 children in a class. Vacant land is commonly reserved to build condos, roads and malls.
3. There is no quality life as pricing is too high all round, and no back-yard area where prices are lower.
4. There is no pension and the State though filthy rich prefers to pay useless politicians absurd salaries whilst ignoring the plight of the common people in their old age.
5. There is no assurance of stability and sustainability for the child, the PAP messed up the entire demographics BIG TIME.


Anonymous said...

It is no point forming the various committees when they do not work in unison. All to each its own. The root of the problem as follows:
1. Once graduate from University, look for a job, compete with the FTs.
2. HDB no longer for the people but profit making - strive to buy a HDB flat with potential spouse.
3. Companies strive on productivity as Singapore wants to be No 1 forever, result in long working hours and stress. Low fertility, one of the main causes is stress which affects the hormones. Doctors aware, but no one dare says it.
4. Having Children, the education system stress on the children from pre-primary all the way to University. Ask yourself the question, should we bring our children to this world to 'suffer' because of our education system.
Singapore wants to be UNIQUE but we should be HUMBLE and learn from other countries, their lifestlye etc.
We need a balance - family vs work vs being No 1.
Hope that the committees will not be the same old committee who 'No Action Talk Only' and no one wants to step forward to act

Anonymous said...

Low birth rates coupled with the emigration of our true bred Singaporeans, is another worrying trend.

Will we be extinct one day?
Better take heed to work on population growth naturally.

Anonymous said...

Its all about KPI.

Personal KPI= lots of money to buy things

Job KPI= meet the quarterly targets

Marriage KPI= Own the best flat

The Chinese philosophy of "hock, lok, siew"

Hock = Fortune
Lok = Fertility
Siew = Longevity

In modern times, only Fortune is important.

If you look back in history, the Chinese always offered incense paper that represented currency.
Even after death, the offer of money in order to have more is a practice since ancient times.

No mention of babies now days.

I doubt if free pregnancy services from a doctor will help
or free school all the way to university.

People simply do not want the responsibilities of parenthood.
They do not mind being an Uncle or Aunt but they do not want to be Daddy or Mummy.

Its not confined to wages either.
Rich or poor, DINKi

" Double Income No Kids

Anonymous said...

Remembering 1984

yujuan said...

This is what you get, if one tries to
usurp the role of God. To conform to the 2 child policy, God is fuming - how many innocent foetuses had been aborted through mind pressure games.
Dun worry, just import to replenish.
It's part of the Agenda, not an open secret anymore.

ThinkOutOfTheBox said...

I agree with anonymous on the stress imposed on the parents and their children. My child is also going through the same phase and I too pity his teachers. Now there is this thing called CCE something to do with character education and it's part of the permanent timetable taking up extra time plus CCAs and honestly, my teacher friends told me that to get recognised , have to win awards like CCAs or do things special like musicals and because of so many events, my child who is a school counsellor ( prefect) has to stay back in school to help out.... Now he has to earn CIP ( community involvement programmes) hours too as its good for their application to JCs... My son spends too much time in school doing such things. Imagine the teachers .... Who many are single like my friends. Now there is this thing called the night study programme too where graduating students can stay back from 6pm-9pm.. It's all good but I wonder what's happening ???? MOE should just relook and stop wayang

Anonymous said...

Kids are groomed to stay out of the home and participate in all sorts of "activities"

A. Sports
B. Tutorials
C. Community service
D. Peer assistance
E. Uniform group activities
F. Miscellaneous school projects.

And these are above and beyond the regular work they need to cover for term and continuing assessments.

Once in Secondary school all the way to Poly and Uni.. your child will be visible only when they need money and your signature in their report books.

At the end of all this, our people are still 'uneducated'

" Why like dat one ah?"
" Where got?"
" Aiyah, quick! just put an X anywhere lah.. we need to go to Ion to see the models!" ( during elections)

Its really pathetic.

Anonymous said...

Moral Education on the 10 Commandments:
"Thou Shalt Not Kill" but Abortion KILLS???

Anonymous said...

Isn't it too misleading to pick on fertility rate alone? As over the past 30 years or so, SG's population has increased from 2mm to 5mm already??? No logic at all....

Anonymous said...

Morals and character education should be taught by parents or modelled by parents not taught by strangers teachers.... Can morals be taught?
It's how the kid observe their parents or the leaders..
Don't waste any more time doing extra rubbish things in school

Anonymous said...

The problem is that our govt did not realise that they are very weak in HRM & kept repeating their mistakes and the consequences are beginning to surface now!

Anonymous said...

"...Morals and character education should be taught by parents or modelled by parents not taught by strangers teachers..

Parents too busy, not at home, its the maid that will teach them..
or the cable TV.

Grandma and grandpa speak dialect which the kids " catch no ball"

When mummy & daddy come home:

Mum: " show me your homework"
Dad: " Why so low score for Maths?"

Mum: " why so untidy one?.. boy! do you want to become road sweeper?"

Dad: " If you don't get higher marks for maths, you won't get into JC or Poly!.. ITE you wan ah?"

Dad: " You cant even be Insurance agent!.. need maths you know!"


Its all about performance.. and morals is not in the KPI

Anonymous said...

If he is seeing a failure of this leadership, he is not going to admit it. Not even from the grave.

Not only is the cause of low fertility resting totally on his shoulders, the sad political landscape which is almost bereft of talents coming out to serve is another bad outcome of his brand of politics.

Anonymous said...

This morning on FM 95, DJ summarized and presented the SMS feedback on this topic. Conclusion? None talked about 6 months Maternity Leave. All talked about VERY VERY EXPENSIVE Child Care expensive which also includes tuition.

Problems have been there, studies have been made, it is not a day one problem. It has drag from Ministers' pay increase in 1994 till Ministers' pay revision in 2012. Conclusion? Pay big bucks, come back to square ONE. Worst, Govt spend more money on study when the answers are already there. Govt does not want to solve the high cost in childcare [esp threat of losing job in middle age] but restart another study letting a new Minister to head it. Hope the Govt succeed as it is very difficult to reinvent the WHEEL.....

Anonymous said...

Lucky TAN's latest

Anonymous said...

Interesting to note that Low Fertility may be the outcome of Infertility? Stress & Lifestyle changes may all contribute to it, and another worrying of The 5Ms to consider:

MONEY no enough?
MAIDS for the kids/ household?
MOTOR Car or Motor Bike?
MARRIAGE Prospects/commitments?
MORTGAGES for sure?

Babyboomers of yester yrs. tackled the 5Cs with ease?

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