POVERTY & FAMILY DYSFUNCTIONTHE CHALLENGE: There is a correlation between poverty and family dysfunction, say social workers.
In Singapore, where children are plied with plenty, how does it feel to grow up penniless? What does life look like for children from low-income families? Ho Ai Li finds out their chances of escaping the poverty trap.
Children in households belonging to the 'underclass' face difficulties, and hunger and the lack of supervision are but the start of them. Ho Ai Li examines their plight and the programmes that can offer social mobility - and hope - to them.
NINE-year-old Matt (not his real name) insists he 'hates food, really'. He licks his lips at the mention of his favourite dishes like satay, hamburger and nasi lemak, but he tries to be brave about going hungry. 'If got bread, I eat. If nothing, never mind. I just tahan lor,' says the Primary 3 pupil of Gan Eng Seng Primary, too brightly.
Most of the time, he skips dinner, drinks tap water and goes to bed early to keep his hunger pangs at bay. But sometimes it is too much to bear. 'Yesterday, I couldn't sleep until 3am because I was too hungry,' he confides. On his limbs are livid red welts, caused by bed bugs from the unwashed mattress he sleeps on in a one-room rental flat in Tiong Bahru. Five years ago, his father had walked out on the family. His mother makes $500 a month as a hawker's assistant and struggles to raise him and his eight-year-old brother.
Like Matt, many of the offspring of Singapore's economic underclass - an estimated 116,300 families or 12.6 per cent of households here who earn below $1,000 a month according to the [sic] 'Poor health, illness in the family, something as simple as not having someone to take them to school or pre-school because transport is too expensive or their care-giver is ill, can be an impediment to their progress,' she says.
Social workers estimate that around 40 per cent of poor families are headed by a struggling single parent. In many cases, the father has left the family, is in jail or in drug rehabilitation. The lone parent holding the fort is often too busy working to make ends meet to look after the children properly.
In Matt's case, his mother did not even notice he had developed a fever. Social workers at Henderson Student Centre, where he showed up looking pale and feverish to the touch, took him to the doctor. The other 60 per cent of poor children, social workers say, have parents who are still together but who do not plan beyond their immediate financial needs, and end up becoming negative role models.
Most of these parents married young, had children early, have little education and hold low-skilled jobs working as cleaners or hawker assistants.
Ms Hong Kim Beng, head of the Henderson Student Centre, which is part of the Singapore Children's Society and runs before- and after-school care programmes, notes that these parents go around borrowing money, 'indirectly teaching the kids that it's okay' to do so. When reviewing their family finances and monthly budget, she finds that many of these parents spend more on cigarettes, alcohol or lottery than on their children.
According to Eurasian Association volunteer Louise Clarke, many of these homes lack a stable routine and structure. Without regular times for meals, studying, playing, sleeping or waking up, it is hard to instil discipline in growing children. 'They may find it hard later on to adhere to waking up at a certain time to attend classes or even obeying instructions in school,' she says.
Another hurdle they face is the turbulent environment they grow up in. Mr Gerard Ee, executive director of the voluntary welfare organisation Beyond Social Services, says that children from poor families, in particular, face a higher risk of delinquency because they tend to live in poor areas and are exposed to a subculture of delinquency and drug addiction.
WIDENING GAP
THIS gap between the haves and the have-nots only widens as they grow up.
The average Singaporean child attends two years of kindergarten. Those from better-heeled families enjoy four years of nursery and Montessori preschooling. But an estimated 2,000 - or 5 per cent out of last year's cohort of about 42,000 children - do not go to kindergarten at all. They do not know their ABCs upon enrolment in Primary 1.
Mrs Elyse Wong, senior social worker at Feiyue Family Service Centre, says: 'When they go to Primary 1, most of these children won't be able to catch up. By Primary 1, most kids know how to spell even difficult words. So, for them, if they don't even know how to speak simple English, they're at a disadvantage.'
To level the playing field, MCYS has started to subsidise up to 75 per cent - or up to $65 - of the kindergarten fees of about 6,600 needy children since last year. Last week, Education Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam outlined plans to work closely with MCYS to identify children who are not enrolled in pre-school and get them into school. It is also lending a hand to those who are in kindergarten but need help, especially with English.
Currently, the MOE runs the Learning Support Programme for about 5,600 pupils each year in primary schools to help them catch up. From this year, it is also setting aside about $1.3 million a year for primary schools to provide breakfast so that children from poor families do not have to sit through classes with empty stomachs.
Still, without adult supervision at home, bridging this widening gap is tough.
Ms Hong notes: 'Because of a lack of guidance at home, many have problems in school and can't cope with the lessons. Some of them have very poor memory and short concentration spans.' By the time they begin to catch up, they might have already been streamed into EM3, she adds.
By this time, those who consistently fail tend to deal with it by playing truant and falling into bad company, say social workers. Hence, Beyond's Mr Ee notes that it is very important for schools to 'emphasise inclusiveness'. 'When they go to school and see children from a lot of other places, instead of integrating, there's a tendency to seek comfort in those similar to themselves. This reinforces the marginalisation. They find they are all in the same learning-support class, or all picked up as trouble-makers,' he says.
To counter this, the Children-At-Risk Empowerment Association (Care) was set up in 1997. Its mission is to help students who are weak in their studies build their sense of self-worth through camps and befriending activities. The association's executive director John Tan estimates that on average, half of the 1,000 students they help hail from low-income families and struggle with poor self-esteem. Indeed, social workers call this the most endemic and crippling problem for this group - 'poverty of the mind'.
Mr Ee notes that many of the children's parents have 'tunnel vision', don't see beyond the here and now or the need for more education and even urge them to drop out and work to support the family. Invariably, they pass on their low expectations. The Eurasian Association's case manager, Mrs L.V. Jayashree, notes that as a result, many of these children grow up with very limited expectations - with goals that do not extend beyond getting an administrative or service job. Some do not complete primary or secondary education.
In 2004, 80 pupils did not complete primary school while 880 dropped out of secondary school prematurely. Many did so because their parents wanted them to work to support the family or, in several cases, to take care of newborn siblings. These dropouts typically work at fast-food restaurants or take on jobs like passing out leaflets or cleaning.
Take Gina (not her real name), 15. The Normal (Technical) student was a serial truant because she felt she was no good in her studies. She fought with her father and ran away from home when she was 14. One year on, she is in a girls' home after being caught stealing make-up at a department store. She has friends who got hooked on drugs, joined gangs or became unwed mothers in their teens - starting the cycle all over again.
With low education and motivation, poor family planning and severely narrowed options, people like Gina face lifelong unskilled and insecure employment.
SOCIAL MOBILITY
THEIR chances of moving up the social ladder are not too rosy, judging by the link between family background and academic performance.
According to 2001 data from the MOE, only 16 per cent of students who qualified for the Gifted Education Programme live in four-room or smaller flats. This contrasts with the 72 per cent of the students in the Normal stream who do.
One upside is there are now schemes to prop up children from poor families. These include the newly created $48 million Opportunity Fund, which helps needy students with school fees as well as enrichment classes and exchange programmes.
Education - getting children to go to school and stay in school as long as possible - remains the key to social mobility for the next generation.
Right now, as many as 3,000 students, or 6 per cent of each cohort, end up joining the workforce without post-secondary qualifications. The Government hopes to reduce this group by half, with help from beefed-up course offerings at the Institute of Technical Education.
But what stands in the way of all these uplifting government initiatives is the indifferent mindset of some poor families.
As Ms Poh from Care notes, some families plainly do not care. 'We directed some families to free tuition opportunities for their children but some do not allow their children to attend,' she laments. Others just do not feel the need to change their lives. They know that they will not die of cold even if they have to sleep on the streets, say social
workers.
Beyond's Mr Ee observes: 'It's very strange in Singapore - people are well cared for so they don't think they're poor. Sometimes, for people to change, things have to get really bad.' Many of such families need personal mentoring and convincing to help them see beyond their day-to-day needs and even consider future repercussions. Eurasian Association's Mrs Jayashree says its staff work with a collaborator - a family member, relative or mentor - to help the families look into their future and prod them into action.
Others, like Care's Dr John Tan, believe that it takes a community to raise a child. Everyone, from neighbours and teachers to social workers, has a role to play in helping these children, he says. He emphasises: 'One important thing is to give them a positive long-term orientation in hope. Hope inspires. Once there's no hope, that's it.'
hoaili@sph.com.sg
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SOUMYA PODUVAL-----------------------------------------------------------------
(From Ave)
Dear friends,For each day that you skip school, there is a kid who is struggling to stay in school, who cannot pay his school fees, who doesn't have enough to eat. If you can spare 2 hours a week, please take a minute to read this mail.----------------------------------------------------------------- An estimated 116,300 families or 12.6 per cent of households in Singapore earn below $1,000 a month. An estimated 2,000 - or 5 per cent of the 2005 cohort - do not go to kindergarten. They do not know their ABCs upon enrolment in Primary 1. In 2004, 80 pupils did not complete primary school while 880 dropped out of secondary school prematurely. As many as 3,000 students, or 6 per cent of each cohort, end up joining the workforce without post-secondary qualifications.BreakThrough is a tuition service catered towards children from Primary 1 to 6 hailing from families that earn less than $1,000 a month. We are looking for volunteers to teach these children mainly English, as well as Maths and Science.Just 2 hours a week is needed. Volunteers should be at least 15 years old as of 1 Jan 2006.To volunteer with BreakThrough, please email breakthrough.admin@gmail.com.If you can read this email, you're luckier than the kids from 116,300 families.You have the power to change their lives.-----------------------------------------------------------------Even if you are unable to help, please forward this to your friends. Our kids need to stay in school; they need to know that the future is brighter than they think.
dont be deceived by her Miss Pandemonium get-up because she has these eyes that stare so intently, as if analysing your facial muscles, contemplating your every word, chewing you up and spitting you out. and then if you manage to say something that is 'right', she breaks out into a hearty laugh that momentarily breaks the tension in the room.
dont be deceived by her Miss Pandemonium get-up because she has these eyes that stare so intently, as if analysing your facial muscles, contemplating your every word, chewing you up and spitting you out. and then if you manage to say something that is 'right', she breaks out into a hearty laugh that momentarily breaks the tension in the room.
