Safeguards in Place to Ensure Safe Environment for Students

Student safety in schools, a concern raised by Forum writer Yang Zhongcheng ("CCA leaders should not be alone with students", Jun 25), is of paramount importance to us.

Any individual engaged by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and our schools for co-curricular activities – including instructors, coaches, vendors and volunteers – must adhere to high standards of professional conduct, especially in their interactions with students.

Schools can only engage instructors who are registered with MOE, and will conduct internal screening and assessments on the suitability of external instructors and volunteers before engaging them. Schools will clearly communicate the expected standards of conduct to these individuals before they are involved in any school activity. This includes stressing the importance of maintaining professional boundaries when interacting with students, as well as emphasising the consequences of misconduct.

In schools, teachers are present during co-curricular activities to supervise training and monitor interactions between students and external instructors. Students also learn about appropriate instructor-student relations and boundaries to ensure that they know how to discern moments of risk to their personal safety, and how to seek help from trusted adults.

MOE takes a serious view of individuals who fail to meet our standards of professional conduct, and will take all necessary actions to protect our students, including reporting all allegations of misconduct to the police. We will continue to work closely with schools to ensure a safe learning environment for all our students.

Ms Loh Wee Cheng
Divisional Director, Student Development Curriculum Division 1
Ministry of Education