Good grief indeed! My former child care centre had acquired many awards, one of which was some healthy living or healthy food award. However the food that were served to the children appalled me as they were not only uninteresting, they were also low in nutritional quality. Imagine a child having a bowl of noodles soaked in bland soup, three tiny slices of hotdog and a few pieces of cabbage (the auntie actually counted) that when put together, cannot even make up one leaf. Furthermore after discussing with colleagues who were there before I was, they told me that the reason we got the award was because the teachers were instructed to flip the labelled cartons of SMOO Milk (brand of the milk) out of view to show the unlabelled side. This was done to create the impression that the school ordered the milk for all the children instead of doing so only for the children whose parents signed up for the order.

A school might proudly tell parents that they have been awarded with this and that but it is my advise for parents not to take that as a measure for quality. A quality childcare cares about the development and health (food) of children. A quality childcare will allow teachers to communicate freely with parents as well as support teachers’ teaching methods as and when necessary.

Thank you for your encouragement, I do love my job and I am in this line because of the children. They intrigue me and they inspire me with fresh new ideas to explore for my paintings. :)

Just wish that some parents will stop neglecting their children as well as their duty as parents. If they are too lazy to do certain things for their children, then they should really not have children.

It will be highly appreciated if parents change their children’s diapers before coming to school. Some childcare teachers bring an extra change of clothes along because sometimes we get diapers leaking onto our clothes the moment the child gets handed over to us, right in front of parents who have so far remained indifferent to the leaking incident(s). It will also be good if parents do not ask a child to hand us a bottle that remained unwashed since the night before so that we can do their cleaning job for them.

So… does anyone want my job? :P

I think you’re not only speaking for childcare teachers but also all teachers (or at least most of those I know). One of them has read your article and she fully agrees with you. :)

I think the teaching profession needs a careful re-assessment. Too often, I feel, that the emphasis is on competition and grades. This is quite evident if you’re in a ‘top school’ where the pressure, on teachers and principals, to achieve more and more is quite substantial.

I was doing some research last year and it was amusing to find out that most schools have won at least some sort of awards. In a neighbourhood school in the east, for example, the school proudly displayed a banner at its fences announcing the strings of awards it has won!

I often wonder how much time, work and effort went into the pursuit of such awards. If every school wins some kind of award, then doesn’t that defeat the purpose?

Anyway, I can only hope that the new education minister, Ng Eng Hen, who used to be the Manpower Minister, will be able to bring some semblance of sanity to the lives of our teachers.

In the past, teaching and teachers were highly-regarded. It was a very respected profession indeed. Now, however, even teachers themselves do not necessarily have good things to say about it.

This year alone, I know of at least 3 teachers who are leaving the profession – and another so stressed in a ‘top school’ that she has asked to be transferred out.

Lastly, I personally do admire you for sticking to your job, one which you obviously love. As one of my teacher friends told me, “I only make it through school because of the kids.”

Therein lies the truth of what teachers should be doing – and not be inundated with administrative and irrelevant stuff, like filling milk bottles! Good grief!