EXPERTS yesterday agreed that the statistics cited by the Education Minister on Monday show there is upward social mobility in Singapore, but cautioned that attention must still be paid to those at the bottom to ensure that an underclass does not form.
They were commenting on statistics revealed by Dr Ng Eng Hen, showing how children from disadvantaged backgrounds can achieve academically.
For example, one in five students from one- to three-room flats scores in the top third of the Primary School Leaving Examination and the top 30 per cent of the O and A levels, with these proportions remaining constant over time.
Among these students living in smaller homes, one in 10 progresses to university and four in 10 to polytechnic.
Said Nominated MP and National University of Singapore (NUS) sociologist Paulin Straughan: 'The statistics show that the path to upward mobility is not closed. In every cohort, you can find somebody from an underprivileged background who has made it.'
At the same time, she pointed to a reality that exists in all developed countries: Mobility declines with development.
'It is no fault of the government that the more mature the economy, the more developed the society, the more entrenched the inequality,' she noted.
Compared to Singapore's early years, when economic development was just taking off, the situation today is that 'the positions at the top are pretty much filled'. 'But it is not the state's job to level out inequalities, though it is its responsibility to ensure no matter what school you go to, as long as you go and work hard, the doors will be open,' she said.
For fellow NUS sociologist Chua Beng Huat, the fact that the social mobility debate is of such interest to Singaporeans is a reflection that social structures here are still evolving.
'For affluent countries like Canada or Australia, people take their middle-classness for granted.
'China, Singapore, Korea are still relatively 'new rich', people still can't take their positions for granted,' he said.
All four sociologists interviewed said they would also like more fine-grained data so as to make more detailed assessments.
NUS sociologist Tan Ern Ser said while the statistics showed that working-class children can move up the social ladder, those from wealthier homes would have 'higher probability' of moving up.
'Knowing that the poor are represented at the top provides one facet of the story, but knowing that they are equally or over-represented at the top would suggest class does not matter that much.
'Rags to riches indicate possibility, but possibility is not the same as probability,' he said.
For NUS assistant professor of social work Irene Ng, what she would like is longitudinal data that tracks people over many years, to see how they fare in social mobility across generations.
She found in a previous study that Singaporeans whose parents were at the bottom tend to remain at the bottom, while those whose parents were at the top tend to stay there.
She would also like cross-country comparisons, to see how Singapore fares compared to other developed countries.
To help the poor level up, Prof Tan said opportunities can be created to give working-class students financial support, and soft skills like networking, cultural sensitivities and emotional intelligence.
Giving them mentors and access to successful people would also help: 'I know we live in a meritocracy, but nobody says guanxi doesn't matter in a meritocracy,' he said.
Prof Chua's advice to those who do not make it to university, but want to move up the ladder: 'If you go to polytechnic, and are smart enough, you can become an entrepreneur, do well, start your little business repairing ceiling fans, aircons... these services are not cheap.
'Buy yourself a van, drive around the country, make a decent living. Your children will have a better opportunity.'
Govt must still look out for those at the bottom, to ensure no underclass forms, they say
By Cai Haoxiang
haoxiang@sph.com.sg
From the Straits Times
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STATE'S ROLE
'It is not the state's job to level out inequalities, though it is its responsibility to ensure that no matter what school you go to, as long as you go and work hard, the doors will be open.'
Nominated MP and National University of Singapore sociologist Paulin Straughan
