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| May 21, 2008 |
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Junior college parents feeling the pinch of non-academic charges
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I REFER to the letter, 'Parents must keep paying for activities in this Pre-U' (May 5). My grandson has just started schooling in a junior college located in the east. Since school started about five months ago, he has been asking his parents for extra money virtually every day to pay for non-academic items like the class fund, T-shirts, fees for the co-curricular activity (CCA) coach, fees for the CCA fund and many other ancillary fees.
Is there a need to buy T-shirts almost every month? His parents had also bought him a laptop costing $2,700 just before the school term began.
In the past, studying did not cost so much. That is no longer the case for studies in a junior college. This high cost of studying in a junior college is becoming a struggle for parents. This comes on top of high inflation resulting in a higher cost of living. Applying for financial assistance is not always an option as many parents earn above the income cap where such aid is concerned.
Junior colleges should request more funds from the Ministry of Education for all compulsory activities and items to ease the financial burden for parents.
Tan Choon Tee (Mdm)
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