The recent Straits Times-Nexus Link tuition survey of 500 parents has highlighted the extent of parents' reliance, fear via peer pressure, and spending on tuition. Once again, the evergreen debate about tuition has reignited.

In the 1980s, tuition was necessary only for weak students. Now, tuition has become necessary for even the brightest students. Why is our society so obsessed with tuition?

And that, too, despite Singapore's students scoring top marks in global rankings in the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and other benchmarks - or perhaps because of that.

First, the need for tuition can be directly co-related to the demands of school education. Mass education the world over has inherent problems that accentuate the need for tuition. The quality of teachers, undue emphasis on assessment and exam- orientedness, inability of education systems to individualise learning and ineffective use of available technology - all contribute to key problems of mass education globally.

While the Ministry of Education (MOE) has over the years made significant improvements in various areas of mass education, even Minister Heng Swee Keat will agree that his is a work in progress. Removing exams for the lower primary years, removing ranking of schools, and raising the quality of teachers are important policy steps. But until and unless several more fundamental changes take place in the school system, Singapore will continue to be a tuition nation.