BATAM: Twenty-six Singaporeans, all employees of self-help group Yayasan MENDAKI, were injured after a wooden bridge collapsed at Montigo Resorts on the Indonesian island of Batam, the organisation confirmed on Friday (Nov 8).

The staff members were on a company retreat to discuss work plans for the upcoming year, MENDAKI said. 

On Thursday, tourists were taking photos on the 70m-long bridge at the resort when the middle section of the bridge collapsed. More than 30 people fell into the ocean, Riau police official Erlangga had said. 

The injured included the 26 MENDAKI employees, all Singaporean. Earlier reports said that 18 Singaporeans were injured.

“Twenty-four employees had light injuries and were discharged as outpatients. Two employees will seek further medical care in Singapore,” MENDAKI said, adding that the next-of-kin of those injured had been contacted. 

A spokesperson from Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said earlier on Friday: “We are aware of the incident. Officers from the Consulate-General in Batam are at Bhayangkara Hospital to render consular assistance.”

INJURED SINGAPOREANS ON THEIR WAY BACK

At least four Singaporeans who were injured were on a ferry back to Singapore on Friday.

Two of the injured were seen by CNA on stretchers at the departure area of the Nongsapura ferry terminal in Batam. Another two were in wheelchairs. There were also two ambulances outside the terminal.

Ferry terminal staff confirmed that the two on stretchers were Singaporeans injured in the bridge collapse, and that they were due to take the 9am (10am Singapore time) ferry back to Singapore’s Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal.

“They were accompanied by doctors,” the staff member, who declined to be named, told CNA.

Over the next half an hour, dozens of tourists disembarked from three tour buses – one with a Montigo Resorts logo – and headed straight to the Batam Fast ferry ticket counter.

Among them were a man and a woman in wheelchairs. A representative from Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs greeted them as they disembarked.

“I think we are all okay,” one woman in the group told CNA. “It is a shock, of course. When a bridge falls, you will be shocked. Otherwise, we are all okay.” 

Two other tourists declined to comment. A man who was on his computer seemingly handling administrative tasks said: “We were advised not to speak to the media.”

SINGAPORE: Recent news of the Chinese government considering a 9pm and 10pm homework curfew for primary and secondary schoolchildren respectively has sparked a huge debate about the country’s education system in the country.

Considering the heavy workload that Chinese children have, coupled with endless enrichment activities, it isn’t difficult to see why the Chinese government would feel a need to step in.

READ: Homework curfew for Chinese children sparks heated debate

It may be hard to imagine that such a practice be imposed in Singapore, but one can never rule out the possibility.   

Thinking about it worries me, as it does not appear to be focusing on the right problem.

Instead of legislating the time kids should go to bed, should it ever come down to that situation, we should be asking ourselves, how did childhood get so hectic in the first place?

Are children being ferried from class to class, and only able to do their homework after dinner?

Are parents busy making ends meet and only able to coach their kids after hours?

In this context, a homework curfew may be a sledgehammer but does not solve any of the underlying problems when a child has to do homework late into the night.

TACKLE THE PROBLEM OF TOO MUCH HOMEWORK

First, it’s worth tackling the problem of too much homework head on.

Singaporean students aged 15 clocked the third-longest time spent on homework, at 9.4 hours a week, according to an OECD survey conducted in 2012, which is the latest survey on the subject. They are behind students in Shanghai (13.8 hours) and Russia (9.7 hours).

Is the homework load in Singapore that unmanageable? Not really.

My Primary Four daughter occasionally gets a heavy workload which may take her two hours to complete but this thankfully occurs only once or twice a month. Most days, she’s in bed by 8.30pm.

In this, educators play a key role. In my daughter’s school, teachers try to coordinate homework load to avoid overloading on any given day.

This helps ensure that homework does not morph into a mountain that students have to chip away at. (That is, unless the various tuition classes are adding to the load.)

READ: Commentary: Teachers love their jobs and feel valued but face immense challenges

READ: Commentary: Should parents help their kids with homework?

Second, instead of imposing a curfew, parents should refrain from packing their kids schedules.

We made a conscious choice to keep tuition for our daughter to a minimum (1.5 hours a week), and reserve her weekday afternoons for schoolwork, revision and free play. She also goes for violin and art lessons, interests she chose for herself.

Even then although she seems to have a balanced schedule, we still pick up heightened stress signals over weekends when she has a test looming or Chinese spelling to prepare for.

So even what a parent thinks is a sensible lifestyle may not be one for a child.

There is no hard-and-fast rules that can be applied to every child. A high ability and energetic child may crave greater levels of intellectual stimulation or physical activity.

For a parent to know when it is too much, we must tune in to the child’s emotions, and provide a safe space for them to voice out.

EMPOWER CHILDREN TO EXERCISE AGENCY OVER THEIR SCHOOL LOAD

Third, are children imbued with a sense of agency and ownership over their schoolwork?

Do they have sensible work habits?  Or do they count on parents to nag at them before opening up assignments?

Parents know two children of equal ability can achieve very different test scores because of work habits.

One may procrastinate and distract himself with gadgets and other less urgent tasks, while the other is organised and has advanced planning skills so he knows exactly what needs to get done when.

So do we instill in our children that homework is their responsibility, and that how long they take to complete tasks is something they must be aware of and plan accordingly?

Or do we allow them to abdicate accountability and carry the weight of the homework responsibility ourselves as parents?

Little do we know that the more we worry, the less the child is bothered. But if we spend the first two years of formal education instilling good work habits in our children, the chances of homework battles will be markedly reduced.

A better solution is to establish a homework routine, and use visual cues to remind the child, for example, a homework chart placed above the study desk they can tick off daily.

After homework is completed, the child gets to choose their next preferred activity, be it reading a book or playing with his mates.

READ: Commentary: Thanks mum for not being a helicopter parent

READ: Commentary: Streaming out. Subject-based banding in. How are parents reacting?

If your child is struggling with some hard concepts, try asking how they want to receive help. Maybe a few sessions with his teacher would suffice, or he could message a friend.

Where both parents work late, try finding other options for homework help, such as a reliable student care, a nearby tuition centre that offers a space for students to study outside classroom hours or even a trusted neighbour.

READ: Commentary: The dangers of leaving our kids with a childcare centre or babysitter – how real are the risks?

WHAT A DISCIPLINED LIFE REALLY LOOKS LIKE

Fourth, some parents have argued kids need to keep up their academic rigour and stay ahead of the competition, so they put in the hours.

In their minds, discipline is why kids stay up late to do homework, which is a healthy inclination to be encouraged.

But arguably, such discipline should also apply to other areas of life. A child needs a balanced life, which includes nutrition, work, rest, and play to be at his best.

If they prefer downtime in the afternoons and can cope with homework later, this could be their optimal rhythm.

But if bedtime gets pushed to the point where the child cannot concentrate the next day, it may create a vicious cycle where schoolwork gets harder when the child isn’t able to absorb during lessons.

SHOOT FOR BALANCE

The pressure to achieve in this modern age is ever-constant, but so is the need to reflect and change.

We all want our kids to succeed, but the science is telling us that we’ve been focusing on the wrong things.

As guardians of our children’s well-being, we need to switch gears to avoid raising a generation of burnt out youths. Instead of aiming for achievement, we should aim for balance, agency and self-discipline. The achievement will follow.

We must not get into a situation where we have to resort to curfews.

June Yong is a mother of three, an educational therapist and owner of Mama Wear Papa Shirt, a blog that discusses parenting and education in Singapore.

SINGAPORE: While rules banning the use of electric scooters on footpaths were put in place to safeguard pedestrians, food delivery riders who use personal mobility devices (PMDs) for work are also Singaporeans with “genuine concerns”, said Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee on Thursday (Nov 7). 

Mr Lee, who is a Member of Parliament for the Jurong Spring ward of Jurong GRC, was speaking on the sidelines of his Meet-the-People session (MPS), where 50 delivery riders turned up hoping to voice their concerns over how the new regulations would affect their livelihood. 

More than half were wearing green GrabFood T-shirts.

Grab had earlier said a third of its riders would be affected by the new rules. 

Another food delivery firm, Deliveroo, said it has helped around 30 per cent of its riders that previously used PMDs or e-bikes, to switch to other modes of transport such as bicycles or motorcycles. 

“We are in close touch with all our riders on PMDs, and will continue to speak with them and do more to support them and their needs moving forward,” said a Deliveroo spokesperson.

“For instance, we are currently in conversations with bike-sharing companies around potential partnerships.”

“They have genuine concerns, (about their) livelihood and income, and of course all the other related issues,” said Mr Lee.

Mr Lee said the riders’ concerns included not being able to pay off the instalments on their PMDs and being unable to obtain e-bikes or other vehicles that would allow them to continue working.  

Also at the MPS were representatives from various e-scooter retailers, who presented a letter to Mr Lee on behalf of more than 30 businesses. 

They called on the authorities to allow the use of PMDs on roads, with speeds capped at 25kmh, and to convert more footpaths to shared paths. 

Mr Lee told those at the MPS that their concerns would be presented to the Ministry of Transport and the Land Transport Authority on Friday. 

“These are Singaporeans with genuine concerns. The rules are intended to safeguard Singaporeans who as pedestrians use the walkways. So there are trade-offs, the rules have been put into place for a reason,” he said. 

Meanwhile, volunteers would attend to riders who had concerns that needed to be addressed immediately. 

“I’m from MSF (Ministry of Social and Family Development), so we want to make sure if they have urgent concerns regarding their livelihood, we will be in a position to help them,” he said. 

Mr Jacki Ng from retailer Eko Life, said he was hopeful that regulations could be modified in such a way that would allow riders and pedestrians to share paths safely. 

“Hopefully they (MOT) will address the issues,” said the 43-year-old. 

Rider P K Satria said he hoped any changes to the regulations could be made soon, adding that pedestrians were giving him dirty looks even when he rode on cycling paths, where the use of e-scooters is allowed. 

READ: E-scooter riders gather to voice frustration over ban at Meet-the-People session in Ang Mo Kio

The 21-year-old, who has worked with GrabFood for two years, said the public tends to view e-scooter riders as “bad people, who cause trouble, accidents and mishaps”. 

“They forget that as delivery riders, we go out to deliver their food and give the best service we can. Because at the end of the day, we just want to go home and put food on the table for our families,” he said. 

Mr Lee’s MPS is the third in recent days to be attended by e-scooter riders concerned about the new law. 

On Tuesday, about 30 delivery riders met with Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam at session in his Chong Pang ward of Nee Soon GRC. 

On Wednesday, around 50 riders showed up at the MPS for Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s Teck Ghee ward, in Ang Mo Kio GRC.

SINGAPORE: A fire broke out aboard a Panama-flagged tanker in Singapore waters on Thursday (Nov 7), causing the crew members to be evacuated, said the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) in a statement.

MPA said it was informed at 1.10pm that a fire had broken out onboard the tanker HOYU around 9.7 nautical miles northeast from Pedra Branca.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force, Singapore Police Coast Guard and the Republic of Singapore Navy deployed vessels to assist the HOYU crew, the statement added.

All 18 crew members have been safely evacuated and the fire has been put out, it said.

There were no reports of injury or pollution and shipping traffic was unaffected.

MPA is investigating the incident, it added.

Refinitiv Eikon shipping data showed that the tanker was fully laden with an unspecified oil cargo and was bound for the Philippines, said Reuters.