 |
 |
Area:
Singapore consists of one main island and 60 small islands about 137 km north of the Equator (latitude 1° 09’N and longitude 103° 38’E). It has a total land area of 647.5 square kilometres, of which almost half has been set aside as forest reserves, marsh and other non-built-up areas. Three reservoirs occupy the centre of the island. Almost half of the land (49.67 per cent) is for residential, commercial and industrial use. A mere 1.7 per cent, about 10.8 sq km, is for agriculture. |
Education:
The government frequently referred to Singapore's population as its only natural resource and described education in the vocabulary of resource development. The goal of the education system was to develop the talents of every individual so that each could contribute to the economy and to the ongoing struggle to make Singapore productive and competitive in the international marketplace. The result was an education system that stressed the assessment, tracking, and sorting of students into appropriate programs. Educators forthrightly described some students and some categories of students as better "material" and of more value to the country than others. In the 1960s and 1970s the education system, burdened with large numbers of children resulting from the high birth rates of the previous decades and reflecting the customary practices of the British colonial period, produced a small number of highly trained university graduates and a much larger number of young people who had been selected out of the education systems following secondary schooling by the rigorous application of standards. The latter entered the work force with no particular skills. Major reforms in 1979 produced an elaborate tracking system, intended to reduce the dropout rate and to see that those with low academic performance left school with some marketable skills. During the 1980s, more resources were put into vocational education and efforts were made to match the "products" of the school system with the manpower needs of industry and commerce. The combination of a school system emphasizing testing and tracking with the popular perception of education as the key to social mobility and to the source of the certifications needed for desirable jobs led to high levels of competition, parental pressure for achievement, and public attention and concern. |
Currency:
The local currency is the Singapore dollar, SGD or S$ for short. One dollar is divided into 100 cents. All notes and coins are issued by the Board of Commissioners of Currency, Singapore (BCCS). The Singapore dollar and the Brunei dollar are accepted at par in each country under an Interchangeability Agreement, so don't be surprised if you do get a note with a picture of the Sultan of Brunei.
|
 |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
