Partnership Arrangements between Special Education and Mainstream Schools

105 Mr Darryl David asked the Minister for Education (a) whether the Ministry can provide an update on the partnership arrangements between special education schools and mainstream schools; and (b) whether there are future plans to strengthen such partnerships.

Mr Desmond Lee: Since 2007, partnerships between mainstream and SPED schools have fostered meaningful and sustained interactions between students. The Ministry of Education has worked with schools to establish these partnerships based on shared educational outcomes, complementary interests and geographical proximity, while considering school readiness and staff capacity. All SPED schools – except two new schools, one which began operations in 2024 and another which will commence operations next year – have at least one mainstream partner school, and we are working towards each SPED school having two to three mainstream partner schools for greater impact and sustainability.

We will work on strengthening these partnerships through more sustained student learning experiences and staff professional exchange. These include teacher work attachments, language programmes and joint community service.