At least 20 S’pore schools hire external manpower to help with student discipline and management

Schools can decide the qualifications and skill required of these discipline support officers, based on their needs.

Published Nov 01, 2026, 12:00 PM

Updated Nov 01, 2026, 12:00 PM

At least 20 Singapore schools are hiring external discipline support staff to ease teacher workload and handle conflicts.

MOE funds the move after its April 2026 bullying review, and will add online reporting tools by 2027 and a stronger offence management system by 2028.

Schools want staff with uniformed services experience. St Andrew’s says they must guide boys, build trust and help students learn from mistakes.

SINGAPORE - Schools here are hiring external manpower to help with student discipline and management, in efforts to manage teacher workload.

These officers - from outside the Education Ministry (MOE) - are being deployed across several primary and secondary schools, for tasks like fact-finding, resolving conflicts , writing reports and communicating with parents.

Most positions are described as discipline support officers, while others carry titles such as discipline aides or discipline and investigation assistants.

Several schools also indicated a preference for applicants with experience in uniformed services, such as the Singapore Armed Forces, Singapore Police Force or Singapore Prison Service.

Most schools requested for these officers to be deployed for at least one year on a full-time basis during the school terms, with the option to extend for another year.

This move is supported by funding from the MOE, following recommendations from its review of bullying in schools announced in April 2026.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, an MOE spokeswoman said schools can decide the qualifications and skill required of these officers, based on their needs.

They may hire youth workers, pastoral care officers or parent liaison officers to support teachers in managing and engaging students

“This allows teachers to devote greater attention to more complex cases, students requiring more intensive support, and broader student development initiatives,” she said.

At least 20 schools had sought such external officers to start work in the second half of 2026, according to checks by ST on the government procurement portal GeBIZ.

They include St Andrew’s School (Secondary), Presbyterian High School, Bartley Secondary School, Sembawang Primary School and Yuhua Secondary School.

Beyond deploying more manpower, MOE is introducing new tools to help schools manage bullying and other hurtful behaviour.

By 2027, schools will have online reporting tools that provide students with another channel to seek help and report concerns.

MOE is also working with some schools to develop an enhanced offence management system that can better record incidents, track different types of hurtful behaviour and support targeted interventions .

The system will be gradually rolled out to all schools by 2028 .

At St Andrew’s School (Secondary), the discipline support officers do more than manage student misconduct.

Prinya Lovajana, the school’s head of discipline, said they are expected to build positive relationships with students and exercise judgment in managing challenging situations.

“Importantly, we want officers who understand that student discipline is not simply about enforcing rules, but also about guiding our boys to take responsibility for their actions, learn from their mistakes and make better choices,” he said.

At St Andrew’s, the officers can help with day-to-day matters such as student misconduct, peer conflicts and having meaningful conversations with students, said Lovajana. This additional layer of support lets teachers focus on core responsibilities.

“Our boys are at a developmental stage where they are learning to manage their emotions, navigate peer relationships and make responsible decisions. It is therefore important that we provide timely guidance and intervention when issues arise,” he said.

Except for St Andrew’s, none of the other schools responded to ST’s queries about hiring external manpower to support school discipline.

POLWEL Co-operative Society, a manpower solutions service, currently provides discipline support officers to more than 15 primary and secondary schools.

All its officers have backgrounds in the uniformed services, with most having previously served in the Singapore Police Force.

On how former law enforcement personnel adapt to a school setting focused on student well-being, POLWEL said its pool of retiring and retired officers undergo training before deployment .

Their skills are also matched to the needs of individual schools.

Said a POLWEL spokesperson: “This transition and matching process helps these officers adapt and apply their experience and skills to a different operating environment and continue contributing meaningfully to the community.”

MOE said it will review and adjust its support to schools as their needs evolve, so they have the resources to provide safe and supportive learning environments.

Elisha Tushara is a correspondent at The Straits Times, specialising in Singapore’s education landscape.

Education and schools

Ministry of Education

学校可以根据自身需要，决定这些纪律支持人员所需的资格和技能。

发布于2026年11月1日下午12:00

更新于2026年11月1日中午12:00

新加坡至少有 20 所学校正在聘请外部纪律支持人员，以减轻教师的工作量并处理冲突。

教育部在 2026 年 4 月进行校园欺凌审查后，为这项举措提供资金，并将在 2027 年前增加在线举报工具，并在 2028 年前建立更强大的违规行为管理系统。

学校希望聘用有制服服务经验的教职员工。圣安德鲁斯学校表示，这些教职员工必须能够引导学生，建立信任，并帮助学生从错误中吸取教训。

新加坡——为了减轻教师的工作负担，新加坡的学校正在聘请外部人员来协助管理学生纪律。

这些来自教育部以外的官员被部署到多所小学和中学，负责调查事实、解决冲突、撰写报告以及与家长沟通等任务。

大多数职位被描述为纪律支持官员，而其他职位则有纪律助理或纪律和调查助理等头衔。

一些学校也表示更倾向于有制服部门工作经验的申请人，例如新加坡武装部队、新加坡警察部队或新加坡监狱服务队。

大多数学校要求这些警官在学期期间至少全职部署一年，并可以选择再延长一年。

这项举措得到了教育部资金的支持，是根据教育部于 2026 年 4 月公布的校园欺凌问题审查建议而采取的。

针对《海峡时报》的询问，教育部发言人表示，学校可以根据自身需要决定这些官员所需的资格和技能。

他们可能会聘请青年工作者、教牧关怀人员或家长联络员来协助教师管理和引导学生。

“这使得教师能够将更多精力投入到更复杂的案例、需要更密集支持的学生以及更广泛的学生发展计划中，”她说。

据《海峡时报》在政府采购门户网站 GeBIZ 上的调查显示，至少有 20 所学校希望聘请此类外部官员于 2026 年下半年开始工作。

其中包括圣安德鲁中学、长老会中学、巴特利中学、三巴旺小学和裕华中学。

除了投入更多人力外，教育部还引入了新的工具，以帮助学校应对欺凌和其他伤害性行为。

到 2027 年，学校将拥有在线举报工具，为学生提供另一个寻求帮助和报告问题的渠道。

教育部也正与一些学校合作，开发更完善的违规行为管理系统，以便更好地记录事件、追踪不同类型的伤害行为并支持有针对性的干预措施。

该系统将于2028年前逐步推广到所有学校。

在圣安德鲁中学，纪律支持人员的工作不仅仅是管理学生的违纪行为。

学校纪律主管普里尼亚·洛瓦贾纳表示，他们应该与学生建立积极的关系，并在处理棘手情况时运用判断力。

他说：“重要的是，我们希望警官们明白，学生纪律不仅仅是执行规则，还要引导我们的学生为自己的行为负责，从错误中吸取教训，并做出更好的选择。”

洛瓦亚纳表示，在圣安德鲁斯学校，校警可以协助处理日常事务，例如学生不当行为、同伴冲突以及与学生进行有意义的对话。这种额外的支持使教师能够专注于核心职责。

他说：“我们的男孩正处于学习如何管理情绪、处理同伴关系和做出负责任的决定的成长阶段。因此，当问题出现时，及时提供指导和干预至关重要。”

除了圣安德鲁学校之外，其他学校均未回应《海峡时报》关于聘请外部人员协助学校纪律的询问。

POLWEL 合作社是一家人力资源解决方案服务公司，目前为 15 所以上的小学和中学提供纪律支持人员。

该机构所有官员均有制服部门背景，其中大多数曾任职于新加坡警察部队。

关于前执法人员如何适应以学生福祉为中心的学校环境，POLWEL 表示，其退休和即将退休的警官在部署前会接受培训。

他们的技能也与各个学校的需求相匹配。

POLWEL 的一位发言人表示：“这一过渡和匹配过程有助于这些警官适应不同的工作环境，并将他们的经验和技能运用到新的工作环境中，继续为社区做出有意义的贡献。”

教育部表示，将根据学校需求的变化，审查并调整对学校的支持，以便学校拥有足够的资源来提供安全且支持性的学习环境。

Elisha Tushara 是《海峡时报》的记者，专门报道新加坡的教育领域。

教育和学校

教育部