Almost all children in Singapore complete 1 year of preschool before entering primary school. However, preschool education (PSE) is not compulsory and is provided primarily by the private sector. Taking the national agenda for reforming PSE at the start of the twenty-first century as the point of departure, this paper describes and discusses the policies and strategies that have been introduced and implemented for preschool quality enhancement in the past 15 years. Three major waves of preschool policy reviews were undertaken in 2000, 2008, and 2012 attesting to the seriousness the government attaches to improving PSE for encouraging a strong start for every child. The key recommendations of these reviews were related to uplifting teacher, center, and program quality, and enhancing the affordability and accessibility of PSE. Opportunities and challenges associated with implementing recommendations for quality enhancement are discussed and suggestions to further enhance PSE in Singapore are explored.

中文翻译：

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提高新加坡幼儿园教育的质量：21世纪的政策和策略

在新加坡，几乎所有儿童都必须完成1年的学前教育，然后才能上小学。但是，学前教育不是强制性的，主要由私营部门提供。以二十一世纪初的国家PSE改革议程为出发点，本文描述和讨论了过去15年中为提高学前教育质量而引入和实施的政策和策略。2000年，2008年和2012年进行了三波主要的学前政策审查，证明了政府重视改善PSE的重要性，以鼓励每个孩子有一个好的开始。这些审查的主要建议与提升教师，中心和计划的质量，以及提高PSE的可负担性和可及性有关。