Singapore school principals and the law: emerging trends from the international scene

Abstract

It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that Singapore teachers and principals could face the risk of being named as defendants in the judicial process. While educators have till now enjoyed the protection of a society that is not as litigious as other jurisdictions, the signs are that things are changing. Developments on the international scene suggest that serious issues are creeping onto the agenda. For example, there is a proliferation of negligence cases in Australia concerning students' physical safety. Yet, it was only a short time ago that Australia was like Singapore, with very little litigation and matters being settled before they reached the courts. In this paper, the authors identify some of the legal responsibility issues we are likely to face in Singapore, and suggest that principals and teachers need to develop legal literacy in order to manage the risks in modern day teaching and school leadership. As principals have found in other countries, hoping central authorities will offer total protection is no longer realistic.