Should Chinese students in Singapore be allowed to study their dialects in school? For example Indian students in Singapore can choose between studying Hindi, Urdu, Gujurati or Tamil.

I know many friends who are taking Chinese dialect classes at private establishments out of interest and a desire to reconnect with their heritage and roots. This could be extended to children -- it's not an academic subject per se but it can be taught as a third language or as part of a learning activity. In my opinion, it will be tough to offer dialect options in mainstream schools to everyone because it will be a logistical nightmare. A really good plan and syllabus will be needed to keep things standardized. I also think that offering different dialect options to Indian students have worked because they are a relatively smaller group compared to Chinese students. Imagine when it's time for students to break for mother tongue classes with all the different dialect groups (chinese, Indian, malay) -- all the different classrooms, different teachers etc etc. It will be a logistical nightmare