The AEMM brings together Education Ministers from the 21 APEC member economies, to share perspectives on education and discuss programmes for educational collaborations. The 4th AEMM was held in Lima, Peru, in 2008.
The 5th AEMM will focus its discussions on the main theme “Future Challenges and Educational Responses: Fostering Global, Innovative and Cooperative Education”. There are also sub-themes on Mathematics; Science, Language and Culture education; technical and vocational education; higher education; Information Communications Technology in education; and teacher quality.
]]>The Ministry of Education (MOE) will be upgrading the infrastructure of another 71 primary schools from November 2013 to enable them to provide a wider range of programmes that improve the learning and development of our children. This is in line with the Primary Education Review and Implementation (PERI) Committee’s recommendations to enhance the quality of primary education by upgrading the infrastructure of primary schools to support the delivery of holistic education.
Estimated to cost about $650 million, the schools can look forward to new facilities that will support educational approaches which encourage more interaction and self-discovery, and facilitate experiential and hands-on learning. The new facilities also better support more differentiated learning, to meet the learning needs of different groups of students. These include redesigned classrooms, subject based banding rooms and learning support rooms.
With a greater emphasis on developing life skills, promoting socio-emotional development and nurturing confidence through a range of non-academic programmes, schools will also be equipped with new facilities such as a band room, dance studio and performing arts studio. In addition, an Indoor Sports Hall (ISH) will be built for schools which do not already have one. Please see Annex A for details on the facilities.
The large majority of schools will continue to operate on their existing sites in parallel with the upgrading works. MOE will take the necessary safety measures during the upgrading process.
The list of schools to be upgraded is at Annex B.
MOE has been upgrading primary school infrastructure in phases starting from 2009. The earlier three phases entailed the building of 11 new primary schools and the upgrading of 78 existing schools.
]]>The Direct Admission Exercises provide schools, JCs, institutions and polytechnics with more flexibility to select students based on a wider range of talents and achievements, while holding to the key principles of transparency and meritocracy.
The DSA-Sec Exercise promotes holistic education by giving students the opportunity to demonstrate a more diverse range of achievements and talents in seeking admission to secondary schools.
This year, 91 schools will be participating in the 2012 DSA-Sec Exercise for admission to Secondary One in 2013. The participating schools are listed in Annex A.
Six new schools will offer discretionary places via the DSA-Sec Exercise for admissions from 2013 onwards. Another two schools, St Andrew’s Secondary School and Unity Secondary School, will offer a second niche. The schools’ niche programmes are as follows:
| School | Niche |
|---|---|
| Canberra Secondary School | Digital Media |
| Naval Base Secondary School | Visual Arts |
| New Town Secondary School | Uniformed Groups |
| Queenstown Secondary School | Uniformed Groups |
| St Andrew’s Secondary School | Military Band* |
| Teck Whye Secondary School | Hockey |
| Unity Secondary School | Uniformed Groups* |
| Woodgrove Secondary School | Environmental Education |
A list of the 50 niche programme schools is at Annex B. Information on the schools’ selection criteria and their application and selection processes can be found on the schools’ respective websites.
MOE will continue to invite applications from schools interested in establishing niche programmes in subsequent years. MOE will provide support to these schools to build up the necessary capabilities to offer these programmes, so that more schools will have their own distinguishing niches.
The DSA-Sec Exercise will be conducted in 3 stages. Details of the exercise are listed in Annex C.
Students who take up Confirmed Offers or Waiting List Offers by schools during the DSA-Sec Exercise are still required to take the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). Those who take up Confirmed Offers are guaranteed a place in the school that has extended them an offer, provided that their PSLE results meet the minimum requirement for a course [Express/ Normal (Academic)/ Normal (Technical)] offered by the school.
Similar to previous years, students who have been admitted to a school through the DSA-Sec Exercise will not be able to participate in the centralised Secondary One Posting Exercise.
Students who have been successfully allocated to a school via the DSA-Sec Exercise are expected to honour their commitment to their posted DSA-Sec schools and will thus not be allowed to transfer to another school after the release of the PSLE results.
The DSA-JC application period varies across the schools, starting from 16 May 2012. The DPA application period is from 5 July 2012 to 10 July 2012. Successful applicants will be offered places in a JC, institution or polytechnic prior to taking their GCE ‘O’ level examination or equivalent assessments, though they must still meet the ‘O’ level examination criteria for eventual admission to a JC, institution or polytechnic.
The DSA-JC Exercise provides students an opportunity to demonstrate a more diverse range of achievements and talents in seeking admission at the pre-university level. The institutions participating in the DSA-JC Exercise this year are listed in Annex D.
The DPA Exercise allows students who are interested in and have the aptitude for applied learning to seek prior admission to the polytechnics. The polytechnics participating in the DPA Exercise this year are listed in Annex E
Successful DPA applicants will be able to participate in the Polytechnic Preparatory Programme (PPP), conducted by the individual polytechnics from mid-January 2013 to March 2013. Under the PPP, students will engage in activities such as industry visits, student camps and leadership development activities. These activities aim to broaden the students’ learning experience and better orientate them to the polytechnic environment. Students may also register for polytechnic modules during the PPP. This would allow students to pursue advanced modules or cross-disciplinary modules during their polytechnic education.
For the DSA-JC Exercise, each JC or institution will admit students according to its own school-based admission criteria (which include both academic and/or non-academic criteria), taking into account the students’ personal qualities and the areas of focus (such as leadership, science, music and sports) that the JC or institution would like to emphasise. Students admitted via the DSA-JC Exercise will have to meet the admission criteria to a JC which can be found in MOE DSA-JC Exercise website.
For the DPA Exercise, polytechnics will take into account students’ abilities, talents and interests in the specific courses that they have applied for. For example, a student’s passion and talent in digital media could be considered when he/she applies through the DPA for a place in a Diploma in Digital Media Design. To ensure that students admitted through DPA are able to cope with the rigours of a polytechnic education, applicants will have to meet the prevailing polytechnic admission criteria, i.e.:
Similar to last year’s exercises, the percentage of students that JCs and polytechnics can admit via direct admission is as follows:
Similar to previous years, if an applicant accepts an offer through DSA-JC or DPA, and is successfully posted to the institution, he will not be able to take part in the Joint Admissions Exercise (JAE) or Joint Polytechnic Special Admissions Exercise (JPSAE) subsequently.
Students who have been successfully allocated a place to a JC or a polytechnic course via the DSA-JC Exercise or DPA Exercise respectively are expected to honour their commitment to the schools and polytechnic courses that they have been posted to, and thus will not be allowed to transfer to another JC or course after the release of the GCE ‘O’ Level examination results. This act of honouring commitments is an important value which we hope to inculcate in all our students.
Details of the DSA-JC and DPA Exercises can be found in Annex F.
Students interested in participating in the DSA-Sec, DSA-JC or DPA Exercises should approach any of the participating institutions or visit their websites for more details regarding the selection exercises. They are advised to do so before the start of the respective exercises.
Alternatively, students can call MOE Customer Service Centre at 6872 2220 or refer to the following MOE websites for more information:
The Straits Times-Ministry of Education National Current Affairs Quiz is open to all Pre-U 1 and Year 5 students of 23 schools, including all junior colleges, Millennia Institute, ACS (Independent), School of the Arts, and NUS High School of Mathematics and Science.
The Quiz will kick off with a current affairs news outreach programme which comprises a weekly Primer published in the Friday edition of The Straits Times. These Friday Primers will be written by The Straits Times’ journalists covering the beats. They will cover a wide range of topics of interest and relevance to students including education, housing, the effects of globalisation, and the value of sportsmanship. The writer will explain why the issue is being covered, why it is of national interest, elaborate on the policy, and provide different perspectives on the subject. The Primer will also set the issue or policy in context and compare it with how other countries address it.
The articles will be published in a 12-week period leading up to the Quiz, from April to August excluding the school holidays in June and the National Day school holiday. The first primer will be published this Friday, April 27.
Students in Pre-U 1 and Year 5 will be provided a copy of The Straits Times newspaper every Friday for discussion of the topics during General Paper (GP) lessons. The Ministry of Education (MOE) will develop accompanying resources for teachers to use in their facilitation of classroom discussions. There will also be other outreach and fringe activities, including six talks by The Straits Times journalists at selected participating schools.
The Quiz is organised by The Straits Times in partnership with the Ministry of Education, and is the latest in several initiatives by The Straits Times to reach out to young Singaporeans as part of its effort to promote the newspaper reading habit and motivate them to use the newspaper as a resource tool to improve their current affairs knowledge on current local and global events.The questions will be based on content from The Straits Times over the past year.
Said Mr Warren Fernandez, Editor of The Straits Times:
“Our world seems to be moving faster, with major developments that impact all our lives. Our young need to understand how these will affect them, and newspapers can help them make sense of these developments. The Big Quiz is good way to help them stay abreast of the rapid changes taking place around them.”
Mrs Chua Yen Ching, Director of the Curriculum Planning and Development Division in MOE, added:
“The news outreach programme enables students to see that issues discussed in the GP classroom could achieve both academic objectives and real world significance. Students will gain more knowledge and understanding of current affairs to inform their views when discussing key issues in GP. As students read the news more widely, they become increasingly aware of their intricacy and their diverse contexts, and develop civic literacy and global awareness.”
The Singapore Press Holdings Foundation is the presenting sponsor of the quiz contest.
The Quiz will start with preliminary rounds on July 25, and will culminate in the finals on August 24, which will also include audience participation for student supporters.
The top winning team will get a challenge trophy and $5,000 cash prize, the second prize winner will take home $3,000 cash prize and the third prize winner, $1,000 cash prize. The fourth place will receive $500. Education Minister Heng Swee Keat will present the prizes to the winners at the finals.
]]>The delegation will be in the US with Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who is the Chairman of the Ministry of Education’s International Academic Advisory Panel. The delegation comprises Minister of State for Defence and Education, Mr Lawrence Wong, who is the Chairman of CUEP, as well as members of CUEP and ministry officials.
Mr Tharman and Mr Wong will visit several tertiary education institutions, including the Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Boston, as well as The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York. Mr Wong will also visit Drexel University and Temple University in Philadelphia. In addition, the delegation will meet with academics and thought leaders in the higher education sector.
]]>Of these 17 schools, two primary schools and two secondary schools are recognised for their second niche area of excellence. This brings the total number of schools with areas of excellence to 1901 and the range of programmes offered to 87. The niche domains span across sports, uniformed groups, aesthetics, information and communications technology (ICT), character education, and environment education.
The Programme for School-Based excellence and Niche Programmes were introduced in 2005 to help schools to develop their strengths and niche areas. This is to encourage the schools to offer a diverse range of programmes to provide students with more opportunities to grow in different areas of excellence, and enrich their educational experience. Through their niche programmes, schools also develop in their students various skills such as teamwork, communication and creativity.
Taking into account the schools that have been awarded the Programme for School-Based Excellence and Niche Programme status this year, there are now 83 primary schools with the Programme for School-Based Excellence, and 50 secondary schools that are Niche Programme schools2.
These schools receive additional funding support to further raise the quality and reach of their school-based programmes in the different niche areas. An initial developmental grant of up to $150,000 over three years will be provided to the schools to build up one to two niches. A recurrent grant of up to $50,000 per niche per year will also be given for schools to sustain and maintain their niches after the first three years.
The Programme for School-Based Excellence scheme enables the schools to develop different areas of excellence and provide more opportunities for our students. Students with particular strengths or interests will therefore be able to make more informed decisions about their choice of schools together with their parents. The school will also benefit from developing a strong identity and school culture so that students can build a sense of camaraderie and affinity with the school.
Applications are evaluated based on the strength of the niche, sustainability, the educational value of the programme, the reach of the programme in the school, and the involvement of stakeholders in the programme.
The nine primary schools that have been awarded the Programme for School-Based Excellence status in 2012 are:
| School | Niche |
|---|---|
| Anglo-Chinese School (Junior)* | Creative Thinkers |
| Catholic High School (Primary) | Volleyball |
| Changkat Primary School | Basketball |
| Edgefield Primary School | Dancesport |
| Fengshan Primary School | Netball |
| Hong Wen School* | Wushu |
| Peiying Primary School | Uniformed Groups |
| St. Anthony’s Primary School | Visual Arts |
| Yangzheng Primary School | Uniformed Groups |
The Niche Programme supports mainstream secondary schools with good development programmes in their niches. These schools can admit up to 5% of their Secondary One intake on a discretionary basis through the Direct School Admissions exercise. This enables a more diverse range of student achievement and talents to be recognised.
Applications are evaluated based on the strength of the niche, sustainability, the educational value and the reach of the programme. The eight secondary schools that have been awarded the Niche Programme status in 2012 are:
| School | Niche |
|---|---|
| Canberra Secondary School | Digital Media |
| Naval Base Secondary School | Visual Arts |
| New Town Secondary School | Uniformed Groups |
| Queenstown Secondary School | Uniformed Groups |
| St. Andrew’s Secondary School* | Band |
| Teck Whye Secondary School | Hockey |
| Unity Secondary School* | Uniformed Groups |
| Woodgrove Secondary School | Environmental Education |
At the National Day Rally 2010, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the establishment of two specialised schools as an additional option for students eligible for the Normal (Technical) [N(T)] course. The schools will build on the successes of the N(T) course enhancements made to date, and the lessons drawn from NorthLight School and Assumption Pathway School, to provide a customised learning environment and a whole-school approach to developing their students.
Crest Secondary School will have a Secondary 1 intake of up to 200 students. In the subsequent years, there will also be places set aside for mainstream schools students who wish to transfer mid-stream to Crest Secondary School.
A Board of Directors has been appointed to oversee and guide the development of Crest Secondary School. The Board members will serve a three-year term and will bring to the school their collective wealth of experience and expertise from the people, private and public sectors. This will help in facilitating stronger industry and community partnerships with the school.
The Board comprises the following members:
Crest Secondary School will be located at Jurong East Street 24. The site is currently being refurbished to meet the needs of the enhanced SSNT curriculum and will be ready in the 4th quarter of 2012. The second SSNT will be located at Woodlands Drive 64 and will admit its first batch of students in January 2014.
The term “Crest” underlines the school’s aim of helping its students develop and rise to their potential in a persistent and sustained way—consistently building on their successes over time, as well as helping its students acquire the values and social-emotional competencies needed to succeed in post-secondary education, and eventually in employment and in life.
Crest Secondary School will offer N(T) English and Mathematics as part of a four-year N(T) secondary school education, similar to other secondary schools. Greater focus will be given to building strong foundations in literacy and numeracy through a variety of ways in a whole-school approach.
The school will also focus on Citizenship and Character Education through programmes in Personal and Social Learning, Physical Education and Aesthetics as well as Co-curricular Activities to enhance the holistic development of the students. These programmes will address their socio-emotional needs, personal development and enhance the learning of life skills.
Crest Secondary School will also have the flexibility of customising its teaching approach to suit the learning styles of its students. The pedagogy adopted will emphasise skills-based activities and practical learning in a real-world context or workplace setting.
A tie-up with ITE will allow students to take ITE taster modules at lower secondary, before specialising in an ITE Skills Certification (ISC) at upper secondary in one of four areas—Facility Services, Mechanical Servicing, Retail Services or Hospitality Services. These ISC courses are anchored on prospective NITEC courses or industries that students can join after graduation. Crest Secondary School will work in close partnership with ITE and industry partners to provide opportunities for attachments and internships for its upper secondary students.
Like other students pursuing an N(T) course in secondary schools, Crest School students will graduate with GCE N(T)-level qualifications1. In addition, they will also graduate with ISC qualifications and receive a School Graduation Certificate (SGC) as a holistic record of their achievements2. With their GCE N(T)-level and ISC qualifications, graduates of Crest Secondary School can progress to further education at ITE, employment or apprenticeship at trade-based institutes.
Mr Frederick Yeo, the former principal of Bowen Secondary School, has been appointed as the principal of Crest Secondary School. He is an experienced principal who has worked with N(T) students, guided by the belief that every child can be nurtured and developed to his or her fullest potential. He has also been directly involved in the setting up of Crest Secondary School.
Crest Secondary School has started recruiting teachers who express a strong interest in working with N(T) students. As part of their professional development, these teachers will attend in-service training courses to deliver the new customised programmes, curriculum, and pedagogy, and there will be continual training in areas like classroom management, counselling, curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment. The school will also supplement its staff with seconded ITE lecturers with relevant industry experience to deliver the customised curriculum and pastoral support to its students.
In order to facilitate its skills-based pedagogy and programmes, Crest Secondary School will have a higher teacher-to-student ratio, based on class sizes of about 20.
eduLab@AST seeks to:
eduLab@AST will showcase experiments trialed in schools. It will also partner schools designated as ICT Centres of Excellence to spread mature innovations and successful practices, by leveraging existing structures and teacher networks that have been established. New technologies will also be channelled to these schools to test-bed new or emerging solutions. In turn, the experiences of these schools will be harvested and shared with other schools through eduLab@AST. Through this, eduLab@AST hopes to build a community where teacher-researchers interact with one another, and tap on research expertise from the National Institute of Education (NIE) and industry partners.
Since the eduLab programme was initiated in 2010, the programme has seen three ideas involving 20 schools (Please see details at Annex A.). Educators who visit eduLab@AST can learn more of how schools have infused innovative ICT practices into lessons and classroom activities. At the Project Highlights Section, school innovations as well as possibilities in the industry would be highlighted to schools for experimentation. Through these programmes, visitors will gain insights into ICT initiatives that educators have developed to scaffold students’ learning process. The Idea Workbench Section & Idea Pollination Section further allows educators to engage in collaborative discussion on how such ICT practices and solutions can be customised and adopted to best fit their school’s needs (Please see Annex B).
eduLab@AST is managed by the Ministry of Education (MOE) with support from the NIE, the Academy of Singapore Teachers, the Info-communications Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and NCS Pte Ltd. For more information on the eduLab programme, please visit eduLab@AST’s website.
The International Conference on Teaching and Learning with Technology (iCTLT) 2012 is jointly organised by the MOE, the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), and the Academy of Principals, Singapore (APS). A total of 1,400 local and overseas delegates are attending the conference. They include school leaders, educators, academics, researchers, classroom practitioners and industry leaders. This is a platform for the delegates to connect and collaborate with educators from various countries and regions on matters of common interest in the use of ICT to create an engaging and effective education for the 21st century students.
Delegates have the opportunity to engage in discussions on recent developments of educational technology in terms of research, pedagogy and technological solutions, to transform school curriculum implementation and teaching practices. There are three keynote addresses, 21 spotlight sessions and about 100 papers at the concurrent sessions. iCTLT 2012 is also featuring a School Leaders Track which allows policymakers and school principals to learn and discuss strategies for effective ICT implementation against the backdrop of the emerging trends of educational technologies.
Running concurrently with the conference is an exhibition featuring the latest technologies from industry partners that will offer possibilities to enhance teaching and learning. Pre-conference activities were also held on 27 and 28 March. The activities included learning trails to Chinatown, the Singapore River and Kampong Glam, and visits to the eduLab@AST, Classrooms of the Future and FutureSchools@Singapore. There were also eight interactive workshops with hands-on learning experiences for delegates to bring technology into the classroom more effectively.
For more information on iCTLT 2012, please visit the conference website.
]]>As recommended by the Primary Education Review and Implementation Committee, the new primary schools will have new design norms such as redesigned classrooms, dance and performing arts studios, as well as an outdoor jogging path. These facilities support the delivery of holistic education, and facilitate engaged learning in both academic and non-academic areas.
From 2012 onwards, the Ministry of Education (MOE) will implement measures to further differentiate between Singapore Citizens (SCs) and Permanent Residents (PRs) at the Primary One (P1) Registration Exercise.
Under the existing P1 Registration Framework, vacancies are allocated by ballot if the number of applications exceeds the vacancies at a school during that particular registration phase, based on home-school distance categories. Since the 2010 P1 Registration Exercise, each SC child has been given two ballot slips, while each PR child has been given one, when balloting occurs. Please refer to Annex B (14.3kb .pdf) for more information on the existing framework.
To further differentiate between SCs and PRs, from the 2012 P1 Registration Exercise onwards, when balloting is necessary in a specific phase, SCs will be given absolute priority over PRs. SCs and PRs will continue to be eligible for the same phases, and all applicants will be admitted if the total number of applicants in any phase does not exceed the number of vacancies. However, if the number of applications exceeds the number of vacancies in a specific phase, SCs will be admitted first ahead of PRs, before home-school distance is considered. The following two examples illustrate the new rule.
Example 1: School A has 50 vacancies in a specific phase and 61 children applying, based on the table below.
| Home-School Distance | SC | PR |
|---|---|---|
| < 1km | 38 | 3 |
| Between 1km and 2km | 10 | 1 |
| > 2km | 8 | 1 |
| Total | 56 | 5 |
As the total number of SC applications exceeds the number of vacancies, not all SC applicants will be admitted. The vacancies will be allocated to the SC children based on home-school distance in this order of priority – home-school distance is (1) within 1km, (2) between 1km and 2km and (3) outside 2km. In the above example, the 38 SC children living within 1km from the school will first be admitted, followed by the 10 SC children living between 1km and 2km from the school. After the 48 vacancies are taken up, the remaining two vacancies will be balloted among the eight SC children living outside 2km from the school.
Example 2: School B has 50 vacancies in a specific phase and 54 children applying, based on the table below.
| Home-School Distance | SC | PR |
|---|---|---|
| < 1km | 29 | 4 |
| Between 1km and 2km | 15 | 2 |
| > 2km | 3 | 1 |
| Total | 47 | 7 |
As the total number of SC applications is less than the number of vacancies in this phase, all the 47 SC children will be admitted first and PRs can still be admitted thereafter. The remaining three vacancies will be allocated to the PR children based on home-school distance in the same order of priority – home-school distance is (1) within 1km, (2) between 1km and 2km and (3) outside 2km. The four PR children living within 1km from the school will ballot for the remaining three vacancies.
By giving SCs priority before PRs only when balloting is required, MOE will retain the underlying principles of the P1 Registration Framework, which reflect a careful balance of considerations, and provide for diversity in our schools, while according SCs a further privilege.
International Students (IS) will continue to be eligible to register after SCs and PRs are placed, at Phase 3 of the P1 Registration Exercise.
Over the years, our schools have mounted a range of programmes to meet the diverse needs of our students. To help parents to know the teachers and programmes of the primary schools in their vicinity better, schools will hold open houses and talks before the Primary One registration. That way, parents can be better informed of the range of schools that can meet their children’s needs. We hope parents will then continue to work with the school that their child is enrolled in to achieve the desired learning outcomes.
]]>The theme ‘a|edge’, an acronym for ‘Art Educators’ Developmental & Generative Explorations’, was coined with a message that art educators are constantly honing their own skills and are prepared to explore the cutting edge of art practice and pedagogical research. The exhibition aims to encourage teachers to sustain their art practice so as to enhance the professional excellence of art teachers. It focuses on the arts educators who seek to balance their artistic and creative pursuits as well as being progressive and skilled teachers and leaders in art education.
The invited curator is Dr Susie Lingham, Assistant Professor, from the Visual Performing Arts Academic Group, National Institute of Education. The list of the teachers’ artworks is at Annex A, with two examples at Annex B.
There will be fringe activities on 24 March and 31 March (Saturdays) between 11am to 4pm. Activities include artist-talks and hands-on activities conducted by exhibiting artists, as listed at Annex C.
]]>At the Ministry of Education’s (MOE) ExCEL Fest 2012, pick up tips from senior educators and experts on how parents can play an active role in nurturing your children, discover the diverse learning experiences offered in schools to help our students grow holistically and learn how the community works together with schools to help our children learn better. Visitors to this year’s MOE ExCEL Fest 2012 can also share their memorable stories of school life at the “I Remember My School Days” segment. Artifacts from the past ranging from textbooks, teaching aids, uniforms, and photographs will be on display.
MOE ExCEL Fest is an annual event that celebrates and shares exciting and innovative teaching and classroom practices in schools. More than 70 exhibition booths put up by schools on various initiatives to nurture the whole child and cater to needs of different students.
There will also be more than 60 sharing sessions by teachers and 20 seminar talks by senior educators and invited speakers on various educational topics ranging from preparing your child for Primary and Secondary Education, teaching approaches that you can use to support your child in learning, guiding your child on safe and positive internet use, to the importance of values and character education.
Mr Ong Swee Teck, Chairperson, ExCEL Fest 2012 Organising Committee, said, “This year, we have lined up a wide range of sharing sessions and seminars to cater to different interests of educators and parents. Visitors can also visit the exhibition booths and pick up ideas from schools on making learning fun through innovative ways. It is definitely an event for everyone!”.
MOE ExCEL Fest 2012 will be held on 30 and 31 March at Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre, from 10am to 6pm. The first day of the event is for MOE staff while the second day is open to parents and members of the public. A list of featured exhibits and seminars is appended as Annexes A and B respectively. Prior registration is required for sharing sessions by schools and seminar talks. Limited seats are available. Admission is free. More information on MOE ExCEL Fest 2012 is available on the ExCEL Fest website.
]]>Co-organised by the Ministry of Education and Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s School of Film and Media Studies, the SDMA, in its 13th edition of the annual competition, affirms the creative efforts of students from 206 schools. SDMA 2012 attracted a total of 470 student entries and 12 teacher entries. A total of 621 awards for the Students’ Competition and five2 awards for the Teachers’ Competition (one Gold award, one Silver award and three Merit Awards) were given out at the award presentation ceremony. Winning teams received prizes in the form of trophies, product vouchers and certificates.
Students were invited to express their creativity through different genres such as documentary, drama and advertisement. They could choose from five themes: Conservation, My Home, People Who Inspire Me, Graciousness on Public Transport, and Hear Me Out. The last was an innovative theme which allowed students to share their views on any topic they feel passionate about in a short clip. The list of winners is in Annex A.
Teachers submitted entries for the purpose of teaching and learning in the form of instructional clips or drama. The entries were judged on their creativity, originality, educational value, adherence to given themes (where applicable) and technical quality. The list of winners is in Annex B.
The winning entries can be viewed on the SDMA website from 30 March 2012.
MOE has launched the Quality Assurance (QA) Consultancy scheme in partnership with the Association of Early Childhood Educators Singapore (AECES). The consultancy scheme will provide greater support to kindergartens in their journey to achieve certification under the Singapore Pre-school Accreditation Framework (SPARK). Kindergartens1 can apply for guidance from experienced early childhood practitioners and educators to help them review and enhance their centre structures, processes and teaching in preparation for SPARK assessment. To encourage more kindergartens to sign up for the consultancy, MOE will subsidise up to 80 percent of the QA consultancy charges. A similar consultancy scheme is also offered by MCYS to operators of child care centres.
Depending on the needs of the kindergarten, each kindergarten can receive up to five quality assessment consultation sessions, each lasting four hours, over a maximum period of six months. The QA consultant will work with the kindergarten to review and improve its programmes, structures and processes in preparation for SPARK assessment.
SPARK was launched in November 2010 to encourage pre-schools to strive for excellence in the holistic development of young children. Using the Quality Rating Scale (QRS) within SPARK, pre-schools adopt a structured approach to examine the effectiveness of their programmes and identify their strengths and areas for improvement. Pre-schools can also apply for quality assessment in the seven areas of Leadership, Planning and Administration, Staff Management, Resources, Curriculum, Pedagogy and Health, Hygiene and Safety. Although participation in quality assessment is voluntary, pre-schools are strongly encouraged to participate as a good rating is an endorsement of the quality of the pre-school.
As of 2011, 69 pre-schools have attained SPARK certification and another 53 have applied to be certified in the first half of this year.
The quality of pre-school educators is critical to the quality of pre-school education. Since 2008, MOE and MCYS has invested about $8.1 million to expand the professional development and upgrading pathways for pre-school educators to pursue higher qualifications in early childhood education and in specialised areas. MOE and MCYS also provide subsidies for educators to attend courses and conferences for professional development.
To equip educators with the requisite knowledge and skills to develop children holistically, MOE and MCYS will offer more scholarships, teaching awards and bursaries over the next two years. MOE will offer 450 awards and scholarship for educators in kindergartens. These include 140 new teaching awards and scholarships in the following two areas:
Recognising the professionalism of pre-school teaching, MOE is drafting a guide on professional pathways for kindergarten educators. This guide will provide a developmental map for kindergarten teachers to aspire towards different career pathways through differentiated training opportunities. Based on their strengths, interests and aspirations, there could be varied career pathways in areas such as Teaching, Mentoring, Specialist or Leadership for pre-school teachers. A draft was distributed to kindergartens in November 2011 and MOE is currently seeking feedback from stakeholders in the kindergarten sector to continue to refine the career pathways to strengthen the professionalism of kindergarten teachers.
For instance, kindergarten teachers who are interested in music and movement can take up the certificate course in music and movement offered by Republic Polytechnic as foundation training. With more training in music and movement, teachers can then aspire to progress along the Specialist pathway and serve as specialist teachers for their kindergarten and peers. For the Mentoring pathway, experienced teachers can guide and mentor more junior teachers after they have attended training in mentoring. In attaining the competencies to take on different levels of responsibilities within each pathway, these teachers can look forward to a remuneration that is commensurate with their job scope and expertise.
Hence, the guide on possible career pathways will enhance awareness of the potential career prospects of kindergarten teachers, and allow kindergarten operators to use the guide as a reference to provide career advancement opportunities for their teachers. The pre-school sector will also benefit from increased teacher professionalism in terms of enhanced teacher quality and teacher retention.
To support the work of the Fund, there will be four sub-committees to oversee the areas of research, evaluation of proposals, investment of funds, and publicity and outreach. Please see Annex B for the list of Chairpersons of these sub-committees.
The setting up of the Lee Kuan Yew Fund for Bilingualism was announced on 28 November 2011 at the launch of Mr Lee’s book, “My Lifelong Challenge: Singapore’s Bilingual Journey”. Government will match the funds raised, 1 for 1, up to $50 million. Many Singaporeans from all walks of life have come forward in support of promoting bilingualism.
The Fund has received S$113 million in pledges (including government’s matching grant). The Board thanks all donors for their generous contributions and Mr Lee for raising funds for this cause. Please refer to Annex C for the list of major contributors. Details for those interested in donating to the cause are in Annex D.
Mr Heng said, “Since the Lee Kuan Yew Fund for Bilingualism was announced in November, the community has been very supportive of the objectives of the Fund. I am very heartened by the generous donations received. The Board and the various sub-committees will study how the funds can be used to achieve the greatest impact. I am confident that we can raise the quality of teaching and learning of mother tongue languages in pre-schools and help our children develop a love for bilingual learning. But beyond preschools, language is also nurtured through day-to-day communications with parents at home, and exposure to educational media programmes. We will thus leverage on the various programmes and initiatives currently organised by the various mother tongue language promotion committees and multiply the impact of these existing efforts”.
Bilingual education in English and the Mother Tongue Languages is a cornerstone of our education system. Learning two languages helps Singaporeans plug into a globalised world while nurturing links to our Asian heritage and the growing economic significance of Asia. The Fund will supplement efforts by the Ministry of Education in the teaching and learning of English and the Mother Tongue Languages, amidst changes in the home language environment.
]]>In Canada, Mr Heng will meet with leaders and educators from the provinces of Alberta and Ontario, to learn about their education policies, reforms, and latest developments.
At the invitation of the US Secretary of Education, Mr Arne Duncan, Mr Heng will attend the 2nd International Summit on the Teaching Profession on “Preparing Teachers and Developing School Leaders” in New York, US. While in New York, he will also visit educational institutions and meet with education leaders.
Mr Heng will be accompanied by senior officials and educators from the Ministry of Education, professors from the National Institute of Education and the President of the Singapore Teachers’ Union.
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