22 March 2019

This year’s Straits Times Education Forum, which is supported by the Singapore Management University, will discuss the motion “Entrepreneurs today do more harm than good”.

Arguing for the good that entrepreneurs do will be Singapore Management University’s provost-designate, Professor Timothy Clark, and SMU associate professor of strategic management Reddi Kotha.

SMU president Lily Kong has said that the university wants to encourage dialogues about Singapore and its community.

This year’s Straits Times Education Forum will also include two junior college students and alumni from Ngee Ann Polytechnic and SMU.

The debate will be held at the SMU School of Law Building in Armenian Street. The debate will be moderated by Straits Times Opinion editor Chua Mui Hoong.

20 March 2019

School Principal Ng Yeow Ling has said that some parents still need to be persuaded that their children do not need to learn each and every subject at the highest possible academic level.

Mr Ng, who has been an MOE educator for 26 years, said that some parents’ mindsets are still stuck in the past in spite of numerous changes to our education system.

“To be very realistic, there are some parents who may take a while to come on board (with such changes), based on their background and past experiences,” he added.

MOE had announced changes to the streaming system earlier this month, during the debate on the Education Ministry’s budget. However, Integrated Programme schools will be largely untouched by the move.

Parents will feel compelled to have their students take every subject at the G3 band, the highest subject band.

But with initiatives like SkillsFuture, it is hoped in time that parents will come to view learning as not just for accreditation or qualifications, but for the mastery of learning and working for life.

19 March 2019

From 2015 to 2017, of the graduates from the six local universities, about 1 per cent had come from the Normal (Technical) route and 5 per cent from the Normal (Academic) stream.

Of those who graduate yearly from Singapore’s five polytechnics, 5 per cent are from the N(T) stream, and 35 per cent from the N(A) stream.

When subject-based banding is implemented, more students can be expected to have access to higher education opportunities than would otherwise be the case.

Ms Denise Phua, MP for Jalan Besar GRC, who for years has argued against streaming, says that while in the past, a student could have been limited in his choice of subjects due to the stream he was placed in, there is now more flexibility to take subjects based on his strengths.

Ms Phua says that there will be “knee-jerk reactions” from some parents who define success as doing well academically, or want to have their children mix only with others of the same socio-economic status or academic ability. But she notes that it is significant that for now, MOE has decided to replace streaming with full subject-based banding.

17 March 2019

Pathlight School students will have the opportunity to learn how to code as part of a national drive to teach computing.

Swift Accelerator, a coding programme developed by Apple-certified trainers, was launched recently. Students attending the programme will be those who have shown aptitude and interest in coding.

Education Minister Ong Ye Kung has said that digital literacy will be a critical third form of literacy in the future.

Mr Ong also said that there was a need to demystify digital technology and make learning it accessible to anyone.

Google has also hosted an online cyber safety workshop and conducted classes on how to use Google’s Docs, Slides and Sheets.

16 March 2019

The Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) will be headed by a new chief executive, Mr Yue Lip Sin, from April 1.

Mr Yue, who is currently deputy chief executive of SEAB, will be taking over from Miss Tan Lay Choo, who announced her retirement last December.

Miss Tan has held several key positions in MOE in her 37 years of service, and has taught in several schools, including Raffles Institution.

Mr Yue has held various key positions in MOE and has served as the ministry’s director of mother tongue languages and principal of Chung Cheng High School. He joined SEAB in December 2011 as the director of assessment and research, and was appointed director of assessment planning and development in April 2014.

15 March 2019

While streaming has been replaced by subject-based banding, the changes do not affect Integrated Programme (IP) schools, which allow students to skip the GCE O levels and go straight to their GCE A levels or International Baccalaureate.

National University of Singapore economics lecturer Kelvin Seah said social mixing in school is important, but some parents might prefer that their children interact with peers of similar ability.

National Institute of Education lecturer Jason Tan also said parents hope that the peer influence in IP schools will benefit their children.

The Education Ministry had said that IP schools will continue to have the ability to customise their curriculum to fit their students’ needs, and that subject-based banding will not be implemented in these schools.

In return, IP schools have to make a special effort to recruit students from all backgrounds wisely, using their Direct School Admissions. They must also ensure that students have sufficient inter-school mixing opportunities, such as combining school co-curricular activities, Outward Bound Singapore camps or Values in Action projects.