11 July 2020
Home-based learning (HBL) could become part and parcel of the lives of Singapore students.
There have been ideas floated around that schools could set aside several days every month for online learning.
Indeed in recent months, teachers, students and parents have come to terms quickly with the possibility that digital technology could replicate much of the school experience at home.
Teachers delivered online lessons, parents created learning spaces at home, and students adjusted to the new learning environment.
But to make HBL work, all students must possess the means of access to digital technology. While this access exists for most of them, some from less fortunate backgrounds do not enjoy it.
The authorities also recognise that online learning cannot totally replace the school environment. Schools are socialising institutions which bring together students from every conceivable background and put them through commonly structured regimes of study, play and social interaction.
Still, there is a place for online learning, and the broader concept of home schooling.
Most families of home schooled students adopt a structured regime of study, and there are different homeschool programmes that cater to different needs.
The Ministry of Education’s Compulsory Education Board screens all families who register a desire to homeschool their children, and closely monitors primary school-age children to ensure adherence to guidelines, educational progress and that national education is taught to a homeschooled child.
There is also no lack of social interaction in homeschooling as well. Some programmes such as Classical Education gather small groups on a weekly basis, while parents of other programmes gather on an ad hoc basis.