Singapore Maths Tuition - University and JC

Individual and small group maths tuition in Singapore - University and Junior College

Three important skills for all students of all levels

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From the Editorial Team
18th Jan 2023

In the Singaporean education system, there is a high emphasis on academic excellence. However, in the real world, there are more factors than mere academic prowess which a student requires to succeed.

Clear Communication

The ability to write concisely is important to communicate messages to others. Often, learning how to write proper emails and reports is something that students are not taught in schools. The techniques used to write essays will not always be relevant in preparing documents in the working world. Students should learn the appropriate language, cadence, and tone to use when preparing documents and presentations during their employment.

Critical Thinking

The Singaporean education system often does not train students to question things, emphasising rote memorisation and a systematic application of taught concepts to answer difficult problems. Often, the student who will do best is one with a large memory and the ability to perform complex tasks according to specific directions.

However, students should learn how to question information and reason whether they are true or not. There is a lot of false information swirling around in the media and the truth is not often straightforward. It would be unwise to blindly accept everything a figure of authority says and critical thinking would serve a student well in navigating complex areas of life.

Constructive Collaboration

There is a marked difference between school and real life in group projects. In school, there is sometimes the option of selecting who to work with. However, we are unable to choose the people we work with and the people we answer to when we are employed. An important skill is therefore constructive collaboration.

Students should seek to develop a tolerance for others and a task-focused approach. An awareness of team dynamics and strengths and weaknesses of others is important in working in any organisation or team. Students should be aware that everyone can contribute something in a team, albeit in different ways. Not everyone has the same views and skills, but they are still able to contribute something to achieving a common goal.

Temasek Foundation allocates over one million dollars for social services and mental health courses

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21st December 2022

Temasek Foundation has allocated over one million dollars for at least 88 study awards to students enrolling in social services or mental health provision courses at polytechnics, National University of Singapore, and the Singapore University of Social Sciences.

The awards are meant to attract and encourage Singaporeans to take up careers in these fields to combat Singapore’s rapidly ageing population and the increasing prevalence of mental health issues.

For students from low-income backgrounds, 40 study awards will be offered to those taking up the Diploma in Social Work at NYP, Diploma in Community Development at NP, or Diplomas in Psychological Studies and Social Sciences in Gerontology at Temasek Polytechnic. These awards will help students cover educational expenses and provide for living expenses. Eligible applicants must be Singaporeans, with per capita income of not more than $750 or gross household income of not more than $3,000.

National University of Singapore to have self-funded Master’s degree courses, and increase usage of blended learning

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17th December 2022

Some master’s degrees at the National University of Singapore will be fully self-funded. This means that they will no longer qualify for government subsidies of any kind. Thus for these courses, the university will charge tuition fees comparable to those billed by overseas institutions.

In response to queries, an NUS spokesman said: “The majority of master’s degree (coursework) programmes at NUS are currently on a self-funded model. The move towards a self-funded model began in 2020, and will be completed by 2024.”

In the next three years, NUS will also be converting face-to-face lectures for large courses with 100 or more students into online lectures. An NUS spokesman said that the university’s process of rolling out blended learning started in 2021 for undergraduate teaching, with the aim of improving learning outcomes for students.

As part of this exercise, which will involve about 800 courses, students will watch online videos that could be 15 minutes long, interspersed with online assessments. Physical tutorials will remain in groups of not more than 25 students.

Singaporeans enrol in short online courses that are relevant to their careers

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17th December 2022

More Singaporeans are signing up for short online courses that are relevant to their careers. Courses that are popular with Singapore learners include those leading to certificates in data analytics and project management from tech giants such as Google and IBM.

These programmes are known as micro-credentials because they are of shorter duration. They take only three to 12 months to complete and are recognised by industries.

Micro-credentials are becoming more popular as working adults see the value of shorter and more flexible online programmes that are more job-focused.

Under SkillsFuture, every Singaporean aged 25 and above was given an initial $500 in credits in 2015. These can be used to acquire new skills or improve existing ones. Since 2021, more than 1,300 Singaporeans have used their SkillsFuture credits for subscriptions for bite-size micro-learning courses

Mid-career workers in Singapore face job disruption, require upskilling

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17th December 2022

SkillsFuture Singapore released a report, The Skills Demand For The Future Economy report, which stated that mid-career workers in Singapore mostly hold the five kinds of jobs that are experiencing disruption, namely, operations and administration, sales, marketing and customer service, human resource, finance and accounting, and engineering and technology.

It is important for workers to think about upskilling or reskilling to stay versatile or take on new opportunities. Upskilling refers to learning additional skills to move into other roles within the same family of jobs, while reskilling is learning new skills to move into a role in a different job family.

The report also details several ways for mid-career workers to upgrade their skills to move into roles that are becoming more popular. For example, mid-career workers in sales, marketing and customer service already have skills that can be applied in similar but more popular roles.

Fresh graduates are more open or exposed to technological developments, including video-conferencing apps such as Zoom, to manage hybrid or flexible work, so this can also give them an advantage in the workplace.

National University of Singapore places 19th in the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings

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3rd December 2022

The National University of Singapore has taken the 19th spot in the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings.

The World Reputation Rankings compiled by the Britain-based higher education consultancy ranks the world’s top 200 universities judged by academics to have the best reputation for research and teaching.

A total of 211 universities from 32 countries were included in the list. Nanyang Technological University was ranked 40th.

The 2022 rankings are based on an academic opinion survey carried out between November 2021 and February 2022 in 12 languages.

Crest and Spectra Secondary will continue to offer the Normal (Technical) course

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3rd December 2022

Two specialised schools, Crest and Spectra Secondary, will continue to offer the Normal (Technical) course after other secondary schools do away with it in 2024. By 2024, most secondary schools will offer full subject-based banding, which groups students according to their strengths in different subjects. This will replace the Normal and Express streams.

Crest and Spectra Secondary are schools that cater to students who thrive on hands-on learning. They both run programmes that covers academic and vocational subjects. The schools prepare their students for progression to the Institute of Technical Education (ITE), as they graduate with both the ITE Skills Subject Certificate and the GCE N(T)-level certificate.

Lower-secondary students get to take taster modules from vocational disciplines, such as mobile Web applications, mechanical design and automation, and Internet of Things applications. Both schools also offer an industry experiential programme to their Secondary 3 cohort, which starts with students applying for internships, attending interviews and then reporting for work at various companies during the school holidays.

Nanyang Technological University students re-take test after paper is posted online accidentally

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3rd December 2022

A total of 218 Nanyang Technological University students, who mostly study psychology, have had to retake a test after the paper was accidentally released online earlier.

The school found out that the test paper had been put up online on the student learning platform prior to the test.

Associate Professor Chia Wai Mun from NTU’s School of Social Sciences said that the school will conduct a thorough review of its exam procedures and take the necessary measures to avoid similar incidents in future.

Email Address

ngejaysuss@gmail.com

Handphone Number

9724-0163 (Mr Ng)

Academic Qualifications

Ph.D. in Mathematics;
B.Sc. First Class Honours in Mathematics