JAN
2001
Third Meeting of International Academic
Advisory Panel (IAAP), 8-11 Jan
The IAAP recommended that Singapore expand the
role of its university sector to better serve
as a strategic resource for Singapore.
School Excellence Model
The School Excellence Model was introduced in
2000 to guide schools in their self-assessment.
From Jan 2001, schools could apply to MOE for
external validation using the same model. A total
of 53 schools, comprising 23 primary schools,
29 secondary schools and 1 junior college, applied
and were externally validated. Of these, five
schools received the inaugural Best Practice Awards
– Anglo Chinese School (Independent), Paya
Lebar Methodist Girls' School, Raffles Institution,
River Valley High School and Xinmin Secondary
School.
Pre-school pilot research programme
As part of MOE’s initiatives to improve
the quality of pre-school education, a pilot research
programme was implemented, involving 46 non-profit
community kindergartens and 2,000 children. The
pilot phase will end in 2002. The next phase will
follow the cohort of children from P1 to P4. The
longitudinal study will end in 2006.
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MAR
2001
First
International Science Teachers’ Programme
(InSTeP)
The two-week programme, held in Singapore, brought
together teachers from different parts of the world
to share their expertise and ideas on the teaching
and learning of science.
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APR 2001
Edu-Pac
Announcement of Edu-Pac (Education Service Professional
Development and Career Plan), a comprehensive pay
and career system to ensure that the teaching profession
is well-positioned for
the future. The package was derived after extensive
consultation with teachers and has three main components:
a new career structure, a new recognition structure,
and enhancements to the performance management system.
Six Singapore students win awards at ThinkQuest
Internet Challenge
Five students won one platinum, two silver and two
gold awards at ThinkQuest Internet Challenge, an
annual international web-based competition for students
aged 12 to 19. A Singapore student also won the
Best of Contest Award, given to the overall best
team.
READ@TN
Establishment of Read@TN, a full-fledged library
of teaching and learning resources to cater for
the professional development of teachers.
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MAY
2001
First
Teachers’ Conference, 30 May-1 Jun
A three-day, first-of-its-kind conference held for
all Principals and 1,400 teachers to inspire and
encourage them to constantly develop their professional
skills.
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JUN
2001
Project
Work
Announcement that Project Work would be included
for admission to local universities from 2005.
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JUL 2001
Launch
of VITAL
Launch of the Virtual Institute of Training and
Learning (VITAL), an e-learning system developed
to enable all Ministry staff and teachers to learn
at their “own time, own place, own pace”
through courses delivered via the Internet. There
are currently 34 on-line courses covering Information
Technology, Leadership & Management, Personal
Effectiveness and Professional Practice.
Singapore Quality Class (SQC) Award
For the first time since the SQC was instituted
to encourage organisations to work towards excellence,
five schools attained the award, which traditionally
has been given to business organisations. They were
Raffles Institution, Anglo-Chinese School (Independent),
Xinmin Secondary School, River Valley High School
and Dunman Secondary School. The Ministry, too,
was awarded SQC status.
Outstanding Youth in Education Award (OYEA)
The 2001 Outstanding Youth in Education Award was
conferred on three teachers for developing and motivating
their students beyond academic excellence: Mdm Diane
Goh, Radin Mas Primary School; Mrs Aw Ai Ling, Crescent
Girls’ School; and Mr Subash Anthony Lazar,
Mayflower Secondary School.
ASEAN Student Exchange Programme, 29 Jun-12 Jul
MOE hosted the ASEAN Student Exchange Programme
(ASEP), an educational programme under an initiative
launched by ASEAN Leaders at the 4th ASEAN Informal
Summit in Singapore in Nov 2000. ASEP brings together
students from ASEAN countries to cultivate co-operation
and networking and to promote understanding of the
different cultures within ASEAN.
Autonomous schools
Announcement that two schools – Paya Lebar
Methodist Girls’ Secondary School and St.
Anthony’s Canossian Secondary School –
would become autonomous in Jan 2002, bringing the
number of autonomous schools to 22. Dunman Secondary
School and Xinmin Secondary School were accorded
autonomous school status with effect from Jan 2001.
Singapore students perform well
at the 2001 International Physics, Mathematical,
Chemistry, Biology and Informatics Olympiads
Singapore achieved the following rankings: It was
placed 10th out of 65 participating countries in
the Physics International Olympiad; 29th out of
83 participating countries in the Mathematical International
Olympiad; 9th out of 54 participating countries
in the Chemistry Olympiad; 3rd place out of 39 participating
countries in the Biology Olympiad; and joint first
with Slovakia out of 74 participating countries
in the Informatics International Olympiad.
School Counsellor Scheme
The School Counsellor Scheme for retired Education
Officers was introduced in 2001 to augment counselling
support in schools. Under the scheme, candidates
undertake a Diploma in Counselling Practice sponsored
by MOE. The first batch of 15 trained School Counsellors
was deployed to schools or clusters as part-time
counsellors.
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AUG 2001
Review of Medical Education in Singapore
The international medical education review panel
convened to ensure that Singapore’s medical
education system was up-to-date and capable of meeting
the needs of medical care.
Establishment of fifth polytechnic
Announcement of the establishment of a fifth polytechnic,
Republic Polytechnic, to commence
operation in July 2003. The new polytechnic will
cater to an increase in the student cohort size
eligible for the polytechnics and the anticipated
demand for continuing education and training.
COMPASS Seminar: Connecting FACES
An inaugural seminar held to provide a platform
for different stakeholders in education to share
their perspectives on the imperatives of home, school
and community partnerships, for the total education
of pupils.
LKY-STEP award
Launch of Lee Kuan Yew Scholarship to Encourage
Upgrading (LKY-STEP). The award is open to outstanding
Institute of Technical Education and polytechnic
students intending to further their studies at the
polytechnics and universities, respectively.
Opening of upgraded premises of Umar
Pulavar Language Centre (UPTLC), 3 Aug
Upgraded at a cost of more than S$2 million, UPTLC
was officially opened by Professor S Jayakumar,
Minister for Law and Minister for Foreign Affairs.
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SEP
2001
President’s Award for Teachers (PAT)
The President’s Award for Teachers was conferred
on four outstanding teachers for selfless service:
Mrs Chin Ngan Peng, Kong Hwa School; Mrs Nora Teo,
Punggol Primary School; Mr Lim Chiow Huat, Broadrick
Secondary School; and Mrs Audrey Ting Yee Han, Nanyang
Girls’ High School.
Asia-Europe Classroom (AEC) International Teachers'
Conference, 2-5 Sep
MOE co-hosted the first AEC International Teachers’
Conference, together with the Asia-Europe Foundation
(ASEF). Part of ASEF’s People-to-People Exchange,
the AEC promotes exchanges by initiating new projects
in an online-classroom environment and organises
AEC exhibitions.
O-level Commerce/Commercial
Studies in secondary schools to be phased out
Announcement that in line with the secondary school
curriculum’s aim to provide a broad-based
general education to equip pupils with the foundation
skills for a knowledge-based economy, schools would
stop offering O-level Commerce to secondary three
pupils from 1 Jan 2003, and O-level Commerce Studies
to secondary five pupils from 1 Jan 2004.
Enhancing arts education in schools
Announcement of a set of initiatives to develop
and enhance arts education in schools and sustain
a vibrant arts culture through curricular and co-curricular
programmes and activities. This would include resources
being put in place to assist schools in planning
and implementing arts programmes, and recognition
being given to schools with best practices in arts
education.
The Sustained Achievement Award and the Inaugural
Best Practice Award
Conferring of the inaugural Best Practice Awards
on five schools in recognition of effective practices
and systems leading to desirable academic and non-academic
educational outcomes: Anglo-Chinese School (Independent),
Paya Lebar Methodist Girls’ Secondary School,
Raffles Institution, River Valley High School and
Xinmin Secondary School.
More career advancement opportunities for teachers
Announcement of more career advancement opportunities
for teachers with the creation of a new pinnacle
appointment of Master Teacher and the doubling of
the number of Senior Teacher posts in schools, to
be implemented in 1 April 2002 under the Edu-Pac
(Education Service Professional Development and
Career Plan) scheme.
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OCT
2001
Initiatives to raise level of kindergarten education
The new initiatives introduced were:
- New requirements for kindergarten teacher
qualifications, to be introduced from January
2008, with kindergartens having till end-2007
to comply with the new requirements;
- The provision of annual recurrent grants
by the government to eligible non-profit kindergartens
from 2002, to help them improve teacher quality
and raise the standard of pre-school education;
- The provision of financial assistance of
$600 per annum per child to lower-income families
who send their children to improved pre-school
programmes at qualifying nonprofit kindergartens.
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NOV
2001
Release of The Growing Years Series for Upper
Primary: Curious Minds
Release of a multi-media resource package, Curious
Minds, to enhance the teaching of sexuality education
for upper primary students. The series focuses
on pre-adolescents coping with the anxieties of
growing up and handling changing relationships,
and is the second of the sexuality education resource
series developed for schools under the Ministry's
Framework for Sexuality Education.
Signing of Memorandum of Understanding for establishment
of Singapore Conservatory of Music
On 26 Nov 2001, NUS signed an agreement with Peabody
Institute to set up the Singapore Conservatory
of Music (SCM) at NUS. The SCM is expected to
admit its first intake in July 2003. The establishment
of the SCM is part of a strategy to position Singapore
as a global city, with vibrant communities in
business, science, technology and the arts. It
will also provide more opportunities for students
to pursue their interests and develop their talents
in music at the tertiary level.
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DEC 2001
People Developer Standard status
MOE attained the People Developer Standard in
recognition of the system put in place for the
training and development of MOE staff.
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