13 September 2003

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EDUN N25-02-004

04803

13 Sep 2003

COMPASS CONVENTION 2003
CONNECTING FACES, STRENGTHENING TIES

1. COMPASS (COMmunity and PArents in Support of Schools) is holding its 2nd Biennial National Convention, entitled Connecting FACES (Family, Alumni, Community, Enterprise, Schools), Strengthening Ties on Saturday 13 September 2003 from 9.00am-1.00pm at the Singapore Polytechnic Convention Centre. This convention advances the groundwork set during the inaugural Convention in 2001, which created a platform for participants from the home, industry, community and the school to meet and exchange ideas.

2. The 2003 convention moves beyond networking to provide a platform where stakeholders can review their perspectives on the imperatives of home, school and community partnerships and explore qualitatively stronger collaborations in the holistic education of our pupils. The expected number of participants is about 1,200.

3. The Guest-of-Honour will be Acting Minister for Education, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam. He will deliver the opening address at the Convention and share key findings of the 2003 on-line survey, including the significant increase in parent support groups and how family-school collaboration has matured and gone beyond the commonplace. He will also speak on school-business collaboration as a key area to focus on for the next lap for COMPASS.

4. The keynote speaker for this convention is Dr Karen Mapp, President, Institute of Responsive Education, Northeastern University, Boston. Dr Mapp has designed and overseen national research studies that have cut across educational levels and diverse family backgrounds, and identified effective strategies that show how strong partnerships between the home, school and the community have impacted student behaviour and achievement. She has spoken extensively on this subject at national forums, and would be conducting post-convention workshops where schools and stakeholders can learn these effective strategies.

5. The convention will also include a plenary session, fielded by a panel of speakers representing key stakeholders in education. They include:

a)	Mayor Zainul Abidin Rasheed Mayor of North East CDC Focus on Community Collaborations
b)	Ms Janet Ang Managing Director, IBM (Singapore) Focus on Industry Collaborations
c)	Associate Professor Lawrence Boo Resident, The Arbitration Chambers & Chairman, St Margaret's Schools Management Committee Focus on SAC/SMC Collaborations
d)	Mrs Mildred Tan Managing Director Ernst & Young Associates Pte Ltd Representing COMPASS
e)	Mr Robert Koh Chairman, Henry Park Parents Association Representing Parents

6. These speakers will be sharing from their experiences and provide ideas on how participants can go beyond their conventional roles.

7. Convention delegates include school leaders, senior officials from the Ministry of Education, business and industry leaders, representatives from school parent support groups, school advisory and management committees, self-help groups, social service agencies, tertiary institutions, and representatives of other stakeholders.