INTRODUCTION
1. Dear colleagues, welcome back.
2. Last week's PISA 2025 results showed that our students continue to perform well in disciplinary knowledge and important 21CC areas such as problem-solving. This reflects the hard work of our school leaders, our educators and partners in giving every child a holistic education. The findings affirm that we are moving in the right direction. But where are the areas where we can make further progress? Employers tell us that they value graduates who can think critically, communicate well, and work together on unfamiliar problems. Our students must also be adaptable, creative and be able to take ownership of their learning not just in school but all through life.
3. Over the past decade, we have strengthened our teaching approaches and support for the holistic development of our students. In 2023, we refreshed our 21CC framework, to place greater emphasis on adaptive and inventive thinking, communication skills, and civic literacy. We have also created more space for learning beyond examinations.
4. Our schools have used this space to deepen students' social-emotional competencies and strengthen their well-being. For example, at Yuhua Secondary School, teachers redesigned their Applied Learning Programme known as Yuhua Changemakers to give students more opportunities to tackle real-world challenges. Through Design Thinking, students learn to innovate, work with others, and turn their ideas into tangible action.
5. Our efforts to strengthen holistic development extend well beyond mainstream schools. Our SPED schools have also made significant progress in strengthening students' holistic development, from literacy and numeracy foundations, to the functional and social skills that our students need to be more independent at work and in the community. As part of the Taskforce on Assurance for Families with Persons with Disabilities, MOE has been working with other agencies to strengthen SPED students' transition from school to employment and community living. We want to help each student find their own path, through meaningful work, community participation, or other forms of active living. The Taskforce will announce its recommendations later this year. My colleague, SPS Syed Harun, is working on that committee.
6. These efforts have laid strong foundations. Our next step is to build on top of these foundations, so students learn deeply, think critically and grow with confidence. This brings us to the next phase.
7. Today, I will share two shifts to strengthen holistic development and prepare students for a more uncertain future. First, we must reimagine learning. Second, we must redesign our classrooms to support these new ways of learning. Let me elaborate.
SHIFT #1: REIMAGINE LEARNING
8. The first shift is to reimagine learning.
9. Our teachers do excellent work in developing our students holistically: building subject knowledge, developing their thinking and helping students discover new interests. This is why our students do well in academic and 21CC domains in international studies.
10. But preparing students for the future is not only about what they learn. It is also about how they learn. Let's be clear: strong subject and domain knowledge, remain important. But our students must also learn to synthesise and apply that knowledge; tackle authentic, open-ended problems; and take greater ownership of their learning.
11. We therefore want to make learner-centred teaching approaches, such as inquiry-based and collaborative learning, more integral in everyday teaching.
12. We are revising our curriculum to emphasise this, and many schools are already putting this into practice. For example, at Telok Kurau Primary School, students applied Science concepts to redesign the school's outdoor garden shed into a better learning environment. Working in teams, they collected and analysed data, weighed competing ideas, discussed, and ultimately decided on the best solution. At Greendale Secondary School, Secondary One students used Mathematics to solve Formula One racing challenges. Instead of simply applying formulas on paper, students tested different claims, worked through the problem, and explained their reasoning to one another.
Learner-centred pedagogies
13. Other countries are adopting similar approaches, and understanding their experiences can be useful to inform our plans. In my recent study visits to China, Denmark and Finland, I saw how schools are creating more opportunities for students to learn by doing. Students learn to apply what they know through more hands-on and open-ended tasks, work with others, and tackle real-world problems. In some classrooms, there is also more space for students to learn through collaboration and discovery.
14. Each system operates in a different social context, and we should not simply import what others do. We will study these experiences carefully, consider what works for Singapore, and adapt useful approaches to our own context and needs.
15. But one principle is clear: our students must continue to build strong knowledge in their subjects. And they can learn in more active and applied ways, so that they understand concepts more deeply, and take greater ownership of their learning.
Purposeful Feedback
16. Giving feedback is another important way to help our students improve.
17. We are reviewing marking practices to help teachers decide: first, what form of marking best supports students' learning; second, how using different forms of feedback, including peer and self-assessment, can help our students take greater ownership of learning; and third, how feedback processes can be appropriately augmented by technology.
18. Together, learner-centred teaching and purposeful feedback will help our students become confident, adaptable and self-directed learners.
SHIFT #2: REDESIGNING CLASSROOMS
19. This brings me to our second shift. To support these new ways of learning, we must redesign how teaching and learning take place in our classrooms.
20. Many classrooms still follow a familiar model: one teacher at the front, delivering a common lesson to students seated in rows.
21. Tomorrow's classrooms will be different. Teachers will facilitate more discussions, observe how students think and collaborate, give timely feedback, and adapt teaching to their needs.
22. This will demand more of our teachers' professional expertise. To make this sustainable and effective, we must give teachers the time and space to focus on what they do best, which is educating our students.
23. How will we enable this? Let me elaborate on four strategies that we are exploring:
- First, creating flexible learning spaces;
- Second, recalibrating teachers' work;
- Third, enabling smaller classes where they are most useful; and
- Fourth, leveraging technology more effectively.
Flexible Learning Spaces
24. First, we will explore how existing school spaces can be adapted for more flexible use to support learning. This could mean classrooms with mobile or modular furniture; spaces that can support both whole-class as well as small-group learning; and technology-enabled environments that connect physical and digital learning.
25. Some schools have already begun this journey.
26. At Queenstown Secondary School, which I recently visited, classrooms with flexible furniture and varied seating arrangements support different teaching approaches, while the library's multi-zone layout allows students to move easily between reading, independent study and group work.
27. Our SPED schools have also been designing learning environments more purposefully around students' diverse learning needs from the outset. For example, there are flexible classroom spaces at Rainbow Centre Admiral Hill and ACS (Academy), which can be easily reconfigured for small-group interventions or larger group activities. Others recreated authentic settings on their campus for students to develop daily living skills.
Recalibration of Teachers' Work
28. So, the physical environment is one important enabler of this more learner-centred teaching approach.
29. Another is time – time for teachers to guide and nurture their students.
30. Our second move is therefore to recalibrate teachers' work more deliberately.
31. Teaching has become more complex. Teachers now juggle lessons, form classes, supporting diverse student needs, counselling, CCAs, parent engagement, administrative tasks, committee work and professional development, amongst others.
32. This is why MOE has been enhancing support for our teachers. Over the past decade, we doubled the number of allied educators in priority areas such as counselling and special educational needs, from about 800 to 1,600 across our schools. We also increased administrative staffing in each school by 50% on average, which frees up valuable time for our teachers.
33. Through the recommendations of MOE's Reimagining the Teaching Profession Taskforce, we have also been recalibrating what teachers do and rethinking how teachers work. For example, we introduced several digital tools to help our teachers with administrative work, such as keeping track of parents' signatures on consent forms and timetabling. We have also streamlined procurement processes, to reduce the time and effort needed for these routine tasks.
34. We want to go further to recalibrate and redeploy teachers' professional expertise more purposefully, so they can devote more of their time and effort to what they do best – educating, nurturing and moulding our students.
35. Let me explain.
Focusing on 2 out of 3 Duties beyond Classroom Teaching
36. Beyond classroom teaching, many teachers contribute across three major areas: Form Teachership, CCAs and committee work. These are important professional duties. But many teachers tell us that switching constantly between different responsibilities takes not just time but also mental bandwidth.
37. We will therefore study the possibility of letting our teachers focus on two out of these three areas, taking into account the school's needs, and each teacher's strengths and interests.
38. With less switching between responsibilities, our teachers can invest a bit more of their bandwidth into stronger classroom practices and richer interactions with their students.
Streamlining of Duties
39. We also recognise that not every task in school requires a teacher. We should keep asking four questions: Is it still necessary? Can we simplify it? Can technology or other processes help? And must a teacher do it?
40. For example, our CCAs and other student development programmes are an important part of students' holistic development. Our teachers will continue to play a key role in nurturing our students to develop 21CC and social-emotional competencies. But at the same time, we want to see how we can draw more deliberately on coaches, instructors, non-teaching staff and external partners to support our CCAs and student development programmes, including in administrative duties that are associated.
41. Ultimately, these efforts will allow us to channel our teachers' time and energy to where they matter most.
Enabling Smaller Classes Where They Are Most Useful
42. Learner-centred teaching approaches require our teachers to pay closer attention to each student.
43. So third, we will explore where smaller classes can better support learner-centred teaching approaches and make the greatest difference to teaching and learning.
44. When people hear "smaller classes", they often ask: "What is the ideal class size?" But the better question is actually: "What learning do we want to enable, and what kind of environment best supports this?"
45. This is not new. For many years, MOE has adopted a needs-based approach to smaller classes, providing closer teacher attention to students who will benefit the most. Since 2006, we have kept Primary 1 and 2 form classes at around 30 students. We chose this group deliberately, recognising that our youngest students benefit from closer attention, as they make the transition from preschool to primary school. For the Learning Support Programme, class size is about eight to ten. In Crest and Spectra Secondary Schools, the typical class size is 20, so that teachers can give each student closer attention as they progress through applied learning. More recently, with the introduction of Full Subject-Based Banding (FSBB), the size of subject classes can vary, based on the students' learning needs and the nature of the subject.
46. We have observed positive experiences on the ground. With smaller classes when needed, teachers are better able to cater to individual learning needs, and customise a more engaging and effective learning environment.
47. We will explore whether more students can benefit, particularly where smaller classes enable stronger learner-centred teaching approaches, through providing closer attention to students and more timely feedback.
48. At the same time, we should be candid about what this means for our teachers. Smaller classes do not automatically mean less working load. Smaller classes may mean teachers take on more teaching, as they do in some other countries. Nor can we simply hire many more teachers alone as a strategy. Our workforce is limited, and even if we were to hire more teachers, it must be done in a sustainable manner, without compromising quality.
49. Smaller classes must therefore be part of a broader redesign of teaching and learning. If teachers need to teach more classes, then we must create the capacity and conditions for them to do so, while balancing students' holistic development and teachers' overall workload. The recalibration of teachers' work I spoke about earlier will help, so that teachers can re-invest more time into teaching. But this must also be complemented by other tools, such as technology.
Leverage Technology More Effectively
50. Fourth, we will use technology more effectively to create time and space for teaching – by strengthening professional work and simplifying routine tasks.
51. Today, AI and technology are already helping teachers in practical ways. Take lesson design. Instead of spending hours searching for teaching resources or creating lesson materials from scratch, our teachers can use tools such as the Authoring Copilot in SLS, to translate their ideas into lesson plans more effectively, efficiently and quickly. In our SPED schools, teachers have also harnessed AI and Assistive Technology in innovative ways to support lesson and programme design that cater to the learning needs of their students.
52. AI can also help teachers better understand students' learning, and provide more timely, targeted support. During my recent study visit to Shanghai, I saw AI support teachers in tracking students' progress more clearly, and providing customised feedback, which teachers then use to better guide their students. We have been carefully considering whether some of these examples from other countries can be applied in Singapore's context too, and we have made some progress. For example, at Bukit Panjang Primary School, our Science teachers previously spent a significant amount of time analysing students' written responses to look for patterns and to identify misconceptions. Now, the AI-enabled Data Assistant in SLS can help them identify common gaps and strengths in a class almost instantaneously.
53. We will also further leverage technology to simplify teachers' day-to-day work.
54. Teachers have told us how much time it takes to navigate multiple systems, complete forms and piece together information across platforms.
55. So let me introduce the Teacher Workspace – developed by MOE colleagues to bring data, tools, and workflows into one single platform. With a single login, teachers can build a more holistic picture of each student, and carry out day-to-day processes more seamlessly. For example, they will be able to coordinate support more effectively, and communicate more easily with parents and partners.
56. Let us take a closer look at how Teacher Workspace can support our teachers in their daily work.
57. We have piloted Teacher Workspace in around 20 schools, and the feedback has been encouraging. I am glad to announce that we will roll out Teacher Workspace to all our MOE schools by next year.
58. Over time, we will progressively introduce AI and other capabilities that will simplify teachers' work further. For example, Teacher Workspace will be able to bring together relevant student information to generate first drafts of commonly used administrative reports, reducing the manual effort that is required today.
CONCLUSION
59. So colleagues, to sum up, by redesigning classrooms to enable us to reimagine learning, we will help every student learn more deeply, and give every teacher more time and space to teach and nurture well.
60. This will give our students more opportunities to develop their confidence, creativity and adaptability they need for the future.
61. We will pilot these moves in six schools: St. Anthony's Canossian, Woodgrove and Zhangde Primary Schools, as well as Commonwealth, Deyi and Jurongville Secondary Schools.
62. We will study how these moves work together in the pilot schools, listen to our school leaders and teachers, and examine students' experiences.
63. We will assess whether the changes translate into stronger learning outcomes and more sustainable ways for our teachers to teach and nurture our students.
64. This is a complex pilot, so we will proceed carefully. We will keep schools updated and share what we learn, before considering how these approaches might be applied more widely.
65. To all our school leaders and teachers: thank you for your professionalism, thank you for your care for every child, and for your willingness to keep improving. MOE HQ will work closely with you and learn alongside you.
66. I look forward to your ideas as we redesign classrooms and reimagine learning — so that every student is ready for the opportunities and challenges ahead of us.
67. So let's discuss this further and thank you for listening.