Schoolbag.sg

Making Music and Art on Tablet Computers

Thu, 31 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Music teacher Ms Sheryl Sim facilitates her Pri 6 pupils' exploration of rhythms using a drum app on the iPad.

In the music room at River Valley Primary School, one might hear the constant rhythm of boom ta-ta, boom ta-ta, boom ta-ta, boom wafting from one corner. From another corner comes the steady beat of drums that calls to mind a marching band. But there are no drums or any other instruments in sight. Instead, small groups of Primary 6 pupils are clustered around an iPad, making music using a drum set app. Back in the regular classroom during another lesson, groups of Pri 3 pupils might be similarly huddled over these devices. Instead of music, they are working on a picture on the touchscreen as they explore the visual effects of different font types and colours during an Art lesson. Through such "experimentation and creation", says Ms Sheryl Sim, the school's Aesthetics coordinator and a Music teacher, pupils are learning how the use of ICT can complement and add value to their artistic experiences. As Pri 3 pupil Chia Kai En enthuses, "It's fun! I can use the iPad to create pictures using different fonts."

Getting Pupils to Speak Up

Tue, 29 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Pri 5 pupil Dawn Yeo (left) and her classmate entertaining the class with a rendition of Roald Dahl's The Twits.

It's one thing to understand and communicate well in a language; it's another matter when it comes to speaking in public. That's what English teachers at St Margaret's Primary School realised a few years ago. While their pupils had a good grasp of the English language, they clammed up in fear when speaking in front of an audience. This led the teachers to develop a revised Oral Assessment Framework in 2009, where oral assessment in English goes beyond reading a passage and discussing a picture. Pupils are tested holistically on their oral skills through debates, PowerPoint presentations and news broadcasts. "At the end of the day, we want our girls to become persuasive and impactful communicators," says Ms Michelle Kok, Head of Department for English Language. "My colleagues and I felt that reading aloud and picture discussion [which are the standard methods of oral assessment] could be picked up at upper primary levels. We decided to focus more on foundational oracy skills that will benefit them more practically in the future."

Table Games Teach Analytical Thinking Skills

Thu, 24 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Through card games such as Pit, students learn about prioritising and setting goals.

"Don't believe everything you hear." "Sometimes, we need to be patient to win." "I prefer to examine all the evidence before I make the final decision." Wise words gleaned from lessons in life? Not exactly - these are some of the skills that Xinmin Secondary School students are explicitly taught when they are in Secondary 1. Through playing board games and card games, students learn not to jump to hasty conclusions. They also learn to strategise as they carefully analyse the pros and cons of each situation before deciding on a course of action. Part of the formal school curriculum for both Express and Normal stream students, the Analytical Thinking Skills (ATS) programme is taught over two semesters. Each one-hour lesson has a 20:1 student-teacher ratio to ensure optimal learning, say the school's ATS coordinators, Mrs Belinda Goh and Mr Yip Minghao. "We wanted a sustainable programme that not only improves students' academic performance across disciplines, but also nurtures them into analytical thinkers," Mrs Goh elaborates. "As many of tomorrow's problems and jobs cannot be predicted or taught today, analytical thinkers are in a better position to fit into a creative economy."

Nurturing Inventive Thinking in Design & Technology

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

A bicycling field trip opened the students' eyes to various bicycling-related issues, from traffic regulations to secure parking and bicycle accessories.

Bicycles are everyday objects that most of us don't think twice about, but for some students at Bishan Park Secondary School, bicycles were the source of inspiration for their Design & Technology (D&T) projects when they were in Secondary 3 last year. For example, one student saw bicycles parked illegally at an HDB lift lobby and wondered how the space could be redesigned to cater for bicycles. Another student saw a cyclist holding an umbrella in one hand while trying to steady the handlebars of her bicycle with the other and started thinking about a bicycle that could shelter the rider from the elements. These students were sensitive to the difficulties faced by bicycle users because they had been exposed to the school's own "Five-stage Educational Inventive Process", a model developed to customise the D&T curriculum to nurture inventive thinking. Spread over 14 weeks, the programme immerses students in a design-learning environment to solve "real" problems - that is, those which are verifiable and based on evidence. Mr Ng Joon Yong, the school's Head of Department for Craft & Technology and a D&T teacher, is an engineer by training, and developed the model after studying various student-centric pedagogies and curriculum design principles, such as problem-based learning and MOE's "PETALS™: The Teacher's Toolbox" framework. "The D&T curriculum aims to harness students' innate curiosity, develop a disposition for enterprise, creativity and innovation," says Mr Ng. "Challenging them to identify and work on real-life problems provides many opportunities for them to develop these competencies, which are the domains of inventive thinking."

History Comes Alive at Fuhua Secondary School

Thu, 17 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Students had the opportunity to research and view historical photographs from their interviewees.

Studying history is much more than agonising over names and dates in textbooks, as many students of Fuhua Secondary School have discovered. Since 2010, the school has had several classes of Secondary 2 students take on the roles of oral history archivists as part of a project work assignment. Armed with background reading material and guidelines on conducting oral history interviews, these students have set out to interview people aged 50 and above about life during the Japanese Occupation, and how Singapore has changed through the years. The project required students to deliver a presentation and interview transcripts; they also picked up skills such as translation, video editing and subtitling. This process helped them to appreciate the complex process of presenting history. As Phua Zheng Xuan, now in Sec 3, shares, "One of my team members put in a lot of work translating the interview from Mandarin to English. It was not easy!"

Taking Play Seriously

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Professor Michael Chia advocates for daily self-directed play among youths as an important antidote to the pressures of a highly scheduled and sedentary lifestyle.

It takes just a minimum of 90 minutes every day, yet its compounded effects are profound on a child's development. What is it? Believe it or not: play. "People think play is only for young children, but play evolves throughout a person's lifetime," says Associate Professor Michael Chia, Professor of Paediatric Exercise Physiology at the National Institute of Education. Through play, a child can develop greater creativity and resilience, increased problem-solving ability, and strengthened emotional, cognitive and physical strength. Prof Chia further asserts, "Through daily play, so much can be gained for so little investment." Prof Chia is the force behind the PRIDE for PLAY (PfP) initiative, which stands for "Personal Responsibility in Daily Effort for Participation in Lifetime Activity for Youth". This is a whole-school project that sets aside 20 to 45 minutes everyday for free or organised play for all students in school, as well as before and after school. With the teachers playing alongside students, PfP sessions are an opportunity for students to learn in an authentic environment, as teachers can seize upon teachable moments that naturally occur.

Helping Children to Love Mathematics

Thu, 10 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

In the primary school Mathematics syllabus, pupils learn concepts such as measuring and ordering.

Deciphering sales advertisements in the newspapers, dipping into a stack of playing cards and examining an MRT map for travel distances and fares - these common scenarios were just some of the examples highlighted by Ms Teh Wan, the vice-principal of Townsville Primary School, as opportunities for parents to help their children use basic mathematics concepts in everyday life. A Head of Department for Mathematics for 15 years before she became a vice-principal in December 2011, Ms Teh was sharing these handy tips at a seminar for parents of pre-schoolers, organised by MOE and the Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA) on 7 April 2012. Ms Teh is a strong believer that parental involvement can boost a child's confidence and encourage the child in his or her learning. Her talk, "How to nurture your child's love for mathematics", was tailored for parents with children in K1 and K2, who were anticipating their child's admission into primary school. Although she explained the requirements of the MOE syllabus for Mathematics [PDF] for Pri 1 and 2, she did not refer to any textbooks or assessment books, focusing instead on practical, everyday activities that would be suitable for children in this age group. Ms Teh's advice stemmed from one core idea: "The child is our main focus; it is important that we plan activities with the child in mind." And the more fun parents and teachers bring to mathematics, the more likely it is that children will develop confidence as their understanding of the different concepts improves. Ms Teh offered five key approaches to growing a child's love for mathematics:

Learning Mother Tongue Holistically - and Happily

Tue, 08 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Pupils learn to speak with confidence and listen attentively during Mother Tongue Language lessons, such as during this Chinese language class.

Playing guessing games, reciting poetry, role-playing, making puppets, drawing, colouring and making small books - these are just some of the activities that pupils are used to during their Mother Tongue Language lessons at Qihua Primary School. Since 2009, the school has adopted a Holistic Assessment plan in teaching Mother Tongue - one that goes beyond the conventions of teacher-centric lessons or pen and paper tests. Pupil-centred lessons now incorporate more interactive methods of teaching and varied methods of assessment, to help pupils learn better. For instance, when reading the Chinese classic Journey to the West, the pupils made colourful puppets of the characters in the story. Similarly, after getting to know figures from Malay folktales such as Badang and Puteri Genung Ledang, pupils then made booklets where they wrote their own versions of the stories. The intention behind these activities goes beyond making things fun. "With such activities, we are encouraging our pupils to converse using the language," says Mdm Woo Wei Ling, Head of the Mother Tongue Department. Engaging with a storybook generates more activities than mere reading as the pupils are encouraged to analyse - while speaking in the Mother Tongue Language - the characters, the plot and the values that are conveyed in the tale.

A New Approach to Normal (Technical) Education

Wed, 02 May 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Mr Frederick Yeo is the principal of the Crest Secondary School, a new specialised school for Normal (Technical) students.

Imagine a secondary school with specially constructed facilities such as a teaching kitchen, hotel room, restaurant, supermarket and mechanical workshops, all contained within the school premises. When Singapore's two specialised schools for Normal (Technical) students (SSNTs) open over the next two years, that's exactly what they will be, providing a brand-new learning environment, with customised infrastructure catering to the learning of N(T) students. The first SSNT, Crest Secondary School, will be located along Jurong East Street 24 and open in 2013. Its newly-appointed principal is Mr Frederick Yeo, who was previously the principal of Bowen Secondary School. He is looking forward to the challenge. "'Crest' was chosen as the name of the school to reflect its aim of helping students develop and rise to their potential - regardless of their home background or past schooling experiences - and equipping them with the values, skills and competencies needed to succeed in life." He adds that the word 'crest' also aptly describes the school's physical site, which is on higher ground when viewed from the Pan Island Expressway. The school will accept its first Secondary 1 cohort of about 160 students in January 2013, and at full capacity, it can accommodate 800 to 900 students. A second SSNT, located in the northern region of Singapore, will start in 2014.

Mums and Dads, for Education and for Life

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Mr Jason Wong delivered a lively presentation, peppered with personal anecdotes, on the importance of parenting "for life".

"Parents should not just emphasise and focus on academic results, but put equal weightage on character and values." This was the main message behind Mr Jason Wong's recent presentation at MOE's annual ExCEL Fest. His sharing session, "'Being Mums and Dads for Life", was held on 30 March 2012. Mr Wong, a Senior Director with the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, as well as a father of two, is a trained counsellor with extensive work experience in the prisons and rehabilitation sectors, and part of the team that conceptualised Singapore's Dads for Life movement. Armed with this wealth of experience, he brought up a number of moving personal anecdotes during his talk, as well as drew on extensive research on international studies. He strongly believes that "it is easier to build boys and children than fix men and adults", and encouraged parents to play an active role in their children's lives.

A Showcase of Innovation at MOE ExCEL Fest 2012

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:01:00 +0800

The many exhibition booths and sharing sessions at this year's MOE ExCEL Fest showcased some of the most innovative programmes in schools today.

From the community to the classroom, from traipsing around town to walking in the shoes of a book character - this year's MOE ExCEL Fest was brimming with innovative practices that were showcased by schools. The annual event is a platform for parents and the public to find out more about the latest developments in the local education landscape. In addition to an exhibition featuring more than 70 booths, there were 62 sharing sessions and 20 seminar talks. One lively booth featured students from schools in an East region Cluster who were all too eager to share the details of the Tampines Home3 Trail and describe the unique sights of the area. For example, did you know that Tampines New Town was accorded the UK-based World Habitat Award, for providing a practical and innovative housing solution while retaining socially cohesive communities? Did you know that Changi Museum (formerly Changi Prison Chapel and Museum) has a collection of rare books and literature depicting life during the Japanese Occupation?

Encouraging Parent-Child Dialogue in Education

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Dr Jessica Leong advised parents to be STAR communicators with strategies to Stop, Think, Act, Review.

For parents who wanted to know the latest developments in the local education landscape, this year's MOE ExCEL Fest was an event not to be missed. Held on 30 and 31 March at Suntec International Convention & Exhibition Centre, the event was centred on the theme of "Nurturing the Whole Child, Opportunities for All". It featured 62 sharing sessions, 20 seminar talks and an exhibition with over 70 booths. A key thread that ran through the event was the importance for parents to communicate with and understand their children. From sharing sessions such as on character building, to seminars such as on choosing a secondary school, different expert speakers reminded parents that they needed to put their child's interest at heart. One example was Dr Jessica Leong's seminar session, "Character Building Starts with Whom?". A clinical director in counselling and training, Dr Leong highlighted two examples of "difficult" six-year-old children, such as a girl who demanded of her mother, 'Why do I have to listen to you?" and a boy who was an "absolutely angel" in front of his teachers but misbehaved once he was at home.

Helping Students with Special Needs Learn Better

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 00:01:00 +0800

EXSA (Star) recipient Mr Jeyaram coaches students with special needs and designs customised learning resources for them.

You won't find most adults poring over science textbooks and talking to teachers to prepare for lab experiments, unless they are science teachers or parents preparing their kids for exams. But this was exactly what St Gabriel's Secondary School's Mr Jeyaram Kadivan, Allied Educator (AED) for Learning and Behavioural Support (LBS), did for two years when he became the "eyes" of a visually-impaired student during lab sessions. He also modified certain pieces of lab equipment so that the student could work independently and safely within his limitations. The student went on to qualify for his preferred science stream in upper secondary, an achievement that Mr Jeyaram describes as "fulfilling". The visually-impaired student is not Mr Jeyaram's only charge. He works with about 150 students with special needs at St Gabriel's Secondary School, most of whom are diagnosed with autism or dyslexia, and need help in language and literacy. Mr Jeyaram coaches them in small groups on a weekly basis, as well as researches and designs teaching resources for their other teachers. At the school level, he established an infrastructure for the holistic development of students with special needs. At the national level, he was part of the team that reviewed and redesigned the Diploma in Special Education (DISE) Programme that AEDs LBS (formerly known as Special Needs Officers) go through. Mr Jeyaram's eight years as an AED have been busy indeed, and his dedication and contributions have not gone unnoticed. Last year he was conferred the Excellent Service Award (Star), the highest accolade among the Excellent Service Awards given by Spring Singapore. This national award honours individuals for having delivered quality service.

A Helping Hand from Helping Young People Achieve (HYPA)

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Allied Educator Mr Kris Aidil Abdullah focuses on character development for at-risk youths in HYPA.

At Boon Lay Secondary School, helping at-risk youths means not only counselling them about the error of their ways, but also increasing their sense of connectedness to the school and their families. This is the focus of the school's signature Helping Young People Achieve (HYPA) programme, which consists of purposeful and interactive activities designed for students who are at risk of dropping out of school, grappling with behavioural issues or who have experienced brushes with the law or going through family upheavals. Mohammad Suffian was one of the students from the pioneer batch of HYPA in 2009 and is now studying at the Institute of Education (ITE). Reflecting on the impact of HYPA, he says, "I was inspired by an ex-convict who turned his life around. He told us not to give up in life. Then why should we, when society offers us more opportunities today compared to his time?" Through HYPA, about 15 at-risk students are taken under the wing of full-time school counsellor, Mdm Dahlia Mohamed Aris, and her team of teachers. The enrichment programme kicks off with a 10-day HYPA Time-Out Programme, which incorporates activities such as team building, workshops and mock interviews to trigger students' self-reflection and ambitions for the future. The school sustains its engagement with the students through interest-based programmes such as HYPA Energy, HYPA Sounds and HYPA Lifestyle. The programme also works with partners such as Beyond Social Services, Children's Society, and the National Parks Board.

Transforming Pupils through Teaching Decision-Making

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 00:01:00 +0800

Through TRANSFORM, pupils examine the consequences of their choices and learn how to make better decisions.

From the girl who was always late for school and dragging her feet as she entered the school gates, to the boy who frequently disrupted lessons by making noise, to another girl who repeatedly failed to submit her homework - these may sound like examples of "difficult" pupils, but at Marsiling Primary School, they are the backstories of pupils in the school's TRANSFORM programme. The programme helps pupils to be more self-aware and responsible, and consequently be better able to focus in school. The main objective of the TRANSFORM programme is to address pupils' behavioural issues through teaching them better decision-making skills. It was implemented in 2008 and was initially aimed at helping pupils who were at risk of delinquent behaviour, such as those who consistently misbehaved or did not obey school rules, explains Mdm Herianti Abu Shah, Head of Department for Pupil Management. "We want to help them transform to become better and more responsible pupils," she says. Working with pupils on a one-to-one basis, teachers lead them through a series of reflective questions such as "What have I done that was wrong?", "Why was it wrong?" and "Who are the people affected by my actions?" The teachers guide them to set appropriate goals and step-by-step targets, and monitor their progress to help them achieve their desired behaviour or outcomes.