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14 March 2021

The Ministry of Education will be expanding pathways into local polytechnics, including strengthening the Polytechnic Foundation Programme (PFP).

The PFP is a scheme for Secondary 4 Normal (Academic) students which allows them to apply directly to polytechnic for a foundation year instead of completing Secondary 5 and the O levels.

Second Minister for Education Dr Maliki Osman also said that MOE is planning to expand the Common Entry Programmes (CEPs) in polytechnics to include the arts, design and media clusters and the science clusters in all polytechnics by 2023.

Dr Maliki is leading a review of applied learning pathways, a subject also touched on by Ms Mariam Jaafar, who said, “As our education system moves to novel approaches like subject-based banding in our schools and dual majors in our universities, let us not neglect to consider similar approaches for our polytechnics and ITEs, including the potential to accelerate progression based on performance.”

14 March 2021

A study by the Nanyang Technological University has found that only 58 per cent of women who graduate with Stem degrees or diplomas go on to have related careers.

Two female NTU professors are starting a new programme for women called that Promotion of Women in Engineering, Research, and Science (Powers) programme in order to persuade more to pursue an education focusing on Stem and work in related fields.

Powers is funded by the Ministry of Education and headed by Associate Professor Sierin Lim from NTU’s School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, and Associate Professor Kimberly Kline from NTU’s School of Biological Sciences.

The program will connect women with role models and mentors, conduct research to address barriers and gaps in the local context, and provide education opportunities through public talks and activities to share discoveries.

06 March 2021

Last month, President Halimah Yacob presided over the official launch of an after-school activity centre, The Galaxy at BMSS.

This centre is part of an after-school initiative called the Resilient Merahan Programme (RMP), which was launched in 2019. The after-school engagement programme, which currently involves 30 students, caters to vulnerable students, helping them to build relationships with their peers as well as adult volunteers and school staff.

“The Galaxy is a very good centre because after classes, student may want to stay in the school, and this is a safe environment for them to come, organise their own activities and have the support of their teachers, peers and volunteers,” Madam Halimah said.

Besides the RMP, the school also has other programmes to cater to students’ diverse learning needs. For instance, Helping Our Merahans Excel aims to help students with long-term absenteeism issues to reintegrate into the school system, while the School Within School programme supports graduating students struggling with their studies.

06 March 2021

Second Minister for Education Maliki Osman has said that it will now take less time for Institute of Technical Education students to obtain a Higher Nitec qualification. He said that the ITE curriculum will be streamlined to achieve this aim.

According to the Ministry of Education, more than half of the 2019 cohort of Nitec graduates progressed immediately to a Higher Nitec qualification in 2020.

Dr Maliki is also leading a review into employment outcomes for ITE and polytechnic students. He has shared some preliminary ideas which have emerged from his review, which involved speaking to over 400 stakeholders linked to the polytechnics and ITE, including students, graduates, parents, employers and industry partners.

The ideas included recognising students’ diverse interests by strengthening porosity and flexibility in educational pathways, ensuring that courses and curriculum remain relevant to industry, and investing in the life skills of students, for instance cross-cultural communication and critical thinking.

03 March 2021

Mr Sharif Shaharudeen graduated with a first-class honours degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Glasgow’s aeronautical engineering degree programme at the Singapore Institute of Technology.

He was involved heavily in internships during his study at SIT, and as such, was very well equipped to enter the workforce. However, the aerospace industry was negatively impacted last year due to the huge decrease in commercial flights, and soon, he found his future career prospects in jeopardy.

His initial failure at securing a job proved emotionally draining, especially since his family needed him to step up and help out financially.

The former Temasek Polytechnic student then decided it was time to take a “leap of faith” and try to secure employment in a related industry. All thanks to the SGUnited Traineeship programme, he has since secured a position as a systems engineer at the drone company Drone Solutions.