Singapore students routinely score very well in international standardized tests in mathematics and science. For example, in a ranking published by the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development (OECD) in May 2015, Singapore was placed first, followed by Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan.
According to an article “Why Singapore’s kids are so good at maths” published by the Financial Times in September 2016, governments around the world have sought to incorporate elements of the “Singapore educational model” into their own approach to teaching maths and science. The United Kingdom for instance, has announced that half of its schools would adopt the Singapore style of maths teaching, with up to 41 million pounds in funding over four years to train teachers.
Singapore’s Prime minister Lee Hsien Loong has told citizens: “To survive, you have to be exceptional.” In terms of academic excellence, Singaporeans students have taken this pledge to heart.
Founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew believed that schools served a dual purpose: to forge a unified English-speaking nation from a multilingual population, and to supply the economy with trained and competent workers. He said in 1966, “what is required is a rugged, resolute, highly trained, highly disciplined community”.
Out of this philosophy evolved Singapore’s education system with its heavy emphasis on building strong foundations in mathematics and science, and developing not just a deep curriculum, but also one that sets high standards for students and continually challenges them intellectually.
Our educational system places maths and science as core subjects, whose mastery by students is essential not just in the acquisition of industry-specific skills later in life, but also as ends in themselves in terms of broadening the horizons of students and developing a deep appreciation of nature, logical thought, and the rigours of the scientific process.
The Singapore curriculum covers fewer topics but does so in far greater depth — a crucial factor in its effectiveness, according to the Andreas Schleicher, Director for the Directorate of Education at OECD. “When you look at England and the US, [their curriculums] are mile-wide and inch-deep,” he says. “They teach a lot of things but at a shallow level.”
However, despite the successes of Singapore’s educational system, there are also concerns that the existing system sharpens inequality, and that streaming skews the system against late developers. While the government’s educational motto is that “every school is a good school”, not everyone subscribes to this belief. There is also intense competition to get into the most prestigious schools. Perhaps the most stinging criticism is that Singapore’s system deters creativity.
Advanced economies increasingly require soft skills — such as imagination or the ability to take risks — as well as hard ones. A system that was effective in an era when mass manufacturing provided employment risks being insufficient for an age when creativity and innovation bring the greatest career rewards. As such, Singapore’s educational system must change and adapt over time, and avoid being bound by dogma or complacency at past successes.