International (LSH) and The Caterpillar's Cove (TCC). The celebration was held at MFS centre at Bedok North Street 3 Block 503. Mr Lim Boon Heng, Executive Chairman of NTUC Social Enterprise Development Council (SEDC), was the Guest of Honour at the celebration.
3. "NTUC First Campus doubled the size of our network from 50 to 100, within a period of just three years. The NFC team is very proud of this achievement," said Mr Chan Tee Seng, Chief Executive Officer of NTUC First Campus Co-operative Limited. He added, "We are aware that many parents are anxious about getting a place in a good quality and trustworthy childcare centre of their choice. NTUC First Campus is committed to our mission of making quality early childhood care and education services affordable and accessible to families."
4. NFC's growth plan is in line with the Government's plan to expand the childcare sector by 200 childcare centres over five years from 2008. Since its rebranding exercise in early 2009, NFC has expanded rapidly from 50 centres to 101 centres. The number of children enrolled in its centres has also doubled from about 4,500 to 9,000 now.
5. NFC is committed to being not only bigger, but better. During the last three years, it set several firsts in the childcare industry, such as introducing Singapore's first Birth-to-Three Curriculum Framework; implementing a new Chinese Language Curriculum designed by the Singapore Centre for Chinese Language for pre-schoolers; and launching Project Eureka, a teaching approach that encourages a culture of teaching innovations within the childcare network. As a testament of NFC's commitment to provide the highest quality pre-school education, seven of its childcare centres were among the first batch of 24 childcare centres in Singapore to receive the Singapore Pre-school Accreditation Framework (SPARK) certification, a new quality accreditation system introduced by the Ministry of Education, in September this year.
6. Given the high quality curriculum and programmes offered and with the average fee of My First Skool centres pegged at below the national median, NFC offers parents excellent value for money and will continually strive to do so.
7. To meet the manpower needs of the new childcare centres, NFC will recruit over 700 early childhood education professionals in the next two years. The organisation will also continue its focus on lifting childcare and teaching quality. It will set aside $2.5 million for staff academic upgrading and training next year, more than double of this year's $1.1 million. By 2013, it also expects all centres to have 95% of its teachers holding diploma qualifications or in the course of obtaining one; and 90% of principals to be degree-holders or undergraduates.
12 September 2011
Media Release
NTUC First Campus Scores 100% in the Attainment of Singapore Pre-School Accreditation Framework (SPARK) Certification
100% attainment rate in the inaugural batch of SPARK assessment
1. The Ministry of Education (MOE) launched the SPARK framework in November 2010 to recognise pre-schools in their efforts to enhance the holistic development of young children. A key component of SPARK is the Quality Rating Scale (QRS) that examines the effectiveness of pre-school's education system and identifies their strengths and areas for improvement. The quality ratings of pre-schools will enable parents to make informed choices about the pre-schools for their children.
2. NTUC First Campus Co-operative Limited (NFC), Singapore's largest single childcare operator, is proud to share that in the first window assessment period, out of the six childcare centres that attained the Emerging Level in the SPARK Assessment, 50% are NFC's centres. Together with the other four centres of the second window assessment period, a total of seven NFC's centres will be receiving the Certificate of Achievement at the SPARK Ceremony, organised by MOE, on 12 September 2011.
3. My First Skool (MFS) childcare centre at Bukit Batok East is the first MFS centre that underwent the assessment. The centre fared well in all aspects of pre-school education, namely Leadership, Planning & Administration, Staff Management, Resources,
Embargoed till 12 September 2011, 6.45pm Curriculum, Pedagogy and Health, Hygiene & Safety; with excellent performance in Leadership, Staff Management and Curriculum. In the centre, all teachers were involved in the planning and monitoring of teaching and learning practices, not just the Principal. The Principal also personally observes the classes being conducted and provides feedback to teachers with concrete follow-up actions. She also plays an active role in planning the centre staff deployment plan, thus the centre was able to manage both planned and unplanned absence of teachers. At the centre, teachers provide many opportunities for children to engage in meaningful activities and communicate their findings with their peers and teachers.
4. Besides MFS Bukit Batok East, The Little Skool-House (LSH) At-Mountbatten-Square is one of the two LSH centres that attain the Emerging Level in the SPARK assessment at the first assessment window. Likewise, the centre also fared well in all the seven aspects of pre-school education. In the area of Staff Management, the centre's Principal proactively plans and sends staff to training based on each staff's professional development map that has been developed. At the centre, mathematical concepts and skills were reinforced by teachers using different learning context and through teachable moments, for example, the teachers reminded the children to count the number of steps as they moved to the playground. Teachers will also provide opportunities to support children's understanding of the curriculum topic by getting children to think and reflect on the subject matter.
5. "At NFC, we are committed to provide the highest quality education, programme and service. Since 2006, we implemented a quality assurance system that focuses on teachers' training and quality audit. We have developed an internal quality audit tool that we call QCC, which refers to Quality Care Check, to assess our programmes, operations and learning environments annually. With the introduction of the SPARK Framework by MOE, we revised our QCC and mapped it to the quality indicators in the Quality Rating Scale," said Ms Lynn Heng, NFC's Group Professional Leadership Officer. She added, "We will continue to enable and support our teaching staff to use and improve good practices. Through a culture of continuous improvement that is driven by high expectations, we will be able to achieve better quality outcomes so that all children may enjoy a high quality learning experience."
Moving Forward Plans and Target
6. As part of NFC's on-going effort in ensuring high level of quality assurance, internal assessment of all NFC's childcare centres are conducted to ascertain the level of the SPARK framework that each centre could attain so as to plan for their assessment application accordingly. NFC's target is to have at least 75% of all our centres attaining the SPARK Certificate of Achievement by 2015.
18 August 2011
Media Release
NTUC First Campus to Pioneer Innovative Early Childhood Teaching Practices in Singapore
Project Eureka to benefit over 11,000 pre-schoolers and 1,600 pre-school educators
1. NTUC First Campus Co-operative Limited (NFC), Singapore's largest single childcare operator, announced the launch of an initiative to pioneer innovative teaching practices in early childhood care and education at its childcare centres. Code-named "Project Eureka", the initiative's pilot phase saw two My First Skool (MFS) centres equipped with additional resources and a "Eureka Studio" at each centre to develop new teaching approaches that extend beyond the regular curriculum. Over time, such promising teaching practices will be shared with the rest of NFC network of over 100 centres. This will benefit over 11,000 pre-schoolers, and 1,600 teachers and principals.
Project Eureka: Inspiring a Culture of Innovation in Early Childhood Care and Education
2. Project Eureka is conceived by NFC's in-house education specialists to inspire a culture of innovation within the network. The selected MFS centres will have a Practice Leader, a pre-school teacher who will lead, mentor and guide his/her peers in extending the core curriculum with creative teaching and learning practices, based on different themes. In addition, these centres will have a dedicated space, a "Eureka Studio", that is equipped with customised furniture and equipment to serve as a focal point for children's projects. Upon evaluation of the effectiveness of the teaching strategies discovered, promising practices will be shared with teachers and principals in NFC's network of over 100 childcare centres across the island.
3. To-date, two Eureka Studios have been established. The first one, set up at MFS Marine Terrace Blk 18 and commenced operations in January this year, is based on the theme of Green Education. One of the projects involved children experimenting and learning about the use of different eco-friendly materials to make shoes. The teachers explored ways of using recycled materials as teaching tools and in set up of the learning environment. The children also discussed about the recent Earthquake in Japan and even wrote letters to express their consolation and encouragement to the victims. The second Eureka Studio, set up at MFS Holland Drive Blk 18A and was operationalised in April this year, is based on using technology in teaching. (Refer to Annex for details of the two Eureka Studios.)
4. "A key strength of being a large network is that our centres have access to a consistent and tested curriculum which is developed over many years. However, it is critical that we create a space for our educators to discover new ways to extend the curriculum, and to make teaching more effective and learning more engaging," said Ms Lynn Heng, NFC's Group Professional Leadership Officer. She added, "Through Project Eureka, teachers will discover, learn and develop promising practices that nurture children's innate sense of curiosity and confidence. By disseminating the knowledge and promising practices gleaned, we hope to be a pace-setter in promoting a culture of innovation within the network."
Project Eureka: Technology for Early Education
5. Project Eureka: Technology for Early Education sets several firsts in a Singapore pre-school centre, from a touch screen table to classroom management concept that allows teachers to manage the interactive devices to track and document the children's works. Children at MFS Holland Drive are able to tap on tools such as interactive whiteboards, touch screen table and digital cameras to investigate and learn about topics such as bones and germs. In one of the projects, through the use of digital cameras, the children learnt concepts such as focus, spatial awareness, fine motor skills, framing, and the capturing of information to review and document their own learning experiences themselves. This harnessing of technology to empower children towards self-directed learning is made possible through a close partnership between NFC, Microsoft Singapore and HeuLab Pte Ltd.
6. Ms Serene Chan, Principal of MFS Holland Drive, said, "Project Eureka provides a platform for our teachers to extend and deepen our children's learning as the children take on the role of investigator in their own learning journeys. It provides ample opportunities for discussions which are led by children and facilitated by teachers. As a result, two-way learning took place whereby teachers also get to learn from children as they discover the thought processes of the young ones. I am glad that we are developing our children to be self-directed learners of the future."
7. Managing Director of Microsoft Singapore, Ms Jessica Tan, shared, "As digital natives, the next generation of learners demand that the learning process be highly interactive and innovative to stay engaged. Microsoft has had a long standing partnership with education institutions in Singapore from primary to tertiary level. Combining the best of curriculum with the best of interactive technology has proven time and time again to transform how students learn, with great results. This is our first partnership to bring advanced learning enabled by technology to pre-schools, and we are delighted to have the opportunity to co-develop and pilot this initiative with NTUC First Campus."
8. Added Mr Winston Chung, Head of Sales, HeuLab Pte Ltd, "Our collaboration with NTUC First Campus fits in perfectly with our strategy to extend our educational solutions into the pre-school segment, which is part of the education ecosystem. It is important to look at it through the spectrum of the pre-school curriculum innovation with the aim to enhance learning processes and structures to bring about engaged learning with the young children. With these valuable insights, we will continue to build upon our strong partnership with NTUC First Campus and Microsoft in pre-school ICT innovation."
9. The official announcement of Project Eureka by NFC was made at the official opening of MFS centre at Holland Drive Blk 18A. The opening ceremony was graced by Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Mr Chan Chun Sing.
Growing an Innovative Community of Teachers and Pre-schoolers
10. Project Eureka is one of NFC's on-going efforts to refresh, evolve, and extend its curriculum and teaching practices. Teachers and pre-schoolers can look forward to a shared pool of innovative ideas and practices to reinforce pre-schoolers learning experiences and competencies. A third Eureka Studio will be set up in the fourth quarter this year. NFC will constantly evaluate the initiative and decide if more Eureka Studios will be set up.
06 August 2011
Media Release
A Collaborative effort towards helping Earthquake
victims
The Little Skool-House International enriches Anderson
Junior College students with knowledge to help rebuild
nursery
1. Forty-four students from Anderson Junior College
(AJC) visited The Little Skool-House International
(LSH) At-The-Hub to learn more about the centre's
practices so as to help their efforts at an earthquake-struck
village, Wirokerten, in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. This
initiative will help about 20 children, aged between
3 to 5 years, in the village to benefit from a simple
pre-school programme. Through today's visit at LSH,
the AJC students learnt about the set up of pre-school
classes and what makes a good learning environment
for children.By applying this knowledge, the students will be able to help improve the
village's nursery infrastructure. Besides learning
about the physical set-up of classes, the students
also learnt about how to maintain safety and hygiene
standards in a pre-school environment. They were
also encouraged to raise questions and clarify issues
with the LSH staff team, given that this was the
first time that they were viewing a pre-school centre.
Every child deserves an education
2. The Principal of LSH At-The-Hub, Ms Pearlynn
Loy, readily agreed to help and assist this cause
as a way to reach out to the innocent children who
have suffered during the earthquake. With the rebuilding
of the nursery in Wirokerten, the children there
will be able to have a better environment, which
will enhance their learning experiences. "Even though
these children live in simple conditions, we believe
that every child is equal and should be given a
chance to be heard and educated," she said. "By
having the AJC students learn about what we have
at our centre and bringing the knowledge to Wirokerten,
the children in the earthquake zone will have the
opportunity to be educated in an environment that
is conducive to their growth and development. We
are privileged to be able to contribute to the lives
of the Indonesian children even in this small way,
and we hope that the children will be encouraged
to live optimistically and become strong individuals
both physically and emotionally, despite the hardships
that they have gone through."
3. Mr Edwin Chia, the project leader from AJC, believes
that this collaboration with LSH will better prepare
his students for the International Service-Learning
(ISL) trip, which will run for two weeks at the
end of this year "After the visit to LSH, our students
are better equipped to help the village in Wirokerten,"
he said. "By learning more about childcare education
in a pre-school setting, we now understand what
makes for quality early childhood education and
will apply it in our lessons when teaching the children
in Wirokerten. Also, by using LSH as a bench mark
towards improving the nursery in the village, we
will be able to encourage the children and make
a positive impact towards the village's future education."
05 July 2011
Media Release
NTUC First Campus Introduces Singapore's
First Birth-to-Three Curriculum Framework
Developed specially for infants and toddlers from
birth to three years old
1. Singapore, 5 July 2011 – A new curriculum framework,
known as "Learning for Life: Birth-To-Three Curriculum
Framework", has been developed by NTUC First Campus
(NFC) with guidance from an international infant
care expert, and support from the National University
Hospital (NUH). With the launch of the framework
today, parents can expect the quality of infant
care service to reach a new level of professionalism.
2. In view of a growing pool of working parents,
as well as greater demand and higher expectations
on infant care service, NFC recognises the need
for a framework that is developed specially for
infants and toddlers.
As of May this year, our network of 49 centres with
infant care service had a total enrolment of 359
toddlers and infants, representing about 19% of
total infant care enrolment in Singapore. Our total
number of childcare centres offering infant care
service, and total number of enrolment grew by more
than three times over the last three years.
Learning for Life: Birth-to-Three Curriculum Framework
3. Developed specially for infants and toddlers from birth to three years old, the framework concentrates on relationship building and experiences that are co-created between the child and teacher. The central elements of the framework are anchored on three areas - relationship-building between teacher and child to encourage the child to interact with the teacher, creating experiences for the child to promote the child's involvement in his/her own learning process, and changing the way routine care is performed to create purposeful interaction between the child and teacher.
4. A team of early childhood professionals, led by Dr Melinda Eng of NFC, developed the framework over the last two years. It integrates the expert knowledge from an international infant care consultant, Dr Pamela Winter, and perspectives of medical professionals from NUH. Dr Pamela Winter, with over two decades of experience in early childhood education, is a specialist with research on curriculum quality for infant care. Following the launch of the new birth-to-three framework, Dr Pamela Winter will be sharing her wealth of practice and experience in early year education with infant care teachers during an infant care teachers' seminar to be held in July.
Pilot Implementation Findings
5. For about two months, one My First Skool (MFS) and two Little Skool-House International (LSH) childcare centres were involved in the pilot implementation that took place in April this year. Training was provided to infant care teachers on how to implement the new framework at their centres.
6. From observations of the pilot implementation, preliminary findings affirmed that purposeful interactions between teacher and child create a secure and supportive environment which encourages the child to explore and experiment with objects in the environment. The area of self-exploration by the child enlarges as the child feels more assured and secure. This creates an enriching and proactive learning experience for the child, which maximises their learning potential and develops their foundation for later development and future success in learning.
Roll-out Plans
7. The findings of the pilot implementation will be used to enhance the training programme of 218 infant care teachers in NFC's current network of 51 childcare centres that provide infant care service as the framework gets implemented progressively across the network. Infant care teachers' seminars and workshops will be conducted bi-monthly for the rest of this year, starting with the inaugural sessions in July. The birth-to-three framework will be implemented in all MFS and LSH centres by the end of next year.
8. Ms Lynn Heng, Group Professional Leadership Officer of NTUC First Campus said, "We saw an increase in demand for infant care services in recent years. As the largest childcare operator, we are committed to raise the quality of infant care service. Hence today we introduce our "Learning for Life: Birth-to-Three Curriculum Framework", a framework developed specially for very young learners from birth to three years old." She added, "As we roll out this framework across our network of centres and progressively train all our infant care teachers, we hope to professionalise this profession and raise the level of infant care service. With a higher level of infant care service, parents will have a greater peace of mind that their young children are well looked after in our centres."
18 June 2011
Media Release
Singapore "Kidz Make the Difference"
My First Skool teaches pre-schoolers, as young as three, important philanthropic values in an ever competitive world
Largest gathering of pre-schoolers and families in Singapore
1. Singapore, 18 June 2011 – Singapore's largest pre-school operator My First Skool (MFS) today hosted about 7,000 families as part of its annual "Kidz-In-Charge" flagship event to inculcate the value of philanthropy among pre-schoolers.
2. This is the largest gathering of pre-school children in Singapore since this annual event began in 2005, involving children and families of 77 MFS centres. Participation by pre-schoolers and their families have almost tripled since the first event. The turnout also reflects the crucial and growing relationship between parents and MFS over the years.
Theme - Kidz Make the Difference
3. The theme for this year's event, now in its seventh year, is "Kidz Make the Difference". The event, hosted at Sengkang Riverside Park, marks the culmination of a series of similar related activities held since early June.
4. The chosen theme aptly reflects MFS' belief that caring and sharing behaviours can be learnt and taught at all ages, from infancy onward throughout life. Evidence shows that the roots of learning philanthropic behaviour begin with an infant's capacity for developing empathy which is learned through being cared for, and later being taught by the examples or messages of trusted adults, namely the parents and caregivers.
5. Over the past few years, this annual event embodied themes which had national and social relevance. For example, the 2010 event carried a sports theme, coinciding with Singapore's hosting of the first world Youth Olympics. (See Fact Sheet for past event themes)
6. "Understanding and embarking on philanthropy gives children the power to make a difference in their surroundings and in society. It has become an integral part of many disciplines, and by embedding it into the curriculum of My First Skool, it will provide meaning to the children and bring a positive impact to their character development," said Lynn Heng, Group Professional Leadership Officer of NTUC First Campus Co-operative Limited.
Anchor Event
7. At this morning's finale event, 7,000 families gathered at Sengkang Riverside Park which was decorated with colourful lamp post banners designed by MFS's pre-schoolers themselves. Each banner carried a specific philanthropic value such as respect, caring, giving, honoring diversity, helping others, fairness, responsibility and trustworthiness.
8. The pre-schoolers led their families to walk along a pre-designated trail and participated in activities at booths that were specially set up along the trail. After completing the booths' activities, the pre-schoolers were given items, namely dry rations like biscuits, canned mushrooms and bake beans, and stationeries like pencils. These items were later deposited at a centralised collection point for donation to charitable organisations such as Chen Su Lan Methodist Children's Home, Canossaville Children's Home, Salvation Army Grace Haven and Club Rainbow.
9. Beyond completing the walk and partaking in booths' activities, our children were reminded of the importance of undertaking philanthropy in their lives. This is part of the key goal of MFS to immerse pre-schoolers into contemporary curriculum, experiential learning and equipping them with process-orientation skills.
Pre-Event Activities
10. Plans for this year's activities began in earnest earlier this quarter, resulting in all its centres conducting a centrally themed activity.
11. A series of pre-event activities were organised in all MFS centres to develop the pre-schoolers' philanthropic values and provide the direction that they need to move forward in understanding and wanting to help others.
12. For example, My First Skool at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 planned and organised its event under the sub-theme of "Green Fashion". In its effort, pre-schoolers were involved in designing and making outfits out of recyclable materials. This activity linked philanthropy to caring for the environment.
13. Parents were engaged in this programme where they were encouraged to bring items such as canned food to exchange for various creative works produced by the pre-schoolers. These items were subsequently donated to selected charities in the neighbourhood as part of the community partnership programme.
Future Plans
15. Looking ahead, MFS plans to continue to help pre-schoolers internalise philanthropic motivations and values through community work. This is expected to run for a further three years with the community near to individual centre.
18 April 2011
Joint Media Release
A Pilot Chinese Language Curriculum for Pre-schoolers to Learn Chinese as a Second Language
- A Joint Collaboration between Singapore Centre for Chinese Language and NTUC First Campus
1. Singapore Centre for Chinese Language (SCCL) developed a new Chinese language curriculum that enables children to learn Chinese language in a different way. The lesson units revolve around storybooks which evolve and extend into their daily lives. Today, SCCL has inked an Agreement with NTUC (National Trade Union Congress) First Campus (NFC) to pilot this new curriculum in The Caterpillar's Cove, a child development and study centre by NFC.
Curriculum with a difference
2. Specially designed for Singaporean pre-schoolers from predominantly English-speaking families, the SCCL Story-based Curriculum (SSBC) aims to interest and motivate them in the learning of the Chinese language and eventually help them to establish a good foundation in Chinese language. SSBC uses stories as the core component to engage learners and sustains their interest through a variety of developmentally appropriate learning activities, including shared reading, dramatisation, information and communications technology (ICT), story creation etc. Learners will be exposed to a wide repertoire, including fairy tales, fables, folklores, myths and picture storybooks.
3. "This innovative Chinese Language curriculum aims to first trigger the child's interest through listening and creation of stories, and then to transfer the language learnt in the stories to their daily life later" said Dr Chin Chee Kuen, Executive Director, Singapore Centre for Chinese Language.
Pilot Implementation at The Caterpillar's Cove
4. The Agreement between NFC and SCCL covers two main areas. Primarily, the new Chinese language curriculum developed by SCCL will be piloted in The Caterpillar's Cove for a period of five years, with the intention for it to be adopted by other NFC centres. NFC will facilitate SCCL in obtaining data to measure the effectiveness of the curriculum.
a. Before implementation, SCCL will observe the current curriculum methodology. SCCL will also train the Chinese teachers at The Caterpillar's Cove to equip them with the knowledge and skills to implement the new curriculum.
b. The new Chinese language curriculum will be adopted for Kindergarten One (K1) children in The Caterpillar's Cove from September 2011. The curriculum will be rolled out to other pre-school levels subsequently in phases.
5. "The Caterpillar's Cove, being a child development
and study centre, strives to discover and advocate best
practices in early childhood education to promote children's
optimal learning and development. The new Chinese curriculum
developed by SCCL will help our children at The Caterpillar's
Cove (TCC) acquire Chinese language in an engaging and
fun way through the use of stories," said Mr Chan Tee
Seng, Chief Executive Officer, NFC.
22 March 2011
Media Release
Pre-schoolers Doing Their Part to Help Earthquake and Tsunami Victims
Six-year-old pre-schoolers plan donation drive to raise funds for the victims in Japan
1. Twenty-nine Kindergarten Two (K2) pre-schoolers at The Little Skool-House International
(LSH) By-the-Vista are doing their part to help the earthquake and tsunami victims
in Japan. Over a period of two weeks (21 March – 5 April 2011), they will raise
funds by helping their parents with household chores such as sweeping the floor,
folding clothes, washing dishes. After tallying the total funds collected, contributions
will be made to the Singapore Red Cross Society.
Little tots with a big heart
2. As part of the LSH literature-based
curriculum, the K2 students from LSH
By-the-Vista engaged in a meaningful spin-off activity from a storybook entitled "Forgotten Forest",
which touches on global warming. Through the story, students learnt about natural
disasters, the cause and effect of human actions that harm or benefit the environment.
As an extension to the lesson, a newspaper article on the recent earthquake and
tsunami in Japan was read to the students to further illustrate the topic.
3. After listening to the article, the students felt for the victims and wanted
to lend a hand to help them. During a class discussion, they decided to conduct
a fundraising activity to pool a sum of money to the Singapore Red Cross Society
for the victims in Japan. With the facilitation of their teachers, the K2 students
started to brainstorm ideas and concluded that they will raise funds by helping
with household chores at home. Appended to this release are drawings done by the
students on what they plan to do at home to raise funds.
4. Interviews with the K2 students, teacher(s) and/or parents can be arranged.
Drawings by K2 students of Little Skool-House International (LSH) By-the-Vista on household
chores that they will do at home to help raise funds
21 January 2011
Media Release
SINGAPORE'S FIRST
INNOVATIVE HOLISTIC OUTDOOR LEARNING
1. The People's Action Party Community Foundation (PCF) Little Wings will be showcasing
its unique experiential outdoor activities of their newest pre-school at Bukit Timah
Block 305 on 23 January 2011, Sunday morning, to the residents of Bukit Timah constituency.
Guest of Honour, Dr Ng Eng Hen, Minister for Education, Second Minister for Defence
and Deputy Leader of the House will be present to officiate the opening of the centre.
The centre's focus on outdoor activities will benefit not just pre-schoolers of
PCF Little Wings but those in the estate as well.
First-of-its-kind in Singapore - Bukit Timah's Purpose-Built Multi-Stations
Playground
2. A child's first six years is the development stage whereby the foundation of
knowledge is built and skills are inculcated. The immediate environment, with appropriate
games and play equipment, plays an essential role in a child's developmental years.
To a common person, a playground is a place where children swing, slide and play
until they run out of energy. But early childhood specialists in psychoanalysis,
sociology and constructivism regard the playground as a setting where children develop
their motor skills, cognitive abilities and social skills which aid the development
of self-mastery and resilience to emotional upheavals.
3. A one-of-its-kind, purpose-built multi-station playground will be built at the
new centre. The playground will be fully equipped with the latest children's play
equipment and systems that will provide a setting for children to express their
creative minds and hone their physical and social skills holistically. Refer to
Annex A for photos of the
play stations.
4. One unique feature of the playground is the Jump and Touch station. From this
physical activity of jumping and touching the bars, sensory integration will occur
subconsciously in children as they need to perceive the height of the bar for the
brain to associate this memory with their past memories of how high to jump in order
to reach it. This sensory integration is not automatic and unconscious; and without
practice, children are likely to miss the bar.
Nature Environment in Bukit Timah
5. Learning will be brought out from the classrooms to the community garden and
natural environment in Bukit Timah whereby pre-schoolers from as young as 3 years
old would be exposed to gardening skills such as planting, composting and general
tending of plants. The older age groups will be brought through a learning journey
from planting and harvesting fruits and vegetables to cooking it.
6. At the opening event, a PCF Little Wings pre-schooler will play host and guide
Minister Ng on how to build a terrarium using a container to hold small plants plucked
from the garden, and animals found in the garden. The terrarium is part of a curriculum
project, named 'Green Innovation', which was a finalist for the Ministry of Education's
(MOE) innovation grant1 for pre-schools last year.
7. "Through our outdoor learning possibilities such as gardening with senior residents,
and playground activities with peers and neighbourhood children, we could not only
develop the children's learning potential but also allow us to build a strong community
spirit in Bukit Timah." said Ms Urmila Devi D/O Mahatam Rai, Principal of PCF Little
Wings Bukit Timah Childcare Centre Blk 305.
20 January 2011
Media Release
NTUC First Campus venture into new media to attract the Z-generation with Facebook game
NTUC First Campus (NFC) launched a facebook game, called ‘Skool Dash', to give players
a taste of challenges faced by pre-school teachers in a childcare centre. Making
its debut at the Ngee Ann Polytechnic Career Fair today, Skool Dash introduces the
early childhood care and education field to a new generation of graduates in a fun
and engaging manner. NFC's revolutionary venture into using new media to attract
potential candidates demonstrates the organisation's progressiveness in keeping
up with fast-changing times.
Game with A Difference
Conceptualised by a group of early childhood care and education professionals from
NFC, Skool Dash took more than seven months to develop. The game developer worked
closely with the NFC team and spent time at our childcare centres to get first-hand
insights of a typical day in a childcare teacher's life.
Skool Dash tests players' coordination and responsive skills. It is presented in
a childcare setting with four different zones: dining, playing, studying and sleeping.
The aim of the game is to satisfy each child's needs and players will earn 'badges'
to mark their achievements. For example, the Naturally Enthusiastic Badge denotes
that a player was able to answer each child's needs in less than four seconds for
a duration of two minutes.
"For Generation Z, often referred to as the digital generation, internet is a common
place for them. Social networks and online games have become "The" way to engage
with friends. To attract and engage this group of "digital natives", we have taken
an innovative approach." said Ms Geraldine Lee, Chief Human Resource Officer, NTUC
First Campus. She continued, "We hope to bring visibility of the early childhood
care and education profession to the younger generation through our facebook game
Skool Dash. By playing the game, potential candidates can have a better understanding
of the early childhood care and education profession while having fun and be inspired
to embark on the profession."
At the game debut at the job fair, players had a go at the game and two movie tickets
was given to the top scorer at every hour interval; and the top scorer of the day
walked away with an instant camera.
You may have a go at Skool Dash at this link on facebook: http://apps.facebook.com/skool_dash/
11 January 2011
From Teacher to Principal, The First Campus Way!
11 December 2010
Media Release
Pre-schoolers doing their part to help 12,400 needy children
6-year-old pre-schoolers plan and organise charity drive to raise funds for less privileged children
December is the season of giving and 1,191 pre-schoolers at The Little Skool-House
International (LSH) are doing their part to help the less privileged children. Over
a period of two months (August – September), they have raised a total of $8,738.09
for The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund through a series of fundraising activities
planned by 361 Kindergarten 1 and 2 students. After tallying the proceeds, on 11
December 2010 at The Little Skool-House International Central Cluster Graduation
Concert, three Kindergarten 2 (K2) representatives, together with LSH Chairman,
Mr Kee Teck Koon and the Guest of Honour (GOH), Mr Baey Yam Keng, Member of Parliament
for Tanjong Pagar GRC, presented the cheque to The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund.
Little entrepreneurs with a big heart
As part of the LSH literature-based curriculum, the students from ten LSH centres
engaged in a meaningful spin-off activity from a storybook entitled "Isabel's Carwash",
which tells a story of a little girl who started her own car wash business and doubled
the initial investments that her friends made. Through the story, students learned
about the concept of money, and how money can be earned. As an extension to the
curriculum, a newspaper article on The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund was
read to the students to further illustrate how money can be used for a good cause.
After listening to the article, the students were motivated to do something to help
these needy children financially and decided to do fundraising activities for the
charity. With the facilitation of their teachers, the K1 and K2 students started
to plan and organise various events, which included food fiestas, fun fairs and
an art gallery, where they sold donated toys, self-baked cookies and self-made craftwork
to students from other classes and parents. The K2 students from LSH Ang Mo Kio
centre even staged a puppet show for parents who visited their charity event. They
took two months (August – September) to conceptualise and execute these activities.
"Our K2 students are getting ready to go to Primary 1 and therefore handling money
is something they need to know about as part of their preparation for school," said
Miss Geraldine Teo, Education Development Specialist at NTUC First Campus. She continued,
"Through this spin-off activity, we also aim to foster entrepreneurship and a community
spirit amongst our student."
Graduation ceremony
On 11 December, parents from the three central cluster centres (LSH At-OCBC-Centre,
LSH At-the-Park and LSH On-the-Hill) gathered at NTUC Centre Auditorium to witness
the graduation celebration of their children's achievements. A total of 94 Kindergarten
1 and 2 students participated in today's concert performance; out of which 51 are
graduates.
At the graduation concert, a cheque presentation ceremony was made by three K2 representatives,
together with LSH Chairman, and the GOH. A donation cheque of $8,738.09 was presented
to the representative from The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund.
23 July 2010
Media Release
Over 1,000 Preschool Educators Will Benefit
from Multi-track Career Path
NTUC First Campus' Career Theme Park Framework Realises Full Potential of Preschool Educators
1. Singapore, 23 July 2010 - NTUC First Campus Co-operative Limited (NTUC First
Campus) officially launched its Career Theme Park multi-track career framework with
its over 1,600 staff today, aptly held at the Universal Studios Singapore Theme
Park; and announced its latest cohort of preschool educators who made their mark
on multi-track career paths, including NTUC First Campus' first Mentor Teacher,
a first-of-its-kind position in the early childhood care and education (ECCE) industry.
NTUC First Campus' Chief Executive Officer Chan Tee Seng also shared the results
of the organisation's recent employee survey with all employees at the staff engagement event.
Multi-track Career Path Epitomises NTUC First Campus' People-Focused Value
2. The three career tracks that NTUC First Campus preschool educators can embark
on are the teaching, leadership, and curriculum paths. Two new positions, Mentor
Teacher and Senior Principal, are created in the teaching and leadership paths respectively;
NTUC First Campus is the first in the industry to introduce such a scheme.
3. Mentor Teachers are positive role models who are strong in teaching and possess
the aptitude to impart their knowledge and experience to younger teachers by providing
feedback and coaching them on lesson delivery and children management. Mentor Teachers
also have the opportunity to assist in the setup of centres and evaluate overall
learning programmes.
4. Ms Michelle Thomas, 28, from The Caterpillar's Cove, was promoted to be NTUC
First Campus' first Mentor Teacher. Started her career as an English Teacher in
2002, Michelle's last position was a Senior English Teacher. Delighted with her
new position, Michelle said, "My passion lies in teaching and sharing of my
experiences. I thought that a Senior Teacher is the furthest I can progress on the
teaching path. But now with this new role, I will be learning to support the professional
growth and development of teachers, especially that of beginning teachers and fresh
graduates."
5. Teachers who showed strength and interest in researching, assessing and designing
curricula, teaching materials, and educational programmes can also excel on the
curriculum path. Ms Kou Ye, 44, is one teacher who progressed from a Chinese Teacher
in 2001 to a Curriculum Officer after 11 years in the profession. As a people developer
organisation who believes in investing in employees' development and upgrading,
NTUC First Campus sponsored Ms Kou Ye for her Diploma in Pre-school Teaching and
Chinese Bachelor Degree.
6. Since 2008, NTUC First Campus has been investing steadily in staff development
and upgrading, with sponsorship and scholarship amounting to close to more than
$1.5 million from 2008 to June this year.
Staff Engagement Survey Findings Affirms NTUC First Campus as an Employer of Choice
7. NTUC First Campus, the industry's leading preschool operator, conducted an employee
survey[1] in early March this year and saw responses from over 90% of the staff.
Key findings ranked NTUC First Campus favorably as an employer of choice, particularly
in the areas of pay and rewards, and career development.
8. In the area of pay and reward, the favourable score received by NTUC First Campus
was 20 percentage points higher than Singapore National Norm[2]; and when it comes
to career development, NTUC First Campus's favourable score was 10 percentage points
higher than the Singapore National Norm too.
9. Mr Chan Tee Seng, Chief Executive Officer, NTUC First Campus said, "This
year's survey results gave a clear indication that our initiatives in raising the
pay and benefits for our early childhood professionals last year were well-received.
And this year, our focus is on helping our staff to live their aspirations by realising
their potential in areas that they have the greatest strength and interest, hence
the birth of the Career Theme Park Framework." He added, "We're very encouraged
to learn from our staff that we're on the right track, and will continue to make
early childhood a profession a career of choice and NTUC First Campus an employer
of choice."
21 June 2010
NTUC FIRST CAMPUS TO MAKE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION A CAREER OF CHOICE
• Leading pre-school operator's strategy to attract and retain talents is paying off
• Embarking on providing Structured Career Progression Opportunities and Options
for the early childhood professionals
NTUC First Campus, Singapore's largest early childhood industry player, announced
today the introduction of its structured and diverse career tracks for early childhood
professionals. This comes as the next key strategic initiative after its focus last
year on ensuring that the salary of the early childhood professional was able to
attract and retain quality talents into the industry.
"In 2009, we raised the entry pay for teachers with Diploma in Early Childhood Care
& Education – Teaching (DECCE-T) and Diploma in Early Childhood Care & Education,
Leadership (DECCE – L) to be comparable with their cohorts with Diplomas or Degrees
in other sectors. The improvement in pay has been well-received but we recognize
that job satisfaction and having good career prospects are equally important if
we are to make early childhood education a career of choice. We are creating career
options to match their aspirations and to attract more talent to build a life-long
career with us. With this, we hope to develop, recognise and retain teachers with
the potential to assume key leadership positions," said Mr Chan Tee Seng, NTUC First
Campus' Chief Executive Officer.
NTUC First Campus is opening 46 new childcare centres this year from its 54 centres
in 2009, bringing the total number of centres by the end of this year to 100. Ten
centres were opened in January 2010 and they are fully staffed with about 75% enrolment
within 6 months of opening.
Improved recruitment, retention, and quality
NTUC First Campus is confident of meeting its target of recruiting 350 new pre-school
teachers and 100 infant care teachers from now to end 2010. To date, it has secured
70% of the critical positions needed for these new centres. On-going efforts are
in place to fill the remaining positions.
More early childhood education professionals are keen to stay on and build their
careers with the industry leader, as efforts to recognize and groom staff bear fruit.
The attrition rate has dropped by a third, from 30% in 2008 to 20% in 2009. Despite
the large number of new hires in 2010, NTUC First Campus aims to maintain its retention rates.
Professionals and graduates are seeing NTUC First Campus as their employer of choice.
In the second half of 2010, some 85 candidates who have undergone the Professional
Conversion Programme funded by SPURS, and supported by MCYS, will join NTUC First
Campus, after completing a 12 month accelerated programme in Professional Diploma
in Early Childhood Care and Education (PDECCE). These mid-career entrants have Diploma
or Degree qualifications from local and overseas institutions and prior experience
in other industries before they switched to be early childhood professionals. This
year, of the cohort of 62 graduates from the Wheelock Bachelor of Science Degree
Programme, 24 of them (or four in ten) are joining NTUC First Campus. The graduates
from the Wheelock Bachelor of Science Programme are generally recognized as the
cream of the crop among the pre-service group of students entering the early childhood field.
"We are very gratified to be able to attract more people to join the early childhood
profession, and in particular, NTUC First Campus. They join us because they have
a strong passion to work with young children. In the last two years, we have made
the pay and benefits better and more competitive. But beyond passion and pay, we
must make early childhood a meaningful career, and let people grow with us. This
is our focus for the next phase of our development and we will announce a series
of initiatives to our staff next month", said Mr Chan.
Career Tracks provides wide career opportunities and development
By offering multiple career tracks, opportunities for cross-track movement and new
specialized roles, the social enterprise will be the industry's first to provide
such wide career options and advancement opportunities for early childhood education
professionals on the teaching, specialist and leadership tracks. It also aims to
generate greater interest for Singapore's early childhood education profession.
Strengthening teacher and leadership development is the "people" extension of its
growth strategy as NTUC First Campus seeks to address an industry-wide manpower
shortage. It will introduce new roles in the industry such as Mentor Teacher and
Senior Principal. What used to be the pinnacle for teachers as Senior Teachers backed
by skills and experience, the progression to Mentor Teacher which are for teachers
who are good role models and strong in teaching, opens up a whole new level of contribution
for teachers. They have the opportunity of leading in learning centre set-up, advise
and evaluate overall learning programmes and provide advice and feedback to teachers
on lesson delivery and children management.
"We want to provide our professionals a career in this field where they can grow.
LIVE! Your Aspirations in the ‘Land Of Possibilities' in First Campus opens up choices
to staff, ‘rides they are comfortable to take'. They can stay and do well as a teacher
or they might want to be on an accelerated path of development as a curriculum specialist,
take up a role in HQ or a leadership role as a Principal and even as a lecturer
in SEED Institute," said Mrs Geraldine Lee, its Chief Human Resource Officer.
With the career tracks and job roles defined, staff will be assessed and developed
on the competencies. Staff can plan and be prepared for these roles in advance.
Grow With Us Program
NTUC First Campus has designed a program specifically to groom experienced early
childhood teachers into Principals. The six-month program – "Grow With Us" - will
roll out in August 2010. To date, it has received 74 applications. Applicants went
through a rigorous selection process including ability tests, case studies and panel
interview with portfolio presentations. The program will equip these experienced
early childhood teachers with business and leadership skills through group strategy
sessions, applied workshops, case discussions and life applications as a Principal
at the centre. This program is made available to existing teachers with NTUC First
Campus and external experienced early childhood teachers who aspire to become Principals.
NTUC First Campus will require 40 new Principals by end 2010. A similar programme
for experienced teachers to become mentor teachers will be introduced soon.
To celebrate and launch its new initiatives, a staff event will be held on 23 July
2010 at Universal Studios to signify the opportunities within NTUC First Campus
as a career theme park. Details of the initiatives will be shared with the 1,500
staff, and team-bonding games and activities held in line with the "Career Theme Park" concept.
15 April 2010
(Click here for more information)
15 January 2010
NTUC First Campus raises quality of local infant care services through health care partnerships.
Memorandum of Understanding with National University Hospital marks the first local
infant care collaboration.
Parents at NTUC First Campus' child care centres will soon have an added level of
assurance when it comes to their infants' holistic development.
NTUC First Campus, Singapore's largest child care service provider, announced two
major collaborations today:
• A partnership with the National University Hospital (NUH). NUH's University Children's
Medical Institute (UCMI) and Dietetics Department will jointly develop a new infant
care programme and enhance the training programme for infant care teachers islandwide.
• Separately, NTUC First Campus will also work with a network of retired nurses
to enhance its infant care services.
The collaborations are part of NTUC First Campus' strategic direction to raise the
bar for its infant care services since the social enterprise accelerated its expansion
plans last year. Among its network of 68 pre-school centres, 27 currently offer
infant care services. NTUC First Campus expects to double its infant care centres
to 50 by the year's end.
NTUC First Campus and NUH to raise infant care standard for its pre-school brands
as well as the early childhood education industry
The announcements were made at a ceremony today where NTUC First Campus and NUH
signed a Memorandum of Understanding to mark their partnership. This local partnership,
the first to be formalised in Singapore, brings together the combined expertise
of a leading early childhood institution, and a major health care institution.
"The developmental years of a child are crucial and through this collaboration,
we hope to give these children a head-start in life by enhancing the overall standard
and quality of early childhood health and education", said Mr Joe Sim, NUH's Chief Executive Officer.
Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the partnership consists of two main areas:
i. New centre-based infant care programme in NTUC First Campus' infant care centres
NTUC First Campus will develop a new infant care programme in consultation with
NUH's UCMI and Dietetics departments for their medical expertise. The team will
develop a new infant care programme designed to foster positive parent-teacher-child
relationships and holistic development of infant– including areas such as health,
safety, nutrition, physical, social, emotional, language and mental development.
Professionals from both NTUC First Campus and NUH will jointly review and design
daily routines and activities for infants according to their developmental stages.
They will also develop assessment tools and guides to help the teachers to address
the holistic development of infants.
Infant care teachers will undergo training to equip them with the knowledge and
skills to implement the new programme, and learn how to better share and help parents
understand their infants' developmental milestones. The UCMI doctors will also conduct
scheduled health checks for the infants and extend the UCMI's educational talks
and programmes to the parents.
The new infant-care programme will be gradually implemented in NTUC First Campus'
network of child-care centres from mid this year. It will start with the Little
Skool House International's centres, followed by My First Skool's pre-schools with
infant care services.
ii. Enhanced training programme for Singapore's infant care teachers under NTUC's SEED Institute
NTUC's SEED Institute will work with NUH to enhance the syllabus for the Certificate
in Infant and Toddler Care and Development (CIT) programme[1]. SEED Institute will
offer the new CIT programme from mid-2010.
SEED Institute's lecturers will work with NUH's dieticians, doctors and nurses to
co-deliver relevant programme modules, including infants' growth and development
milestones, nutritional needs and child safety, to provide infant care teachers
with more relevant and up-to-date information in medical care and paediatrics. Infant
care teachers will be better able to monitor the overall progress of the infants
and toddlers and understand childhood diseases more deeply.
Said Associate Professor Daniel Goh, Head of Department of Paediatrics, University
Children's Medical Institute, National University Hospital, "Apart from bringing
the best treatments to sick children, UCMI also focuses on early detection and intervention
as well as facilitating and enabling optimal child health through education and
disease prevention. Our collaboration with NTUC First Campus is very much in line
with our vision which is to shape children's health for the future. We hope to be
able to impact a large sector of our young in Singapore, the future of our nation."
Dr Melinda Eng, NTUC First Campus' Senior Advisor, Curriculum added, "Fostering
positive relationships and experiences will help young children perform and relate
better to others. This partnership will enhance our infant-care teachers' awareness
of the latest health care knowledge, enabling greater objectivity when gauging infants'
progression towards developmental milestones. This awareness will also help them
plan programmes that best support the infants' growth and development."
Tapping on Retired Nurses' expertise and experience
NTUC First Campus will also tap on a pool of retired nurses with a wealth of expertise
and practical experience in caring for infants. In consideration of its pre-school
brands' scale, two implementation approaches have been adopted:
• My First Skool - System of Health & Safety practices for its network
As Child Health Advocates, retired nurses will work with My First Skool's principals
and infant care teachers to evaluate, enhance and put in place best practices in
health, safety and care. A pilot project in 3 infant care centres: Toa Payoh, Ang
Mo Kio and Yew Tee are in progress. The practices to be implemented will gradually
be introduced to the rest of its pre-schools.
• The Little Skool-House International – On-site support
A pilot has begun in two centres, since December 2009, to include retired trained
nurse onsite, as part of the infant care team. As Infant Care and Health Officer,
the nurse works with the infant care teachers in providing care to the infants,
give health and safety advice and share knowledge relating to the provision of care
to the infant care givers including parents. Initial response from parents has been
positive.
Mr Chan Tee Seng, NTUC First Campus' Chief Executive Officer said: "Caring for infants
is not only labour-intensive but a very heavy and onerous responsibility. NTUC First
Campus is committed to provide the best care and developmental opportunities for
children. As demand for our infant care services grow, it is critical that our teachers
are better equipped with the skills, knowledge, and expertise to give parents greater
confidence, and ensure the best care for their infants."
14 September 2009
More training opportunities and resources for early childhood education professionals
NTUC's SEED Institute supports the pre-school industry to become
Bigger, Better and Faster
Singapore's leading Early Childhood Education training institute, NTUC's SEED Institute,
will offer more resources and quality upgrading opportunities to Singapore's expanding
pre-school teacher pool. NTUC's SEED Institute, formerly known as the Regional Training
and Resource Centre in Early Childhood Care and Education for Asia (RTRC Asia),
made these announcements today as it opened its expanded premises. Labour Chief
and Minister, Prime Minister's Office, Mr Lim Swee Say graced the occasion as its Guest-of-Honour.
With the launch, SEED Institute will set up five Centres of Excellence to support
the early childhood education industry, currently preparing for a quantum change
following the Government's plans announced last year. The five centres are:
- Centre for Research and Best Practices,
- Centre for Continuous Professional Development,
- Centre for Higher Education,
- Centre for Professional Qualifications, and
- the Office for Regional Partnership.
Meeting the industry's needs by getting Bigger
"With the Government's plans to set up 200 new centres by 2011, and have more highly
qualified pre-school teachers, NTUC's SEED Institute has grown Bigger to support
this goal. We have doubled our capacity to 1,000 new student enrolments annually,"
said Mr Lim Swee Say, Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress.
Such rapid expansion in capacity will not be possible without a correspondingly
bigger group of lecturers. NTUC's SEED Institute hopes to build a sustainable pipeline
of quality and highly professional lecturers to meet the growth in demand for quality
teachers, and will invest $1.5million over the next three years in Masters Scholarships,
tenable at both local and top overseas Universities.
Helping Pre-school teachers become Better
Faced with the evolving needs and increasing demands of parents, many teachers now
aspire to continually upgrade their skills and keep their knowledge relevant. The
Centre for Continuous Professional Development will help to meet this need. By offering
short professional upgrading courses for teachers, the Centre hopes to enable pre-school
teachers to remain up-to-date with the latest pedagogical knowledge and practices,
and continually hone their knowledge and skills as teachers. These courses will
be developed using the Workforce Skills Qualifications framework, and funded by
the Singapore Workforce Development Authority. The first programmes will be launched
at the beginning of next year, and will focus on Mentoring, and Delivering Family
Development Programmes.
Enabling Faster adoption of best practices and innovative ideas
Going beyond the training of early childhood education professionals, SEED Institute
also intends to conduct research in the local early childhood education field. These
will be done through its newly established Centre for Research and Best Practices.
Through this centre, SEED Institute aims to advocate a culture of research amongst
the early childhood practitioners
"As the pioneer and leader in training early childhood professionals, RTRC Asia
has been the industry's choice training institute for 20 years. Having been the
pioneer of many Firsts – First Masters, First Diploma, First regional train-the-trainers
programme for early childhood education, First Local early childhood education degree
– we hope to continue to pioneer and innovate programmes to provide the support
and resources needed by operators and teachers alike, to understand and teach young
children more effectively," said Ms Ho Yin Fong, SEED Institute's Academic Director.
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