Charlene Tan

Creating thinking schools through ‘Knowledge and Inquiry’: the curriculum challenges for Singapore

The importance of thinking skills in Singapore was seen in the launch of the ‘Thinking Schools, Learning Nation’ (TSLN) vision in 1997. This vision aims to develop creative thinking skills, a lifelong passion for learning and nationalistic commitment in the young. In elucidating the concept of ‘thinking schools’ the former Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, stressed the urgency for Singapore schools to nurture thinking and for committed citizens to keep Singapore vibrant and successful in the future. A recent effort to teach critical thinking skills is seen in the revised ‘Junior College’ curriculum which aims at developing thinking skills, and nurturing the skills, spirit and values required for Singaporeans to thrive in a more globalized, innovation-driven future (Ministry of Education, 2002). The government in Singapore announced that a new GCE A level subject, ‘Knowledge and Inquiry’ (KI) will be introduced from 2006. This article focuses on the teaching and learning of critical thinking through KI. By examining the objectives as spelled out in the syllabus, the article identifies and discusses the curriculum challenges in the governments attempt to create thinking schools through KI from 2006 onwards.

Globalisation, the Singapore state and educational reforms: towards performativity

In response to the challenges of globalisation, the Singapore government has introduced an array of neo-liberal educational strategies to promote two goals: (a) greater diversity and choice in the educational landscape; and (b) greater autonomy and innovation at the school level. This article argues that the Singapore government uses the tactic of performativity as a means of state control even as it implements an education policy of decentralisation. Accompanying the strategies to deregulate the education system are processes of reregulation introduced by the government to monitor and influence the thinking and behaviour of key educational stakeholders. What makes the case of Singapore interesting in the international literature is that it illustrates the tactical changes made by a small and ‘vulnerable’ state in Asia in an era of globalisation and convergence of educational reforms.

Community of practice for teachers: sensemaking or critical reflective learning?

While collaborative learning among teachers is encouraged and practised in many schools today, the process of learning through ‘communities of practice’ may involve ‘sensemaking’ rather than critical reflective learning. This paper argues that sensemaking in a community of practice utilises a restricted form of reflective learning that is largely technical in nature and confined to immediate practice concerns. It is further argued that the quality of learning will be significantly enhanced by encouraging practitioners to engage in critical reflective learning where reflection is implicit and intuitive in nature, and general and contextual in scope and object.

The culture of education policy making: curriculum reform in Shanghai

This paper explores the culture of education policy making in Shanghai using the conceptual tool of a ‘global assemblage’. A global assemblage is essentially a collection of ideas and practices that arise from the interplay between a global form and situated sociocultural elements. Focusing on the global form of curriculum reform, this paper explains how the Shanghai municipal government justifies the introduction of the ‘Second Curriculum Reform’ using the global imperative while maintaining its socialist ideology and central control on high-stakes exams. This paper highlights the active roles played by the municipal government and other local educational stakeholders in assembling their own logics, tactics and counter-measures in the contested space of the assemblage. It is argued that the success of the curriculum reform is mediated and vitiated by the sociocultural elements of a dominant exam-oriented culture and the traditional approaches of memorisation, repeated practice and didactic teaching. The complex and unpredictable process of implementing curriculum reform in Shanghai illustrates the culture of education policy making against a backdrop of globalisation as a problem space.

The Singapore Global Schoolhouse: An analysis of the development of the tertiary education landscape in Singapore

Purpose – This paper seeks to analyse the Singapore governments recent attempt to make Singapore a “Global Schoolhouse” by transforming its tertiary education sector. It aims to examine the governments attempt to promote greater diversity and autonomy in the tertiary education landscape; it also aims to examine the governments systems of state funding and accountability for the tertiary education sector.Design/methodology/approach – The paper utilises a policy analysis approach to examine the development of the “Global Schoolhouse” in Singapore. In particular, it examines a case study of the setting up and subsequent sudden pull‐out of the University of New South Wales Asia (UNSW Asia) to highlight the increasing challenge faced by the government in this undertaking.Findings – Despite the governments promotion of greater diversity and autonomy in the tertiary education landscape, the government maintains centralised control through systems of accountability to, and funding from, the state. The case st...

Creating ‘good citizens’ and maintaining religious harmony in Singapore

This article discusses how the concept of ‘good citizens’ in Singapore is linked to the principle of harmony, characterised by collectivism and a strong interventionist government. The value of religious harmony is actively promoted by the Singapore government and supported by the religious leaders. This article argues that the principle of religious harmony helps to ensure that there are relative peace and tolerance among the various religious communities. But with religious revivalism and continual terrorist threats from some Islamist groups, it has become increasingly difficult for religious believers in Singapore to balance their national and religious identities, loyalties and duties. The on‐going challenge for the Singapore government is to promote a conception of ‘good citizens’ that takes into consideration the multiplicity and complexity of religion and citizenship.

Islam and citizenship education in Singapore challenges and implications

The religious diversity of Singapore, coupled with the current phenomenon of Islamic revivalism, makes the management of religion a paramount concern for the Singapore government. By examining the developments of Islam in Singapore, this article explores the challenges and implications these developments have on citizenship education in the country. This article argues that there is a need for a form of citizenship education in Singapore that takes into consideration the multiplicity, complexity and intersection of religion and citizenship. It is further argued that what is needed is not just socialization into a particular state-sanctioned set of values and views, but an awareness and appreciation of the different religions, especially Islam. The Singapore experience provides a useful case study on the issues and challenges faced by the governments and citizens of plural societies in the midst of Islamic revivalism.

Education policy borrowing in China: has the West wind overpowered the East wind?

Recent education reform in China reflects the global trend of education policy borrowing from Anglophone countries such as the USA. The reform in China essentially advocates shifting from knowledge reproduction and didacticism to knowledge construction by students through a learner-centredness approach. Aware of the trend of borrowing policy from ‘Western’ countries, some educators in China use the proverb ‘the West wind has overpowered the East wind’ to describe this phenomenon. This paper examines the cultural factors that influence education policy borrowing in China by drawing upon Johnson’s metaphors of the ‘politics of selling’ and the ‘politics of gelling’. This paper argues that there exist fundamental cultural differences between Western and Chinese perspectives on the nature and transmission of knowledge that make education policy transfer in China challenging. This paper further proposes that China borrow education policy judiciously by integrating foreign and indigenous sources of knowledge, teaching and learning.

Framing educational success: a comparative study of Shanghai and Singapore

In the light of the global trends towards international assessment, inter-country comparison and policy convergence, this article critically discusses the contextual factors that influence educational success in Shanghai and Singapore. Focussing on the structural and cultural frames, this article maintains that the educational achievement in Shanghai and Singapore is due primarily to heavy governmental investment and intervention in education as evident in recent education reforms, coupled with the sociocultural values of a utilitarian and technocratic view of education and strong community support for academic excellence. This article further argues that the cultural frame has posed a challenge to the policymakers’ vision to promote a more holistic, experiential and creative form of teaching and learning that goes beyond summative and written assessment. The case studies of Shanghai and Singapore illustrate the need for policymakers and educators to consider the impact of local conditions, values and con...

For group, (f)or self: communitarianism, Confucianism and values education in Singapore

Values education in Asian societies is commonly underpinned by an ideology of communitarianism that seeks to promote the needs and interests of ‘others’ over the ‘self’. An example of an Asian country that promotes communitarian values through its values education curriculum is Singapore. By reviewing the moral and citizenship education curricula in Singapore, the present article points out that the accent is on ‘others’ rather than the ‘self’. Noting that communitarianism has often been linked to Confucian values in Asian societies, this article offers a Confucian viewpoint of the self and moral self-cultivation. It further argues for a form of values education that balances the ‘self’ with ‘others’ through active learning, self-reflection and self-evaluation. The Singapore experience provides a useful case study on the influence of communitarianism and the potential of Confucianism on values education in an Asian context.