ICT Masterplanning for Education: Singapore's Experience

1. ICT Masterplanning for Education: Singapore's Experience Dr. Thiam-Seng KOH Director, Educational Technology Singapore Ministry of Education 20 June 2006

2. Presentation Outline • Video on Use of ICT in Singapore Schools • Historical Perspective of IT Use in Education • First IT Masterplan in Education • Second IT Masterplan in Education • Key Learning Points for Policy Formulation

3. National IT Plans e-Government Use of IT in Education Late 1970’s - Computer Appreciation Clubs as extra-curricular activities. 1980’s - Computer assisted learning in primary school mathematics. Computer Science (1981) and Computer Applications (1994) as subjects in the curriculum. Mid-1995’s – Pilot projects on use of IT in education. Civil Service Computerisation Programme (1980 – 1999) Computerisation … Communications … Connectivity/Content First Masterplan for IT in Education (1997 – 2002) e-Government Action Plan (2000 – 2003) Convergence Connected Singapore (2003 – 2006) Infocomm 21 (2000 – 2003) The National IT Plan (1986 – 1991) The National Computerisation Plan (1980 – 1985) IT2000 (1992 – 1999) e-Government Action Plan II (2003 – 2006) Connectedness Second Masterplan for IT in Education (2003 – 2007) e-Government Action Plan III (2006 –) Creation … Intelligent Nation 2015 (2006 –) Historical Perspective Source: http://www.ida.gov.sg

4. Historical Perspective • Late 1970s – Introduce the use of micro- computers by students in computer appreciation clubs as extra-curricular activities at schools. • 1981 – Introduce Computer Science as a subject in the A level curriculum. • 1994 – Introduce Computer Applications, a skills-based subject in the secondary Normal (Technical) curriculum.

5. Historical Perspective • 1980’s – Explore the use of computer assisted learning in primary school mathematics. • Mid-1995’s – Pilot the use of IT in teaching and learning • Accelerating the Use of IT in Primary Schools (AITP) project: Use of multimedia and computers in 6 primary schools. • Students’ & Teachers’ Workbench (STW) project: Use of networked digital resources in lower secondary science in 6 secondary schools. • JCNet: Use of Internet to support learning of GP, Physics and Chemistry in 2 Junior Colleges.

6. Philosophy ofFirst IT Masterplan (mp1) Educationshouldcontinuallyanticipatethefutureneedsofsocietyand worktowardsfulfillingthese needs.

7. mp1 4 Overaching Goals

8. Goal 1 Goal 2 Goal 3 Goal 4

9. Goal 1 Goal 2 Goal 3 Goal 4

10. Goal 1 Goal 2 Goal 3 Goal 4

11. Goal 1 Goal 2 Goal 3 Goal 4 Promote administrative and management excellence

16. Start-up Provisions for Student-to-Computer Ratio Primary Schools – 6.6:1 Secondary Schools – 5:1 Target = up to 30% of curriculum time using IT.

17. In computer labs In classrooms In science labs In the library

19. Technical Support for Schools • A full time Technology Assistant (TA) for each school • To provide first-level on-site support

21. Achievements of mp1 • Standard physical and technological infrastructure to support teaching and learning with IT. • Teachers attained basic proficiency in integrating IT into the curriculum. • R&D efforts with academia and industry e.g. EduPAD, Digital Media Repository & ScienceAlive • Pockets of excellence in the use of IT in learning among some teachers and in some schools.

22. Second IT Masterplan (mp2) • Consolidate and build on the achievements of the First IT Masterplan. • Sustain the momentum. • Bring the use of IT in learning to greater heights.

23. Philosophy ofSecond IT Masterplan (mp2) Educationshouldcontinuallyanticipatethefutureneedsofsocietyand worktowardsfulfillingthese needs.

24. Vision of mp2 IT will be pervasively and effectively used to enhance educational processes and structures to help realize the ability-driven education paradigm.

25. IT to support existing curriculum Mainly print content & CD-ROM courseware Standard provisions Teacher-centered Basic competencies One size fits all, phased approach Seamless integration of IT into curriculum Dynamic & interactive digital content Flexible provisions Student-centered Range of competencies Mass customization, greater ownership & autonomy Today vs Tomorrow

26. Some Learning Points • Address the fundamental issues in education first before introducing ICT across the system e.g. appropriate curricula and good teachers. • Take a systemic and systematic approach to IT implementation in the schools i.e. infrastructure, curriculum & assessment, content and professional development.

27. Some Learning Points • Address the cultural or people dimension of IT implementation to transform the educational experiences rather than just doing faster of more of the same. • Ensure alignment of intent and interests among key stakeholders (e.g. policy makers, parents, teachers, students, academics, industry, etc.)

28. Some Learning Points • Take a multi-disciplinary and multi-partnership approach to push the frontiers on the use of IT in learning. • Avoid spreading resources too thinly by distributing them equitably in the beginning of the implementation.

29. Some Learning Points • Use the centralized approach to kick-start the implementation process but move on to providing top-down support for ground-up initiatives when the system achieve some level of maturity of implementation. • Continue to learn from other countries to generate ideas and adapt good practices into the local curricula.

30. Challenges Ahead • Sustaining professional development of teachers and school leaders. • Changing beliefs through “success stories” • Achieving reforms through communities of practice • Building capacity and strengthening expertise in technology planning • Building capacity in digital resource development by teachers

31. Challenges Ahead • Exploiting the potentials of emerging technologies in the consumer space and IT-based pedagogies. • Scaling up research findings to impact classroom practices.

32. References • Singapore EduMALL (http://www.moe.gov.sg/edumall/) • British Educational Communications & Technology Agency (http://www.becta.org.uk/) • World Bank: ICT and Education • UNESCO: ICT in Education (http://www.unescobkk.org/index.php?id=494)

33. mp2 mapping possibilities Thank you