To be On Task at My Task

On Saturday 18 September, the 5 of us managed to get online on MSN and began a rather thrilling session of chatting with one another. At one juncture, it kind of degenerated to something akin to a marketplace as all of us seemed to be talking at the same time, and no one appeared to be 'listening' (read: reading)! I found it amusing as it reminded me of a typical classroom situation! We teachers can shout ourselves hoarse as our pupils are engaged in their own conversations.

After the initial hitches and glitches, we settled in comfortably in one another's virtual company. However, albeit reluctantly, I had some pressing matters to see to and took my leave of MSN early.

My contribution to the group synergy has to do with TSLN, I&E and NE.

After some reading and researching, these are some of the things I've learnt:

1. Towards THINKING SCHOOLS: The concept of THINKING SCHOOLS is central to this vision. Schools must develop future generations of thinking and committed citizens, capable of making good decisions to keep Singapore vibrant and successful in future.

2. Towards a LEARNING NATION: We will make Singapore a LEARNING NATION, that goes beyond schools and educational institutions.

3. People - teachers and pupils - with a strong spirit of I&E possess a mindset and outlook of creativity, initiative and self-reliance. They possess the following core attributes:

• Intellectual curiosity (eg. to question assumptions, explore and experiment) and ability to see things in new ways (eg. to recognise patterns and make connections)
• Passion, strength of character, persistence, resilience and ruggedness
• Courage to live with ambiguity (eg. to seek alternative pathways) and to take calculated risks
• Sense of teamwork and ‘giving back’ to the community

4. NE - I am still contemplating on whether this is much more than a mere infusion of NE values with Math concepts (eg. measuring the length and breadth of a standard Singapore flag and finding its area, and talking about patroticism towards our nation).