What is homeschooling and what are children doing during school closures in Singapore? There are a wide variety of home learning approaches – highly structured that mirror school with lots of work and a detailed curriculum from online learning.
Online learning has become the corner stone of education for millions of kids around the world since February 2020. As a result digital learning management systems, communication tools and e-learning platforms are playing a crucial role during this pandemic. With the help of software and apps, teachers are help to manage, plan, deliver and track their students learning process. Students are also using Google Meet; Google Hangout and Google Classroom.
Here’s what e – learning looks like for students in Singapore.
United World College South East Asia
At UWCSEA, e-learning starts from the top with the Infant School. They do not generally have assigned home learning. Parents receive post on the Seesaw app from their class teacher about the learning tasks.
In the Junior School, Seesaw is also used. Teachers post weekly home learning tasks and deadlines and parents can access via mobile device or computer. Students also post to their individual learning journal via Seesaw which allows parents to view their child's progress.
Middle and High School students (Grade 6-12) utilise the Online Learning Platform (OLP, also known as Teamie) where there are sites for each of their classes. There they are able to access homework assignments and deadlines, resources related to their lessons, and engage with their teacher and classmates for interactive learning activities and discussions.
Tanglin Trust School
Since moving to remote learning in March, Tanglin Trust School has worked hard to ensure students are motivated and engaged in learning, and that they and their families feel well supported by its staff. A recent parent survey was overwhelmingly positive, with 79% of Tanglin parents agreeing the current structure is right for their child and more than three-quarters ranking teachers’ instructions as good or excellent.
The structure of remote learning is tailored to the age and stage of each child and therefore varies between the Infant, Junior and Senior schools. To help families with children in the Infant and Junior Schools plan their days, a suggested daily timetable with recommended activities is sent out to parents the previous afternoon. Students use the school’s online platform to submit work and see feedback from their teachers. Virtual circle time and lessons in small groups help students to feel connected to their teachers and their classmates, and ease feelings of isolation. Senior School students, meanwhile, register with their teachers each morning and have a daily timetable of either five or six lessons to follow. Students are given the work in advance, with teachers on hand during the lesson to support and stretch where necessary.
The pastoral system remains a strong feature of Tanglin education, and the school is continuing to ensure each child is fully supported during this challenging period and beyond by contacting families who may be particularly affected.
Here is a parent’s perspective of remote learning at Tanglin:
“I have a son in the Senior School, a daughter in the Junior School and a daughter in the Infant School, so I am well positioned to observe the various approaches. First, each of the schools seemed extremely well prepared to move to remote learning, evidenced by the packs of information that came home with the children [before the Easter break]. Second, I have been hugely impressed with the amount and quality of educational resources available online that Tanglin has directed students to, as well as the children's ability to easily communicate with their teachers. Third, I have been surprised by my children’s determination to stick to a timetable every day, which I imagine has been impressed on them by the school. Well done.”
UPDATE ON SCHOOL CLOSURES IN SINGAPORE
On June 2nd, Singapore children returned to school after nearly two months.
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