The Singapore School and the School Excellence Model     

Ng Pak Tee 《Educational Research for Policy and Practice》2003,2(1):27-39

Nation', schools in Singapore are now asked to develop themselves into excellent schools. To support this change, the way that schools are being appraised has been changed since 2000. The school today is asked to do self-appraisal using the new School Excellence Model (SEM), which is adapted from a business excellence model. This article discusses the SEM, its major implications to the leadership and management of schools in Singapore and the areas still to be addressed in the implementation of the model. In particular, school leaders should focus on the substance and not the form of the SEM, be systemic in their approach to quality improvement in schools and truly lead the way by being the first believing and practicing member of this movement. Key Words: excellence, leadership, quality, school, self-appraisal  相似文献   

The Si Huan Playgroup: an initiative to provide non-formal early childhood education experiences to children of migrants in Beijing     

Berenice Nyland  Chris Nyland  Yang Gao  Josephine Ng  Xiaodong Zeng 《Asia Pacific Journal of Education》2016,36(3):319-331

This paper is about an experiment in non-formal early childhood education for migrant children in Beijing. The Si Huan Playgroup was set up by a group of volunteers in 2004 and is built on ideas of early childhood pedagogy, equity, life-long learning and non-formal education. Non-formal education has implications for policy makers as this is a model that has the potential to build capacity in disadvantaged communities and provide educational experiences for preschool children. The model, as envisaged by the participants of the Si Huan Playgroup, is a provider of preschool education, operates on a volunteer basis that aims to be an educational experience for both the volunteer parents and the children. The playgroup operates alongside existing preschools in the formal education sector. Policy makers in Beijing can see tensions around the growth of a sector that is developing outside regulatory and legislative guidelines. The Si Huan playgroup has been closed down by the authorities a number of times. In this paper we outline the history and growth of the Si Huan Playgroup, explore the theoretical underpinnings of non-formal education and discuss the problems inherent in such an initiative, as well as commenting on the sustainability of such a model.  相似文献   

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Services for Young Children with Disabilities Using the ACEI Global Guidelines Assessment (GGA)     

Belinda J. Hardin  Hsuan-Fang Hung 《Early Childhood Education Journal》2011,39(2):103-114

Because young children with special needs frequently experience unequal access to quality education worldwide, understanding characteristics of services currently provided to them is critical to identifying practices that work as well as gaps in services and the reasons behind these trends. Two studies were conducted using the ACEI Global Guidelines Assessment (GGA) to investigate the access to and quality of special education services in early childhood care and education (ECCE) programs across eight countries in the Americas and Asia. Study I included 138 participants in 69 programs across five Latin American countries and Study II included 336 participants in 168 programs across four countries and six sites. Results from both studies indicate that ECCE programs strive to provide equal access to young children regardless of ethnicity, religion, language, gender, and socio-economic status. However, insufficient resources and policies were cited as a barrier to services for children with disabilities. This situation was especially true in rural communities. Therefore, national policies are needed to improve the quality of service and to make funds consistently available for services for young children with special needs. This finding is congruent with international reports.  相似文献   

The ecology of human growth and sustainable societal development: contributions from educational research and innovations (APERA conference 2010)     

Pak Tee Ng 《Educational Research for Policy and Practice》2011,10(1):73-74

  相似文献   

A case study of teacher appraisal in Shanghai, China: in relation to teacher professional development   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Xiao Feng Zhang  Ho Ming Ng 《Asia Pacific Education Review》2011,12(4):569-580

Literature has confirmed that teacher appraisal can and should facilitate the professional development of teachers. In the past, teacher appraisal in China has been conducted mainly for administrative purposes; nowadays, it is increasingly being viewed as a means of teacher professional development. However, the way in which teacher appraisal affects teacher professional development has not been fully recognized. This case study, of a junior secondary school in Shanghai, China, explores how teacher appraisal has been carried out and how teachers and administrators have perceived it in relation to teacher professional development. The research findings identify the mechanism by which the teacher appraisal system in question facilitates professional development. The system creates pressure and extrinsic incentives that ‘push and pull’ teachers to improve, and supports their growth through guidance and directions. In addition, environmental factors such as school culture contribute to the positive impacts that teacher appraisal has on professional development.  相似文献   

大学图书馆在推行通识教育课程中的角色——以香港中文大学新亚书院通识教育为例   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

马辉洪 《图书馆论坛》2011,31(4)

文章介绍香港中文大学通识教育概况,以其新亚书院的通识教育的课程策划、教学活动及馆藏发展,阐述新亚书院钱穆图书馆如何融入通识教育课程开展服务.  相似文献   

Caution: The use of an electromagnetic device to measure trunk kinematics on rowing ergometers     

Leo Ng  Angus Burnett  Amity Campbell  Peter O'Sullivan 《Sports biomechanics / International Society of Biomechanics in Sports》2013,12(3):255-259

The aim of the study was to determine the accuracy and variability of an electromagnetic device in measuring spinal kinematics on a traditional and replica rowing ergometer. Kinematic data collected from the 3-Space Fastrak^TM system using a Standard Concept II ergometer were compared with a replica ergometer that was in part, composed of non-ferrous materials (modified ergometer). The Fastrak's sensors were fixed to a wooden “spine” with known angles (as measured by an inclinometer). The mean inclinometer angle from four sensors (1 ± 0.2°) was significantly different than the mean angle recorded on the standard ergometer ( ? 5.4 ± 3.4°) (p = 0.007) whilst the angles recorded on the modified ergometer (1.4 ± 0.8°) were statistically equivalent to the inclinometer recordings (p = 0.660). These results indicate that the presence of ferrous material in a standard ergometer reduced the accuracy and increased the variability of data collected with the electromagnetic device. However, information collected on largely non-ferrous ergometers can provide coaches, biomechanists and clinicians with a quick and effective way to measure trunk kinematics during ergometer rowing.  相似文献   

Is Singapore’s Education System the Fourth Way in Action? (ERPP Issue 11.1)     

Ee Ling Low  Pak Tee Ng 《Educational Research for Policy and Practice》2012,11(1):5-6

  相似文献   

Online activities of urban Malaysian adolescents: report of a pilot study     

Kok Eng Tan  Melissa Ng Lee Yen Abdullah  Kim Guan Saw 《Literacy》2012,46(1):33-39

The literacy practices of many communities today show new ways of meaning making in the contemporary, technological and digital culture. A number of Malaysian adolescents belong to this culture. This pilot study reports the preliminary findings of a larger study aimed at describing the online activities of Malaysian adolescents. Fifty‐four participants from an urban secondary school in Penang took part in this study. One finding showed that the percentages of language use on the Internet were: 80.6 per cent in English, 10.6 per cent in Bahasa Malaysia and 8.8 per cent in Chinese. In addition, the study also revealed some common websites that these adolescents frequented. The findings point to the need to investigate the extent of these online literacy practices beyond school among the adolescent population in Malaysia and to look into the implications for ESL education.  相似文献   

Creating thinking schools through authentic assessment: the case in Singapore     

Kim H. Koh  Charlene Tan  Pak Tee Ng 《Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability》2012,24(2):135-149

Using Singapore as an example, we argue that schools need to equip and encourage teachers to adopt authentic assessment in teaching and learning so as to develop the students’ higher-order thinking. The importance of teaching and assessing higher-order thinking in Singapore classrooms is encapsulated in the vision of ‘Thinking Schools’ launched by the Ministry of Education in 1997. Underpinning this vision is a shift from conventional assessment to authentic assessment. Unlike conventional paper-and-pencil tests that focus on knowledge reproduction and low-level cognitive processing skills in artificial, contrived contexts, authentic assessment tasks underscore knowledge construction, complex thinking, elaborated communication, collaboration and problem solving in authentic contexts. However, the creation of thinking schools in Singapore remains a constant challenge as many teachers tend to rely on conventional assessment and are often ill-prepared to implement authentic assessment. By presenting the findings from a recent empirical study, we propose that schools build teacher capacity by providing ongoing and sustained professional development on authentic assessment for teachers.  相似文献