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Singapore Ministry of Education look at Project Based Learning

15/06/2012

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Following a tour of the learning spaces, the Singapore visitors had an opportunity to speak one-on-one with a group of Years 9 and 10 students

Ms Tham Yoke Chun (middle) and Mdm Adeline Chong (right) said that they were very impressed with what they saw at Parramatta Marist

Directors from the Singapore Ministry of Education, Ms Tham Yoke Chun and Mdm Adeline Chong, visited Parramatta Marist High School on Tuesday 29 May to look at the school’s project based learning approach.

The Ministry of Education directs the formulation and implementation of education policies in Singapore. Deputy director of Educational Technology, Ms Tham Yoke Chun, and assistant director, Mdm Adeline Chong, visited Parramatta Marist as part of a larger tour of Australian schools. During their time at the school, they discussed learning with principal, Br Patrick Howlett and toured the learning spaces to speak with students about their experience of project based learning (PBL) which was first implemented at the school in 2008.

Singapore has consistently rated highly as a top performing education system among Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries and Br Patrick said education systems need to look abroad to discover best practice.

‘We can and have learned a lot from Singapore,’ said Br Patrick. ‘We are no longer thinking in terms of local but discussing education on a global scale and constantly learning from each other.’

Br Patrick travelled to Singapore in 2008 to look at new approaches to learning and said that he was impressed by what he saw.

‘What I saw in Singapore was impressive and I believe we have to look abroad even further to uncover best practice,’ he said. ‘I am keen to continue establishing international connections to enhance learning and teaching.’

Following a tour of the learning spaces, the Singapore visitors had an opportunity to speak one-on-one with a group of Years 9 and 10 students about the benefits of PBL and how they would like to see it developed further.

‘We would like to further collaborate and potentially create an online collaborative project for Singapore students and Parramatta Marist students to exchange views and perspectives,’ said Ms Chun. ‘The relationship between the two countries allows teachers to broaden their perspectives and update their own practice.’

‘We have been very impressed with the vision of Br Patrick, he has certainly brought best practice to Parramatta Marist which is evident in the way the students are able to confidently articulate themselves,’ she said.