Heng Swee Keat FB
Kindergartens – we all have fond memories of our time there as little kids.
Robert Fulghum, in his book, All I Really Need to Know I Learnt In Kindergarten, said these are what he learnt in kindergarten: “Share. Play fair. Don’t hit people. Say sorry if you hurt someone. Clean up after yourself. Live a balanced life - learn some, and drink some, and draw some, and paint some, and sing, and dance, and play, and work everyday some.”
Sounds like good advice, doesn’t it? What else do we want our children to learn in these precious early years? To dream big, to let their imaginations roam, discover what they can do, wonder at how plants grow, how stories unfold, what numbers mean. We want them to love others, to believe in themselves.
MOE is taking on a new challenge - we will run a few kindergartens, starting from 2014. Why?
Because it is important that we give our children, including those from disadvantaged background, the chance to do well. We want to help raise standards across our kindergartens. MOE will work with centres run by commercial operators, anchor operators and VWOs to distil and share best practices, so that together, we offer good quality and affordable kindergartens. This is a collective effort. I thank parents and educators who have given us many good suggestions in our Singapore Conversation!
