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SINGAPORE: Mayflower Elementary School’s Ministry of Education (MOE) kindergarten will have support for preschool-age children with hearing loss starting in the 2022 K1 cohort.
This is the first time support has been provided for children in need of early sign instruction in an MOE kindergarten, the ministry said on Thursday (Nov 12).
“We believe that the earlier children with hearing loss come into contact with Singapore’s sign language, the better their foundations,” said Minister of State for Education Sun Xueling. “It will help them build their confidence and it will also allow them to better interact with their peers.”
The MOE’s kindergarten at Mayflower Primary will have around 120 students each in K1 and K2 when it opens in 2021. It is expected to have seven to 10 preschoolers in need of that support in each batch starting in 2022.
Mayflower Primary has been the designated elementary school for children with hearing loss who need sign instruction since 2018. Currently, nine of these students are enrolled in the school.
Principal Lim-Chua Siow Ling said it has been “a meaningful and satisfying journey” to integrate students into the school.
“It has taught our teachers how to learn to be more intentional in teaching children how to care and share for other people, and our children have had the opportunity to show empathy towards other people,” he said.
“It’s not just students with hearing loss that are benefiting from this model. Our own hearing children are also benefiting from integration and this inclusive education.”
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The Education Ministry said it is extending specialized support to kindergarten, as there is currently no designated preschool for children with hearing loss.
The kindergarten sign program will support children with moderate to profound hearing loss to develop a basic first language proficiency in Singapore sign language, the Ministry of Education said in a press release.
Children will have a signature teacher so they can follow the MOE kindergarten curriculum. Speech and language therapy, as well as audiological services, will also be available.
When Mayflower Primary moves to its new site in late 2021, students with hearing loss will be able to take their supplemental academic support classes in a dedicated classroom. Visual cues such as lights indicating an emergency or recess time will also be installed throughout the school, Ms. Lim-Chua said.
Information on the admission process for children with hearing loss will be released in February 2021.
