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SINGAPORE – Deputy Minister of Education Maliki Osman will lead a review to see what more his ministry can do to ensure graduates of the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and the five polytechnics are prepared for the world of work.
Announcing the review on Thursday (December 3), Education Minister Lawrence Wong said it will be important to ensure that graduates “acquire in-depth skills and competencies that are well suited to their interests, as well as the needs of students. employers and industry. “
More information about the review will be shared in the future.
Mr. Wong spoke about the future of education in the first session of a series of webinars organized by the National University of Singapore (NUS) to celebrate its 115th anniversary.
It took place at the Shaw Foundation Alumni House with limited participants and was broadcast virtually to a wider audience.
The NUS115 Distinguished Speaker Series, with the theme “Shaping the Future”, will run until the middle or third quarter of next year, depending on the Covid-19 situation.
Mr. Wong said that the diversity of itineraries for students is one of the main strengths that Singapore must continue to defend.
“Around the world, too many countries have switched to an overly academic model of tertiary or university education,” he said.
“I think that in Singapore we have been fortunate to avoid some of these imbalances, because we have paid a lot of attention over the years to our technical and professional training. And that is why we have always said that ITE is the jewel of our educational system. “
The “gold standard” for technical and vocational training is Germany, he noted.
It has a two-way system where students will complete a three-year apprenticeship in a company, spending approximately half of their time learning on the job and the other half at a vocational school.
Such a system, undertaken by about half of the cohort in Germany, is highly appreciated by society, he said.
Singapore has also initiated work-study programs at institutes of higher education, especially ITE and polytechnics.
ITE now offers 24 work-study diploma programs, which are learning-based programs and 70 percent of the course is delivered through structured on-the-job training.
Mr. Wong said, “They are an important applied avenue for students to learn, acquire deep skills and relevant work experience.
“We are starting from a solid position, but there is still more to do in this space.”
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