[ad_1]
SINGAPORE: Two special education schools serving students with mild intellectual disabilities will move to an expanded and co-located campus in 2025, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said on Thursday (November 5).
These are the Chaoyang School in Ang Mo Kio, which serves elementary students, and the Tanglin School in Bukit Merah, which serves secondary students.
Both schools will move to a new site at the former Da Qiao Primary School in Ang Mo Kio, the Education Ministry said in a press release.
This is to help meet the demand for student seats in the Northeast and Central region, the ministry said.
Student capacity will expand with the redevelopment, with the Chaoyang School to provide 400 seats and the Tanglin School to provide 350 seats.
READ: Implementation of the professional development roadmap for the training of special educational needs for conventional educators
The co-location will allow Chaoyang School students to continue their education at Tanglin School within the same area, “providing a smooth transition from primary to secondary education,” the MOE said.
“The co-location will also promote greater student interaction and learning opportunities between students from both schools through co-curricular activities and student leadership programs.
“In addition, there will be a more efficient use of resources through the exchange of facilities such as the multipurpose room and the school field,” added the ministry.
Both schools are funded by the government and managed by the Association for People with Special Needs.
FACILITIES BUILT WITH A PURPOSE
The specially designed new campus will have improved building specifications, including larger classrooms and modulation spaces, to serve students with minor intellectual disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the MOE said.
There will also be more facilities, such as a health and fitness room and indoor and outdoor playing fields, to better support physical and aesthetic education programs.
READ: The Big Read: Where Kids With And Without Special Needs Learn Together – And It’s Not In Singapore
“In particular, Tanglin School will have a dedicated space set aside for vocational training facilities, to give students more opportunities to hone their vocational skills,” the MOE said.
“This provision will further facilitate the training and preparation of Tanglin School high school students to advance to the Vocational Certification programs at APSN Delta Senior School and eventually enter the workforce,” the ministry added.
The Education Ministry said it would continue to monitor demand for places in special education schools and review facilities in special education schools.
In November last year, the ministry announced that three new schools would be established for students with ASD in the coming years.
One of the schools, operated by the Metta Welfare Association, is scheduled to open in eastern Singapore in 2024, while another will be a new Pathlight School campus, the third, run by the Autism Resource Center.
Pathlight School’s second campus in Tampines, scheduled to open in 2023 with 500 seats for elementary-level students, was announced in July last year.
