Daily Lessons from Life 25 August 2014 - Government accepts ASPIRE committee recommendations

CHC trial updates - Mr Kong asked for MD title in the Xtron's name card but claimed it is just for ease of negotiating with the Americans. He has no control over Xtron. What do you think? Lie or truth?

"Government accepts ASPIRE committee recommendations - CNA 25 August 2014

SINGAPORE: Singapore is looking at a major transformation of its education and career landscape.

The committee tasked with reviewing polytechnic and Institute of Technical Education (ITE) studies on Monday (Aug 25) released a list of 10 recommendations, all of which were accepted by the Government.

Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said at a news conference that there will be shifts in three areas – applied learning and skills, lifelong learning, and the pursuit of excellence in diverse fields.

The recommendations aim to give every Singaporean the opportunity to “realise their potential and progress in life, no matter what their starting point”, the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE) Committee said.

First announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong last November, the committee – led by Senior Minister of State for Education Indranee Rajah – has reached out to about 12,000 polytechnic students, 5,000 ITE students, 3,000 parents and alumni and close to 400 polytechnic and ITE staff through dialogue sessions, focus group discussions, among others.

The committee also visited Germany, Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand to study their applied education models.

The first recommendation was to help students make better-informed education and career guidance (ECG) choices. This includes coordinating ECG efforts as part of an integrated national ECG framework across schools, polytechnics, ITEs and the network of career centres run by the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA). The committee also proposed placing more trained ECG officers to provide face-to-face advice, counselling sessions and activities.

A one-stop online portal will also be set up to offer tailored profiling and assessment tools and resources, information on labour market conditions and opportunities, and the education, training and career options available for individuals across various life stages.

“It is not to persuade students to go to a specialised field when they are very young. But rather, the aim is to stimulate interest in a variety of fields and to see if some of this may catch the interest of these students,” said Mr Heng. “I think the broader their interests, the more likely they are able to decide on which are the things that may appeal to them.

“Our education system now has many pathways and with these multiple pathways, there are also subject pre-requisites and it is also helpful for students to know how they can structure their learning in order for them to reach their goals," he added.

The committee recommended that the polytechnics and ITE, in collaboration with industry partners, review their curricula and approach to internships to better support learning at the workplace. A polytechnic or ITE college will also be designated as a lead for each key sector to strengthen industry partnerships and enhance the schools’ programme offerings.

More Higher Nitec (National Institute of Technical Education Certificate) qualifications, which are obtained upon the completion of an additional year of study at the ITE, will be offered in sectors where there is demand for higher skills. For a start, the Education Ministry will increase the number of Higher Nitec places, for Engineering and InfoComm courses, from 2015.

In the long term, about half of ITE graduates may go on to take up Higher Nitec qualifications. To better coordinate partnerships with industry, polytechnic and ITE leads will be identified for specific industry sectors. This will see a designated poly or ITE college take the lead, in working with stakeholders within specific sectors. The aim is to strengthen linkages with industry and enhance programme offering across all polytechnics and ITEs.

The first three sector leads that have been identified are: Ngee Ann Polytecnic for Marine and Offshore Engineering, Singapore Polytechnic for Food Technology and Republic Polytechnic for Logistics. More sectors will be appointed over the next year.

Online learning opportunities will be expanded as well. Polytechnics and ITEs will develop new online learning resources for students, within the next two years. Soft skills are not forgotten, as polytechnics and ITEs will provide more developmental programmes focused on life skills, aimed at strengthening students' leadership, character and resilience.

New programmes that integrate work and study were also proposed – such as place-and-train programmes similar to the apprenticeship models in Switzerland and Germany – to provide more options for both polytechnic and ITE graduates to upgrade their skills.

Under the place-and-train programme, the committee recommended that these graduates be paid a monthly salary, and receive employer-recognised skills certification upon completion. Graduates could also potentially receive higher pay upon completion of the programme, if they perform competently and take on larger job scopes.

The committee also called for more post-diploma Continuing Education and Training (CET) opportunities at polytechnics to refresh and deepen the skills of the graduates. Both polytechnics and ITEs should also work with the Government to support vocation-based deployments during National Service for male graduates, the committee said.

To help polytechnic and ITE graduates progress in their careers, the committee also recommended that sector-specific skills frameworks and career progression pathways are developed with industry players. These will clearly specify the skills needed to advance and be benchmarks for hiring and progression practices within the industry.

New modular courses, built around these skills frameworks, will be introduced, allowing graduates to develop specific skills for career progression. The courses could also count as credits if the graduates pursue further studies or be recognised for admission to additional industry training or certification programmes.

Come 2016, the entire cohort of Marine Offshore and Technology programme students at Ngee Ann Polytechnic will undergo a six-month long structured internship with the industry. Currently, such students only participate in a three-month internship during their third year of studies. Keppel Offshore and Marine and Sembcorp Marine have agreed to host at least 200 interns yearly."

ONE SENTENCE expresses my sentiment - Should university undergraduates not go through the SAME PATH if it is ALL about turning out useful workers - blue- and white-collared regardless?