P1 Mother Tongue curriculum will be introduced in all primary schools in Singapore next year.
(Photo source: MOE Facebook)
According to Channel NewsAsia, a new curriculum is set to be introduced in all Singapore primary schools next year to improve the proficiency of the respective mother tongues among students.
Primary 1 students of 2015 will be the first to take on this new syllabus, which focuses on the spoken and written interaction skills. Moving forward, the syllabus will be progressively rolled out to Primary 6 students by 2020.
As reported, the new mother tongue curriculum is set to feature iconic characters – Adi, Kayal and Xiaoan – who will make their appearances in textbooks and ICT resources which P1 students will use as part of their learning programme in school. These characters will go through real-life situations and “grow” with the students to better engage them in learning.
Testing the syllabus
Students from 42 selected primary school got to test the new P1 Mother Tongue Curriculum this year.
(Photo source: MOE Facebook)
At the start of the 2014 school year, 42 selected schools in Singapore were given approximately 2 weeks to test out the new syllabus. According to the Education Ministry of Singapore, the syllabus will also place greater emphasis on videos, animations and games to keep the teaching and learning process of the mother tongue fun and interactive.
One parent whose daughter has gone through the syllabus this year shared that her child’s interest in their mother tongue has shown improvement. As reported by Channel NewsAsia, Loo Leng Leng said: “I find her more enthusiastic. Before that, we seldom talk about what happens in class. After these 2 weeks, she took the initiative to come home and share with me what she has learnt in school.
“The main thing is [that] it arouses her interest. So if there is an interest, it is easier for her to grasp the language”
Long-term vision
The new P1 Mother Tongue syllabus aims to improve students’ grasp of their mother tongue, while keeping the learning process fun.
The Education Ministry of Singapore said the new syllabus is in line with the recommendations of the 2010 Mother Tongue Languages (MTL) Review Committee.
According to Minister of State for Education, Sim Ann, the aim of the mother tongue syllabus is to help students gain confidence in the use of mother tongue and encourage them to have a love for learning.
“Language exploration really should continue beyond the classroom and their time in school,” Ms Sim added.
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Reference:
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/new-p1-mother-tongue/1326776.html