Professor Liu Woon Chia, NIE Director,
Distinguished Guests,
Colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
1. A very good morning to all of you. Congratulations to our graduands.
2. Today, we welcome all of you formally into the teaching profession. You may be a teacher, you may be a counsellor, you may take on many roles, but you are all part of the teaching profession. You are about to embark on an exciting new journey in your life, because education is at an inflection point.
3. It has been said that the practice of teaching has evolved, but not changed radically over the last hundred, if not hundreds of years. I believe today we are on the cusp of a new era, and you have the privilege and responsibility to take us forward in this new era.
4. A new era where education can be mass personalised to truly bring out the potential of the individual. An era whereby we are no longer teach to the average. Instead, we can truly realise the potential of each and every student under our charge, supported by technologies and new pedagogies.
5. At the same time, the world is changing and we need to be aware of the changes in the world so that we can teach in contexts beyond content knowledge.
6. First, our world order is giving way to greater fragmentation and polarity. Many countries would rather take sides and erect barriers, than to work together.
7. Second, we are also facing an increasingly interconnected but at the same time fragile global economy. The global multilateral trading system is being challenged, and countries all over the world are increasingly looking inward, turning protectionist. The effects of events that happen elsewhere in the world could ripple across the entire world. We in Singapore will not be spared. Our students will have to deal with a lot more uncertainty in the years ahead.
8. Many societies are also becoming more fractious, with more diverse viewpoints and contestations. Even in Singapore, the diversity of our people will continue to increase. The aspirations of our people will also be increasingly more diverse than previous generations. The key question, beyond the imparting of content knowledge, will be to ask ourselves how we can help our people find common ground and keep society together and cohesive. What does this also mean for our students and our teachers?
9. Third, technological changes will continue to gather pace. The skills and knowledge needed for teachers to teach and engage students are also consequently shifting. That offers us both challenges, but also opportunities to try out new approaches to achieve better results with our finite resources.
10. Technology, including Generative AI, paves the way in which we will achieve "the Pedagogy of One", which recognises that every student has his or her own unique potential. I hope that you will always remember that success is not just about what grades your students achieve. Success is when each and every one of your students can realise what makes him or her special. Through that, they are confident they can contribute.
11. We are making strides, with our EdTech Masterplan 2030. Schools will be equipped with a wide range of EdTech resources and tools to further customise and personalise students' learning experiences. Teachers can use AI features to automate grading and provide immediate feedback, which frees up time for teachers to engage our students more intentionally and meaningfully. If we can harness technology skilfully, we will achieve mass personalisation of education and scaling of quality learning resources at speed and at an affordable cost. In doing so, we will meet each learner where they are and nurture the best in every student.
12. To nurture students who can navigate these complex challenges of tomorrow, I encourage our teachers to achieve the 3 "C"s – Create, Connect and Contribute – for yourselves and to inspire your students to do so similarly. As the new generation of educators, your role will evolve to adapt to changes and to seize the opportunities ahead. We already recruit from the best to join us in the teaching service. But it is even more important for us to have good educators who continue to deepen their professional competencies, and who keep learning, to become better teachers everyday.
13. As teachers, you also need to upskill to become creators, connectors and contributors, and role model these dispositions for students to help our next generation of Singaporeans thrive and succeed.
14. First, why do I aspire for every teacher and student to be a creator? In a time when knowledge is commoditised, it is no longer sufficient to merely transmit knowledge, or impart yesterday's answers for yesterday's problems. As teachers, you have the opportunity to help our students create new solutions and find new value propositions, for themselves, for Singapore and even the world.
15. Context is the lens through which knowledge gains relevance and significance. Your guidance enables our students to see beyond the surface and grasp the interconnectedness of ideas. Besides helping them to answer questions, encourage them to ask sharp questions that will help us find new solutions, bridges, and connections for tomorrow. Challenge our existing assumptions, and never rest on our laurels based on yesterday's solutions. Only sharp questions can lead us to deeper understanding and spark the innovation to push boundaries and invite fresh perspectives.
16. Teach your students to adapt quickly, because the competition is not about who is the strongest, but about who can evolve the fastest. It is our responsibility in the education service to teach and nurture our people to evolve fast and at speed. In order to do that, we will need to expose them to a variety of scenarios and contexts to challenge them to see things from different perspectives as much as we can. I hope we will have a new generation of creators amongst us. But it is not about the individual being the creator. For an individual to be a creator, we must be able to harness the diverse strengths and perspectives of the people we work with.
17. This is where I come to my second point. We need a new generation of people who can connect in a more fragmented and divided world, where the ability to build bridges and connect with different groups carries a premium. We do not take sides, but instead we constantly ask ourselves, how can we connect and build bridges across divides? It will be an essential life skill, not just in Singapore, but beyond our shores too. This is where we earn our keep as a nation.
18. To build effective connections, we must deeply appreciate our stakeholders and their background, aspirations, fears and concerns. This will allow us to tailor our approach with depth and insight. In order to connect, we must build trust. It is important for us to grow our students with the right values so that Singaporeans will retain that trusted brand – that we say what we mean, and mean what we say. People can always trust that we will deliver. We can seek out common ground amidst differences, listen actively and respectfully and forge pathways where dialogue can flourish. Offer new perspectives by challenging entrenched norms, encouraging critical thinking, and presenting innovative solutions that resonate across different parties from different backgrounds with different perspectives.
19. Finally and importantly, we must help our students to all be contributors. Each and everyone of them have their unique strengths. Whenever I visit schools, I always ask the students this question: Do you know what makes you special? Do you know how you can use this special gift of yours to make a contribution?
20. In Singapore, we want everyone to know that it is not just about people who are deemed clever or rich who can make a contribution. Each and everyone of us in Singapore can make a contribution according to our respective gifts.
21. As teachers, we must help our students to realise their gifts, give thanks for their blessings and to make full use of their gifts individually and collectively to do good for themselves, their family, and our country.
22. Where students will not just define success by their own individual accomplishments, but by how they contribute to the larger good. It is one thing to constantly look for opportunities to find meaning in life, or to find success. It is another thing to give meaning to every task and job we do - and to everyone that comes across our path, so that we can build a better life for ourselves and country.
23. It is about giving our students confidence to know that they are special and gifted in their own ways, and that they can contribute in their own ways. It is this respect and appreciation of diversity that will make Singapore a much more dynamic society.
24. Singapore is strong not just because we can meet the yardsticks that have been set up. We are strong because we have a diversity of talents and strengths, and collectively we can contribute regardless of the circumstances. So, I look forward to your contributions in the teaching service. You are joining us in a time of change, where it's full of challenges and opportunities.
25. I would like to share with you the story of my former Primary One teacher Mrs Wee, who set me off on my leadership journey. In the second week of school, Mrs Wee chose me to help her carry a stack of books from the classroom to the staff room. On that day, she gave me a sense of duty, pride, and trust. That small gesture of asking a seven-year-old to carry a stack of books told me that my teacher trusted me.
26. I told myself that I must never betray her trust, and that I must carry out my role dutifully and properly. I started on a leadership journey to take care of my fellow students and the people I come across. It taught me that in life, if you take care of the people, the people will take care of the mission.
27. A small gesture 50 years ago can change someone's life. Your mark of success will not be the grades that your students achieve in the short term. Your mark of success will be many years later when your students greet you on the street, introduce their families, and show that they have learnt from you not just content knowledge, but the values and ethos of being a Creator, Connector, and Contributor. May you all go forth.