Issue 6 PD Feature

Find out the importance of CCE in nurturing in our students the values, skills and dispositions to deal with future challenges!

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In Singapore, CCE is at the heart of education. Through a school-wide approach, students learn values, social-emotional competencies, and develop citizenship dispositions and a sense of purpose that enable them to grow holistically.

The Taxonomy of Teacher Competencies for CCE articulates the knowledge, skills and dispositions that teachers need to develop at the different stages of their professional growth.

It serves as a common reference for teachers to: a) reflect on current practice and learning needs, b) determine and prioritise areas for growth, and c) plan their professional development.

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How can teachers make CCE lessons interesting, engaging and meaningful for their students?

Narratives are a powerful way to engage students.

However, beyond sharing personal stories and experiences, there are a variety of other pedagogical approaches and teaching strategies to make CCE lessons interesting and meaningful. These include discussions and activities based on authentic scenarios, role-playing and a variety of other hands-on and interactive ideas.

How can students learn and demonstrate values, social-emotional competencies and citizenship dispositions?

Provide them with space to share views and ideas on issues Teach them to listen to one another's perspectives, to sensitise them to the feelings of others Encourage them to clarify their views, beliefs and assumptions Influence them to make sound, values-based decisions through highlighting consequences of their thoughts and actions Ensure that they apply empathy and fairmindedness in their views and perspectives

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It is important that teachers adopt an objective stance and allow for multiple perspectives to surface, and not shortcircuit the thinking process for students. Clarifying questions should be asked to provide the opportunity for students to explore, examine and express the thinking behind their perspectives. They should be encouraged to substantiate their views with evidence and avoid hearsay.

Views that are consistent with societal norms and/or national stances on particular issues, should also be critically considered, along with other views.

Ultimately, students will need to understand why certain positions are maintained at the national level and we should respect that point of view along with others. They also need to be aware that it is natural for social norms and conventions to evolve and change slowly over time, while some beliefs and values remain embedded in human society regardless of the passage of time.

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What are the PD opportunities available for teachers to equip themselves with skills for teaching CCE? Teachers can participate in job-embedded PD organised by their schools, CCE learning communities and professional learning teams.

PD of teachers is aligned to the ‘SkillsFuture for Educators (SFEd) PD Roadmap’ for CCE.

The 'Guide to using Taxonomy of Teacher Competencies for Self-Reflection' supports teachers with questions and examples to reflect on their development and growth in the different CCE competency domains.

Professional development in CCE will be strengthened to ensure that teachers are better equipped to teach the subject.

READ ABOUT CCE PD OPPORTUNITIES (OPAL2.0 LOGIN IS REQUIRED)

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT TAXONOMY OF CCE TEACHER COMPETENCIES (OPAL2.0 LOGIN IS REQUIRED)

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How can schools develop effective partnerships with parents to reinforce the key messages taught in CCE? A STRONG SCHOOL-PARENT PARTNERSHIP BEGINS WITH TRUST Schools need to have frequent touchpoints between teachers and parents to assure parents that their children are in a caring and enabling school environment.

Schools need to facilitate professional dialogue with parents through clear communication of rationale and intent of school processes and curriculum.

Channels of Communication Parent Engagement Portal Parents’ Portal on School Website School Newsletter Formal Letters and Phone Calls Parents Gateway MOE Facebook Schoolbag.sg SEL Resources for Parents CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT ESTABLISHING A CARING AND ENABLING SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT (OPAL2.0 LOGIN IS REQUIRED)

In unexpected times like the COVID-19 pandemic when activities beyond the classroom were curtailed, how did we ensure that students had a range of CCE learning experiences?

There were many good stories of how educators continued to believe, understand, and practise the dispositions, values and social-emotional competencies that we hoped for our students to learn.

The COVID-19 pandemic had not deterred educators from capitalising on ‘Every School Experience A CCE Lesson’.

Several activities were reconfigured to accommodate the restrictions while still providing students with a variety of learning experiences.

Virtual learning journeys to Asian Civilisations Museum and National Museum of Singapore

Secondary school students from uniformed groups participated in the National Day Parade virtual marching contingent

Virtual Singapore Youth Festival celebrations and SYF Art Exhibition

Selected sports of the National School Games (NSG) were carried out for the 'A', 'B' and 'Senior' Divisions

Teachers were very adaptable and creative in maneuvering the new constraints, with many schools having success stories to share.

Greendale Primary School’s Chess Club took the eCCA route to tap on the possibilities of self-directed online learning. Teacher-incharge Mr Yuen and Coach Lee used technology to integrate CCE into the CCA by teaching students about the possible dangers of cyber space and equipping them with online etiquette.

Ms Moritza Lim of Serangoon Secondary School used Zoom to involve students from a range of academic streams in a student interview talk show. This gave students the opportunity to contribute their ideas while also equipping them with interview skills.

Click on the QR codes to read the full story.

Special thanks to the Character & Citizenship Education Branch as well as Guidance Branch for contributing the resources and providing invaluable input for this segment.

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