Freed up space: how schools are innovating learning

The removal of mid-year exams for some levels frees up time for teachers to innovate by modifying the curriculum or relooking the pedagogy. We asked four schools on how they are planning to engage, excite and educate their students with these extra hours.

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In the last two years, schools have been removing mid-year exams (MYE) for P3 and P5, Sec 1 and Sec 3 students. And there is the oft-touted statistic that this frees up 3 weeks of time over 2 years. It’s what you get when you no longer have to prep students for exams, set and mark papers and invigilate, among other things.

So what has this meant for your fellow teachers? A chance to get creative with their curriculum? An opportunity to encourage passion projects for students? Time to engage their students to learn beyond the scope and depth of textbook content?

This year, due to the evolving Covid-19 situation, full Home-based Learning (HBL) and cancellation of MYE across all schools, has led to even more teachers having to work around the existing curriculum, including preparing most of their lessons online. We speak to 4 schools to find out what innovative curriculum they have been preparing and how they had incorporated HBL into their plans.

Pioneer Primary School
Tanjong Katong Primary School
Gan Eng Seng Secondary School
Chung Cheng High (Yishun)