My personal philosophy is that I believe that each child has his or her own unique gifts and talents and it is our purpose as teachers and parents to identify it early and provide the appropriate resources to enable the fruition of these gifts. In Singapore, the development of gifts and talents is a very important process because we are a small country with few resources. People are our only resource and if we do not provide the platform to allow individuals to pursue their personal rainbows, then we will not be able to fuel our economy in the various pillars to remain globally competitive in today’s rapidly changing economy.
The Singapore Ministry of Education has always emphasized the creation of a few peaks of excellence while maintaining a high level of achievement in realization of its limitations. Since 1984, the GEP has provided a platform for the identification and development of academically competent students. However, up to date, there is no systematic process to identify talents from other domains apart from the academics. The government has recognized, however, that the focus on academic achievements alone is not sufficient. Although the government has pumped in many resources and money into the creation of special schools to develop special talents such as the sports and the arts, there is no clear pathway for these children to be developed holistically to ensure that they reach their fullest potential. More needs to be done for a holistic and balanced education for these children, including the commitment to provide pathways for them to actualize their gifts and talents.
My interests lies in the focus on the developmental process, to concentrate on the software; the nature of artistic talents and how talent in the arts develops. To be specific, I am interested to know how we can achieve a full circle of the five aspects for the education of every child (in their specific gift and talent) in accordance to the Chinese belief, de zhi ti qun mei, which means moral values and character building, intelligence and knowledge, physical developmetn, social skills and artistic skills.
We have done very well for the academic aspects, now it is time to focus on how we can develop the other aspects for children in general.
