When the delegation (see photo) from the Republic of Singapore came to TC, the members met with Interim Dean Gordon and listened to an overview of TC's academic programs. Professors A. Lin Goodwin, Frances Schoonmaker, and Howard Budin discussed their programs and answered questions. Three Singaporean students who are studying at TC were at the event: Joyceln Woo, Eng Teong and Charles Chan.

Sent by the Singapore Ministry of Education, Eng Teong and Charles Chan are at TC for one year to learn about education and education issues. Teong is pursuing a master's in Art and Art Education. Chan is working on a master's in Curriculum and Teaching.

A delegation from Singapore stopped at TC during its tour of several US cities to meet with prominent educators. Marion Boultbee, Director of International Services at TC, said that they came to discuss issues around teacher education, curriculum development, university-school partnerships and technology in the context of educational reform. The delegation also visited many high schools in the area, including Bronx Science. The delegation included members from the Ministry of Education. They were R.Adm. Teo Chee Hean, Minister of Education; Chiang Chie Foo, Permanent Secretary (Education); Professor Leo Tan, Director, National Institute of Education; Ho Peng, Deputy Director, Schools Branch (West); Gan Chin Huat, Principal, Dunman Secondary School; Elaine Lim, Vice Principal, Yusoff Ishak Secondary School; Ngaim Shih Chun, Assistant Director, International Relations, and Lee Seng Hai, Delegation Member. They met with Boultbee, Susanne Nanka-Bruce, and TC students Joyceln Woo, Charles Chan, and Eng Teong.

Teong was trained in Singapore as a high school art and English teacher. He taught for a few years and then joined the Ministry of Education for curriculum planning in art that spans from the primary to secondary and pre-university levels.

"Bitten by the knowledge bug," he came to TC to "get a clearer understanding on educational issues and how they impact the subject area of art."

"It won't be a direct application because the histories and forms of government are different in the two countries," he added, "but it will be a modification of what I have learned to meet the needs of the system."

Chan, who taught high school English and Geography and worked in curriculum design, will also be applying what he learns at TC to the education system in Singapore. He is interested in "moving to understand students' different abilities" and how to create standardized tests that will evaluate other talents as well.

"I want to help give the children thinking skills, rather than just knowledge," commented Chan. He said that this helps students see the connection with reality and the importance of speaking well, marketing ideas and marketing themselves.

Woo, a third year student in the Curriculum and Teaching Department, is a Spencer Doctoral Research Fellow. Prior to her coming to New York City, she taught English in a secondary school in Singapore and spent time developing educational CD-ROMs with a private company.

Woo is interested in adolescence in Singapore and the United States. Her dissertation will focus on Adolescence and the Politics of Everyday Time.

"By coming to graduate school, I wanted to find a way of articulating ideas that I had in education," said Woo. "I totally enjoy teaching, but I struggled within a particular system that didn't allow me to do the parts that I enjoyed most."

Published Tuesday, Sep. 18, 2001