Beyond strengthening mother tongue capabilities, the new curriculum also aims to build cross-cultural literacy and understanding.
An example would be how the new Primary 1 Malay textbook introduces students to lumpia – a Filipino spring roll that is similar to the Chinese or Indonesian variety.
“Similarly, for Tamil, students will learn about top spinning and how tops feature culturally across India, Malaysia and China. Through these examples, students will better appreciate cross-cultural similarities and better connect with their friends,” said the Education Minister.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) said in a separate press release that teachers will continue to employ “multi-modal” approaches, including the meaningful use of technology, to engage and support students.
“Students can look forward to more extensive use of gamification and differentiated resources, to sharpen their language skills at their own time and pace beyond the classroom. Parents are encouraged to tap on these resources to support their child’s learning of mother tongue languages at home.”
MOE added that it considered feedback from over 11,000 students, 1,000 teachers, and 4,000 parents on the previous curriculum in the development of the refreshed one.
Additional reporting by Ernest Loy.