ANNUAL REPORT FY22/23

CHAIRMAN'S MESSAGE

This year marks the fourth year of NIEC's operations since its establishment in 2019, and I am proud to say that it has continued to deliver on its mandate to provide quality training for Early Childhood (EC) educators.

 

Driven by the Government’s commitment to provide a good start for every child, the EC sector in Singapore is growing fast and is projected to require 3,500 more well-trained professionals by 2025. 

 

As the national training institute for EC educators, NIEC has diligently ensured that our training is relevant and aligned with the sector's needs, in close partnership with government agencies and preschools. This is also all the more necessary as the demands on EC educators have also become increasingly complex, requiring them to develop a wider range of competencies and deeper skills.

 

Sustaining Market Share Growth

In 2022, NIEC strengthened its position as the leading training provider for the EC sector, continuing to capture a substantial share of the market. NIEC was able to grow its market share by proactively identifying opportunities to enhance its engagement and support for potential and current students.

 

Strengthening Partnerships

NIEC has also actively fostered partnerships with a wide range of stakeholders to bolster the inflow of talent into the EC sector. Through the Career Conversion Programme (CCP) for Preschool Educators, NIEC has encouraged and equipped mid-career Professionals, Managers, Executives, and Technicians (PMETs) to join the EC sector. NIEC has regularly participated in job fairs and engaged preschool operators, underlining its commitment to being a strategic partner to ECDA and an advocate for EC educators’ professional development and well-being.

 

Strategies for the Future

In 2022, NIEC embarked on a review of its plans to become the premier training institute for early childhood educators and to inspire excellence in their practice. In consultation with the Board of Directors, this endeavour saw NIEC's senior and middle management clarify its vision and identify the key objectives to be met by 2028.

 

To this end, NIEC has drawn up strategies under four key thrusts: Delivering Quality Courses, Partnering with Customers and Stakeholders, Building our People and Strengthening Critical Enablers. More priority will be given to enhance curriculum development, expand course offerings, and to deliver blended learning to meet the varied needs of our educators.  A refinement of institution-level performance indicators and corresponding targets was also carried out, enhancing the measurement of its progress in the years leading up to 2028.

 

To achieve these targets, NIEC will require a team of committed and capable staff and trainers to deliver on these plans.  NIEC remains deeply committed in developing our people and building our organisational capabilities and expertise. 

 

Changes in the NIEC Board

It is with deep appreciation that I would like to thank Ms Melissa Khoo, who stepped down as Chairman of NIEC on 1 April 2023, for her unstinting support and steadfast leadership in providing strategic guidance for the institution over the past few years.

 

Having taken over the Chairmanship from Melissa, I wish to express my gratitude to the NIEC Board members and the senior management for their unwavering commitment and leadership, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. With a strong and cohesive team working together, I am confident that NIEC will thrive, fostering the growth of early childhood educators to nurture, inspire, educate, and care for every child.

 

 

Eugene Leong

Chairman, NIEC Board

DIRECTOR & CEO’S MESSAGE

Since 2019, NIEC has been playing an integral national role in providing quality training for Early Childhood (EC) educators at various stages of their careers, whether they are mid-career switchers, post-secondary students, or in-service practitioners. Partnering many stakeholders, we work towards our courses being relevant to the needs of the sector and current to EC professionals who aspire to nurture, inspire, educate and care for every child.

 

I am delighted to reflect on how far we have come in the fourth year of our operations.

 

Adapting to Challenges

The year 2022 presented its own set of challenges as we remained steadfast in our commitment to uplift preschool educator training in Singapore. Adapting to the evolving post COVID-19 pandemic context and taking cognizance of the practice-oriented and relational nature of EC courses, we have continued delivering them through a carefully calibrated mix of online learning and physical lessons, ensuring effective teaching and learning experiences. Our NIEC community remains vigilant and responsive to change in these uncertain times.

 

Our push to set up a business development function in 2021 to specifically cater to varied professional development needs of educators at different centres has borne fruit. In 2022, we engaged preschool operators to better understand their training needs and deliver specially customised courses, resulting in the training of over 3,200 educators—threefold the number achieved in 2021 for customised courses.

 

In 2022, NIEC graduated over 2,500 students from our Pre-employment training (PET) and Continuing Education and Training (CET) pathways, adding to our growing pool of alumni.

 

Empowering the Early Childhood Sector with Relevant Courses

NIEC has diligently kept our training up-to-date and aligned with the sector's needs by working closely with the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA). Our curriculum and training focus align with the national frameworks, including the refreshed Skills Framework (SFw) for Early Childhood, and support sectoral development initiatives.

 

The curriculum of our full-time Diploma in Early Childhood Development and Education (ECDE) is being enhanced based on the learning profile of our PET students, ensuring its relevance and rigour in enabling our graduates to possess in-demand skills for the EC sector.

 

We have also continuously reviewed and renewed our CET courses. For instance, the Advanced Diploma in Early Childhood Leadership has been renamed the Advanced Diploma in Early Childhood Centre Leadership, with content revisions to align with the revised SFw and ECDA’s Leadership Development Framework (LDF).

 

Drawing reference from ECDA’s CPD Roadmap, NIEC offers diverse CPD Courses covering personal mastery, classroom management, leadership, and more. We have introduced new courses, such as "Engagement in the Preschool Classroom" and "Essentials of Leadership," enabling educators to continually develop and deepen their knowledge and skills.

 

We now conduct the Leadership suite of CPD courses that ECDA previously offered which enables NIEC to have greater co-ordination and synergy in our provision of leadership development opportunities for the sector. This empowers Early Childhood senior teachers and centre leaders to hone their leadership competencies. Additionally, new CPD courses in areas such as inclusive practices and mother tongue languages are being offered to further support educators' professional growth.

 

Keeping the Early Childhood Community Connected

To forge strong connections and active engagement within the Early Childhood community, we have kept up with our signature "Naptime Webinar” series, featuring insightful contributions from our esteemed faculty and reputable guest speakers. These webinars were well received with over 2,200 educators in attendance, offering concise yet valuable professional development and pedagogical insights to enrich Early Childhood education practices within the unique context of Singapore.

 

As our alumni network continues to flourish, we reaffirm our dedication to strengthening our bonds with the broader EC community. We have organised an exclusive series of seminars and workshops tailored to our alumni. These events provide invaluable opportunities for our alumni to connect, collaborate, and grow personally and professionally.

 

Building Our People

I believe that the people at NIEC collectively shape and determine what we can achieve in service to the nation, to the sector, to the children and families. Thus, we are dedicated to building a positive collaborative work culture for our NIEC family. Initiatives like the NIEC Cares Challenge and Bee-Appreciated were launched to engage employees, appreciate their efforts, and show recognition for their work.

 

Strengthening NIEC's Identity and Culture

NIEC is dedicated to building and sustaining a culture of collaboration and empowerment. To achieve this, we have conducted whole-of-organisation workshops and culture exploration sessions to understand our current dynamics and envision the desired culture within NIEC.

 

As part of our commitment to staff development and learning, we introduced in-house milestone programmes, which provide support and guidance to teams at various stages of their careers. Our latest initiative, Beacon, was launched to offer NIEC staff meaningful career paths. We will continue to build upon this initiative to provide comprehensive professional development and career progression support.

 

With these initiatives in place, NIEC strives to cultivate a thriving learning culture and empower our staff to pursue their career goals and aspirations within our organisation. Emphasising the importance of continuous learning, we encourage our staff to upskill themselves through internal and external training programmes.

 

Developing Our Faculty

As an educational institution, we strive to ensure our faculty is updated with EC knowledge, developments and trends that will enhance our training, which in turn will propagate good ground practices. Our faculty continued to enjoy professional development workshops and brown bag sessions. Such endeavors widen faculty horizons and awareness of the latest trends in Early Childhood thinking to support child development as well as strengthen their skills repertoire in training.

 

NIEC’s signature Professional Practice Attachment enables faculty to keep abreast of developments in Early Childhood ground practices. Additionally, we encouraged our faculty to partake in focused inquiries within preschools and related organisations, fostering a deeper understanding of sector-specific needs and ensuring the sustained relevance of their skills and knowledge. This year's noteworthy event is the inaugural NIEC Faculty Learning Fest 2023. This is testament to our ongoing pursuit of educational excellence. It provided our faculty members an effective platform to collaborate, exchange knowledge, and inspire one another to enhance their training methodologies; and contribute to their continuous professional growth.

 

Looking Ahead

As we continue to grow from strength to strength, our commitment remains to make work purposeful at NIEC, to value our people and support their career development, for both faculty as well as corporate and operational staff.

 

Guided by our Vision for NIEC and strategic thrusts to facilitate implementation of action plans, we will continue delivering quality courses in support of sectoral development initiatives, cementing NIEC as the leading institute for EC educators in Singapore through inspiring excellence in practice.

 

In Conclusion

This report will offer further details of NIEC’s significant milestones and accomplishments. NIEC could not have come so far without the support of many who believe in our Mission and Vision. Hence, I extend my heartfelt appreciation to the NIEC family, to our Board members, key partners, and stakeholders, who have played a vital role in this rewarding journey. A special note of gratitude to Ms Melissa Khoo, our former NIEC Board Chairman, who had been unwavering in her support of NIEC and the work we do.

 

Looking ahead, NIEC is committed to empowering all EC educators who share our belief in unlocking every child's potential to learn. Standing shoulder to shoulder with the EC fraternity and with those with a vested interest in promoting quality Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), we will collectively create a positive and lasting impact on the lives of children and their families.

 

 

Mrs Loke-Yeo Teck Yong

Director and Chief Executive Officer, NIEC

 

 

The growing demand for preschool services will see the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) landscape requiring 3,500 more early childhood educators by 2025. Concurrently, the sector faces an increase in competitiveness in recruiting and retaining educators due to more career opportunities across diverse sectors as the economy recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 

In FY2022, NIEC initiated a strategic exploration to define its role in the early childhood sector and set benchmarks for success in becoming the leading institute for early childhood educators, inspiring excellence in practice. Collaborating closely with sector partners, NIEC's senior and middle management, in consultation with the Board of Directors, we outlined ten strategic objectives to accomplish by 2028.

 

Strategies were streamlined under four strategic thrusts: Delivering Quality Courses, Partnering Stakeholders, Building our People, and Strengthening Critical Enablers.

 

Driven by our strategic priorities, we refined our institutional-level performance indicators and targets to enhance accountability and monitor progress, providing a clear roadmap for our continuous review.

Moving forward, we are committed to providing high-quality early childhood education training for the sector while ensuring our curriculum aligns with MOE and ECDA's frameworks, Early Childhood Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Roadmap, and Leadership Development Framework to emphasise excellence in practice and solidify NIEC's position as the leading institution for early childhood education training in Singapore.