Browsing by Author "Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen"
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- PublicationOpen AccessAn ecological perspective of teacher professional learning: Principles, processes and practice(National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University (NIE NTU), Singapore, 2023)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Lee, Shu-ShingPereira, Andrew Joseph281 638 - PublicationMetadata onlyBasic education in SingaporeThis chapter explains key educational policies, programs, and structures in Singapore and some of their socio-political underpinnings. It provides an overview of the primary, secondary, and post-secondary education structures and how they are designed to offer multiple pathways, particularly with the introduction of subject-based banding. The chapter discusses access to education and how different agencies work together to support disadvantaged learners. In addition, we describe the system-wide recalibration toward valuing a holistic education, including character and citizenship education, and describe the process involved in continually reviewing and refining the national academic curriculum. We also provide examples of school and teacher agency within a prescribed national curriculum. The chapter explains our unique cluster support structure, and the School Excellence Model, a self-assessment model for schools to improve their capacity to engage in self-appraisal and school improvement. With the conviction that an education system is only as good as its school leaders, middle managers and teachers, information is included on how teachers are developed during pre-service and the various professional development opportunities in-service teachers have access to, within and beyond their schools. There is also a section on how teachers with leadership competencies are given opportunities to lead and are developed to become school leaders, guided by a Leader Growth Model and a set of ten Leadership Competencies for Principals. We conclude by reporting six key interrelated thrusts from the current educational reform.
119 - PublicationOpen AccessBlended learning environments to support teacher professional development communities(National Institute of Education (Singapore), 2019)
; ;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Imran Shaari; ;Teow, LyndiaNorhayati MunirWith the prevalence of online communication in recent years, many teacher professional development (TPD) activities occur in blended learning environments which combine face-to-face (FTF) co-located experiences with online experiences. However, many scholars point out that blended learning environments need to be thoughtfully designed in order to integrate FTF learning with online learning experiences, and that there seems to be a lack of designs that pertain specifically to in-service teachers. Professional development is crucial for inservice teachers who are at the forefront of learning and teaching in the classroom. To impact student learning, deepening content knowledge and upgrading pedagogical skills are pivotal to teachers’ professionalism. Building professional development communities through blended learning environments is a core strategy for teachers to grow their professionalism, considering the multitude of demands faced by teachers, especially in Singapore. With the aim of designing more supportive and sustained TPD communities through blended learning environments, we undertook a review of the literature. This review has resulted in a five R conceptual framework. We synthesised from the literature the observation that the design and development of sustained blended TPD communities involve multifaceted and complex issues. Such communities would need to hold strong relevance for their members, encourage close relations between members, enable rich reifications of artefacts, be well recognised by important stakeholders, and lastly, be equipped with structural, digital, and human resources.233 228 - PublicationOpen AccessChapter 8. Hierarchical structures with networks for accountability and capacity building in Singapore: An evolutionary approach(2020)
; ;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenTay, Lee YongSingapore was first pushed into the limelight when the 2012 Programme for International Student Assessment results were announced and Singapore was amongst the top five performers for mathematics, reading and science. Singapore is a small city-state, which is two-thirds the size of New York City and one-tenth the size of Shanghai. The scale of Singapore's education system could be one reason why it is possible for the Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) to achieve its current status in a relatively short period of time even though Singapore is a young nation that achieved independence in 1965. During the 1960s, the Singapore education system began as a mix of community-based schools that implemented different curricula. The mediums of instruction involved different languages, namely, English, Chinese, Tamil and Malay. Accountability of schools was also centralised. MOE prescribed standards that schools needed to meet. Another significant development was the introduction of school ranking in 1992 as a form of local accountability.101 103Scopus© Citations 8 - PublicationOpen AccessCulturally relevant education for a multicultural Singapore(National Institute of Education (Singapore), 2017)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Hong, HelenGilbert, ConnorWith an increasingly diverse Singapore population, there is a need to consider if Singapore teachers are sufficiently equipped with the relevant skills and knowledge to cater to the needs of a more diverse student population. A literature review was conducted to examine and learn from the experiences of other countries and education systems. The literature review identified three major approaches to teaching culturally diverse students through culturally relevant education: multicultural education (ME), culturally responsive teaching (CRT), and culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP). This paper provides a summary of each approach, and its implications for teachers, their practice, as well as for teacher education. Finally, the paper will look at the implications for Singapore’s multicultural society.476 360 - PublicationOpen AccessDeveloping leadership that matters: Transformational leadership(National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University (NIE NTU), Singapore, 2023)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenChua, Paul Meng HuatHighlights of this Working Paper Brief • Defines Transformational Leadership (TL). • Presents research on the positive effects of TL. • Provides examples of Transformational Leadership training programmes and their impact.386 286 - PublicationOpen AccessDiffusing education innovations at different levels of the system: Perspectives from ecological leadership.(National Institute of Education (Singapore), 2021)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Chua, Puay Huat ;Norhayati Munir; 313 82 - PublicationOpen AccessDistributed leadership in ICT reform(2012)
; Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenThis study examined distributed leadership in Information Communication Technology reform in a government school in Singapore. The study adopted a naturalistic inquiry approach, involving the case study of a school. The study found that leadership for ICT reform is distributed according to functions of transformational, instructional, emotional and strategic management of resources. The key enabling factors are an official leadership position, access to expertise, support by senior management, and interpersonal synergies amongst the leaders. Transformational leadership is performed mainly by senior management. Instructional leadership is performed mainly by middle management. Both senior and middle management provided emotional leadership.Scopus© Citations 19 194 266 - PublicationOpen AccessDistributed leadership in school ICT reform: A survey of principals(2009)
; Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenThis study sought to understand how leadership in the use of ICT for teaching and learning is distributed among school leaders. The results confirm that the leadership of school ICT reforms is distributed, which suggests the importance of nurturing and supporting various school leaders, and highlights the importance of the leadership role played by heads of departments in school ICT reform. The findings also suggest that teachers in primary schools are using ICT more frequently than teachers in secondary schools.421 168 - PublicationOpen AccessDistributed leadership through the lens of Activity Theory(2016)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Chen, Der-ThanqPurpose: Using Activity Theory as an interpretive lens to examine the distribution of leadership, this paper shares a case study on how leadership for an ICT project was distributed in a Singapore school. Method: The case study involved observations of 49 meetings and 34 interviews of leaders and the teachers who were involved in the ICT project. Findings: Applying the lens of 3rd generation Activity Theory helped to surface two main interrelated activity systems, and the leadership actions performed by senior and middle management. The two activity systems comprised the school and the ICT project. The focus in Activity Theory on the social-cultural perspective highlighted the role played by social norms in mediating the leadership activity. Implications for future research: The conclusion focuses on the understanding of distributed leadership as analysed through the lens of Activity Theory and suggests future research directions. Activity Theory enables research on distributed leadership to identify and examine interrelated activity systems that various leaders are involved in, and how these impact the leadership provided.WOS© Citations 18Scopus© Citations 26 191 581 - PublicationOpen AccessThe distribution of leadership between vice-principals and principals in Singapore(2021)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Imran ShaariThis article examines the distribution of leadership between vice-principals and principals in Singapore. Vice-principals are an important leadership source in schools because they contribute to various key functions in school, including staff development, student learning and management. This research is on vice-principals’ contributions which are underrepresented in the literature. The study consisted of interviews of 28 vice-principals and 10 principals from 37 schools in Singapore. A mixed case-oriented and theme-oriented strategy was adopted, with member checking conducted through a case write up for each vice-principal. The findings illustrate how vice-principals worked with principals to co-set directions, motivate staff, lead instruction, and promote a desired culture. The study suggests the possibility of viewing the vice-principal and the principal as a leadership couple, with each performing complementary or overlapping practices, through a combination of collaborated and collective distribution. The study also illustrates vice-principals’ leadership and agency vis-à-vis principals’, which otherwise have been neglected.Scopus© Citations 6 165 295 - PublicationOpen AccessEnsuring learning continues during a pandemic(2020)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenTay, Lee YongIn the volatile, uncertain, and complex environment of the 2020 pandemic, education systems, school leaders and teachers must be ready to respond, adapt and even re-shape the context to ensure that student learning continues. In this paper, we analyse the Singapore Ministry of Education’s response to the 2020 pandemic. We propose that two leadership constructs explain the leadership provided: contextually responsive leadership and an ecological perspective of leadership. Our analysis reiterates the importance of the teachers’ role in working with and encouraging their peers, particularly when changes are required in the teachers’ instructional practice, such as the use of technology.701 570 - PublicationOpen AccessExamining teachers’ talk and learning within networked learning communities(National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University (NIE NTU), Singapore, 2023)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Towndrow, Phillip A. (Phillip Alexander) ;Norhayati Munir ;Ong, Monica Woei LingDe Laat, Maarten44 172 - PublicationOpen AccessGifted learners and how to develop them(National Institute of Education (Singapore), 2021)
; ;Aghazadeh, SimaHo, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenSingapore aims to build a flexible and diverse education system to help students discover their talents, realise their full potential and develop a lifelong passion for learning. This national aspiration is grounded in the Singapore education system’s recognition of individual differences in learning and implementing a strategy in which we seek to lift the bottom while not capping the top. Just as all learners need a supportive learning environment with adequate challenge, so do gifted learners. This paper synthesises and critiques research evidence on understanding and educating gifted learners to inform policy and practice in Singapore. The paper includes elaboration on the differentiation of learning environments to develop gifted learners.476 1186 - PublicationMetadata onlyHierarchical structures with networks for accountability and capacity building in Singapore: An evolutionary approachSingapore was first pushed into the limelight when the 2012 Programme for International Student Assessment results were announced and Singapore was amongst the top five performers for mathematics, reading and science. Singapore is a small city-state, which is two-thirds the size of New York City and one-tenth the size of Shanghai. The scale of Singapore's education system could be one reason why it is possible for the Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) to achieve its current status in a relatively short period of time even though Singapore is a young nation that achieved independence in 1965. During the 1960s, the Singapore education system began as a mix of community-based schools that implemented different curricula. The mediums of instruction involved different languages, namely, English, Chinese, Tamil and Malay. Accountability of schools was also centralised. MOE prescribed standards that schools needed to meet. Another significant development was the introduction of school ranking in 1992 as a form of local accountability.
33 - PublicationOpen AccessHistorical development of educational leadership in Singapore(2018)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenKoh, Thiam SengIn this chapter, we share the journey of how educational leadership developed in Singapore from its infancy during Singapore’s independence in 1965 to an education system that is internationally recognised as one of the top performing educational systems in the world. This context will help the reader to appreciate the wider environment under which the educational innovations described in subsequent chapters came about. As this is a relatively long chapter, for readers who are familiar with the historical development of educational leadership in Singapore, we recommend that it will be sufficient to just review Table 1 to obtain a quick overview of the developments for the purpose of appreciating the context of the educational innovations described in subsequent chapters.Scopus© Citations 11 193 1203 - PublicationRestrictedHow leadership for an ICT reform is distributed within a school and its impact on teachers’ use of ICT(2009)Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau YuenAfter two decades of masterplans to support technology use in Singapore schools, the majority of schools are still not harnessing ICT in ways which enable students to actively construct their own understanding. The literature suggests that leadership may play a critical role in the effective implementation of technology in schools, and that such leadership is likely to be distributed.
The main theoretical framework guiding this study was thus the distributed leadership perspective, which focuses on the interactions of multiple leaders with followers within a specific situation. A case study method was adopted, involving the examination of a school in the process of implementing an information communication technology (ICT) reform, focusing on the leadership actions performed by multiple individuals, and how the leadership provided impacted the teachers involved in the reform. The study also investigated the factors which enabled or constrained the distribution of leadership.
The case study included observations of meetings and email correspondence to investigate the enactment of leadership. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with leaders to understand their leadership actions, and with teachers to elicit their experience of leadership. The main analysis method was the constant comparative method of data analysis, with the use of Activity Theory as an interpretive framework to organise the findings.
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The study found that distributed leadership for ICT implementation requires a combination of transformational leadership to inspire teachers to be willing to change, instructional leadership to develop teachers’ capacity to enhance their instruction with ICT, emotional leadership to support teachers’ effort to change, and strategic management of resources to sustain teachers’ efforts to change. Transformational leadership is performed mainly by senior management while instructional leadership is performed mainly by middle management who possess the required technical-pedagogical-content expertise. Senior management plays a critical role in enabling and empowering instructional leadership by middle management. In contexts in which Heads of Department may pose barriers to change and leadership is mainly from middle managers who are lower in the organisational hierarchy, the role of senior management as boundary spanner between HODs and the latter is important.
In considering distributed leadership, it is critical to look beyond official leadership positions since access to expertise and personal agency play a key role in the actualisation of leadership. In addition, the extent to which leaders collaborate and the nature of their collaboration depends largely on their interpersonal relationships.
Besides looking at the distribution of leadership amongst different actors, there is also a need to consider the distribution of and change in leadership over time. Since the concept of leadership is to influence changes in people’s beliefs and actions, as these changes occur, leadership needs to evolve in response to these changes.
This study confirms that leadership for ICT implementation is distributed and that this distribution requires the enactment of a range of leadership functions, including transformational leadership, instructional leadership, emotional leadership and management of resources. The key enabling factors are an official leadership position and access to expertise, supported by senior management, and enhanced by interpersonal synergies amongst the leaders.197 45 - PublicationOpen AccessIntegrating distributed with ecological leadership: Through the lens of activity theory(2022)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen; ;Chua, Puay HuatNorhayati MunirPurpose: Leadership for the implementation of an educational innovation in Singapore was examined by integrating distributed leadership with an ecological perspective of leadership and analysed using the third generation of cultural–historical activity theory. Research Method: The study adopted the naturalistic inquiry approach of a case study of a cluster of six elementary schools in the process of diffusing an educational innovation over one academic year. The research team observed six open classroom sessions and two review sessions at the cluster level. A total of two Ministry officers, one Master Teacher, 10 school leaders, 12 key personnel and 21 teachers were interviewed. Findings: The use of cultural–historical activity theory as an analytical lens provided insights into how different activity systems at the ministry, cluster, and school levels interact in providing leadership for the implementation of the innovation, the tools utilised, the rules/norms which enabled or constrained the innovation's implementation, and the evolving nature of the leadership provided. The study affirms the value of incorporating an integrative perspective in the analysis of leadership and the value of cultural–historical activity theory in unpacking the distribution of leadership across interrelated activity systems, and in highlighting the temporal evolutionary nature of leadership.WOS© Citations 1Scopus© Citations 1 81 431 - PublicationOpen AccessLeadership across schools to diffuse an education innovation: Applying complexity leadership theory with ecological leadership(2021)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen; ;Chua, Puay HuatNorhayati MunirThis paper examined leadership practices which supported the diffusion of an innovation in a cluster of schools in Singapore, through the lenses of complexity leadership theory (CLT) and ecological leadership. The approach is a qualitative case study, with the unit of analysis bounded by the innovation and a cluster of schools involved in the diffusion effort. The case study involved investigations mainly at four ecological levels: the ministry (macro), the cluster (exo), school/subject department (meso) and teacher (micro), involving nine observations of the cluster’s community of teachers in 2019, and interviews or focused group discussions with 33 participants, including ministry officers, school leaders, key personnel and teachers. Findings and Implications: The findings illustrate the diffusion of an innovation through the interactional dynamics of administrative, adaptive, and enabling leadership, how these three CLT roles were performed by formal and informal leaders, deliberately or emergent, and across ecological levels. These leadership roles enabled learning and adaptions across and within ecologies. The study also reinforced the importance of the moral and emotional aspects of leadership in providing teachers with the motivation and support to cope with changes. The affordances, challenges, and limitations in applying CLT are elaborated.Scopus© Citations 2 104 36 - PublicationOpen AccessLeadership of professional learning communities in Singapore schools: The tight loose balance(2020)
;Ho, Jeanne Marie Pau Yuen ;Ong, Monica Woei LingTan, Liang SeePurpose: This paper presents a study on how professional learning communities (PLC) are developed in an Asian setting, and the nature of leadership that helped to cultivate and sustain PLC in such a context.
Research Method: The study adopted a sequential mixed method, starting with a survey followed by qualitative case studies, involving focused group discussions and interviews. This paper focuses on findings derived from the qualitative data, triangulated with the survey data.
Findings: The study raises questions about common assumptions regarding PLC, and shares how Singapore’s unique cultural context mediates and filters western notion of PLC and of shared leadership for PLC. The study suggests that leadership for PLC requires a centralised decentralisation approach, which provides clarity and alignment through strategic direction and supporting structures, while simultaneously enabling the distribution of leadership to teachers. The paper also explicates the tensions that arise due to the need to balance a tight loose approach, and suggests how organisational and inquiry structures can both enable and constrain the distribution of leadership in a PLC setting.
Implications: Findings from the study has implications for policy makers and leaders in schools who are steering PLC initiatives.WOS© Citations 15Scopus© Citations 15 384 347