Huan, Vivien Swee Leng

The purpose of the research is to examine the perceptions of primary school educators toward inclusive education in Singapore. The research study seeks to provide an understanding of inclusion as it is practiced in Singapore primary schools. It examines the features of inclusion and its implementation, the experience of primary school teachers, perceived barriers and facilitators of inclusion, and the benefits and disadvantages of inclusion.

Express stream students rank amongst the top in international benchmarking comparisons in TIMMS and PISA, but those from the Normal Academic and Normal Technical streams obtain lower-than-average scores comparable to students from developing countries. Although a differentiated program has been specially tailored to cater to their pace of learning, many still fail to perform because educators may not have adequately considered the circumstances under which they are willing to participate and learn. Substantial research indicates that besides academics, a range of social, psychological, interpersonal and emotional factors also contribute to educational performance and achievement. To gain perspective on the respective contribution of multiple factors and encapsulate the systemic influences at individual and contextual factors on the long-term academic and non-academic trajectories of these students, this study uses a student engagement framework to unravel the educational challenges facing Normal stream students. Student engagement refers to a student’s active involvement in a task or activity and it captures the gradual process by which they connect with or disconnect from school. This framework describes students’ feelings (affective), behaviours and thoughts (cognitive) about their school experiences, and is predominantly used to understand student problems associated with significant academic or discipline problems and eventual school dropout in research situated in western contexts.

Character, citizenship, and values are areas of education that have received increasing attention in the international community. This is also the case for Singapore (Lee, 2012) with an education system guided by the student-centric, values-driven philosophy (Ministry of Education [MOE], 2011, 2012). In his speech at the 2011 MOE Work Plan Seminar, Singapore’s Minister for Education at that time, Mr. Heng Swee Keat, highlighted, “We need to develop our children holistically, in all aspects – moral, cognitive, physical, social and aesthetic or what is termed in Chinese as 德智体群美 (de zhi ti qun mei)” (MOE, 2011, para. 16) and that, “… between academic achievement and values, it must not be “either/or”. We should strive to achieve both” (MOE, 2011, para. 53).
An important out-of-classroom experience recognised to play an important role in holistic development, character building, and 21st century skills and competencies is co-curricular activities (CCAs; Chong-Mok, 2010; MOE, 2010, 2011; Schwarz & Stolow, 2006). In Singapore, CCAs are an integral part of school curriculum and proposed to offer an authentic platform for (a) development of moral values, (b) acquisition and practice of soft skills, (c) social integration of children from differing backgrounds and ethnicities, (d) provision of safe learning environment, (e) opportunities for character and leadership development, and (f) lifelong pursuit of interests and greater outward expression (Chong-Mok, 2010; MOE, 2011). While participation in CCAs during primary education is not compulsory, CCAs are emphasized in secondary schools and categorized into Core (or Main) and Merit (or Secondary/Optional) CCAs. Core CCAs are mandatory for all students, whereas Merit CCAs are offered as an option for students with an interest in a particular CCA area. In both primary and secondary levels, the range of CCAs offered is categorized into four major groups: Physical Sports, Uniformed Groups, Visual and Performing Arts, and Clubs and Societies. With the increased investment in CCAs in Singapore schools (MOE, 2011, 2012), there is a priority to examine the potential impacts of CCAs on the holistic development of Singaporean students. This study was a timely response to this call.

This paper describes a preschool inclusion initiative in Singapore, which currently has no mandate for integrating children with special needs in mainstream schools. This very small-scale qualitative study involving children with mild learning disabilities discusses a therapy outreach programme by a local children’s hospital. It explores the supports and challenges of this experience based on interviews with therapists, teachers, principals, and parents. Facilitators of inclusion included communication, collaboration, availability of training and resources, and a readiness for inclusion. Barriers to inclusion included person-related hindrances, structural obstacles, gaps in program delivery, and limited specialized training and resources. We learned that in the absence of mandatory provisions for inclusion, children with special needs can be supported in regular education when there is “buy in” for early inclusion and intervention amongst key stakeholders. Practical strategies toward this end are discussed.

This study examines the influence of both student and teacher perception of the student-teacher relationship on student's attitude towards teachers and school. It also seeks to explore any gender differences in the perception of teacher-student relationship between male and female adolescents. A sample of 1,266 students (541 girls and 725 boys) from six different middle schools in Singapore participated in this study. Findings indicated that gender differences were observed for certain dimensions in the teacher-student relationship predicting their attitude towards teachers and school. Possible explanations for the obtained results were suggested and implications of the findings were also discussed.

Teachers’ positive attitude is most critically and consistently associated with successful inclusion. However, little is known about teachers’ first-hand encounters with inclusive education in Singapore. We present findings from a qualitative study on inclusion based on focus group interviews with 202 teachers from 41 resourced primary schools. The data were transcribed and coded using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis and NVIVO software. Two broad clusters identified were teachers’ positive and negative experiences in implementing inclusion. More reference was made to negative than positive experiences. The most dominant negative experience was stress from challenging behaviours and instructional difficulties of catering adequately for diverse needs in the same classroom. The most salient positive experience was satisfaction with pupils’ progress and new learning for teachers. Classroom practices that facilitated inclusion and the value of training in shaping teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion were highlighted.

This paper presents findings of a preliminary pilot study that was undertaken to examine what the perceptions of adolescents are, with regards to 3 different methods of disciplinary measures, namely peer mediation, responsible thinking, and corporal punishment, that are being carried out presently, in Singapore schools. This study intends to find out whether these discipline measures are being perceived to be effective approaches in addressing discipline problems by the adolescents. Using 3 short vignettes and a survey with rating scales, the subjects of this study, which comprised 30 secondary three girls and 35 secondary three boys, responded to the statements in the survey. Their perceptions towards each disciplinary measure were analysed. Findings of the study revealed only significant differences between the mean score for the corporal punishment disciplinary measure and that of the other 2 disciplinary measures namely peer mediation and responsible thinking. However, no significant difference was found between the mean scores of the peer mediation disciplinary measure and that of the responsible thinking disciplinary measure.

This thesis investigates the process of peer mediation from the perspectives of the social identity and self-categorization theories. Past research on peer mediation has focused on the positive outcomes of the peer mediation programme. Success of the programme in schools is based on anecdotal evidence, reduction in the number of discipline cases, and improvement in the students' academic grades. So far, not much research has been conducted to explain the process of peer mediation using a theoretical framework. Therefore this thesis aims to contribute a theoretical understanding in the mediation process by using tenets from the social identity and self-categorization theories to illuminate the role of social and personal identities in conflict resolution. These two theories explain group processes by addressing the role of identity in influencing an individual's perceptions and behaviors as a group member, and are therefore relevant for understanding processes in the group-based peer mediation programme.

Social identity theory states that individuals affiliate and identify with others whom they perceived to be similar to them, and categorize them as part of their in-group through social comparison. In their own social groups, group members would engage in inter-group comparison in an effort to achieve positive in-group distinctiveness and subsequently, a positive social identity. If individuals in conflict are perceived to belong to the same in-group, it is hypothesized that they would be more positive in resolving their conflicts amiably. The parties involved in a peer mediation session include a student mediator whose role is to facilitate and help resolve the conflict between the aggressor or offender and his victim who are both directly involved in the conflict. Whether the offender perceives the mediator and victim as in-group or out-group members during mediation is important for the successful resolution of conflicts.

Study One showed how the offender would identified more with the mediator who is an ex-gang member (or ex-gangster) with a similar social identity, than with a mediator who is a school prefect with social identity that is different from his, during a mediation session. The offender also had more positive perceptions about the outcome of the mediation session when the conflict was mediated by the mediator who used to be a gang member than when it was mediated by the prefect. The salience of the social identity was further demonstrated in the Study Two where the offender had higher levels of identification and more positive perceptions of the mediation outcome, for a victim who is an ex-gangster (similar social identity) than for a prefect victim (different social identity). Significantly higher levels of empathy were expressed by the offender for the ex-gangster victim during mediation. The study also established the salience of the victim's identity during peer mediation. It was observed that regardless of the mediator's social identity, the offender's response to the mediation of conflict was influenced by the victim's social identity. Therefore, results from Studies One and Two of this thesis established the importance of matching the social identities between the offender and those involved in the mediation process, for effective mediation of conflicts in the mediation process.

However, conflicts are more likely to occur between youths of different social identities. Another argument put forward by this thesis is that unless the offender perceives the victim in terms of his personal identity instead of his social identity (which is different from the offender's), successful mediation of conflicts between these two youths might be impeded. The third study demonstrated that with a victim from a different social group, the offender was more likely to perceive him in terms of his social identity prior to mediation and displayed lower levels of empathy for him prior to mediation. During the mediation process, however, the victim was more likely to be perceived in his personal identity by the offender, who also expressed greater empathy for him. This shift in the offender's perception of the victim's identity from social to that of personal is crucial, as it influences the offender's level of cooperation to resolve the conflict, which subsequently contributes to the success of the mediation process.

Findings of the three studies suggest the utility of both social identity and self-categorization theories as frameworks for explaining the peer mediation process. Future research involving a programme evaluation of peer mediation in Singapore is also necessary as one is able to assess the different aspects of the intervention that contribute to different outcomes in a programme evaluation. Some aspects of the intervention may need to be enhanced to achieve their intended outcomes while other aspects found to be unnecessary and would thus be eliminated (Durlak, 1995). Through programme evaluation, effective components of the intervention are thus highlighted so that positive outcomes of the intervention can be enhanced. This research provides impetus for exploring the mediation process in relation to shame and the field of psycholinguistics.