“Many people, especially job recruiters who look at my resume, did not expect someone from ITE could be where I am now,” said the 38-year-old.
Such negative perceptions about ITE — viewed as the last option for academically weakest students, typically those from Normal stream in secondary school — continue to exist, despite the many success stories of its graduates and the vast amount of resources that have been pumped into developing the 31-year-old institute.
Dr Teng Siao See, Assistant Dean and co-programme director of the schools, leadership and system studies programme at the National Institute of Education , said that this preference is reflected in the salary gap between ITE graduates and polytechnic or university graduates.The Ministry of Education announced in July 2023 that ITE students who achieved a Grade Point Average of at least 3.
In view of these challenges, TODAY looks at how far ITE has developed since its inception and what more can be done to improve general perceptions of technical education in Singapore.ITE has come a long way in developing technical education since taking over from its predecessor, the Vocational and Industrial Training Board in 1992.
One significant development was to burnish its credentials, from a “lowly-regarded institution to one that is well-received by the public, parents, students and employers”, according to former chairman of ITE from 1994 to 2007, Mr Eric Gwee, in its 30th commemorative book. “Students are offered various opportunities such as participating in international competitions not depending on their grades but on their levels of interest and willingness to work hard,” added Mr Tan, who was ITE chairman from 2007 to 2019 and is currently chairman of several companies.
On whether the recent move to secure polytechnic spots for top Higher Nitec scorers would undermine these efforts to promote technical education to the same level as academic skills, Mr Tan said that the move is laudable and should not be seen as promoting a grades-centric mindset.“It is not the end if ITE students don’t go to polytechnic. They can pursue their diploma education in ITE or gain work experience and then apply to polytechnic again,” he added.
Source: Education Headlines (educationheadlines.net)
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