02 July 2016

According to last year’s Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Teaching and Learning International Survey, teachers in Singapore work among the longest hours, with more time spent on administrative duties and extra-curricular activities compared to their counterparts from other countries.

Singapore also has the youngest teaching force across the 34 countries involved in the survey, with an average age of 36 years — 7 years younger than the international average.

But despite the relative youth of Singapore’s teachers, Singapore has one of the highest proportions of teachers who have been trained in actual classroom practices before becoming full-fledged teachers.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) said that Singapore gives priority to building a quality teaching force that is well-trained and supported, dynamic in its practice and committed to the profession.

Mr Andreas Schleicher, OECD’s deputy director for education and skills, said Singapore teachers are paid relatively higher than teachers overseas. “The choice Singapore makes to prioritise the quality of teachers above things such as the size of classes or less working time is certainly a wise strategy to invest in scarce resources.” But he added that the additional time needed by local teachers for administrative tasks and marking showed there is room to structure their workload more effectively.