BECOMING AN LJ PARTNER

SOME SUGGESTED STEPS
Thank you for your interest in MOE's Learning Journeys (LJ) programme.

The aim of the LJ programme is to help our students understand what makes Singapore tick, and the underlying factors of success in our key institutions. In addition, through these learning journeys, we also extend and enrich our students' educational experience, making real and concrete what has been taught in schools.

If your organisation is keen, we would like to meet you! Do feel free to contact our CCE officer,  Ms Yip Ching Yee at yip_ching_yee@moe.gov.sg / 65976420 for more information.

Below are some suggested steps for you to think about in planning an LJ programme that is meaningful and enjoyable for students.

1. Conceptualising the Programme

Identifying the Learning Outcomes
It is worth thinking through what messages you would want our students to take away from a visit to your organisation. By identifying the learning outcomes, it would enable your organisation to plan a programme that would deliver these messages.

Identifying the Target Level of Students
The LJ programme is targeted at different levels of students, from Primary to Junior College and Polytechnic levels. Your organisation may want to consider specialising in a targeted level to optimise resources and give greater focus to the targeted audience. Some organisations do provide programmes for different levels, but the programmes had minimal differences in terms of activities and engagement. This may give rise to students' impression that the LJ visits are repetitive if they visit the same organisation in their primary and secondary years.

In addition, your organisation may also consider customising programmes for smaller groups of target audience e.g. student leaders such as NE ambassadors. Some schools do have special programmes or training for student leaders or certain activity groups. You may wish to consider working with schools to customise programmes for their special needs. In doing so, you could also tap on the teachers' experience and expertise in designing activities that will stimulate and engage students.

Your organisation will have to decide the level it is most comfortable with hosting, and pitch the presentations to engage students of that age range.

Planning the Types of Activities
There are various means of ensuring that the planned learning objectives are imparted to the students, and done in interesting and engaging ways. These include:

1. Briefings with PowerPoint presentation
   
   
2. Presentations using different modes and media e.g. video presentation, drama, story-telling, interviews etc.
   
   
3. Interactive Exhibition
   
   
4. Tour of site with "hands-on" experience
   
   
5. Question-and-Answer sessions, quizzes etc.

To enhance the LJ experience for our students in line with the recommendations by the Committee on National Education, you may like to consider the following suggestions:

1. Students appreciate interactivity and are less receptive to one-way lectures. One way of providing an interactive experience could be having a guide who is able to relate to and connect with the targeted audience, and is open, willing to share and take questions. Some organisations provide dialogues sessions, debates, hands-on experiences, interactive computer games.
   
   
2. Generally, the younger students prefer hands-on experiences while the older ones are more inquisitive in nature and enjoy dialogues or role plays of the work that people in organisations do. Also, students prefer listening to personal stories and experiences than facts and information about the organisation. The latter can be rather abstract and technical. While facts cannot be omitted from presentations, they can be balanced with anecdotes and analogies.

 Frequency and Group Size
You would want to decide how frequently your organisation can host the visits. On average, most organisations in our programme host an average of 8 visits a month. However, our experience shows that the most popular periods for school visits to organisations are between February to April and August to October.

Similarly, the group size needs to be decided at this stage. Although the group size varies according to the facilities of the organisations, the minimum size should be about 40 (based on one class of students).

2. Working with CCE Officers

Initial Meeting
Upon your organisation's expression of interest, we will set-up an initial meeting with your representative to outline the requirements of an LJ programme. NE branch will also furnish organisation all the necessary documents for them to conceptualise and plan an LJ programme.

Conducting the Dry Run
Once the programme is ready, a dry-run is held for officers from the Character & Citizenship Education Branch who will give their feedback on the appropriateness of the programme for the targeted audience, its relevance to National Education, the duration of the Learning Journey and other aspects of schools' operations which the institution may not be aware of. Schools students could also be invited to participate in the dry-run and to give additional feedback.

Drafting Write-Up and Other Preparations
When the programme is confirmed, a more detailed write-up is drafted. Soft copies of visuals, learning resources and other attachments are also prepared. When everything is ready, all the materials will be sent to CCE officer for uploading on MOE NE website.

Follow Up
After the programme has been running for a period of time, our officers will go on a visit with a school which has made a booking for your programme. This is to provide opportunity for our officers to maintain in close contact with you and to find out your needs and concerns so that we can help you in any way possible.

We Appreciate Your Partnership in the Learning Journeys Programme!

The Character & Citizenship Education Branch
Ministry of Education