NUS High School celebrates 10 years of math and science education

SINGAPORE — The NUS High School of Mathematics and Science, the first in Singapore to offer a specialised curriculum in math and science, celebrated its 10th anniversary yesterday.

Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who looked into the possibility of having a specialised school when he was the Minister of Education in 1997, attended the celebrations, during which awards were presented to outstanding students. There were also performances, as well as an exhibition showing innovative equipment used in the teaching of science principles and students’ work.

Making a speech at the event, Mr Teo said he was glad to note that is glad that over 70 per cent of NUS High graduates have taken up Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) courses in university, and hopes for them to consider careers in emerging sectors such as biologics, aerospace and digital animation.

There is a need for Singaporeans to deepen their mastery in STEM areas, and a strong foundation in Mathematics and Science helps students develop analytical and problem solving skills, he noted.

“Just as science and technology helped build the homes we live in, the infrastructure that has made us a modern high-tech city, and shaped our nation’s economic development, science and technology will continue to play a key role in shaping the Singapore of the future, and the world we live in,” he said.

Undergraduate Cheng Herng Yi, 22, currently majoring in Mathematics in Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is among the pioneer co-horts at NUS High. He enrolled in 2006, and is grateful for the school for supporting his interest in Mathematics.

From the third year of his six-year programme, he had the option to do a research project every year in his area of interest, which was the mathematics of origami. While he had free rein to develop his ideas, he also had the guidance of a math teacher who helped supervise and even in the rehearsal of his presentation when he submitted his project for a competition.

“In NUS High, if you are interested to do some kind of project, it is not so hard to find a teacher who will be you mentor (to) guide you in the project,” Mr Cheng said.