School principals should think about leading community too: Heng

SINGAPORE — Beyond leading schools, principals should also think about being leaders in the community, said Education Minister Heng Swee Keat.

Borrowing the adage that it takes a village to raise a child, the minister said principals were the prime candidates for shaping the village, but that engagement opportunities with the community needed to be sought after.

Besides leading the community, school principals can also work together to uplift the education system by sharing ideas and talent as well as growing leaders.

“This enables us to run a marathon, passing the baton, taking the long view, rather than seeing every school as a sprint and competing unnecessarily,” said Mr Heng yesterday at the 17th Appointment and Appreciation Ceremony for principals at Shangri-La Hotel, which was attended by about 600 educators. Fifty-two educators received new appointments as principals and 13 senior officers retired from service.

The minister also urged principals to view themselves as leaders in the national context, looking at issues from the broader perspective of the school system, the wider community and a longer time frame — and not be hindered by a singular focus on one’s school. “The principal is in the best position to think beyond lesson plans and exam grades to whether students are ... growing into upstanding young people who will build a caring, safe and just society,” he said.

In contributing to and mobilising the community, principals exercise leadership and bring a sense of pride and ownership to teachers and students alike, he said. In this way, the community is able to appreciate having a school in the neighbourhood.

“Hence, I encourage principals to find out more about what the community has to offer and what working life is like in different organisations,” Mr Heng said. “Gain a first-hand understanding of the working landscape and challenges, the skill sets and dispositions that are needed to thrive and how schools can better equip our students to adapt to the world in the future.”

Many schools already contribute to their community, noted Mr Heng. For instance, Kranji Secondary School collaborates with Yew Tee grassroots groups to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival and Loyang Primary School welcomes members of the public to its biennial school fair, which attracts more than a thousand visitors each time.

“I take pride in the term ‘neighbourhood school’. Our schools are in their neighbourhood, they are part of their neighbourhood,” he said. “My earnest hope is for (residents) around each of our schools to take pride in the schools, to know and trust that students have a heart and love for their neighbourhood and to truly embrace these schools as their neighbourhood schools.”