News
Yesterday we commemorated Labour Day to honour the contributions made by workers and celebrate the industrial peace we enjoy today. Turning the clock back to the 1950s and early 1960s, industrial relations in Singapore were more antagonistic and labour unrest was pervasive. Little known to many of us, this labour unrest invited the intervention of […]
Should Singaporeans be discouraged from using Singlish in order to promote the use of Standard English? The government-initiated movement entitled Speak Good English Movement (SGEM) began in April 2000. Seeing the rising popularity of Singlish as a threat to English language competency, the government sought to educate people on the importance of using Standard English. […]
There has been a growing debate among some FASS colleagues about whether a decision to focus on Singapore-specific research (that might impact public policymaking) comes at the cost of publishing internationally for wider recognition. This dilemma stems from the increasing pressure to publish one’s work in internationally-recognised journals. Discussions about this dilemma (including whether this is a false dilemma) are especially timely given […]
On April 30 2013, the National Environmental Agency launched the “Do the Mozzie Wipeout Campaign” encouraging the community to clear stagnant water in their homes by practicing the 5-Step Mozzie Wipeout. The aim of the campaign was to slow the spread of mosquito-borne dengue epidemic. With the Zika outbreak last year, this annual campaign is […]
How can we prepare students to face challenges to integrity and ethical dilemmas? On 15 April 2015, the Ministry of Education introduced the Framework for 21st Century Competencies and Student Outcomes, which outlines the competencies that have become increasingly important in this century. One of the six core values of the framework is integrity. Ms […]
Lineage is commonly thought to be irrelevant among the Chinese community in contemporary Singapore. In a 2014 article (Gods and/or Ancestors: Practicing Lineage in Contemporary Singapore) published in the “Journal of Chinese Overseas”, A/P Koh Khee Heong and A/P Ong Chang Woei (both from the Dept of Chinese Studies) argue against this. They point out […]
Singapore’s strong and well-conceived economic policies have kept it safe from the wrath of unbridled international capital flows in the past few decades. In Capital Flows and Exchange Rate Volatility: Singapore’s Experience (published by University of Chicago Press for National Bureau of Economic Research, 2007) Prof Basant Kapur (Department of Economics) first discusses the 1998 […]
Is it possible for Singapore to be free from terrorism? On 26 March 1991 at 10:15 pm, SQ117 flying from Kuala Lumpur touched down at Singapore’s Changi Airport. The flight had been skyjacked fifteen minutes ago. The next morning at 6:50 am, commandos from the Singapore Armed Forces stormed the plane after hours of intense […]
In their article, Effects of Good Life Program on Singaporean Older Adults’ Psychological Well-Being (published in Activities, Adaptation & Aging in 2008), Dr Kalyani Mehta (former faculty member at the Department of Social Work) and Mr Joey Cheang Ching Ee (Marine Parade Family Service Centre) explain that population ageing is a demographic trend and a […]
How do Singaporean women’s magazines represent women? International Women’s Day (IWD) falls on 8 March and celebrates women’s economic, political, and social achievements, and advocates accelerating gender equality. The Singapore Council of Women’s Organizations marked IWD in 2016 with the theme ‘Marching to our own beat’ and inducted 14 outstanding women–two Supreme Court Judges, six […]