DEPUTY PRINCIPAL OF Anglo Chinese School (Independent) Chock Siew Hwa's engineering background is a good conversation starter with students. She explained, “They are intrigued that I decided to teach instead of becoming an engineer. They asked if it is a waste of my degree.” That gave Siew Hwa an opportunity to impart a lesson. “The first degree does not determine the end career of a person,” she said. “The discipline that I picked up in my engineering course prepared me for my career in education. It is more important to do your best in a field that you are passionate about.”

Siew Hwa's entry into the teaching arena was not by choice. “I could not get any engineering job after graduation,” she said. “So I took up a three-year contract teaching position with the Ministry of Education.” When ACS(I) started in 1988, Professor Lawrence Chia was the principal. He was prepared to take in graduates who had teaching experience but no professional teaching qualification. “National Institute of Education did not take in those with engineering degrees then,” said Siew Hwa. She became a mathematics teacher at ACS(I). At the same time, she was given the IT portfolio “perhaps due to her engineering background”. Later, she headed the IT department. She was recognised for her ability and dedication and the school entrusted her with two signature courses — the Integrated Programme and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. In 2001, ACS(I) was the first local school to offer the International Baccalaureate in lieu of the A levels. That first batch of students produced results that were among the best in the world. “It was a very rewarding and fulfilling outcome,” said Siew Hwa. “Impacting students and forging strong relationships with them make teaching very meaningful.”

For Teo Siew Chin, the interest in technology in education saw her devote the past two decades in this area. The former cleanroom project engineer taught in a secondary school and polytechnic before moving to Singapore Technologies to do instructional design and technology. From there, she joined U21Global, an online school offering postgraduate programmes.