Mr Chan Chun Sing, Minister for Education

Dr Mohamad Maliki Bin Osman, Minister, Prime Minister’s Office, Second Minister for Education and Second Minister for Foreign Affairs

Distinguished guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

Good afternoon. I am happy to join you for this year’s Teachers’ Day Reception to celebrate the achievements and contributions of our educators. Although we are unable to meet in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I am glad to still be able to show our appreciation and gratitude to our educators for their hard work in educating our future generations.

As the world continues to battle the pandemic, Singapore remains relentless in our efforts to manage the situation and prepare to be a COVID-19 resilient nation. Educators are at the very forefront of this collective effort, and have gone out of their way to respond purposefully and responsibly so that our students can stay safe and continue to learn effectively. This is a truly major achievement, which we should not take for granted. Thanks to the unwavering support from our educators, our students are able to continue learning with minimal disruptions, whether it was in school or through home-based learning. This is only possible because all of you – committed and dedicated educators – have risen to the many challenges brought about by the pandemic.

Teaching is more than just a job. It is a way of life. As an educator, you do more than just teach. You inspire, motivate and inculcate the right values in our future generations. Through you, students learn important values such as responsibility, resilience, integrity, and care for their families and communities. The impact of your work is long lasting. As we gradually adapt to a new normal and prepare ourselves for the future, these values are especially critical to enable Singapore to come back much stronger than before. After all, the young are our nation’s future.

It is therefore timely for us to gather here today to honour the educators who have been exemplary in their service towards moulding our future generations. This year, seven educators will receive the President’s Award for Teachers.

One of them is Mr Koh Hock Tong, the Section Head for the Nitec in Mechanical Technology programme at ITE College Central. At the start of the pandemic, when face masks and face shields were in severe shortage, Mr Koh and his fellow lecturers guided their students to design and assembled face shields for the care workers at various nursing homes. Not only did he create an opportunity for his students to apply what they learnt in school to the real world, Mr Koh also taught them a valuable lesson on stepping up to help others in times of need.

Another recipient of the award today is Ms Khairiah Bte Hairoman, Head of Department (Humanities) at Peirce Secondary School. With a belief that a good humanities education helps one develop empathy for others, Ms Khairiah often invites external parties to share their perspectives with her students.

For instance, in 2018 and 2019, Ms Khairiah invited a representative from theMigrant Workers’ Centre to give a talk to Secondary Three students at a school assembly. The videos shared during the talks helped the students gain a better understanding of the issues faced by the migrant workers and their contributions to Singapore. The sessions impacted the students so much that in 2019, they decided to initiate a donation drive, with every class in the cohort contributing daily necessities.

Like Mr Koh and Ms Khairiah, all our educators play an integral part in our nation, as they continue to create a positive impact in their students’ lives and mould the future of our nation. Your contributions to the teaching profession are admirableand laudable.

Once again, let me congratulate all recipients and nominees of this year’s President’s Award for Teachers. Thank you for your commitment to this noble cause. I would like to also thank your family members for their strong support, which has been instrumental in allowing you to excel in your work, especially during the pandemic. I am sure they, together with your colleagues and students, are very proud of you.

As we celebrate Teachers’ Day tomorrow, let me wish all educators a Happy Teachers’ Day in advance!

Thank you.