The program of this school is very unique. It is parent and teacher co-run. Parents are given a job to do in the school. They can be stationed at different corners to make sure that children are always under supervision. Parents also teach in the school on voluntary basis and they are given work schedules just like the teachers. They had to sign a pledge form to acknowledge their commitment to the school too. These shows how the school brings parents and teachers to the same position in power sharing. It is interesting to see that the diverse families that were integrated and commited in the school.
There's a teacher who served the centre for 25 years with 3 kids who were there. Her kids now come back to the school to volunteer in the summer program. There's very low turnover rate in the school, which is pretty impressive, unlike in Singapore. I guess it is the nature of the program that allows teachers here facilitate more rather than teach. Play and emergent curriculum is the main focus. Children are said to be able to initiate and choose, be free and responsible, experiment and discover, play and make friends. They plan for both spontaneous and planned activities, which the children are free to propose and to choose from.
Another teacher who brought us around had tatoos on her arms and hair dyed pink. I was surprised how open American is. It's impossible for teachers to do that in Singapore. At some centres, parents would even complain that teachers paint their nails. But, first impression does play a part. I believe in Singapore, no one would look upon a person with tatoos and pink hair as a professional. It might not always be in the looks, but looks still does matter.
Moreover, many of their materials are donated by parents or church members (from the church which they rented the premises from). The involment of parents as well as the donation of materials are great ideas for centres which are going on low budget. Especially in Singapore, where we are more stringent with money. However, I don't know if this would work in Singapore as parent volunteers in the school have flexible working hours and some for not working. Moreover, sometimes I find Singaporeans too pampered to accept used toys for their 'precious' children.
The only things which I think are possible for Singapore's preschool is the parent pledge form and donation of the toys (which don't look too old). We can make it a point upon the enrolment of their child to inform them of their importance in their children's education and required commitment to the school through the use of the pledge form, which can include the requirements as follows: reply daily communication books, read the weekly E-newsletter and the quarterly newsletter, contribute to the parent resource centre, update the class blog, volunteer as a helper, pitch in when special projects are undertaken, attend important school events and meetings, join the school’s parent support group, pay school fees and any miscellaneous fees when due, etc, which are of a lower commitment in comparison to those at the Corner Co-op.
