Distinguished Guests,

Principals, teachers, students,

Ladies and Gentlemen.

I am happy to be here this morning to celebrate the achievements of our students and teachers in the various IT competitions organised by the Educational Technology Division of the Ministry. I am happy to see that students and teachers have responded positively to these competitions. The quality of your work has improved over the years, a sign of your creative use of IT for education.

To succeed in the knowledge-based economy, teachers and students not only need to keep abreast of developments in emerging technologies and explore better ways to harness these technologies for teaching and learning, but they must also share their knowledge and innovations. Reflection and sharing will generate more creative ideas and new knowledge. It is in this spirit of sharing and learning that today's event is held.

In 1997, the Ministry launched the Masterplan for IT in Education to harness the potential of IT for education. It is one of our key strategies to equip our young with the skills and to nurture the qualities crucial for a knowledge-based economy. In line with this, the Educational Technology Division has organised a range of activities and projects, including various competitions, to encourage innovative and creative use of IT in schools.

This morning's event recognises the achievements of our students through the Schools Video Awards and the i-Micro Award, and that of our teachers through the Hewlett-Packard Innovation in Information Technology Award. The winning entries cover a wide range of subject areas. One entry captures the experiences of a Primary One boy in his first week in school. Another traces the security features of ten-dollar notes of Singapore, Malaysia and the United States. While yet another is an on-line game where students can practise the application of Physics concepts in kinematics, dynamics, forces and thermal physics. Your achievements are a reflection of our progress in the innovative use of IT in schools.

The task of preparing our young cannot be carried out by schools alone. The community and industry can play their part in enriching school programmes and supporting the various projects undertaken by the Ministry. Tertiary institutions, with their vast knowledge and research in content and pedagogy can also provide valuable support and expertise to teachers and students.

For the past few years, MOE and several IT industry partners have collaborated to promote innovative and creative use of technology amongst teachers and students. Since the inception of the School-Industry Partnership Scheme (SCHIPS) in 1997, we have embarked on projects like eduPAD and immersive virtual-reality between industry partners and schools. In such projects, both schools and our partners reported that they benefited from the collaboration. Schools had the opportunity to explore different ways of teaching and learning using new technologies. In return, industry partners were able to get first-hand feedback and input on their new technologies with schools serving as test-beds.

The creative talents of our students as well as the collective wisdom of teachers can be tapped through collaborative developmental projects with industry. Leading industry players can lend support to schools in the areas of training, technology and specialist expertise.

8The Active Primary Mathematics CD-ROM series comprising three titles is jointly published by MOE and Times Media Private Limited. The first two titles, ‘In Rainbow Rock’ and ‘With Vroot and Vroom’ have each won a Bronze World medal in the prestigious New York Festivals International Multimedia Competition in 1999 and 2000 respectively. ‘In Rainbow Rock’ has also recently bagged the ComputED Gazette’s 7^th Annual Best Children’s Educational Software Awards (BESSIES) in the Early Elementary Mathematics category. The BESSIES awards provide parents and teachers with a guide to the best children’s educational software currently available in the retail market.

The series stands out from other educational software through its strong pedagogy, innovation and content-rich activities. This is a result of the collaboration between MOE project development specialists, who are teachers by training, and Times Media Private Limited, an experienced publisher of educational books and software.

I would like to thank all the organizations that have worked with the Ministry and schools these past few years. Hewlett-Packard Singapore, has been a strong supporter of MOE's IT initiative. HP Singapore has sponsored the HP INIT Award since 1999, to recognise teachers' creative use of IT in teaching. After 3 years, HP is continuing its sponsorship to encourage teachers' innovation in applying IT to enhance their students' learning. To motivate teachers to move on to higher levels of IT use, the Award takes on a new form - one which encourages collaboration and networking among teachers and specialists. It also provides a platform for teachers to reflect on their own learning experiences and professional development through the innovative use of IT, backed by strong pedagogical considerations.

In the 2^nd Schools Video Awards this year, we see the fostering of creative talents with the expertise and support of Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s Centre for Film and Media Studies, the Thomson CC Video Club, Epecom Technology and Distribution Private Limited and the Singapore Broadcasting Authority. This concerted effort among the Ministry, an Institution of Higher Learning, the community and industry is commendable and we would like to see more such collaborations.

For the i-Micro Award, I look forward to both Epecom and Intel Technology Asia Pte Ltd’s continual support. Your interest in developing our young minds to harness the developments of technology and explore new strategies will help our students move on to a higher level of using technology for learning. The synergy between schools and industries will help to groom a workforce that is up-to-date, creative and responsive to the challenges of the future.

Once again, congratulations to the winners of the competitions for their innovative ideas, as well as to all who have participated in the competitions for their enthusiastic contribution. May your efforts continue to inspire other students and teachers to take up the challenge of innovation in the use of IT for teaching and learning.

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