Investing in Singapore's Education

Please read the transcript of PM Lee's speech at the 9th WORLD CONVENTION OF THE INTERNATIONAL CONFEDERATION OF PRINCIPALS ON 7JULY 2009 AT SUNTEC CITY CONVENTION CENTRE and give your comments. You can access the transcript at

http://www.pmo.gov.sg/News/Speeches/Prime+Minister/PM+Lee+s+speech+at+the+9th+World+Convention+of+the+International+Confederation+of+Principals.htm

Why Singapore Enjoys a Low Crime Rate

Read the following article by Kishore Mahbubani and share your views.

http://viewer.zoho.com/docs/ifSIi

What Do Employers Really Want? Top Skills and Values Employers Seek from Job-Seekers

Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D., and Katharine Hansen, Ph.D.

http://www.quintcareers.com/job_skills_values.html

Communications Skills (listening, verbal, written). By far, the one skill mentioned most often by employers is the ability to listen, write, and speak effectively. Successful communication is critical in business.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Exceptional listener and communicator who effectively conveys information verbally and in writing.

Analytical/Research Skills. Deals with your ability to assess a situation, seek multiple perspectives, gather more information if necessary, and identify key issues that need to be addressed.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Highly analytical thinking with demonstrated talent for identifying, scrutinizing, improving, and streamlining complex work processes.

Computer/Technical Literacy. Almost all jobs now require some basic understanding of computer hardware and software, especially word processing, spreadsheets, and email.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Computer-literate performer with extensive software proficiency covering wide variety of applications.

Flexibility/Adaptability/Managing Multiple Priorities. Deals with your ability to manage multiple assignments and tasks, set priorities, and adapt to changing conditions and work assignments.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Flexible team player who thrives in environments requiring ability to effectively prioritize and juggle multiple concurrent projects.

Interpersonal Abilities. The ability to relate to your co-workers, inspire others to participate, and mitigate conflict with co-workers is essential given the amount of time spent at work each day.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Proven relationship-builder with unsurpassed interpersonal skills.

Leadership/Management Skills. While there is some debate about whether leadership is something people are born with, these skills deal with your ability to take charge and manage your co-workers.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Goal-driven leader who maintains a productive climate and confidently motivates, mobilizes, and coaches employees to meet high performance standards.

Multicultural Sensitivity/Awareness. There is possibly no bigger issue in the workplace than diversity, and job-seekers must demonstrate a sensitivity and awareness to other people and cultures.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Personable professional whose strengths include cultural sensitivity and an ability to build rapport with a diverse workforce in multicultural settings.

Planning/Organizing. Deals with your ability to design, plan, organize, and implement projects and tasks within an allotted timeframe. Also involves goal-setting.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Results-driven achiever with exemplary planning and organizational skills, along with a high degree of detail orientation.

Problem-Solving/Reasoning/Creativity. Involves the ability to find solutions to problems using your creativity, reasoning, and past experiences along with the available information and resources.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Innovative problem-solver who can generate workable solutions and resolve complaints.

Teamwork. Because so many jobs involve working in one or more work-groups, you must have the ability to work with others in a professional manner while attempting to achieve a common goal.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Resourceful team player who excels at building trusting relationships with customers and colleagues.

Personal Values Employers Seek in Employees

Of equal importance to skills are the values, personality traits, and personal characteristics that employers seek. Look for ways to weave examples of these characteristics into your resume, cover letters, and answers to interview questions.

Here is our list of the 10 most important categories of values.

Honesty/Integrity/Morality. Employers probably respect personal integrity more than any other value, especially in light of the many recent corporate scandals.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Seasoned professional whose honesty and integrity provide for effective leadership and optimal business relationships.

Adaptability/Flexibility. Deals with openness to new ideas and concepts, to working independently or as part of a team, and to carrying out multiple tasks or projects.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Highly adaptable, mobile, positive, resilient, patient risk-taker who is open to new ideas.

Dedication/Hard-Working/Work Ethic/Tenacity. Employers seek job-seekers who love what they do and will keep at it until they solve the problem and get the job done.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Productive worker with solid work ethic who exerts optimal effort in successfully completing tasks.

Dependability/Reliability/Responsibility. There's no question that all employers desire employees who will arrive to work every day - on time - and ready to work, and who will take responsibility for their actions.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Dependable, responsible contributor with committed to excellence and success.

Loyalty. Employers want employees who will have a strong devotion to the company -- even at times when the company is not necessarily loyal to its employees.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Loyal and dedicated manager with an excellent work record.

Positive Attitude/Motivation/Energy/Passion. The job-seekers who get hired and the employees who get promoted are the ones with drive and passion -- and who demonstrate this enthusiasm through their words and actions.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Energetic performer consistently cited for unbridled passion for work, sunny disposition, and upbeat, positive attitude.

Professionalism. Deals with acting in a responsible and fair manner in all your personal and work activities, which is seen as a sign of maturity and self-confidence; avoid being petty.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Conscientious go-getter who is highly organized, dedicated, and committed to professionalism.

Self-Confidence. Look at it this way: if you don't believe in yourself, in your unique mix of skills, education, and abilities, why should a prospective employer? Be confident in yourself and what you can offer employers.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Confident, hard-working employee who is committed to achieving excellence.

Self-Motivated/Ability to Work With Little or No Supervision. While teamwork is always mentioned as an important skill, so is the ability to work independently, with minimal supervision.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Highly motivated self-starter who takes initiative with minimal supervision.

Willingness to Learn. No matter what your age, no matter how much experience you have, you should always be willing to learn a new skill or technique. Jobs are constantly changing and evolving, and you must show an openness to grow and learn with that change.

Sample bullet point describing this skill:

• Enthusiastic, knowledge-hungry learner, eager to meet challenges and quickly assimilate new concepts.

Social Media tools part of University Curriculum

The Straits Times, 11th June 2009

Facebook, Twitter, Wiki and other social media tools are part of NUS, NTU, SMU and UniSIM curriculum. University students are not just being taught how to use these online networking tools, they are also being taught how these tools might be incorporated into the various profession. Students are required to submit their assignments in the form of blog posts, or set up and upkeep wiki pages with links to related topics contributed by various people.

Universities from Harvard to Stanford have also started classes in this area or set up centres to carry out cyberspace research.

The Human Cost of Climate Change

What's the Human Cost of Climate Change 

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1902687,00.html?xid=rss-mostpopular

51 things we can do to Save the Environment

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/environment/

Shah Agassi's Bold Plan for Electric Cars

E-learning Week Lesson/Assignment 1 - Evaluating Web Resources

The World Wide Web offers a great wealth of information from all over the world, as well as the opportunity for people to express themselves and exchange ideas. This makes it a potentially great place to accomplish research on many topics. However, because so much information is available, and because that information can appear to be fairly “anonymous”, it is necessary to develop skills to evaluate what you find. You need to cultivate the habit of healthy skepticism, of questioning everything you find with critical thinking. The Internet epitomizes the concept of Caveat lector: Let the reader beware. The burden is on you - the reader - to establish the validity, authorship, timeliness, and integrity of what you find.

The following websites offer excellent advice on how to evaluate web sources.
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html
and http://www.library.ubc.ca/home/evaluating/

Using what you have learnt about web evaluation, I would like you to evaluate some of the websites on my homepage at http://www.netvibes.com/lucyhow#GPand share your evaluation with the others here. Please write a review of at least one website.

You may choose to work on this on your own or with one other person. Please include both names should you work with a partner.

E-learning Week Lesson/Assignment 2: Share your views online

Go to my homepage at  http://www.netvibes.com/lucyhow#News  

Browse through any of your preferred online newspaper and share your views on any of the event reported that interest you.  

Here is how you can write a review of the event:   

1. Start your article with a short summary (two to three sentences) of the highlights of the event.
2. Then continue with the significance of the event.  In other word, why did you choose to discuss this event?  Is it significant to you personally?  Does it have an impact on your family or the community (school, religious, national, global)
3. What is your stand with regard to the event?  What other information do you have to support your stand?  

Remember to post the link to the article.