LEARNING FOR LIFE PROGRAMME - COMMUNITY YOUTH LEADERSHIP

L.E.A.D FRAMEWORK

Springfield views character development as an integral part of our Student’s holistic education. We also believe that every Student is a student leader, capable of contributing to the community and nation. Our blueprint for nurturing all Students to be ‘Future-Ready Learners with a Caring Heart and the Confidence to Lead’ through the School’s Learning for Life Programme in Community Youth Leadership (LLP-CYL) is encapsulated in our Student Development framework, named L.E.A.D (Leaders for Excellence, Action and Development).

It is a guide to infuse values education, impart skills and competencies to prepare our Students as future leaders in their respective fields through various platforms in Character and Citizenship Education (CCE), Values in Action (VIA) and Student Leadership Development (SLD). The programmes are also segmented by the 3Es of Progressive Development, namely Expose, Engage and Empower, with the learning getting richer as we move down the spectrum.

The Building Blocks for Learning Framework

Pamela Cantor and K.Brooke Stafford-Brizard designed the Building Blocks for Learning Framework (Figure 1) which represents the skills and mindsets that Students use to access, acquire and apply the academic content prioritized in classrooms.

Intensive research was done to develop this framework for comprehensive Student Development and a copy of the paper can be found HERE. On closer scrutiny of the Building Blocks for Learning Framework, we found great similarities in the Building Blocks with localised initiatives as illustrated in Figure 2 below.

Using the Building Blocks for Learning Framework as a guide, our School Programmes are designed to provide for progression in a Student’s growth as segmented by the 3Es of Progressive Development. A graphical representation can be seen below where attainment or participation in the lower tiers will provide Students with the opportunity for growth in the higher tiers and how it ties in with the G.E.A.R Framework.

Springfield’s Learning for Life Programme (LLP), centred around the School’s Values, aims to cultivate a pervasive Community Youth Leadership (CYL) Culture by instilling in Students the importance of social responsibility and volunteerism. This is done through a progressive tiered-approach (G,E,A,R) where Students are provided with platforms at cohort level or specific group level to be equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge that is developmental in nature. The G.E.A.R approach articulates the area of focus for each cohort of Students, with specialized programmes that are specially planned and put in place to develop Students in the respective area of focus.

In Secondary ONE -  the area of focus is on getting Springfielders to be “Grounded in Values”. The self-leadership modules conducted during the Character and Citizenship Education (CCE) lessons inculcate and reinforce School Values and Social-Emotional Competencies where Students are given the opportunity to put into practice this learning through Values-in-Action (VIA) Programmes in collaboration with our key partners PCF Sparkletots and NEA.

In Secondary TWO - the area of focus is to create platforms and opportunities for Students to be “Engaged to Learn and Lead”. This platform will be our Secondary 2 Signature Programme, STEMpathy, a collaboration with the Applied Learning Programme (ALP) and EcoSTEM Committee. Through their learning from ALP, our students then take the lead in imparting their knowledge to participants from Family Central’s Intergenerational Learning Programme (ILP). Students will interact with seniors to forge bonding and promote intergenerational learning through activities that promote a healthy lifestyle, such as senior-friendly sports, art and crafts activities.

In Secondary THREE - we want Springfielders to “Aspire to Serve” and the key focus will be allowing them to apply their leadership and service learning knowledge and skills learnt in our Tampines Community. Working with another partner, Stridy, our students moved around various parts of Tampines to pick up litter, keeping the community clean. The different types of litter picked up were also logged into an app to allow us to see what types of litter are most common in Singapore.

In Secondary FOUR and FIVE - the key focus will be on personal development and Springfielders should be “Ready to Soar” and leave a legacy as they prepare to move into the next phase of their lives. This is done through the conduct of Student-Initiated VIA Projects where the students take ownership of the meaningful projects they feel would contribute positively to the community. This endeavour also gives our students a glimpse into the world of project management as they are fully responsible from ideation, communication and down to implementation.

Through the 4 years of LLP-CYL Programmes in Springfield, we are confident our Springfielders will be developed to be Future-Ready Learners with a Caring Heart and the Confidence to Lead.