Schools in Singapore are fast becoming a hotbed of innovation and enterprise (I&E) with students and teachers working together to nurture a spirit of inquiry. The fruits of their labour were showcased at the annual MOE ExCEL Day, held on 11 September 2004 at Pioneer Junior College.

The theme for this year’s ExCEL Day was “Celebrating the Spirit of Innovation and Enterprise”.

In the spirit of I&E, an Intellectual Property Rights Clinic was held for the first time to allow teachers to gain a better understanding of the issue. Participants of the Teachers’ Work Attachment scheme were also on hand to share their experiences. Another first was the I&E Forum, where participants shared an intimate session with six local personalities, including entrepreneur Douglas Foo and 2003 Young Woman Achiever Dr Wong Ting Hway.

The entrepreneurs and social activists shared insights from their personal experiences of success and failure.

In his opening address, Education Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam encouraged teachers and students to test their ideas in the open market. He said: “The process they go through from generating ideas and solutions to testing them out on the market is a valuable learning experience for our teachers. It is one of the ways that teachers can model a spirit of innovation to their students.”

This year’s ExCEL Day also served as a platform for schools and MOE HQ to highlight their efforts at nurturing a spirit of I&E. The 83 booths set up showcased a wide variety of innovative instructional practices and products.