Events

YTP June 2025

Happening from 2 June to 6 June, YTP June 2025 brought together 78 secondary school students from three local schools for an exciting week of discovery and collaborative learning at the National Institute of Education (NIE). Designed for the values of agency, creativity and purposeful learning, YTP June 2025 offered students an immersive experience in exploring real-world issues through interdisciplinary approaches.

The programme began with a vibrant opening day filled with icebreaker games and team-building activities, where students got to know peers from other schools and interacted with researchers from NIE. Over the next three days, students delved into one of four sub-programmes tailored to their interests and passions: AI-Coding Hackathon, Arts-Based Programme (ARISE), Neuroergonomics and Tinkering Programme. Across all sub-programmes, students were creators, problem-solvers, and collaborators shaping their own experiences.

The programme closed with a joyful celebratory Carnival on Day 5, where all the students came together to proudly showcase what they had learned, created, and discovered throughout the week. With confidence and pride, they invited their parents, siblings, and friends to come and experience their journey. 

The successful implementation of YTP June 2025 was made possible by a committed team of researchers, collaborators, and student teachers from the National Institute of Education, the Singapore Science Center and the Ministry of Education. The programme also received strong support from school leaders, teachers, and parents from Yu Hua Secondary School, Bartley Secondary School, and Boon Lay Secondary School.

YTP Oct 2025

YTP October 2025 took place from 27 to 30 October and brought together 77 secondary school students from three local schools for four days of exploration and collaborative learning at the National Institute of Education (NIE). Guided by the values of agency, creativity, and purposeful learning, the programme offered students an immersive experience in approaching real-world issues through interdisciplinary lenses. It was especially heartening to see several returning students who chose to join a different track this year, eager to experience a new learning environment and broaden their perspectives. Seeing familiar faces again added a warm sense of continuity and community.

The event opened with an energetic day of icebreakers and team-building activities, including an adapted airplane game by the Singapore Science Centre. Building on the previous iteration, students could now choose from various plane models to fold, experimenting with aerodynamics, design, and flight performance. The friendly competition ended with prizes awarded to the winning teams, creating an early atmosphere of excitement and camaraderie.

Over the next two days, students engaged deeply in one of four sub-programmes aligned with their interests: the AI-Coding Hackathon, the Arts-Based Programme (ARISE), Game Design, and the Tinkering Programme. Each track encouraged creativity, experimentation, and collaborative problem-solving, allowing students to shape their own learning journeys. Returning students brought new insights to their chosen tracks, enriching the experience for their peers.

The final day featured a celebratory programme that brought together students, families, teachers, and facilitators. This year, the ARISE performance took place at the Nanyang Playhouse, providing a dedicated platform for students to present their artistic work. Alongside the showcases, a special parents’ segment offered families the opportunity to hear from NIE researchers and programme leads, who shared their latest research findings and explained the principles behind the programme design. Parents gained a deeper appreciation of the learning processes their children had engaged in, and many expressed joy at witnessing their child’s growth, confidence, and creativity over the four days.

The success of YTP October 2025 is a testimony to the collective effort of researchers, collaborators, and student teachers from the National Institute of Education, the Singapore Science Centre, and the Ministry of Education. Equally vital was the strong support from school leaders, teachers, and parents from Yu Hua Secondary School, Bartley Secondary School, and Boon Lay Secondary School, whose encouragement helped make the programme a meaningful and memorable experience for all involved.

YTP June 2026

The third iteration of the Young Tembusu Programme (YTP) took place from 22 - 25 June 2026. The programme brought together 100 students across 6 local secondary schools to explore their interests in various interdisciplinary activities across 4 sub-programmes. Similar to the 2025 iterations, these sub-programmes were rooted in 4 design principles - agency, creativity, purposeful learning and real-world connections. These principles have been heavily researched on and were found to be crucial in deepening students' interests towards learning and holistic development. 

The programme opened up with ice breaker activities for students to get to know their peers and facilitators better. We partnered with the Science Centre Singapore to conduct the "Flying Machine" game where students explored concepts of aerodynamics when constructing their own paper plane. Students also engaged in a series of computerised cognitive games and surveys to learn more about themselves.

On day 2 and 3 of the programme, students ventured off into their respective sub-programmes: AI-Hackathon, ARISE, Knowledge Building Design Studio (KBDS) and Tinkering. Students in AI-Hackathon learnt more about basic programming and explored ways technology can be used as a positive tool for change. In ARISE, students explored their self-identity through the creation of art, poetry and music. KBDS encouraged students to explore ideas related to environmental sustainability through knowledge building pedagogies. Students had the opportunity to experiment with cooking recipes and construct automatas in Tinkering.

YTP concluded with a showcase on the final day, where we invited friends and families to celebrate the students' journey over the past few days. Students from ARISE put up a performance showcasing their artwork and music composed. AI-hackathon, KBDS and Tinkering had their own booths to present their various learning artefacts. We also held a parent engagement session for interested parents to learn more about setting healthy screen time boundaries. The success of YTP is attributed to the partnership between researchers, collaborators, and student teachers from the National Institute of Education, the Singapore Science Centre, and the Ministry of Education, as well as the support from school leaders, teachers, and parents from Yu Hua Secondary School, Bartley Secondary School, Boon Lay Secondary School, Broadrick Secondary School, Chua Chu Kang Secondary School and Damai Secondary School. 

Upcoming events