Pei Hwa’s work attachments, job guidance give students head start
Pei Hwa Secondary School students Rebecca Ng and Muhammad Nuh Irfan had the opportunity to go on a three-day work attachment with Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Photo: Robin Choo
SINGAPORE — Three days of polishing silverware and pairing wine glasses with the right types of wine has given aspiring baker Rebecca Ng, 16, a taste of what it is like working in the food and beverage sector. And it has left her wanting more.
“I still want to be a baker ... I enjoyed the working experience, learning new things,” she said of her maiden work experience.
Last year, the Pei Hwa Secondary Four pupil went on a work attachment, working alongside hotel staff for eight to nine hours each day at Mandarin Oriental Hotel, as part of her school’s education and career guidance efforts.
To get to work on time, Rebecca woke up at 5am every day. Her tasks included polishing thousands of pieces of silverware. But she felt the hard work was worth it, as she got to interact with hotel employees and acquired valuable out-of-classroom experience.
“I learnt about the importance of being on time,” she said. “I also realised that there are actually many different job roles in the hotel sector, and the hard work of service staff.”
Apart from organising work attachments for students, Pei Hwa has, since 2010, brought together representatives from the polytechnics, the Institute of Technical Education and companies for its annual Education and Career Guidance Day.
During the event, students get to hear from their seniors on post-secondary pathways. They can also discuss career options with Nanyang Polytechnic lecturers.
Rebecca said she found out more about options in the polytechnics that could help her further her ambitions. “I need to work harder (in school) so I can get into the course I want,” she said.
Pei Hwa’s head of character and citizenship education Deborah Ong noted that the career guidance provided has made students more aware of their interests.
“Instead of always hearing from teachers, they get to hear from industry experts. Students will then reflect on how they need to change their attitudes to meet certain goals,” she said.
Yesterday, the Education Ministry announced during the Committee of Supply debate that it will be setting up a centralised education and career guidance unit to coordinate efforts such as building a core team of career counsellors by 2017.
A pilot will also begin this month at 60 schools to help students discover their study interests and learn about post-secondary options. For instance, Sec 2 students will hear from polytechnic representatives who will advise them on upper secondary courses, while Sec 3 students can participate in course activities conducted by polytechnics.
