Please share with us your professional life’s journey and at which point in your career did you aspire to pursue this FlexiMasters?

I am currently an educator in a primary school. I started to develop a keen interest in Psychology through some short courses from Ministry of Education (MOE) and National Institute of Education (NIE). They designed and introduced various interesting activities to engage the learners based on various theories in Psychology. Since then, I have learnt that empowering myself with knowledge would help me deal with the challenges I faced in life. Applying the knowledge of Psychology would be useful for me in understanding the learners deeper and customising learning experiences suitable for them. Therefore, I started to consider the option of microcredential like FlexiMasters in Learning and Development to pursue my interest in Psychology because I can pace my learning more flexibly.

Could you share with us some interesting facets of the certificate you enrolled?

Taking microcredentials like FlexiMasters courses is a good stepping stone for me to try one of the courses related to the Master’s programme that I am interested in. It helps me understand the expectations needed from the course, without feeling the pressure to complete the programme. It was a good dipstick for me to find out if I could manage my time and prepare for my studies, while keeping different learning pathways open. If the workload of the courses is found manageable, there is a flexibility to continue completing FlexiMasters or opt for credit transfer to progress to the related Master’s programme as long as it is within next five years.

Share with us a memorable experience you had during your time at NTU.

I had a memorable learning experience from MDP907: How to Nurture Creative and Happy Learners course from FlexiMasters in Learning and Development. I was enlightened from that course and learnt that I need to gain some self-knowledge to understand myself deeper. Through that, I would know how to come up with my ways to help others around me as an educator in school or as a loved one in my family. This has helped me a great deal in understanding what I could do as a learner in life for my personal growth and self-care.

How did you find studying in NTU?

I am thankful for the wonderful learning experience I gained in NIE NTU, as what they provided me through their courses has helped me meet my aspirations to upskill myself. The lecturers in NIE NTU have been encouraging us to apply what we have learnt in their courses and come up with possible solutions to challenges we faced in our work. Then, further advice and refinement that they would give would be authentic to our situations, based on their vast relevant experience collaborating with various schools, agencies and ministries. This has made my application to work easier when I could transfer the knowledge I learnt in NIE that is customised to my colleagues’ needs in their work too.

Will you recommend PaCE@NTU’s programmes to your friends and family?

I would recommend NIE NTU’s microcredentials to someone who is thinking of reskilling or upskilling related to education and learning. The courses are suitable for people in the education industry, and also others who are very interested to know more about education and learning. For example in Psychology, learners will learn about the different areas of Psychology that they can apply in their work and life. I personally believe that education and learning can be more meaningful and beneficial to the learners if everyone knows his/her impact on the learners’ lives and do what he/she can to support them holistically.

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