China Media Visit
Entrepreneurship in Singapore

Chinese journalists from Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou paid The Little Entrepreneur (TLE) a visit as they toured around Singapore to learn more about the country's educational system. They interviewed professors, teachers and educationists.

During their visit, they were impressed with the way math and science is taught, citing an outstanding mix of Western and Eastern specialties. Even training in leadership was an eye-opener to them as they saw children learn through physically demanding activities such as rock climbing and "roping in the sky".

But what was really different was the way Singapore children today are now given many opportunities to learn about entrepreneurship. Even from a very young age, they are given a proper grounding for the future. Ten years ago, this was not the case, but the progress has been exceptional.

Claudine Lim, co-founder of The Little Entrepreneur (TLE), an entrepreneur who also teaches entrepreneurship says that it is important to let children know about the opportunities before them or else they will not even give it any consideration when they are older. She added that entrepreneurship is also a matter of character that doesn't always have to translate to starting and running your own company. "When we teach entrepreneurship, it is about giving the children the opportunity to assert their creativity, individuality and ability to handle both victory and defeat well. As they learn and work out problems, they build confidence and it is this confidence and experience that allows them to have a character that is self-motivated and solution-oriented."

“Article from Xin Cheng Ri Bao (April 2005)”