A review of educational reforms aiming to advance students' personal wellbeing in Singapore schools

Charlene Tan
Life University, Cambodia

This paper sheds light on the sociocultural aspect that interacts with and influences the realisation of students' personal wellbeing, using the example of Singapore. Specifically, this study examines the policy goals, frameworks, contents, approaches and key issues arising from the recent educational reform to advance students' personal wellbeing in Singapore schools. It is argued that the reforms manifest the hedonic, eudaimonic, collective, relational and personal domains of wellbeing. However, the reforms are challenged by the prevailing exam-oriented culture in Singapore. This article contributes to the existing scholarship by highlighting the imperative to design wellbeing policies that are premised on an inclusive conception of wellbeing; and the need to formulate wellbeing initiatives that are compatible with prevailing cultural script.
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Author: Charlene Tan PhD is a former high school teacher and currently an honorary professor in the College of Arts, Humanities and Languages, Life University, Sihanoukville, Cambodia. Previously, she was a tenured professor of education at the University of Hong Kong, and prior to that an associate professor at National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. [https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/mindful-leadership-for-schools-9781350292031/] ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5711-3749 Email: chptan@u.nus.edu, charlenehptan@yahoo.com Please cite as: Tan, C. (2025). A review of educational reforms aiming to advance students' personal wellbeing in Singapore schools. Issues in Educational Research, 35(4), 1706-1726. http://www.iier.org.au/iier35/tan.pdf