BOARDING THE THROUGH TRAIN

Students from School of Science and Technology and Singapore Sports School can join integrated programmes that let them skip the O levels and go to a polytechnic

- Jane Ng

Secondary 4 student Ng Kian Ping from the School of Science and Technology (SST) will be building a toy for children with special needs while his schoolmates are revising for their O-level examinations later in 2024.

The 15-year-old, who loves physics, mathematics and computing, is among the first batch of 50 students from the school who will get to skip the O levels and go on to Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) for a diploma in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem) fields.

These students from the NP-SST Integrated Diploma Programme will choose from 21 Stem-related courses offered by NP, including diplomas in biomedical science, engineering science, as well as cyber security and digital forensics. They will start lessons at NP in April 2025.

Building a toy that is both educational and entertaining is Kian Ping's capstone project under a collaboration with non-profit organisations AWWA and Vivita Singapore.

"My group's project not only requires me to apply what I've learnt so far, but it is also a good opportunity to help a community in need," says Kian Ping, who will also go on a three-month work attachment at both organisations.

Kian Ping, who describes the through-train programme as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, applied for it at the end of Secondary 2 as he was sure he wanted to go to a polytechnic, rather than a junior college (JC).

"I prefer to learn by doing instead of by listening. I also numbers love and find it interesting to learn about how simple numbers can become plex equations that are relevant in the real world. I wanted to find out how I could apply concepts learnt in school to the real world," he says. SST is a specialised independent secondary school offering a four-year O-level programme that focuses on applied learning in the fields of science, technology, engineering, aesthetics and mathematics.