Character and Citizenship Education

Department Vision
Every YCKsian is grounded in sound values to serve the nation. 

Department Mission
To instil in all students the school’s core values embodied in the word GROWTH
Gratitude
Respect
Optimism
Wholeheartedness
Teamwork
Honesty

The goal of Character and Citizenship Education (CCE) is to inculcate values and build competencies in our students to help them grow to be good individuals and useful citizens. In Yio Chu Kang Secondary School, every teacher is a CCE teacher who engages the students to develop knowledge, skills and attitude to make informed and responsible choices in their lives. This is done through CCE lessons where our teachers facilitate students’ learning for building positive character and citizenry according to the following themes.

• The Leader Within
• Family Our Foundation
• Being a Positive Influence
• Thinking Hearts, Feeling Minds
• U & I in the Community
• This is Home Truly
• The World in Singapore

To develop social and emotional competencies in students, the following programmes are incorporated into CCE lessons:

• Cyber Wellness 
• Education and Career Guidance 
• Sexuality Education 
• Values in Action 

CCE lessons are also a platform to deliver the National Education (NE) experience. [link to NE webpage]

Key Personnel in charge: Ms Sin Puay San [HOD CCE] (ext: 109)

Education Career Guidance (ECG)

Education and Career Guidance (ECG) is about engaging, inspiring and challenging students to develop aspirations and plan proactively for their future. The acquisition of knowledge about self and opportunities in education and work will enable students to apply decision-making skills and develop plans to achieve their career aspirations and life goals. Through ECG, social emotional competencies such as proactivity, adaptability and resilience are developed to prepare students for the 21st Century workforce.

Through the ECG Curriculum, we aim to:
• deepen students’ understanding of self and relate schooling to the different education and career pathways
• enable students to synthesise information gathered from relevant sources to make sound educational and career decisions At Yio Chu Kang Secondary School, the ECG curriculum is delivered through the following three modes:
1. ECG Curriculum
• Structured ECG Lessons Time in the curriculum is put aside to introduce students to information about careers and future education options.  We encourage students to take ownership of their own learning and development, and understand the importance of continued learning as they progress beyond secondary school years.

• MySkillsFuture portal This is an online portal that facilitates education and career development among students. Students are introduced to this tool to help them uncover their attributes,find out more about different careers that they might be interested in and chart their educational pathways to achieve their aspirations. Students will have guided lessons on how to use this portal and it can be accessed from home.

2. ECG Experience
To make the learning real and to equip students with a better understanding of the multiple pathways to success, students go through the following ECG experiences.

	Express	Normal Academic		Normal Technical
Sec 1	ECG Trail
Sec 2	WorldSkills Singapore 2018			Experience ITE Programme
Sec 3	Applied Studies Experience	Experience ITE Programme		Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship
	Polytechnic Attachment
	Advanced Elective Modules (Polytechnic-based)		Elective Modules (school-based and ITE-based)
Sec 4/5	Visit Junior College (JC) Open Houses Visit Polytechnic (Poly) Open Houses Personal Grooming and Interview Skills workshop during Sec 4/5 cohort camp Career Seminar during Sec 4/5 cohort camp Career Advising by Poly lecturers JC curriculum and DSA Talk by JC lecturers EAE Poly preparatory workshop conducted by Poly lecturers EAE ITE preparatory talk conducted by ITE lecturers
Graduated Students	JIE Briefing during GCE N-level exam results release 2018 N-level Pathways Briefing 2018 N-level JIE Briefing JIE Booklet 2019 JAE Briefing during O-level results release 2018 O-level Pathways Briefing 2018 O-level JAE Briefing JAE Booklet 2019

3. ECG Counselling
Our school’s ECG Counsellor, Mr Isaac Ling, is stationed in our school every Tuesday, Wednesday and selected Fridays to provide ECG counselling and support students in making informed decisions on their education and career pathways. Students (and their parents) who would like to find out more about post-secondary education options, subject choices, career interests, or discover their strengths and interests, can have a chat with our ECG Counsellor. Mr Isaac also conducts in house workshops for teachers and provides individual and group counselling to students in decision making such that they can, in the future, contribute meaningfully to society through their future professions.
To make an appointment, please click here: https://go.gov.sg/yckssecg
or scan the QR Code below.
    

National Education (NE)

Sexuality Education (SEd)

1.         Sexuality Education (SEd) in schools aims to enable students to understand the physiological, social and emotional changes they experience as they mature, develop healthy and rewarding relationships with others, including those with members of the opposite sex, and make wise, informed and responsible decisions on sexuality matters. SEd is premised on the importance of the family as the basic unit of society. This means encouraging healthy, heterosexual marriages and stable nuclear family units with extended family support. The teaching and learning of SEd is based on respect for the values and beliefs of the different ethnic and religious communities in Singapore on sexuality issues.

2.         The Goals of Sexuality Education are to:

(a)          Support students in managing their physiological, social and emotional changes as they grow up and develop safe and healthy relationships.

(b)          Guide students to make wise, informed and responsible decisions on sexuality matters.

(c)          Help students develop a moral compass and respect for themselves and others by having positive mainstream values and attitudes about sexuality that are premised on the family as the basic unit of society.

3.         The Key Messages of Sexuality Education are:

(a)          Love and respect yourself as you love and respect others;

(b)          Build positive relationships based on love and respect (which are the foundation for strong families);

(c)          Make responsible decisions for yourself, your family and society; and

(d)          Abstinence before marriage is the best protection against STIs/HIV and unintended pregnancies. Casual sex can harm and hurt you and your loved ones.

You may click here for more information on MOE Sexuality Education.

Overview of Yio Chu Kang Secondary School’s Sexuality Education Programme for 2024

4.         Sexuality Education is delivered in a holistic manner through the school curriculum. The content for Sexuality Education is grouped into five main themes: Human Development, Interpersonal Relationships, Sexual Health, Sexual Behaviour, and, Culture, Society and Law. You may click here for more information on the scope of Sexuality Education in the school curriculum.

5.         The subjects that incorporate topics on sexuality include:

a.    Science

b.    Character and Citizenship Education (CCE)

Sexuality Education Lessons:

6.         The values and attitudes of our youth towards sexuality are increasingly shaped by their peers, exposure to the media, popular culture and the internet. Adolescence is a complex stage in life as the adolescent attempts to find his/her own identity and often struggles with new social relationships. The period of middle adolescence (generally from 15 – 17 years old) can be a turbulent period for adolescents. The gap between physical and emotional/cognitive maturity may result in a tendency to act on impulse, experiment with various activities (including sexual activities), sometimes without understanding the unpleasant consequences that may arise from such experimentation. The need for peer acceptance can be overwhelmingly strong and hinder one’s ability to act responsibly.  Given the pressures faced by the middle adolescent from within themselves and from peers, it is important to build a strong sense of self-worth, personal conviction and an understanding of the possible consequences of sexual behaviour.

7.         Through the Sexuality Education lessons, secondary students will have the opportunity to develop a positive self-esteem, develop their character, and expand their understanding and repertoire of skills to deal with various issues related to sexuality, which are of prime concern at this age.

eTeens Programme:

1. eTeens is a programme developed by Health Promotion Board, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, to provide Secondary 3 students with accurate information on STIs, HIV and protection from a health perspective. eTeens is conducted in two segments – a mass talk segment and a classroom-based programme.
   

2. Students are taught skills such as decision-making, assertiveness and negotiation to say “no” to sex and negative peer pressure. They also learn that the impact of STIs/HIV extends beyond themselves and involves their family. Abstinence and upholding family values are the key messages. The desired outcome of the eTeens programme is that students are empowered to make wise, informed and sensible decisions.
   
   

You may click here for more information on YCKSS Sexuality Education.

Information for Parents

10.       Parents may opt their children out of the Sexuality Education lessons, eTeens and/or supplementary sexuality education programmes by MOE-approved external providers.

11.       Parents who wish to opt their children out of the Sexuality Education lessons need to complete an opt-out form. This form will be communicated to parents at the start of the year and is also downloadable here. The completed form is to be submitted by 29/01/2024.

12.       Parents who wish to opt their children out of the eTeens programme need to complete an opt-out form. This form will be communicated to parents at the start of the year and is also downloadable here.  The completed form is to be submitted by 29/01/2024.

13.       Parents can contact the school at yckss@moe.edu.sg for discussion or to seek clarification about the school’s Sexuality Education programme.