If you’re a working parent, you would likely have worried, or are still concerned, about what your child gets up to after school, before you are done with your workday. This is where after-school or student care centres come in. According to the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF), these centres “provide care and supervision to school-going children in the Primary to lower Secondary levels outside school hours.”
Run by commercial companies or Social Service Agencies, these student care centres minimally provide meals to the children, and supervision for their homework. Then, it’s at their discretion to design the rest of the programme in a way that’s enriching for the students during their time at the centre.
With more than 400 student care centres in Singapore, it can be hard to decide which you should pick. To help you out, we spoke to 8 parents of Primary school-going children who decided, or are deciding, to put them in after-school care centres to find out what the after-school care centre must-haves were that informed their choice.
*All names have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals. The photos in this article are for illustrative purposes only.
Image credit: MSF
In an ideal world, I would love to be a stay-home mum (SHM) and personally supervise my children when they get home from school. The next best thing, and what I’ve been most grateful for, is a student care centre, which I started my first child in when he began Primary One. I found it such a blessing that when my second son graduated from kindergarten, I also signed him up with the same provider.
It’s been so helpful to have MOE-experienced teachers who can guide them with their school work and revision in my place, so that I can spend quality time with my kids in the evenings. Even if they didn’t manage to complete their work at the centre, or if I want to do some final rounds of revision with them before they go to bed, I find that there’s only a little bit that needs to be done.
Plus, I feel so much at ease knowing that these teachers, who are definitely more updated with the curriculum than I am, are giving them relevant guidance rather than what I remember from decades ago.
– Dorothy, 43, sons aged 7 and 10
Life for a child shouldn’t be boring, but it’s just not possible for me or my wife to be at home every weekday afternoon. Even if we work from home (WFH), we have to get work done. We don’t want to outsource her care to the helper too, as we’ve seen many kids who end up watching TV or playing video games without proper supervision. So when we came across a student care centre offering a dynamic, structured after-school programme, we decided to give it a go.
Not only does she complete her homework under the watchful eyes of MOE-accredited teachers, but there are also programmes that are designed to equip the kids with extra-curricular skills that will stand them in good stead now and in the future. For example, she attends both communication and problem-solving classes every week, as well as time to read, play with her friends, and even practise typing – I like that there’s variety in the daily timetable, and that she’s not simply sitting at a desk staring at her schoolwork or a screen for the entire afternoon.
– Tim, 39, daughter aged 8
I wish someone had told me about after-school care and all that it offers earlier. It would have saved me so much hassle with my elder child when she first started primary school. Back in the day, I would be ferrying her from one enrichment class to the other after school, which was so tiring for her and me, and I could barely get any work done in the afternoons.
When I found out that if you pick the right student care centre, it comes with enrichment programmes built into the curriculum, conducted on-site, it was like my prayers had been answered, and I’m not being dramatic about it. There’s Communication Arts, subject-specific enrichment that builds on skills, so it’s not your average tuition session, even sports classes, coding, public speaking, and so many more.
My advice to other working parents? Check out the enrichment programmes provided by the student care centre, and take your pick from there. It’s truly a one-stop shop that frees up so much other time that you can spend with your kids doing other stuff.
– James, 45, children aged 9 and 12
I’m self-employed, so my days and hours are OTOT (own time, own target). So there are some days when I finish early and want to pick my son up earlier, and other days when I arrive much later. Even if I can’t make it to pick him up on time, the centre is less than a 10-minute walk from my place, so I can easily arrange for my helper or husband to pop over. And that’s after the flexi pick-up time that stretches till later in the evening.
I opted for him to go to after-school care 5 days a week, but some of his friends only go for a few days because they have other commitments – I think that freedom to choose is very important in today’s world.
– Claris, 30, son aged 7
Image credit: Changemakers by Seed Campus
As I gear up to send my kids to primary school, one of the key factors that I’m looking at when considering if I should sign them up for after-school care if the provider is only academic-focused. Yes, academics are important, but I also personally feel that there are lots of soft skills that we need to build in our kids. So I’m looking for a student care centre that looks at more than academic achievements.
I hope that my kids will grow up to be resilient design thinkers with empathy and self-awareness, who know how to read a room and communicate appropriately in any situation. Being book smart is not the be-all and end-all, so ultimately, my idea of a perfect after-school care centre would have holistic character development built into its programmes.
– Zara, 33, children aged 4 and 6
My wife and I believe that, as much as we trust our daughter’s teachers with her education and growth, we have to do our part as parents to complement it at home. To that end, we are deeply appreciative whenever we have updates from school regarding her progress. When we put her in a student care centre, one of our top-line priorities was knowing that the teachers at the centre would send us regular updates.
In lieu of our being there with our daughter, it’s important to us that we know whether she’s flourishing or facing any difficulties. Since she spends so many hours each day at the after-school care centre, a pathway for communication with her teachers, the centre, and staff is something we value. It’s great that she’s grown to be an independent pre-teen thanks to the programmes at her after-school care centre, and we’re not doing this to keep tabs on her, but more so that we can nip any problem in the bud if there’s one.
– Lucas, 49, daughter aged 12
My eldest is an introverted character who prefers being a wallflower in school, since class sizes are generally on the larger side. When I wanted to sign her up for an after-school care programme, I specifically wanted one which had more intimate, small group ratios where she might be able to find her feet, and slowly build her confidence levels. I thought that might be more conducive to a nurturing environment which was less top-down and instructional.
I’ve had friends whose kids attended after-school programmes with large batches of students, which might work for more boisterous children, but I didn’t think that would be beneficial to my child. I also felt that there was less dedicated attention to each student, and my daughter could easily get overlooked again.
There was a noticeable difference after my daughter started at her student care centre – I believe it’s a combination of the small group sizes, a great teacher, and the centre’s curriculum, which emphasised socio-emotional development as much as it did academics. It wasn’t long before I saw my child speak up more, and with greater confidence in herself, amongst other character developments. And she loves going to the student care centre; she even wants to go daily during the holidays!
I didn’t need to be convinced that my other kids would join their cheche there when they started primary school as well.
– Crystal, 37, children aged 6, 8 and 10
Holiday programmes were a tiebreaker when I was weighing my after-school care options ahead of my son entering Primary One. Every centre can wax lyrical about how they provide holistic programmes during the school term, and throw in enrichment activities to break up the monotony for the kids, but I felt that all that aside, I wanted a centre which had a good provision of holiday programmes that the students could opt for.
I don’t mind that I have to pay extra for these programmes – I prefer that the centre organises them, and has vendors come in to conduct them, or there’s transport provided to send the kids out on excursions or to external camps. This way, I am assured that my son is engaged during the holidays and has fun, and I don’t have to make arrangements for him to attend other holiday activities during the term breaks.
– Ben, 34, son aged 7
NTUC First Campus has been a leader in early childhood education and services since 1977. Changemakers by Seed Campus, part of the NTUC First Campus family of brands, provides after-school care services designed to support the holistic development of primary school students.
Changemakers by SEED Campus nurtures essential life skills like communication, critical thinking, independence and emotional intelligence in students who attend after-school care there, while encouraging exploration and curiosity.
As a one-stop student care provider, Changemakers offer a well-rounded blend of academic and enrichment programmes aligned with the Ministry of Education (MOE) curriculum, providing support to and engaging students during their after-school hours.
With flexible 3- or 5-day after school care options, Changemakers by SEED Campus centres their teaching approach around the EXRAE framework – Experience, Reflect, Assimilate, and Experiment, guided by research-backed pedagogies, and led by a team of experienced educators. In fact, kids will even get the opportunity to interact with industry experts who bring their field to life through hands-on workshops and sharing sessions. This helps young learners broaden their understanding of everyday topics and the world around them.
Apart from structured enrichment that helps students establish a solid foundation in their school subjects, they also offer holiday programmes that take the learning into real-world contexts, to shape them into future-ready learners.
Parenting is a tough gig, so finding a reliable student care centre which you can trust with your children in the hours before you get home from work is a boon. Yes, signing your kids up for after-school care is an additional cost, but the peace of mind and reassurance that you get from quality care at a private after-school centre is priceless.
This post was brought to you by Changemakers by Seed Campus.
Cover image adapted from: MSF, NTUC First Campus
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