This document provides an overview of how data and analytics can be leveraged in the social sector. It discusses examples from New Zealand and Singapore of governments using predictive analytics and data sharing across agencies to better understand at-risk populations and improve social services. While some large-scale social data projects have been led by the government, most social organizations face challenges in building data-driven capabilities. Effective use of data requires the right questions, data sources, skills, and using data for both action and measuring impact. Social organizations should invest in teams and processes to champion analytics. The document also notes some issues are better addressed through other means besides data mining.

1. A Newsletter by Research and Planning Department
Yayasan MENDAKI
RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
ISSUE 01
2018
RUBRIX

2. CONTENTS
01
05
The Social Sector and its Data Imperative
Design Thinking for the Social Good
15
18 Yayasan MENDAKI Post-Budget Policy Forum:
Stronger Together, Forging Ahead
The Importance of Critical Thinking in
Future Proofing Our Early Learners11
Dawn of the Smart Nation
08 Beyond Academics: Fostering 21st
Century Competencies in Young Children

3. 1
ISSUE 01/2018
AND ITS DATA IMPERATIVE
By: Siti Afiyah Mustapha
THE SOCIAL
SECTOR
When the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) in New
Zealand discovered that an alarming 75 per cent of the future
costof itsbenefitsystemisattributabletothosewhofirstcame
into contact with the system before the age of 20,it sought to
reform its strategy towards social welfare (Ministry of Social
Development New Zealand, 2017). The ‘social investment’
approach is designed to optimise public funds by investing
earlyinpeoplewhorelyonpublicservicesandaremostatrisk
of poor outcomes later on in life, to help them become more
independent in the long-term (The New Zealand Treasury,
2017). A predictive modelling approach is adopted to linked
data across government agencies – such as clients’ child
protection history, criminal history, educational status and
intergenerational benefit receipt – to predict life trajectories
such as the likelihood of child abuse, criminal conviction,
and welfare dependency in adulthood. The approach yielded
notable outcomes, with a higher number of people exiting
the welfare system in more stable and sustainable ways.Over
five years, the cumulative impact of the change in MSD’s
strategy since pre-reform 2012 is at an estimated $13.7
billion reduction in the welfare system’s future lifetime cost
(Ministry of Social Development New Zealand, 2017).
In Singapore, a similar modus operandi is brewing between
the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF),
Social Service Offices (SSOs), Family Service Centres (FSCs),
Divorce Support Specialist Agencies and the Early Childhood
Development Agency (ECDA). The Social Service Net (SSNet),
rolled out in 2016, envisions a seamless integrated case
management system which links data sources across
the agencies to better facilitate estimates and informed
assessments about individuals and families. With every
augmented database, social agencies can acquire deeper
perspectives of its clientele, their needs, and patterns of
service uptake. Such insights empower policymakers and
frontline officers with more informed courses of action; be it
in service delivery or safeguarding the integrity and accuracy
in assistance allocation. On another front, the Ministry of
Health has embarked on a consent-based data sharing
agreement with the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board
to extend healthcare financing schemes and support from
social workers to Singaporeans, based on Medisave balances,
MediShield coverage and subsidy levels (Ong-Webb and
Ang, 2017). This move not only eases administration of
healthcare financing schemes, but enables the scheme to
auto-detect and adjust to the needs of more recipients when
assessed by the system. This is possible with a shift in whole-
of-government cooperation and policy that facilitates data
sharing agreements and collaboration protocols amongst
various stakeholders tackling interrelated issues. Both New
Zealand and Singapore provide instructive examples of the
benefits of a data-driven initiative in the Social Sector. Social
organisations amass large amounts of data that can be used
to increase their transparency and accountability, expand
relationships with community partners and funders, discover
new trends in programmes and services, and relate powerful
stories about their communities.

4. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
2
AT BASELINE, SOCIAL
ORGANISATIONS
COLLECT DATA TO
ANSWER THREE MAIN
QUESTIONS: WHY WAS
IT DONE? HOW WAS
IT DONE? WHAT WAS
THE IMPACT? THESE
QUESTIONS RESONATE
WITH THE STANDARD
PROGRAMME
EVALUATION DESIGN,
THE LOGIC MODEL
THAT ORGANISATIONAL
STAKEHOLDERS ARE
MOST INTERESTED
IN, TO EXPLAIN HOW
ACTIVITIES IMPACT
Analytics is creeping into the vernacular of Singapore’s social
sector – backed by a sectoral blueprint that outlines plans
to enhance data exchange on vulnerable populations and
to forge partnerships which encourage social innovation
through the use of technology (Tai, 2017). Data driven
intelligence is an established, transformative asset in the
technical and business domains, but it is no longer exclusive
to large corporations and sectors like urban services,
supply chain and logistics, healthcare, retail, financial,
security and manufacturing. Singapore’s Smart Nation
drive, digital transformation and Industry Transformation
Maps (ITM) have propelled data science and analytics as a
high-growth area for businesses and government to raise
productivity, competitiveness, and improve public services
(Economic Development Board Singapore, 2018). Continued
proliferation and business reliance on digital technologies
and automation, in turn, fuel the demand for better data and
more advanced analytics skills.To promote citizen science,the
Singapore Government began releasing official data since
2011 on data.gov.sg to enlist citizens and businesses in co-
creating solutions with data. More recently, a Developers’
portal was embedded into this dedicated site to ease access
to real-time data (ranging from traffic conditions to weather
forecasts) via APIs for users and developers.Singapore zeroed
in on five areas in which digital technology “can have a needle
moving impact”, and will significantly affect citizens and
society: business productivity, transportation, our homes and
the environment, health and “enabled ageing”, and public
sector services (United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC),
2017).
Several large scale social data projects are government-
led. The National Council of Social Service (NCSS) which
governs over 450 social service organisations in Singapore,
for example, is building a comprehensive digital dashboard
which taps into big data and analytics to track if the supply
of social services – valuated through utility rates, outcomes
and funding of projects –, meets the demand by various
beneficiary groups (Tai, 2017). Another sectoral leader, the
National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre (NVPC), has
activated analytics to fruition when its donation scorecard
doubled to almost half a million between April 2016 and
April 2017, compared with the yearly average of $200,000 in
previous years since 2009.By mining data on its portal,it was
able to cluster donor demography and behaviours – including
how much and when the donations were made. Insights on
current users and potential donors are then used to market
fund-raising causes more effectively, and to shape content
for raising awareness about various causes, respectively (Tai,
2017).
For the most part however, a large chasm exists between the
availability of data and its actual use in addressing social
challenges. Where the metrics are clear-cut and focused
on revenues and surpluses for the for-profit sector, the
social sector is also accountable to multiple stakeholders
– the community it serves, donors, volunteers, staff and
policymakers – and multiple bottom-lines, which makes data
reporting and implementation of findings a tricky business
(Fruchterman, 2016). Most social problems are “wicked”

5. 3
ISSUE 01/2018
THINK ABOUT
INVESTING IN A
COLLABORATIVE
TEAM TO
CHAMPION
THE ANALYTICS
JOURNEY
problems – problems that appear insoluble as they involve
numerous agents interacting in less predictable ways –,
creating hurdles for the collection and analysis of data.
More often than not, social data is time-sensitive due to the
complex timeline of social interventions or programmes.
Interventions may involve addressing chronic, deep-seated
problems where many indicators of progress and more
palpable, measurable outcomes are accomplished overtime.
Progress of the beneficiary unit – an individual or household –
ishardlylinear;socialsupportsareoftensituatedinacomplex
web of influences and interactions impacting upon the unit,
with periods of disengagement,remission and contingencies
triggered by factors external to the assistance received. This
also makes it onerous to isolate and quantify the direct causal
impact of any one initiative on the outcomes of a recipient.
There are numerous challenges towards building a data-
driven organisation: having the “right” data sources,
enlightened leadership, transforming the organisation’s
capacities with analytical skills as well as technical
capabilities. Formulating the appropriate questions then
becomes a critical first step to collecting purposeful data.
Fruchterman (2016) articulates that the “true power of data”
will emerge when we link two approaches to data – “data for
action” and “data for impact”. Data for action speaks of the
need for social enterprises and non-profits to capitalise on
data to proactively respond to society’s current and evolving
needs, to better coordinate staff, and to improve efficiency.
The other side of the coin is “data for impact” – to generate
data insights which provide evidence that interventions carry
lasting impact.At baseline,social organisations collect data to
answer three main questions: Why was it done? How was it
done? What was the impact? These questions resonate with
the standard programme evaluation design, the logic model
that organisational stakeholders are most interested in, to
explain how activities impact. Extracting the right data can
help answer these questions.As the questions are addressed,
the analysis provides further insights that will enable the
organisation to drill down and query more constructively.This
is an important opportunity to enhance the datasets and to
see each data project as a step along a continuum.
Social organisations need to also think about investing in a
collaborative team to champion the analytics journey,moving
the organisation from milestone to milestone. This includes
strategic hires with the necessary capabilities to lead the
direction; recruiting or re-profiling existing personnel to look
into transforming organisational structures, processes and
technology; as well as those with quantitative knowledge
to join the team as data curators and analysts. The field
of data science generally resides within the purview of
business and the sciences, while the social sciences tend
to equip students with general statistical concepts and
methods for understanding and conducting social research.
It is also important to give attention to skills in fields such as
informatics and library science that offer expertise on data
organisation, maintenance, and use. The organisation can
optimise available information and mine the growing pool
of structured and unstructured data by strengthening data
processes. This effort includes digitalising historical data,
integrating data from multiple sources, breaking down data
silos between organisational units and functions, and setting
data governance standards. Importantly, there needs to
be a strong culture and praxis of knowledge management
to engender continuity, proper handling and transfer of
information and data from one generation of staff to the next.
Ultimately, the knowledge gained can be used to direct
improvements within programmes and services, or more
generally to support data-driven, evidence-based decisions.
The analyses can only be useful if they are connected to
one another, are grounded in real-world conditions and are
translated for deployment. However, organisations should
realise that many of its questions can also be answered
sufficiently without employing analytics. While data analytics
can help discover insights on an organisation’s strategy and
initiatives, not everything can or should be tackled via data
mining applications; some are best solved, for example, via
“internal organisational restructuring” or “management
sciencemethods”(Koh,2005).Toarriveatmorerobustresults,

6. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
4
Economic Development Board Singapore. (2018, 24 January). Media
Release: Singapore’s Professional Services Industry to lead globally in high-
value, specialist services. Retrieved from https://www.gov.sg/~/sgpcmedia/
media_releases/edb/press_release/P-20180123-1/attachment/FINAL-
Press%20Release%20-%20Professional%20Svcs%20ITM-24Jan2018.pdf
Fruchterman,J. (2016). Using Data for Action and For Impact. Stanford
Social Innovation Review.
Koh, H. C. (2005). Data Mining Applications for Small and Medium
Enterprises. Singapore: Centre for Research on Small Enterprise
Development, Nanyang Technological University.
Ministry of Social and Family Development Singapore. (2017, 11
September). Social Service Net for SSOs and VWOs. Retrieved from https://
www.msf.gov.sg/media-room/Pages/Social-Service-Net-for-SSOs-and-VWOs.
aspx
Ministry of Social Development New Zealand. (2017). Key Findings – 2016
Valuation of the Benefit System for Working-age Adults. Retrieved from
https://www.msd.govt.nz/documents/about-msd-and-our-work/newsroom/
media-releases/2017/valuation-of-the-benefit-system-for-working-age-
adults-2016/valuation-of-the-benefit-system-for-working-age-adults-2016-
key-findings.pdf
Ong-Webb, G. & Ang, S. B. (2017, 11 August). Commentary: To benefit
Singaporeans, Smart Nation must leverage big data, overcome privacy
issues. Channel NewsAsia. Retrieved from https://www.channelnewsasia.
com/news/singapore/commentary-to-benefit-singaporeans-smart-nation-
must-leverage-9114644
Tai,J. (2017, 13 April). Expanding social service sector a bright spot for
jobs. The Straits Times. Retrieved from www.straitstimes.com/singapore/
manpower/expanding-social-service-sector-a-bright-spot-for-jobs
Tai,J. (2017, 24 July). Social sector mining data to solve problems. The
Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/social-
sector-mining-data-to-solve-problems
The New Zealand Treasury. (2017). Social investment. Retrieved from https://
treasury.govt.nz/information-and-services/state-sector-leadership/cross-
agency-initiatives/social-investment
Toh, E. M. (2017, 13 April). Slew of initiatives to attract, retain talent in social
service sector. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.todayonline.
com/singapore/slew-initiatives-attract-retain-talent-social-service-sector
United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC). (2017). Enhancing innovation
and participation in smart sustainable cities. Retrieved from: https://www.
unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/hlm/documents/Publications/U4SSC_Brochure_
Enhancing_innovation_and_participation.pdf
References
findings can be “triangulated” with other data points and
integrated with new ones. Marrying data insights with other
disciplines such as design thinking and behavioural science
can be useful. For example, where decisions are intuitive or
anecdotal, infusing design thinking into data findings may
allow experiences which are truly human-centred.
Self-help group Yayasan MENDAKI is leveraging data
analytics and knowledge discovery to provide evidence
towards strategies in approaching education and learning
for the Malay Muslim community. In addition to its existing
research capabilities, data analytics will evaluate existing
knowledge, assess information gaps, and generate further
insights to the long-debated issue of educational attainment
and the community. The translation of research findings can
guide MENDAKI’s decision-making processes and practices
in (re)designing and enhancing its strategy, programmes
and services. More than that, such knowledge may help in
its advocacy with the Government, funders and the broader
community, or even streamline and strengthen its approach
alongside others in the social sector. In this sector, the
work continues to be supported and funded by the
community-at-large, donors and volunteers, so there
is a moral imperative to think smarter about how time,
manpower and funds are spent responsibly; and a data
imperative that can help accomplish this.
NOT EVERYTHING
CAN OR SHOULD BE
TACKLED VIA DATA
MINING APPLICATIONS;
SOME ARE BEST
SOLVED, FOR EXAMPLE,
VIA “INTERNAL
ORGANISATIONAL
RESTRUCTURING”
OR “MANAGEMENT
SCIENCE METHODS”

7. 5
ISSUE 01/2018
DESIGN
THINKINGFOR THE SOCIAL GOOD
When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, despite
a mandatory evacuation order, thousands of people stayed
behind to ride out the storm. Etched in the collective memory
of viewers across the world, are images of survivors standing
on rooftops awaiting help. Many ended up dead or were left
stranded, leading officials and the general public wondering
why.Soonclaimthatsurvivorsfailedtotakeappropriateactions.
Many saw staying behind as a choice to stay, and blamed the
victims for their plight.As then Secretary of Homeland Security
Michael Chertoff put it, “Officials called for a mandatory
evacuation.Some people chose not to obey that order.That was
a mistake on their part.” (in Hamedani and colleagues,2009)
When relief workers from around the country were asked
to provide three words to describe those who evacuated
in advance of the hurricane and those who stayed behind,
their responses were telling: Those who left were more often
described as “intelligent”, “responsible” and “self-reliant”;
whereas those who stayed behind were described as “foolish”,
“stubborn” and “lazy”. Later on, public opinion polls showed
that victims of Hurricane Katrina were largely from the lower-
income households, without the car or financial means to get
out of town, had less access to news and had smaller social
networks than those who evacuated.
Research tells us that quick judgments like these are a
reflection of the Fundamental Attribution Error (sometimes
called the Correspondence Bias) – referring to a tendency to
underestimate the impact of situational factors on human
behaviour, and overestimate the impact of dispositional
factors. When we observe a person’s behavior, our minds tend
to conclude that the person who performed that behavior was
predisposed to do so (for example, that a student who is not
performing well in school is also lazy), rather than to consider
possible situational constraints. As comments by Chertoff and
the relief workers showed, the fundamental attribution error
was what had led observers to interpret action in a specific way
that fostered a lack of empathy for survivors who stayed. This
missed opportunity, which might seem obvious in hindsight,
is unfortunately all too common. Time and again, initiatives
falter because they are not based on the client’s or customer’s
needs and have never been prototyped to solicit feedback.
Even when policymakers explore solutions, they may enter
with preconceived notions and biases of what the needs and
solutions are, and as the Hurricane Katrina example shows,
challenges require systemic solutions that are grounded in the
user’s needs.
This is where many approaches flounder,but it is where design
thinking – a new approach to creating solutions – excels. Tim
Brown (2008), the CEO and president of the innovation and
design firm IDEO, is a leading proponent of design thinking,
By: Norshahira Abdul Aziz

8. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
6
whathedescribesas:“ahuman-centredapproachtoinnovation
that draws from the designer’s toolkit to integrate the needs of
people, the possibilities of technology, and the requirements
for business success.” It is a method of meeting people’s needs
anddesiresinatechnologicallyfeasibleandstrategicallyviable
way. Where the intersection occurs, is where the sweet spot for
innovation lies1
.
As an approach, design thinking taps into capacities we all
have but that are overlooked by more conventional problem-
solving practices. Not only does it focus on creating products
and services that are human centred, but the process itself is
also deeply human. Design thinking relies on our ability to
be intuitive, to recognize patterns, to construct ideas that have
emotional meaning as well as being functional,and to express
ourselvesinmediaotherthanwordsorsymbols.Nobodywants
torunanorganizationonfeeling,intuition,andinspiration,but
an over-reliance on the rational and the analytical can be just as
risky. Design thinking, the integrated approach at the core of
the design process,provides a third way.
Traditionally, design occurred downstream in the design
process, in which designers focused their attention on
improving the look and functionality of products, the types of
coveted objects that are later displayed in lifestyle magazines.
In recent years, however, designers have broadened their
approach, creating entire systems to deliver not only products,
but also services and experiences.
PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST
The design thinking process is best thought of as a system of
overlapping spaces rather than a sequence of orderly steps.
There are three spaces2
to keep in mind: inspiration, ideation
and implementation. Inspiration is the problem or opportunity
thatmotivatesthesearchforsolutions;ideationistheprocessof
generating,developingandtestingideas,andimplementation
as the path that leads from the project stage into people’s lives.
The inspiration space refers to the problem or opportunity that
motivates people to search for solutions. Here, the designer
builds and nurtures deep empathy for the individuals and
communities they are designing for. Empathy is crucial to a
human-centred design process, allowing the designer to set
aside his or her own assumptions about the world in order to
gaininsightintousersandtheirneeds.Theclassicstartingpoint
fortheinspirationphaseisthebrief,which,perhapsimportantly,
is not a set of instructions or an attempt to answer the question
beforeithasbeenposed.Rather,awell-constructedbrief allows
for “serendipity, unpredictability and the capricious whims
of fate” – the creative realm from which breakthrough ideas
emerge. If the brief is too open, the project team will be left
floundering, but too narrow a brief creates a set of constraints
that prevents innovative solutions.
Traditional research methods, which typically begin with a
hypothesisbeforeaskingpeoplewhattheywant,canbeuseful
in identifying incremental areas of improvements, but don’t
typically lead to “aha” or breakthrough moments that lead
people to wonder why they had not considered that before.
Designers venture into the world and observe the actual
experiences and behaviors of parents, school children and
teachers as they navigate their daily lives.Through shadowing
these individuals both at home and their work places,
designers become immersed in the lives of the people they
are designing for.
The next space of the design thinking process is ideation.
After spending time in the field observing and doing design
research, a team goes through a process of synthesis in which
they distil what they saw and heard into insights that can lead
to solutions or opportunities for change.Designers are ready to
start generating ideas, and this approach multiplies options to
create different choices and insights about human behaviour.
The aim here is to first defer judgment, and go for a quantity
of ideas over quality.Towards the end of this space, competing
ideas will later be tested against one another, increasing the
likelihood that the outcome will be bolder, more compelling
CHALLENGES REQUIRE
SYSTEMIC SOLUTIONS
THAT ARE GROUNDED IN
THE USER’S NEEDS
1
Image adapted from the website: www.IDEOU.com/pages/design-thinking
2
The design system is referred to as a system of spaces instead of steps, because they are not always undertaken sequentially. Projects may loop back through
inspiration,ideation and implementation more than once as the team refines its ideas and explores new directions.

9. 7
ISSUE 01/2018
DESIGN THINKING
RELIES ON OUR ABILITY
TO BE INTUITIVE,TO
RECOGNIZE PATTERNS,
TO CONSTRUCT IDEAS
THAT HAVE EMOTIONAL
MEANING AS WELL AS
BEING FUNCTIONAL,AND
TO EXPRESS OURSELVES
IN MEDIA OTHER THAN
WORDS OR SYMBOLS
and more innovative. It is also crucial to involve people from
diverse backgrounds in the process.In strong multidisciplinary
teams,eachteammemberneedstonotonlypossessadepthof
skill, but also empathy for people and a respect for disciplines
beyondone’sown.Asthesayinggoes,“if theonlytoolyouhave
is a hammer,then every problem will look like a nail.”
Thethirdspaceofthedesignthinkingprocessisimplementation,
in which the best ideas generated during ideation are turned
into a concrete, fully conceived action plan. At the core of this
process is the creation of prototypes: inexpensive,scaled-down
versionsof theproductorcertainfeaturesof theproduct,sothat
the designer can investigate the problem solutions generated
in the previous stage. This is an experimental phase, and the
prototypes are gradually investigated and either accepted,
improved and refined or rejected on the basis of the users’
experiences.By the end of this stage,the design team will have
a better idea of the shortcomings of the product, and have a
better sense of how real users would behave, think and feel
when interacting with the final product.
Ultimately, many organizations and social enterprises today
already intuitively use some aspects of design thinking, but
most stop short of embracing the approach as a way to move
beyond conventional problem solving. Brown (2010) observes
that one of the biggest impediments is simply a fear of failure,
as experimenting with failure and possibly facing rejections
can be daunting. Evidently, to remain relevant, the next wave
of Singapore’s workforce needs not only a strong foundation
in professional or technical skills, but to also embrace a design
mind set and skills.After all, people don’t join governments or
non-profitorganisationstoservethebureaucracyorrules–they
join with a heart to serve the people and community. And in
the Singapore story, design thinking might just be a part of
our DNA – beginning from the time our pioneers first invented
solutions to overcome the constraints faced by a small island
state with no natural resources.
Brown,T. (2008). Design Thinking. [online] Harvard Business Review.
Available at: https://hbr.org/2008/06/design-thinking [Accessed 27 Feb.
2018].
Brown,T. & Wyatt,J. (2010). Design Thinking for Social Innovation. Stanford
Social Innovation Review,Winter 2010.
Ross, L. D., & Nisbett, R. E. (1991). The person and the situation: Perspectives
of social psychology. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Stephens, N., Hamedani, M., Markus, H., Bergsieker, H. & Eloul, L. (2009).
Why Did They “Choose” to Stay? Perspectives of Hurricane Katrina Survivors
and Observers. Association for Psychological Science, pp.878 - 886.
References

10. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
8
BEYOND
ACADEMICS
In this year’s Budget Speech, Minister Heng Swee Keat
highlighted the upcoming major shifts that played a role in
shaping Budget 2018. He pointed that these shifts would
simultaneously create both opportunities and challenges,
therefore, Singapore and Singaporeans alike should better
prepared for the future (Singapore Budget, 2018). As our
successors, we must ensure that the future generation are
well equipped with the necessary tools to quickly adapt to
future disruptions and thrive in the evolving economy.
In today’s society, parents are quickly enrolling their children
in preschool as early as 18 months to prepare them for formal
education. Literature on early childhood has emphasised the
importance of early childhood development as an upstream
effort to narrow income inequality and influence upward
social mobility by providing them with a good head start.
Much of these efforts are often geared towards scholastic
success in hopes that it would lay the groundwork to be
better adults and contribute positively to society (Ting,2007).
In recent times, emerging research has shown that a more
holistic development is required to create a well-rounded
individual.It is imperative to cultivate a child’s cognitive skills
alongside positive lifelong dispositions such as collaboration,
communication, and creativity. As children’s first three years
are the most fundamental period of their life, it is important
to nurture these dispositions early on as they would be most
susceptible in developing skills and behaviours necessary
for favourable lifelong outcomes. These attributes are part
of the 21st Century Competencies identified by P21, The
Partnership for 21st Century Learning, an initiative to ensure
that all students are ready to succeed in school,career and life
(Partnership for 21st Century Learning, 2017).
By: Dhaifina Dasri
FOSTERING 21ST CENTURY COMPETENCIES
IN YOUNG CHILDREN
AS
TECHNOLOGICAL,
ECONOMIC, AND
SOCIAL CHANGES
ARE BECOMING
MORE PREVALENT,
EMPLOYERS
ARE LOOKING
BEYOND PAPER
QUALIFICATIONS
AS “SOFT” SKILLS
ARE INCREASINGLY
VALUED AS WELL
Albeit the various competency frameworks contributed by
organisations,policymakers and researchers globally through
rigorous research and discourse, similarity in the concepts
revolve around cognitive, interpersonal and intrapersonal
domains (EduGAINS,2016).In a broad sense,cognitive refers
to critical thinking and innovation while interpersonal and

11. 9
ISSUE 01/2018
STUDIES HAVE
SHOWN THAT
CHILDREN WITH
POSITIVE SOCIO-
EMOTIONAL
PROFILES TEND TO
HAVE A SMOOTHER
TRANSITION IN
SCHOOL AND
ACHIEVE BETTER
GRADES
intrapersonal include socio-emotional aspects (Pellegrino
and Hilton, 2012). Traditionally, cognitive skills have
been considered a measurement of success as academic
achievements translate to better future opportunities.
Conversely, as technological, economic, and social changes
are becoming more prevalent,employers are looking beyond
paper qualifications as “soft” skills are increasingly valued
as well (Carlton and Winsler, 1999). Hence, this framework
interplaysbetweenthethreeareasinordertoformabalanced
approach to assist children in developing the necessary
knowledge, values and characters for future success.
Arising empirical findings reinforces the importance of socio-
emotional skills to school readiness, contributing to the
paradigm shifts in the early childhood development (Carlton
and Winsler, 1999). Studies have shown that children with
positive socio-emotional profiles tend to have a smoother
transition in school and achieve better grades (Denham,
2006). Children with positive characters and dispositions
tend to be more confident and sociable. Hence, they feel
more enthusiastic about school and would be willing to
engage and achieve more in school. According to P21’s 21st
Century Skills Early Learning Framework (2017), we (parents,
community and practioners) are able to foster these skillsets
for the young learners through exploration, discovery, play
and engagement. Through exploration, discovery and play,
children are able to create and utilise some degree of critical
thinking to innovate, even with tools as simple as craft
supplies found at home. Constant engagement with children
provides a basis for communication and collaboration as
children tend to learn from their environment, especially
at home (Morris, Silk, Steinberg, Myers, and Robinson,
2007). All the competencies paired with the knowledge and
understand of academic subjects would provide a good head
start for children to succeed.
In contrast, Ananiadou and Claro (2009) highlighted that
these 21st Century Competencies might resonate corporate
voices instead of its target audience, students. It seems
to be an economist approach to prepare students for the
knowledge-intensive economies or particular sectors, most
notably information and communications technology (ICT).
This contradicts with the intent of the competencies which is
to transform the education system to a holistic approach to
meet the 21st century demands. Debate on the topic also
raised the issue that these competencies cannot be taught
independently (Ananiadou and Claro, 2009). These skills
would complement the academic knowledge one has and
would be for naught if either one is lacking. According to an
OECD report, OECD countries have integrated 21st century
competencies within their schools’ curriculum. For example,
Ireland and Korea has weaved identified key competencies
acrossallsubjects,emphasisingonitsimportanceof fostering
such skills to help the children to transfer learning to other
subject areas, future learning situations and his/her life
experience in general (Ananiadou and Claro,2009).However,
while idealistic on paper, policymakers should take into
consideration that not all of our future generation would grow
up into knowledge-intensive worker and instead this might
widen the income inequality and social divide further.
Similarly, Singapore’s Ministry of Education (MOE) has
developed a curriculum framework “Nurturing Early Learners:
A Framework for a Kindergarten in Singapore” which reflects
values, positive dispositions, confidence and social skills
as Desired Outcomes of Preschool Education (Ministry of
Education, 2012). This framework goes hand-in-hand with
the 21st Century Competencies framework for when the child
reachesPrimaryandSecondaryschoolstudents.Theoutcomes
remain similar - to mould a concerned and confident citizen,
who is an active contributor and self-directed learner (Ministry

12. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
10
NOT ALL OF OUR
FUTURE GENERATION
WOULD GROW UP
INTO KNOWLEDGE-
INTENSIVE WORKER
AND INSTEAD THIS
MIGHT WIDEN THE
INCOME INEQUALITY
AND SOCIAL DIVIDE
FURTHER
Ananiadou, K., & Claro, M. (2009). 21st Century Skills and Competences for
New Millennium Learners in OECD. Paris: OECD Publishing.
Carlton, M. P., & Winsler,A. (1999). School readiness: The need for a
paradigm shift. School Psychology, 28, 338 - 352.
Currie,J. (2001).The Journal of Economic Perspectives. Early Childhood
Education Programs, 213-238.
Denham, S.A. (2006). Social-emotional competence as support for
school readiness: What is it and how do we assess it? Early education and
development, 17(1), 57 - 89.
EduGAINS. (2016). 21st Century Competencies: Foundation Document
for Discussion. Phase1: Towards Defining 21st Century Competencies for
Ontario. Ontario, Canada: EduGAINS.
Ministry of Education. (2012). Nurturing Early Learners Framework.
Retrieved November 2017, from Ministry of Education: https://www.nel.
sg/nel/slot/u566/Resources/Downloadable/pdf/kindergarten-curriculum-
framework.pdf
Ministry of Education. (2015,April 16). DESIRED OUTCOMES OF EDUCATION.
Retrieved March 05, 2018, from MINISTRY OF EDUCATION: https://www.
moe.gov.sg/education/education-system/desired-outcomes-of-education
Morris,A. S., Silk,J. S., Steinberg, L., Myers, S. S., & Robinson, L. R. (2007).
The Role of the Family Context in the Development of Emotion Regulation.
Social Development 16(2), 361-388.
P21. (2017, September 01). 21st Century Skills Early Learning Framework
(ELF) and Guide. Retrieved March 01, 2018, from Partnership for 21st
Century Learning: http://www.p21.org/storage/documents/EarlyLearning_
Framework/P21_ELF_Framework_Final.pdf
Pellegrino,J.W., & Hilton, M. L. (2012). Education for life and work:
Developing transferable knowledge and skills in the 21st century.
Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
Singapore Budget. (2018, February 19). Budget Speech. Retrieved February
28, 2018, from Singapore Budget: http://www.singaporebudget.gov.sg/
budget_2018/BudgetSpeech
Ting,T. C. (2007, May). Policy Developments in Pre-School Education
in Singapore: A Focus on the Key Reforms of Kindergarten Education.
International Journal of Child Care and Education Policy, 35-43.
Referencesof Education, 2015). To further deepen these developments
in school, Malay-Muslim families should encourage these
competencies at home as well. Given today’s economy and
tendency for disruptions, we should prepare our children
to strive and keep up so that they would not be left behind.
Ultimately, we should be reminded developing 21st Century
Competencies is important; in tandem, we should also focus
on helping them attain their best academically so that they
attain the best future for themselves.

13. 11
ISSUE 01/2018
THE
IMPORTANCE
OF CRITICAL
THINKINGIN FUTURE PROOFING OUR EARLY LEARNERS
By: Syed Salleh Hassan Alsagoff
INTRODUCTION
A 16-year-old pursuing a diploma in retail will realise
upon graduation that the five years spent in school is
not going to provide him/her the assurance and safety
net called employment. Brynjolfsson and McAfee (2011)
projected that the pace of technological innovation will
affect the employment landscape by forcing employees
to consistently be open to relearning and re-skilling.
Much literature has concluded that in the execution of
an arduous computation, technologies and machinery far
outperform the humans’ ability (Campbell-Kelly, 2009). In
the landscape of extremely fast changes to industries and
access to an avalanche of information, this paper sets out
to explain why instilling critical thinking is paramount in
the early years.
IMPORTANCE OF CRITICAL
THINKING FOR THE FUTURE
WORK
Critical thinking demands a persistent willpower to
examine any belief or supposed form of knowledge in
the light of the evidence that supports it and the further
conclusions to which it tends.
Critical thinkers are made up of these: openness to new
ideas and perspectives; willingness to challenge belief
systems and investigate the contrary evidence; ask
questions, and they analyse using strategies to decipher
new meanings. In short: active learners. Companies
seek employees who never stop learning and are able
CRITICAL
THINKING
DEMANDS A
PERSISTENT
WILLPOWER
TO EXAMINE

14. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
12
to analyse a wide range of subjects. Critical thinking and
problem solving topped the list over traditional academic
skills. Learning to think critically may be one of the most
important skills that today’s children will require to
succeed in the future. And so the effort for it has to start
early, and start fast.
CRITICAL THINKING IN
CHILDREN
Recent research has found that young children engage
in many of the same cognitive processes that adults do,
concluding that there is a place for critical thinking in
the lower elementary curriculum (Gelman and Markman,
1986).Silva (2008) argues that there is no single age when
children are developmentally ready to learn more complex
ways of thinking. Kennedy, et al. (1991) concluded that
although critical thinking ability appears to improve with
age, even young children can benefit from critical thinking
instruction. Many critical thinking researchers maintain
that critical thinking skills and abilities can be taught. One
definitely believe it does not hurt to begin teaching critical
thinking as much as possible at as young an age.
TEACHING CRITICAL
THINKINGTO YOUNG
CHILDREN
Think time
At a basic level, we have to give time for young children
to think. Our children should be given time to consider
ideas and given space to discover and question further.
Deadlinesandduedatesaretermsthatarenotsynonymous
to childhood; children may engage in conversations or
simple queries at any given time, and it is on the onus
of the parents or teachers to identify and embrace these
teachable moments. Inputing probes consciously towards
critical thinking during specific playtime for example,
would allow children to explore their thoughts and actions
– generate new ideas and think critically.
Question everything
The bedrock of critical thinking is curiosity. When
teaching children about everything around them, we
should constantly pause and question them about why
they think something is the way it is or even about what
OUR
CHILDREN
SHOULD BE
GIVEN TIME
TO CONSIDER
IDEAS AND
GIVEN SPACE
TO DISCOVER
AND
QUESTION
FURTHER
reason people have for doing something. ‘Reflective toss’,
a term coined by science teacher Jim Minstrell to describe
questioning sequence he uses to facilitate and clarify
students’ thinking (van Zee and Minstrell, 1997), states
that it is advised that children’s comments and ideas
should be the starting points of dialogue. In the reflective
toss, the parents or educator’s role is to try to catch the
child’s meaning and understand their comments. Then
use follow-up questions, such as “Can you say more about
that?” or “Can you say what you are thinking in a different
way?” is asked. Once we grasp the meaning, we should
‘toss’ back the question to the child, pushing him or her
to further elaborate and justify his or her thinking. These
simple questions are powerful as it also develops children
as autonomous learners.

15. 13
ISSUE 01/2018
Environment: Using Space to Support Critical Thinking
The surrounding conditions or external influences in which
a child operates could be optimised to encourage critical
thinking. Children would find it easier to find their own
solutions through new,and repeated discoveries.The room
should also have a wide assortment of books including the
ones created by the child, to appeal to different readers.
Children should also be surrounded by evidence of
their own learnings. Paintings, drawings, sculptures and
writings should be carefully arranged to allow children
to focus, linger and explore. This also makes the child’s
learnings both visible and public. This also allows for
the constant opportunity for the child to continuously
sharpen and practice their personal critical thinking skills.
More importantly, a nurturing environment is essential
in developing and encouraging critical thinking skills in
children. Parents and educators should respect and love
your children, even if they are wrong in their expressions
and ideas. Children always love to learn in an environment
where they feel love.
Last year, 15-year-olds in Singapore were ranked first in
maths, science and reading in the 2015 Programme for
International Student Assessment (PISA) test. However,
as DPM Tharman Shanmugaratnam has aptly highlighted,
it is a mistake for a community to believe that “If it ain’t
broke, don’t fix it” (The Straits Times, 2017), and to
continue buttressing our future generations with required
skillsets to be ready for future school, future workplace,
future society. MENDAKI recognises the important shift
beyond the rudimentary 3Rs (reading, writing, and
artihmetic) and together with Google pioneered the Code
in the Community programme to expose young pre-
schoolers and lower-primary children to coding, critical
and computational thinking. Such measures do not
necessarily be at the community-level; the significance
lies in its ability to build relationship and environment
that allows children to be critical thinkers.
CONCLUSION
Our above discussion has suggested that Singaporeans
should encourage children at a young age to learn
and apply the array of critical thinking skills in making
meanings and construct their own understanding of
their world. The method by which a child constructs
understanding by tapping on his or her thinking capacity
is far more important than the final outcome. The parents
and educators play a vital role in nurturing critical thinking
skills in young children. We should build a culture within
our families that allow and encourages children to talk and
think in a fun and supportive environment.
PARENTS AND
EDUCATORS
SHOULD
RESPECT AND
LOVE YOUR
CHILDREN,
EVEN IF THEY
ARE WRONG
IN THEIR
EXPRESSIONS
AND IDEAS

16. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
14
Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee,A. (2011). Race against the machine: How
the digital revolution is accelerating innovation, driving productivity, and
irreversibly transforming employment and the economy
Campbell-Kelly, M., & Garcia-Swartz, D. D. (2009). Information Economics
and Policy
Gelman, S.A., & Markman, E. M. (1986). Categories and Induction in
Young Children. Cognition, 23, 183-209
Kennedy, M., Fisher, M. B., & Ennis, R. H. (1991). Critical thinking:
Literature review and needed research. In L. Idol & B.F.Jones (Eds.),
Educational values and cognitive instruction: Implications for reform (p.
11-40). Hillsdale, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum & Associates.
Silva, E. (2008). Measuring Skills for the 21st Century [Report].
Washington, DC: Education Sector. Retrieved from http://www.
educationsector.org/usr_doc/MeasuringSkills.pdf.
The Straits Times. (Sep 21, 2017). “Biggest mistake is to think ‘if it ain’t
broke, don’t fix it’: DPM Tharman on Singapore’s education”. Retrieved
from https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/education/biggest-
mistake-is-to-think-if-it-aint-broke-dont-fix-it-dpm-tharman-on
Van Zee, E., & Minstrell,J. (1997). Using questioning to guide student
thinking. Journal of the Learning Sciences, 6(2), 227–269
References

17. 15
ISSUE 01/2018
DAWN OF THESMART NATION
By: Muhammad Hazique Salahudin
We tend to say that the future is fast approaching, but what
if the future is, today? Think about when we last set an alarm
clock,downloaded songs into an iPod,or flagged a taxi.Today,
our smartphones not only wake us up, but track the quality of
our sleep. Spotify not only plays music, but streams curated
playlists for us. Uber not only gets us a taxi, but on demand,
and cheaper too. Digital technology is creeping deeper into
our lives.Can we even conceive of workplaces without emails,
commutes without the Korean dramas on YouTube that keep
us occupied or communicating with our loved ones without
WhatsApp?The pace of change has certainly been staggering.
If we were told just five years ago that all these changes were
to come to pass, we would not have believed it. What if, the
future is now?
DIGITALTRANSFORMATION
ANDTHE SMART NATION
Singapore is metamorphosing into a ‘digitalised society’
– a society that adopts and integrates information and
communication technologies in various aspects of life. Since
2014, PM Lee has dubbed this desired state of being as the
Smart Nation. To be a Smart Nation is to be a society where
citizens approach digital technology beyond just a tool,but as
an enabler that brings about greater opportunities and better
living (Lee, 2014). It is where individuals and communities
leverage on technology to enhance their everyday lives.
Likewise, the Government, businesses and organisations
wouldtransformtheirexistingprocessestoenhanceefficiency
and efficacy.
The government of a Smart Nation would analyse aggregated
data to improve traffic conditions, reduce waiting time at
public hospitals or arrange upstream social intervention for
at-risk families.A business in a Smart Nation would automate
laborious work or and apply digital solutions in its services,
upping productivity while creating higher-valued jobs.
An individual in a Smart Nation would think of how digital
technology such as apps can be applied to make managing
finances, arranging outings or preparing for vacations easier
and better.The Smart Nation undoubtedly penetrates through
every layer of society.
TO BE A SMART
NATION IS TO
BE A SOCIETY
WHERE CITIZENS
APPROACH DIGITAL
TECHNOLOGY
BEYOND JUST A TOOL,
BUT AS AN ENABLER
THAT BRINGS
ABOUT GREATER
OPPORTUNITIES AND
BETTER LIVING

18. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
16
OPPORTUNITIES AND
CHALLENGES OF THE
SMART NATION
Singapore is in a state of digital transformation today.
Murmurs on the future economy, cashless society and
automation are now front and centre conversations.Its visible
manifestations, taking the form of online entrepreneurship,
THE SMART
NATION IS HERE
TO STAY, AND
IGNORING OR
COUNTERING IT
IS IMPOSSIBLE.
IT IS HERE FOR
THE REASON
THAT IT IS A
NECESSITY FOR
US TO NOT
ONLY SURVIVE,
BUT THRIVE IN
THE COMING
DECADES
digital currencies and asynchronous collaboration are hard
to ignore. They awaken everyone to the realities of the future
society. Beyond the opportunities, the possible drawbacks –
job displacements, digital divide and business disruptions –
give many Singaporeans the jitters.Workers worry when they
read news on redundancies related to automation. Senior
citizens worry when using cash means being left behind.
Businesses worry on their lack of capabilities to compete
(TODAY,2016; Chong andToh,2017; Mahmud,2018). Many
ask: can we even cope?
The Smart Nation is here to stay, and ignoring or countering
it is impossible. It is here for the reason that it is a necessity
for us to not only survive, but thrive in the coming decades.
Being on the edge of digitalisation is what keeps us relevant
and globally competitive (Heng, 2018). At home, an ageing
populationandapopulacewithhighexpectationsnecessitate
more efficient and innovative ways of compensating.
MARCHING ONWARDS
To this end, MENDAKI has embarked on a digital
transformation journey to spearhead the community in
negotiating this new reality. Since 2010, MENDAKI has been
organising coding skills workshops to children through its
Cahaya M.For its 10,000 students under the MENDAKITuition
Scheme, they have been involved in online registration
since for more than 4 years now, amongst. Since then, the
registration for TTFS and study loan has also been made
online amongst other digitilisation efforts. In January 2018,
a Digital Transformation Department (DTD) has been formed,
with three strategic objectives – to nurture a digital mind set
within MENDAKI itself, to encourage digitalisation amongst
our Malay Muslim Organisations and to raise awareness on
what it means to be part of a Smart Nation within the Malay
Muslim public. It does not have to be said that the journey
would be long and that it has only just begun. Much work is
to be done.
The current period of digital transformation we face now is
unlike what we went through before. The computerisation
drives of the 1990s and 2000s were sporadic and technical,
with the intent of merely improving processes and workflows.
Digital transformation today,requires us to arrive at the Smart

19. 17
ISSUE 01/2018
IN THIS
REGARD, DIGITAL
TRANSFORMATION
TODAY CALLS FOR
A CULTURAL AND
MIND-SET SHIFT
IN OUR FRAMING
OF DIGITAL
TECHNOLOGY IN
OUR LIVES
Chong, C., & Toh, S. (2017,Aug 22). Some seniors worry about cashless
top-ups at MRT stations. Retrieved Feb 2018, from The Straits Times:
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/some-seniors-worry-about-
cashless-top-ups
Heng, S. K. (2018, Feb 19). Budget Speech 2018. Retrieved from
Budget 2018: http://www.singaporebudget.gov.sg/budget_2018/
budgetspeech/
Lee, H. L. (2014, Nov 24). Speech by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at
Smart Nation Launch. Retrieved Feb 2018, from Smart Nation Singapore:
https://www.smartnation.sg/happenings/speeches/smart-nation-launch
LIBRe Research Group. (n.d.). Digital Society. Retrieved Mar 1, 2018,
from LIBRe Research Group: http://www.libreresearchgroup.org/en/a/
digital-society
Mahmud,A. (2018, Feb 27). Some Businesses Struggling to Keep Up with
Digital Transfomation: MPs. Retrieved Feb 2018, from Channel NewsAsia:
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/some-businesses-
struggling-to-keep-up-with-digital-9996538
TODAY. (2016,Apr 6). Help urged for workers to adjust to rising
automation. Retrieved Feb 2018, from TODAY Online: https://www.
todayonline.com/singapore/help-urged-workers-adjust-rising-
automation
ReferencesNation. Digital solutions are preferred, and they must resolve
issues both rapidly and meaningfully. In this regard, digital
transformation today calls for a cultural and mind-set shift in
our framing of digital technology in our lives. Opportunities
are abound.The question is: are we ready to seize them?

20. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
18
YAYASAN
MENDAKI
POST-BUDGET
POLICY FORUMSTRONGER TOGETHER, FORGING AHEAD
By: Dhania Raihana Binte Saheid
Budget 2018 lays the foundation for Singapore’s
development in the upcoming decade.As spoken by Minister
for Finance Heng Swee Keat on 19 February, this budget
serves as a strategic and integrated financial plan to position
Singapore for the future against the backdrop of three broad
shifts: (i) shift in global economic weight towards Asia, (ii) the
emergence of new technologies, and (iii) an ageing society.
During Yayasan MENDAKI’s Post-Budget Policy Forum on 11
March 2018, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim reiterated these shifts and
shared two important acts that the Malay/Muslim community
need to do. Firstly, we need to collectively prepare for the
global world that is constantly changing. Secondly, the
community should seize as many available opportunities to
improve the livelihood of ourselves, our families and others.
This year’s forum was organised as part of Mediacorp Suria’s
Cetusan current affairs programme. The media involvement
wasintendedtoallowmoretobenefitfromtherichdiscussion.
Dr Yaacob was joined by 4 other panellists from diverse
sectors, providing for a robust discussion; Mdm Rahayu
Buang (CEO of Yayasan MENDAKI), Ustazah Farah Aljunied
(Education Director, Curriculum Planning and Development,
Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS)), Mr Shamir Rahim
(President, Singapore Malay Chamber Commerce and
Industry (SMCCI)), and Dr Tan Khee Giap (Visiting Associate
Professor & Co-Director, Asia Competitiveness Institute Lee
Kuan Yew School of Public Policy).
Following from the three broad shifts that were stated earlier,
our community must adapt quickly to remain relevant
and competitive in this age of disruptive technology. As
OUR COMMUNITY
MUST ADAPT
QUICKLY TO
REMAIN RELEVANT
AND COMPETITIVE
IN THIS AGE
OF DISRUPTIVE
TECHNOLOGY

21. 19
ISSUE 01/2018
THE USAGE OF
TECHNOLOGY
IS TO HELP
IMPROVE THE
QUALITY OF LIFE
digitalisation is a key driver of growth in the future economy,
Dr Yaacob announced the comprehensive digitalisation
initiativesthatwillbeimplementedforthecommunityduring
the Committee of Supply Debate. Henceforth, a significant
portion of the panel discussion was centred on digitalisation
followed by the changes of TTFS eligibility criteria and the
increase of GST.
ROADTO DIGITALISATION
FOR OUR COMMUNITY
Digitalisation takes prominence throughout the whole
discussion. The moderator, Ms Hazlina Halim, contextualised
the discussion by reminding us how digitalisation is a way
of life. Dr Yaacob further mentioned that technology should
be maximised to solve problems that are present in society
and only then our community and country be able to move
forward. Subsequently, three different sub-themes were
discussed with regard to the impact of digitalisation; youths,
businesses, and Malay/Muslim organisations.
Youths
Mdm Rahayu highlighted two key points on how our
youths can maximise the digital technology. First, via taking
relevant courses that would prepare them for the world that
is becoming more technologically advanced. This would
open more opportunities for them as it has been identified
as key skills for the future economy. Furthermore, our youths

22. RUBRIX - RESILIENCE IN THE AGE OF DISRUPTION
20
Malay Muslim Organisations
To bring our Malay/Muslim organisations forward, Yayasan
MENDAKI has set up the Digital Transformation Department
(DTD) to enhance the processes and services of Malay/Muslim
organisations (MMOs) to better serve the community. In this
regard,Mdm Rahayu clarified three ways how the department
aims to prepare the community, (i) building MENDAKI’s
internal digital capacity, (ii) to facilitate digital technology
implementation among the MMOs and, (iii) strengthen
awareness on the importance of digital transformation
amongst the Malay/Muslim community.
One of the ways MENDAKI is embracing digital technology is
via the online registration of MENDAKI Tuition Scheme. The
Online Programme Registration System (OPRS) has proven to
maximise efficiency by reducing manpower and paperwork
for MENDAKI. This also translates in operational cost savings.
Dr Yaacob also pointed out the importance of being open to
data exchange amongst different MMOs. The community’s
data when garnered,would allow for creative digital solutions
to enhance the livelihood of the Malay/Muslim community.
He posed this challenge to Mr Shamir,asking him to advocate
the same for the private sector - specifically, he mentioned
how data exchange could be highly beneficial for our SMEs.
Some within the forum had raised concerns on the
dehumanisation of services that could occur as a result of
digitalisation. To that, Mr Shamir emphasised that the usage
of technology is to help improve the quality of life and not
replace human interaction. When used in a positive manner,
digital technology can improve our work and social lives. He
provided an example how his company, Versafleet, provided
digital solutions for drivers in South Korea that allows them
to reach home 3 hours earlier. The time saved provides the
drivers to spend more time at home with their families.
CHANGES OF TTFS INCOME
ELIGIBILITY
The other highlight of the forum is the revision of Tertiary
Tuition Fee Subsidy scheme (TTFS) income eligibility criteria.
As the Per Capita Income (PCI) of families has risen over the
last few years, the government is revising the income bands
of TTFS upwards. This would provide the necessary education
support for low and middle-income Malay students.The issue
THE WORLD IS
CONSTANTLY
CHANGING
AND WE, AS A
COMMUNITY,
NEED TO
SEIZE EVERY
AVAILABLE
OPPORTUNITY
are known to be creative and prefer to discover their own
solutions for the community. Through this, they can ride on
the gig economy and provide creative digital services that
would significantly improve lives.
Malay Muslim Businesses
Our businesses can also benefit from the digitalisation efforts.
In this budget, the government continues to provide support
for our businesses such as finding partners to co-create
solutions through the Open Innovation Platform. Specifically
for the Malay/Muslim community, Mr Shamir shared
that Info-communications Media Development Authority
(IMDA) and SMCCI will work with Malay/Muslim SMEs to
harness the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)
Go Digital Programme. On top of that, Kampong Glam will
be Singapore’s first digitally enabled retail neighbourhood
that would enhance the customer and retail experience and
transform the overall visitor experience at Kampong Glam.
This initiative would also harness the richness of the heritage
and culture of the Malay/Muslim community.

23. 21
ISSUE 01/2018
came to light when Dr Elmie Nekmat, Assistant Professor in
Communications and New Media in NUS, asked the panellist
on ways MENDAKI is assisting the middle-class. Mdm Rahayu
shared that the changes would greatly benefit middle-income
families as there are many families would want to send their
children for higher learning but faced a cost barrier. Ustazah
Farah echoed the same sentiments; as it would provide
opportunities for more students to pursue their education in
the tertiary level.
INCREASE OF GST
The announcement to increase Goods and Services Tax (GST)
from 7% to 9% between 2021 and 2025 (Lam,2018) was also
given attention during the panel discussion. The increase is
due to growing spending on healthcare, infrastructure and
security by the Government.A few of the audience responded
with worries on the increase in prices and the impacts it would
leave on the low-income families. Dr Tan Khee Giap thought
that the early announcement by the government is helpful,as
it prepare SMEs in terms of business plans. For the low and
middle class, he reassured the audience to not be worried; as
the government will provide the necessary assistance.
CONCLUSION
All in all, the discussion was fruitful and Dr Yaacob ended
it with a positive call by rallying the audience together. He
emphasised that the world is constantly changing and we,
as a community, need to seize every available opportunity.
He encouraged us to look at ways how we can work with the
government and the community to ensure that no one is left
behind. Only by working together, our country will always
remain relevant in the global arena.
Lam, L. (2018, February 20). Singapore Budget 2018: GST to be raised from 7% to 9% some time between 2021 and 2025. The Straits Times. Retrieved February
19, 2018, from https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-budget-2018-gst-to-be-raised-from-7-to-9-sometime-between-2021-and-2025
References

24. MENDAKI Rubrix Newsletter 2018
Issue 01, 2018
Copyright © 2018 Yayasan MENDAKI
Research and Planning Department
Yayasan MENDAKI,Wisma MENDAKI
Views presented in this publication are those of the individual authors.
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the Board and Management of Yayasan MENDAKI or the institutions the
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EEDITORIALTEAM
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Dhaifina Dasri
Dhania Raihana Binte Saheid
Muhammad Hazique Salahudin
Norshahira Abdul Aziz
Siti Afiyah Mustapha
Syed Salleh Hassan Alsagoff
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