4 reasons why educators enjoy a fulfilling career at this international school

Any educational institution looking to produce outstanding students must first ensure that its teaching staff are well taken care of. That is the ethos at Singapore American School (SAS).

Founded in 1956, the school believes in ensuring that its faculty members are physically well and mentally sharp, so they can provide each student with a stellar educational experience.

As one of the world's leading American international schools, SAS is ranked fourth out of 200 on the Singapore's Best Employers 2021 list, and first in the Education category. Here are four factors that set this institution apart:

SAS encourages its faculty members to constantly grow their professional knowledge and skills. This is done through "teacher teams" - groups which allow educators to collaborate with one another regularly so that activities, assessments and teaching goals are aligned, and students can learn more effectively - which encourage cross-learning.

This initiative has yielded considerable success over the years and has been a springboard for the upcoming Professional Learning Community (PLC) coaching programme that will run till next year (2021-2022).

Under this programme, experienced teachers will adopt the dual role of teacher and "leader" - half of their time will be spent teaching, while the other half will be used to coach their fellow teachers. This programme aims to improve the school's instructional best practices, while providing faculty members with feedback and guidance on how to improve as educators.

According to middle school principal Lauren Mehrbach, the PLC model will help elevate the learning experience for both students and teachers.

"Teacher leaders coaching our educators serves two important purposes," she says. "It helps our teachers improve their practice, thus increasing student learning. At the same time, it helps our teacher leaders hone their cognitive coaching skills and their ability to identify good teaching and learning."

SAS superintendent Tom Boasberg adds: "PLCs will be strengthened by coaches who champion the team's success by supporting both individual and collective growth. This, in turn, will help us deliver on our promise of cultivating exceptional thinkers who are prepared for the future."

SAS employees are looking forward to this coaching model as it will allow them to receive meaningful, real-time feedback to help them reach their potential as educators.

On top of investing in employee growth, SAS also plans to transform its Woodlands campus, which first opened in 1996.

Work will commence this June to build new learning environments to further the school's ambition of being an ideal place for both employees and students. These have been designed based on strict environmental and social wellness standards.

Notably, the new campus will carry Green Mark Platinum certification - a green building rating system designed to evaluate a building's environmental impact and performance - and reflect the WELL Standard, a framework that measures the overall comfort and experience within the school.

The $375 million project is scheduled to be completed in five years' time.

"We believe the combination of the physical structures and the wide variety of development and wellness support will provide a professional environment that will continue to enhance our employee experience," says Mr Boasberg.

While teaching is a rewarding profession, it can also be stressful. To help teachers manage this, SAS set up a wellness team dedicated to help take care of their physical and mental health. The team organises activities such as yoga, edible gardening and even batik making.

"Our wellness program has grown significantly in recent years as the school shifted one of our priorities to the extraordinary care of every individual," says Dr Anne Wenstrom, an elementary school physical education teacher. "We can see the impact when employees take care of themselves because they can then give the best of themselves to others."

SAS' community of almost 400 teachers and 300 staff hold passports from 23 countries. This means the school is able to offer a rich, cosmopolitan working experience where staff and students can interact and engage with people from different cultures, and with different beliefs and perspectives.

A planning committee was recently formed to provide educators with comprehensive learning experiences, based on their selected topics of interest. Experts from Singapore and overseas have shared with SAS teachers their expertise on topics, ranging from discrimination and racism to creating safe spaces and navigating challenging conversations.

"We believe one of our greatest strengths is the diversity of our community and as a school, we are committed to ensuring that equity and inclusivity at the school are as strong as our diversity," says Mr Boasberg.