Academics

The learning activities of infant-aged children are interdisciplinary in nature, reflecting their experiences outside of school. In developmentally appropriate ways, students explore concepts and develop their essential understandings through interdisciplinary units of study.

Students also explore topics such as personal identity, self awareness, family and friendships through our integrated Personal and Social Education (PSE) programme. The PSE programme aims to support them in developing a sense of belonging as they explore personal independence and autonomy.

The Infant School learning is intentional and connects directly to our K–12 curriculum. Teachers adjust their unit and lesson plans to ensure students’ backgrounds, interests and learning needs are taken into account. The academic curriculum in our Infant School is structured around a holistic, inquiry-based approach to learning. Guided by the UWCSEA profile and learning principles, students engage in units of study and learning that work towards age-appropriate conceptual understandings in the following academic disciplines:

• Literacy
• Language other than English or English as an Additional Language
• Mathematics
• Humanities
• Science
• Music
• Art
• Physical Education (PE) 

Each student is supported by a teaching team that includes their classroom teacher and teacher assistant. Specialist teachers deliver Music, Languages and PE lessons. Coaches work with classroom teachers to support Literacy, Mathematics and the integration of technology in the classroom.

The Junior School (G2–5) academic curriculum is structured around a holistic, inquiry-based approach to learning. This is integrated with a personal and social education programme (PSE) that supports students in exploring topics such as friendships, family, personal identity and self-awareness.

The Junior School staff are organised into small teams to ensure that students feel welcome and supported. A student’s main contact is with the classroom teacher, who is supported by a teaching assistant working across the grade-level. 

Specialist teachers then provide lessons in Physical Education, Music, Art and Languages. Instructional coaches work with classroom teachers to support Mathematics, Literacy and the integration of technology into their classroom practice.

Our service curriculum is also woven into the academic programme through the units of study, as students are introduced to a Systems Thinking approach to investigating an issue and planning action that is sustainable. They learn to take informed, purposeful action by choosing between action types (e.g. direct action, indirect action, advocacy and research). They are coached at all stages of the process—from initial investigation to planning and action—to be reflective, evaluating the impact of their intervention. Finally, they share their learning with the goal of inspiring others.

The school day begins at 8am and ends at 3pm. Many students then participate in the after school activity programme until 4.15pm. 

The school week is divided into 43 periods, and while periods can vary in length according to the time of day and the day of the week, the average length is around 40 minutes per period.

Our Middle School programme extends the concept-based learning of Primary School, and refines interdisciplinary learning into individual subjects. Students have specialist teachers for each subject, who guide them in fundamental skills required for higher studies in each discipline. 

These teachers specialise in teaching Middle School age students. Students are taught in class groups except for subjects that require differentiation for specific learning goals, such as languages and physical education.

Students are offered a broad and balanced range of subjects in the Middle School programme. The core subjects are English, Mathematics, Science and Humanities, including History and Geography, which both weave in some basic economic theory through our specially designed concept-led courses. In addition, courses in Visual Art, Drama, Music, a Language other than English (or EAL if needed), Physical Education and exploratory subjects in a number of Design and Technology specialisms ensure that students are able to develop knowledge and skills across a range of academic disciplines.

Through exposure to the varied range of Middle School subjects, students are prepared to make informed choices when asked to select the specialised two-year courses that are offered in Grades 9 and 10 as part of our High School programme.

UWCSEA offers an academically challenging and personally enriching High School programme. As our students will tell you, UWCSEA is a great place to spend your High School years in a dynamic welcoming environment.

One key quality in all our High School students is their positive approach to learning. Central to the College’s values is the view that effort and commitment are vital qualities if a student is to be happy and successful. Students are expected to maintain strong effort profiles and be actively and positively engaged in the classroom and in school life. We encourage our students to be self-disciplined and considerate of others.

There are four curriculum offerings in the High School; the curriculum stream a student joins depends on the age and stage at which they join the College:

1. Grade 9 (normally at age 14): UWCSEA Courses provide a modular approach to learning for students entering the College in Grade 9 and 10. These are offered as an alternative the (I)GCSE programme to students joining in Grade 9 on both campuses. (I)GCSE subjects are a two-year programme culminating in external examinations at the end of Grade 10.
2. Grade 10 (normally at age 15): a robust IB preparation, our Grade 10 UWCSEA Courses programme on each campus equips students with a firm foundation of knowledge and skills from which to begin the IB Diploma Programme. 
3. Grade 11 (normally at age 16): graduates are awarded a UWCSEA High School Diploma, and most students also undertake the two-year IB Diploma Programme (IBDP) which culminates in external examinations and an internationally recognised pre-university qualification

In the High School, our academic programme specifically takes into account the requirements of external examining bodies that set the (I)GCSE and IB Diploma examinations that the majority of our students sit at the end of Grade 10 and Grade 12. UWCSEA was the first school in Asia to offer the IB Diploma, and has been offering one of the most extensive IB Diploma subject offerings to students in Singapore since 1977.