Minister of State for Social and Family Development Mr Goh Pei Ming joined preschoolers, parents and early childhood (EC) educators at Skool4Kidz @ One Punggol’s Teachers’ Day celebrations today, ahead of Teachers’ Day on 5 September 2025. The event was part of the Early Childhood Development Agency’s (ECDA) “99% for the 1%” Teachers’ Day celebrations to show appreciation for the 1% of Singapore's workforce who are EC and early intervention (EI) educators.
Appreciating our Early Childhood Educators
2 Over 6,900 members of public took part in a series of Teachers’ Day roadshows in July and August to show their appreciation for EC and EI educators, and over 27,000 did so virtually via the Teachers’ Day 2025 microsite. Social enterprise Preschool Market (PSM) and the Association for Early Childhood Educators Singapore (AECES) also distributed the annual ‘Special Treats’ gift pack to all educators for the tenth year, underscoring the community’s collective appreciation. More than 50 merchants and community partners offered exclusive promotions as part of the ‘Special Treats’ gift pack for educators to enjoy throughout September.
3 Dr Cheong Sufen, Founder of PSM said, “Appreciation and recognition are essential to sustain our educators’ passion and dedication. By celebrating their contributions, we hope to inspire more Singaporeans to support the vital role our educators play in nurturing our children during their most critical developmental years."
Prioritising our Educators’ Well-being
4 One of ECDA’s key priorities is to improve our educators’ well-being. ECDA had partnered Dr Ng Wee Tong, Associate Professor at National University of Singapore’s Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health on a video series “Move Right, Teach Bright” to equip educators with practical ergonomic tips, focusing on back and knee care techniques, to prevent injuries, strengthen posture and adopt safe work habits. Dr Ng said, “As early childhood educators care for young children, their work may cause physical strain over time. NUS is happy to collaborate with ECDA to ensure that our educators are equipped with safe techniques to prevent knee and back pain and stay healthy, so they can better support and engage our children in the classrooms.”
5 Besides addressing their physical well-being, ECDA has been engaging educators to better understand their day-to-day experiences. We will continue to work closely with operators and training institutes to support educators’ workload, their ability to cater to children’s diverse learning needs in the classroom and strengthening parent-educator partnerships.
6 Central to efforts in ensuring children’s holistic development is a strong partnership between educators and parents. Both work together to reinforce learning and create a consistent environment for a child’s development. To promote positive parent-educator partnerships, the inaugural ‘Our Wonderful Parents’ initiative by PSM, supported by ECDA and the Singapore Kindness Movement, was launched this year. This initiative recognises and celebrates parents who actively collaborate with EC and EI educators, and appreciate the role educators play in the children’s lives. The first group of ‘Our Wonderful Parents’ will be recognised at the upcoming Early Childhood Celebrations on 26 September 2025.
7 Mr Goh said, “Our children’s early years are foundational, and our educators play a crucial role in nurturing them to be caring, confident and curious individuals. They partner parents in the holistic development of our children. I am glad to see so many parents here appreciating the good work of our early childhood educators. MSF and ECDA will continue to support our early childhood sector and our educators, to better understand and resolve the challenges they face at work and to improve their overall well-being. They deserve our gratitude and support not just on Teachers’ Day, but every day.”
ISSUED BY
EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT AGENCY
About the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA)
ECDA was set up in 2013. The autonomous agency oversees the regulation and development of infant, childcare and kindergarten programmes for children below the age of seven. To achieve their vision of giving every child a good start, the agency works in partnership with stakeholders to ensure that every child has access to affordable and quality early childhood development services and programmes. For more information, visit www.ecda.gov.sg.
About the “Be the 1% - Shape Our Tomorrow” Campaign
The “Be the 1% - Shape Our Tomorrow” campaign was launched by ECDA in May 2025 to celebrate how EC and EI educators represent the special 1% — possessing child development skills and expertise, resilience and empathy that truly sets them apart, yet making a 100% difference to our future. ECDA’s Teachers’ Day celebrations ride on the campaign, which rally the public to go beyond a one-off gesture by showing their appreciation, respect, trust and support for these educators every day. More information on the campaign can be found at https://go.gov.sg/shapeourtomorrow.