Tailoring Her Growth
By embracing a growth mindset and continuous upskilling, Ms Phua Li Ling is doing her utmost to nurture young minds and bring out the best in them.
for someone who has always loved playing with children and even dreamed of becoming a teacher when she was young, it may come as no surprise that Ms Phua Li Ling is an early childhood (EC) educator. However, there was a time when she almost followed a different career path.
Back in 2016 when Ms Phua was an aspiring filmmaker, she came across a job advertisement for an assistant teacher position at a preschool. Her interest piqued, and she applied for the role. The experience was so enjoyable and fulfilling that it crystallised her resolve to train and earn formal EC qualifications. Today, the 29-year-old is an English teacher at My First Skool at 2 Punggol Drive.
A filmmaking student at one point, Ms Phua has now found her true calling as an EC educator.
Reaping the Benefits of Continuous Learning
One of the first things Ms Phua did, upon deciding to pursue an EC career, was sign up for NTUC First Campus’s work-study traineeship programme. During the 13-month diploma course, her weekdays were spent attending lectures at SEED Institute and on-the-job training at a preschool. “I loved this arrangement because whenever I had assignments, I could apply real classroom experiences on the concepts I learnt,” said Ms Phua.
A few years later, with more work experience under her belt, she enrolled in a part-time degree programme to increase her mastery in planning rich and meaningful learning experiences for children. The programme deepened her understanding of child development theories and equipped her with practical skills in using age-appropriate teaching methods for better classroom engagement.
Not content to rest on her laurels, Ms Phua continued to seek out professional development opportunities after completing her bachelor’s degree programme in 2021. She was particularly keen to learn innovative strategies and lesson ideas that would be effective in helping infants and toddlers pick up the basic building blocks of speaking and listening. “At that age, children may struggle to communicate their wants and needs, which often causes frustration and may lead to meltdowns,” she explained.
Recent years have also seen an increased emphasis on cultivating inclusive classrooms, where typically developing children and those with developmental delays learn and play together. “The children I teach come from all walks of life and have different backgrounds and learning needs,” said Ms Phua. “I’ve been taking various courses to keep up to date with best practices for managing classroom situations that arise from children having diverse needs, as well as how best to talk with parents about their children’s development.”
Ms Phua happily juggles her work at the preschool with ongoing training and professional development.
With the support and encouragement of her supervisors, Ms Phua continued to attend training courses. During one of her training sessions, she was introduced to the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS), which uses visual symbols to help people with autism or other speech difficulties communicate. Intrigued by this concept, she decided to adapt the PECS approach for children in her class.
“I would point to specific images to prepare children for our next activity or to help them express themselves,” said Ms Phua. This strategy paid off, as she observed an improvement in their communication and language skills. It also made Ms Phua feel more confident in her ability to impart early literacy skills and cater to children with different needs.
Ms Rozila, mother of three-year-old Zahra, shared, “After joining Teacher Li Ling’s playgroup class, Zahra became more sociable. She now loves chatting with her teachers and friends and always comes home gushing about the activities she did with Teacher Li Ling.”
After joining Teacher Li Ling’s playgroup class, Zahra became more sociable.
She now loves chatting with her teachers and friends.
After joining Teacher Li Ling’s playgroup class, Zahra became more sociable. She now loves chatting with her teachers and friends.
Ms Rozila, parent
Another parent, Mr Li, similarly noted how his daughter Keira has benefited from Ms Phua’s teaching. “It’s remarkable how Keira’s social skills and confidence have grown under her guidance,” he said. “Preschool drop-offs used to be a challenge as Keira has separation anxiety. But whenever Teacher Li Ling is at the door, Keira calms down and enters the classroom without fuss.”
From Mentee to Mentor
Ms Phua’s talent and passion for her work caught the eye of her supervisors, who have provided growth opportunities in her day-to-day work.
For example, some of Ms Phua’s new responsibilities include helming the planning of events and field trips for the Nursery 1 classes in her preschool — a mega centre that can take up to 1,000 children. Besides coordinating the logistics for these events, she is tasked with curating age-appropriate activities that are educational, engaging and relevant to those occasions. Ms Phua has also taken a more active part in mentoring her peers, guiding them to design lessons that facilitate purposeful play and classroom management.
Preschool drop-offs used to be a challenge as Keira has separation anxiety.
But whenever Teacher Li Ling is at the door, Keira calms down and enters the classroom without fuss.
Preschool drop-offs used to be a challenge as Keira has separation anxiety. But whenever Teacher Li Ling is at the door, Keira calms down and enters the classroom without fuss.
Mr Li, parent
“I used to feel down whenever I faced setbacks trying to help children grasp my lessons,” said Ms Phua. “Regular training and coaching equipped me with the skill sets to find solutions. I also met many kind leaders and mentors in this industry, who offered career guidance and gave me the motivation to grow. Now I want to do the same for newer teachers.”
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