Singapore GCE A Level Curriculum - New 2006 Framework

Students may select subjects at three different levels of study: Higher 1 (H1), Higher 2 (H2) and Higher 3 (H3).

H1: Equivalent to half the content load of H2 subjects but pitched at the same academic standard as H2 subjects. For broadening purposes, to pursue an area of interest in which students do not intend to specialise, or to acquire foundational knowledge and skills in a subject area which will support their future studies at university level.

H2: Equivalent to the standard of A Level subjects prior to 2006.

H3: Subjects with a variety of learning opportunities (e.g. advanced content, research paper, university module). For students to pursue a given subject which they excel in at a higher level. Students who wish to take up an H3 subject will have to offer the corresponding subject at H2 level.

Besides GP, PW, and MTL* at H1 level, students are required to offer three H2 and one H1 content-based subjects, at least one of which is a subject from a contrasting discipline. For example, a student offering three subjects from the Mathematics & Sciences group would have to offer one subject from the Humanities & the Arts group, and vice versa. The contrasting subject may be at H1 or H2 level.

H3 Programmes by MOE Partners

Humanities & the Arts - NUS Managerial Economics, NUS Geopolitics: War and Peace, NUS Economy and Space, NUS Urban Land Use and Development, NUS Literary Criticism, NUS Humanities and Social Sciences Research Programme.

Mathematics & Sciences - NUS Molecular Genetics, NUS Biodiversity, NUS Basic Physical Chemistry, NUS Physics IV, NUS Basics of Mathematics, NUS Linear Algebra, NUS Science Research Programme, NUS - A*STAR - NJC Science Training and Research (STaR), NUS - A*STAR - VJC Science Research, NTU Contemporary Physics, NTU Numbers and Matrice.

Key Changes

New area of learning that focuses explicitly on developing higher order skills: conceptual thinking, other knowledge process skills and communication skills.

Subjects include Project Work (PW) and Knowledge and Inquiry (KI).

Singapore GCE A Level Curriculum Overview

From 2006, a broader and more flexible GCE A Level curriculum has been introduced for Pre-U students, to foster new approaches to learning and develop in students a wider range of skills. Students will be challenged to think critically and creatively.

THE INNER CIRCLE centring on life skills ensures that students acquire sound values and skills to take them through life as responsible adults and active citizens. It comprises the non-academic curriculum.

THE MIDDLE CIRCLE on knowledge skills seeks to develop students’ thinking, process and communication skills. This will enable students to analyse and use information and be able to express their thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively. It comprises skills-based subjects.

THE OUTERMOST CIRCLE covers the content-based subject disciplines i.e. Languages, Humanities & the Arts, and Mathematics & Sciences. It ensures that students have a good grounding in content across different areas of study.