the-gene-identity5

STEM education – let your child excel in life!

by with No Comment Uncategorized
the-gene-identity5-1

The Gene Identity

STEM education

Let your child excel in life!

If education is like a town, STEM would be the upgrading of the town into a city. Ever since the implementation of STEM education in 2014, our innate culture, as Singaporean parents, would make us do anything, just to provide our children the best. As a kiasu individual myself, I would have done the same which is to enrol my child in STEM education as early as possible to give him or her a head start above the rest.

As much as we like our acronyms, I am sure we still need some time to familiarise ourselves with each one of them. I understand that time is precious so, let me help you with this short overview of what STEM education is all about.

What is STEM education?

STEM is an abbreviation for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. STEM education is a specially designed curriculum or method of teaching that integrates these four disciplines into one cohesive model. There are many ways STEM educators can incorporate this type of curriculum.

How is STEM education conducted?

The way STEM education is conducted in Singapore is by fine-tuning the already established educational system. By no means it is a revamp of the entire nor it is a whole new type of education.

The objectives of STEM education are:

  • To emphasize the relevance of what is being taught in school to the current and upcoming social and industry needs through experiential learning.
  • To build creativity and help students reach logical conclusions through critical thinking.
  • To cultivate problem-solving skills by encouraging students to identify a problem, then coming up with a solution to the issue.
  • Encourage teamwork and cooperation.

Ultimately, we are training our students to gain the ability to solve problems in real life using their creativity and relevant skillsets.

Why should we care about STEM education? What about STEAM?

After being introduced to the aforementioned, there is no meaning to STEM education if we do not know the importance of it.

In today’s world where technology has been advancing so rapidly, the young must start to develop their STEM knowledge and skills to keep up with the innovations. This is to help Singaporean students remain competitive in the modern jobs market. In 2015, Singapore’s Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong stressed that STEM education is crucial to Singapore in the next 50 years. The Ministry of Education (MOE) in Singapore has been the key driving agent for STEM by introducing The Applied Learning Programme (ALP) in schools as well as partnering with The Singapore Science Centre to form a new unit, STEM inc to promote more practical learning experiences for students.

MOE also encourages the use of iPads and computers during their lessons. This is a very innovative approach to helping students become well versed with technology and to equip them with digital skills.

Furthermore, our Minister for Education, Chan Chun Sing made an announcement on 7th March 2022 that mid-year examinations for all primary and secondary school levels will be removed by 2023. This pushes schools to include more applied learning programs for our children’s education.

In other words, it is very difficult to not care about STEM education especially when the nation’s education landscape is advancing towards STEM.

So then, what about STEAM?

STEAM is just an additional discipline to STEM – Arts. The arts here is referring to visual arts, social studies, history, physical arts, fine arts, and music. If we have already covered so much about science and technical areas, why not make it more all-rounder with the arts right? There are many opinions and discussions about the differences between the two and how teachers now are not yet equipped with the skills to teach STEAM as they are still new to STEM. Some might say that students who studied arts in school tend to be more creative and more optimistic.

However, I would like to highlight that no matter how different the two methods are, the goals of both are the same. The end goal is to nature the young with critical thinking and problem-solving skills while also capable of teamwork and innovative ideas.

Should parents be involved?

It is definitely helpful if parents are there for every part and parcel of their children’s life and that includes education. Parents need not spend a lot of time and money or effort in planning out a lesson for their children as they can do simple things like asking them questions about their schoolwork and how this can be relatable in real life. They can also be directly involved in special STEM programs where both can learn together.

Where can we find STEM and STEAM programs in Singapore?

TinyGene Academia, Singapore’s only private science-based STEM educational centre, offers and specialises in STEM programs that aim to inspire young scientists through fun and interactive hands-on experiments. They provide individual bookings for classes, providing cost-effective biological equipment that are child-friendly, that would otherwise be difficult to source. Every lesson is catered to our unique Singaporean context. Students will also get to explore the biotechnology field where commercial lab equipment would be introduced. The programs are not restricted to just children and youths, parents are welcome to learn as well. Their mobile team of educators are dedicated in providing the best and most engaging lessons.

Science Centre Singapore is also another excellent place for children to be learning basic principles of STEM education in an enjoyable way. They also have educational exhibitions to further pique their interests while learning through playing in a safe environment.

Another online platform that you may have heard is Khan’s Academy. Khan’s Academy is an open online database of STEM related lectures videos. With nothing but just a black screen as a blackboard, learning is just as simple as it sounds. They offer lessons ranging from Physics to Chemistry, from coding to lessons on world history, it is the one-stop shop for learning theoretical science, mathematics, coding even humanities subjects from the comfort of your home. It is also child-friendly due to their gamified system of rewarding kids’ effort by giving them special perks for the amount of time spent watching their videos.

MOE schools have also been initiating enrichment classes and programmes to ensure students are provided with the opportunity to explore the STEM field. MOE schools have also been collaborating with organisations to aid students’ learning.

In summary,

With an increasing demand for STEM related jobs, there needs to be more awareness and emphasis on STEM education in Singapore. Whether STEM or STEAM, both educational systems are beneficial in educating the young minds. You do need not to worry about providing your child the best STEM education because the Singapore education has been continuously advancing towards STEM. There are many other opportunities and enrichment classes you can enrol your child in. However, more effort needs to be put in for educators to grow the STEM Education scene here in Singapore, especially educators that can instil curiosity, critical thinking skills and inquisitiveness. Especially for TinyGene, they inspire more growth towards Biology and the Sciences, because they know it would definitely prepare you for the future.

the-gene-identity4

Alcohol and Your Genes

by with No Comment Uncategorized

The Gene Identity

Alcohol and Your Genes

All about alcohol metabolism and intolerance

Have you ever felt embarrassed when your friends or colleagues teased you about your “red face” after only a few sips of wine? Do you feel extremely uncomfortable and end up with nausea or splitting headache at the end of the night? Maybe one or two nasty people might have thrown the word “weak” at you before because of this? The fact is, the Asian Flush has nothing to do with the strength of your body, but rather a small mutation in your DNA.

The science behind alcohol metabolism

The chemical breakdown of alcohol in the body is controlled by a pathway which includes two enzymes, alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) as shown in figure below:

First, ADH metabolizes alcohol to acetaldehyde, a highly toxic substance and known carcinogen. Then, in a second step, acetaldehyde is further metabolized down to another less active by product called acetate by ALDH. Acetate is finally broken down into water and carbon dioxide for easy elimination.

ALDH, is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ALDH2 gene located on chromosome 12. A single nucleotide mutation in ALDH2 gene is primarily responsible for the “Asian flush syndrome”, characterized by facial flushing after consuming alcoholic beverages. This is because a “G” to “A” mutation will cause the functionality of the ALDH enzyme to drop to <4% of normal! In response to this increase in acetaldehyde, your body is merely trying to “flash red” to warn you about this toxin.

Normal ALDH2 vs Mutated ALDH2

Giving in to social pressure to try and force yourself to drink more is not advisable as the increased exposure to acetaldehyde in individuals with the catalytically inactive form will in the long run confer greater susceptibility to many types of cancer.

Common misconceptions among Asians

A common misconception among Asians, in particular people of ethnical Han Chinese believes that the “Asian flush” is a sign of good “chi” or active blood circulation in the body. In reality, it is the presence of a toxin such as acetaldehyde which causes the dilation of the blood vessels. Your body is screaming at you to stop and start hydrating to get rid of the toxin.

Another misconception is that one can try to drink alcohol beverages frequently as practice to be becoming a better drinker. While it is true that the body can be forced to increase its tolerance, this does not decrease the amount of toxic acetaldehyde produced during alcohol consumption. Many also believe that the off-label use of antihistamines such as Zantac or Pepcid can boost their drinking as it prevents alcohol-induced flushing when in fact, it is just slowing down the process. The prolonged use of such medication together with alcohol can have very serious health consequences.

Is the Asian Flush Syndrome the same as being intoxicated?

No, getting red from alcohol due to the Asian Flush does not mean you are drunk or intoxicated. Alcohol intoxication refers to a condition the occurs when a person consumes an excess amount of alcohol at one time. This would affect their physical and mental abilities. The Asian Flush Syndrome does not mean you get intoxicated faster or have increased blood alcohol level. In actual fact, people who suffer from the Asian Flush tend to drink less because of the unpleasant symptoms.

Alcohol Intolerance vs Alcohol Allergy

Alcohol Intolerance is a genetic disorder of the digestive system whereby the person lacks the active aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) enzyme needed to breakdown the toxic Acetaldehyde.

On the other hand, alcohol allergy is due to reaction that is being triggered by your immune system which overreacts to one of the ingredients in alcohol. Although both have some similar symptoms, very often, symptoms of alcohol allergy are much more painful and uncomfortable. For serious cases, if left untreated, an alcohol allergy can be life-threatening.

What can we do?

There is currently no known “cure” for Asian Flush, but there are some steps that we can do to mitigate the effects that it causes. The first and most obvious is to drink less or pace yourself when taking alcohol.

There are also companies that sell natural supplements that claims to support alcohol metabolism, and they can be considered but it may not be a solution that works for everyone.

As the end of the day, you need to be mindful that if you are carrying the mutation in your ALDH2, you are putting a known carcinogen into your body. Be wise and make the correct decision that is best for your health!

About TinyGene and our new Alcohol Metabolism and Genetics Lab

TinyGene Academia, Singapore’s only private science-based STEM educational centre, offers and specialises in STEM programs that aim to inspire young scientists through fun and interactive hands-on experiments.

In our latest Alcohol Metabolism lab, you will learn how to collect your own DNA for a PCR experiment that will tell if you carry the “G” to “A” mutation in your ALDH2 gene. Learn the technology behind genetic testing and get your own results as the same time! There is no age restriction for this lab, and all are welcome to book a session with us.

WhatsApp us at +65 8012 8990 to find out more today!

Click on WhatsApp
the-gene-identity3

Best ways to make teaching enjoyable and motivate students.

by with No Comment Uncategorized
the-gene-identity3-1

The Gene Identity

Best ways to make teaching enjoyable and motivate students.

Teaching is arguably one of the most respectable professions as it holds a great deal of responsibility.

Teachers give children purpose and inspire them to succeed in life. The children of today are the leaders of tomorrow, which is why teachers are very important in our society.

Teaching is no easy feat, and we all know that. Everyone could be a teacher at some point in their life, but whether one stays as a teacher requires patience, passion, empathy, dedication, and the love for cultivating young minds. Even parents are considered teachers as well. I hold a very deep respect to all parents out there who make time and effort to nature their children.

Talking about all these sounds easy but taking real actions, is not. Many times, no matter how passionate you are about teaching, your enthusiasm can fade away as you find your students not showing interest in learning, despite trying your best to teach them well. You will feel disheartened as you see them getting easily distracted and making noise when you are teaching. The problem here is not because you are bad at teaching but more because of not knowing how to get students motivated to learn.

There are numerous reasons why students lack the motivation to study. It could be because of the lack of purpose, the learning environment, the lack of relevance or the lack of exposure in real life. Teaching could be made a lot easier with these following ways to help your students overcome these motivation blocks.

5 ways to motivate your students to be excited about learning:

1. Expose the young to many experiences to pique their interest.

Let me pose a question. How many times have you ask, “What do you want to do in the future?” and gotten the same type of reply, “I don’t know”? Chances are, in Singaporean context, we get this kind of reply at least 80% of the time. Many graduates these days, only start to explore after they have graduated from school. By the time they join the workforce, it is already too late. Even I am guilty of this. It is probably because children were not exposed to many different experiences during their growing years. This is when they are the most impressionable. Do not get me wrong, no one is to be blamed because not everyone has the luxury to do all that. Let’s focus more on situations where people have the opportunity explore.

As much as possible, we should expose our children to many jobs and experiences to inspire them and to feed their curiosity. Once the students have their own ambitions, they would soon start to realise the significance of learning. Which is part of the journey towards fulfilling their aspirations. This way, students would slowly be able to understand the importance and purpose of learning.

2. Getting them to be each other’s teachers.

Sometimes, students get confused and do not know what questions to ask. Our thought process could be entirely different from our students and re-teaching the concepts may not be any better. Students learn at different speeds too.

Why not have your students learn from one another? You could try whole brain teaching where you break up the concept into short segments and have your students to explain to each other after each segment. The short segments would not only help to digest the concepts better, but this supportive learning culture would also help to reinforce what they are learning. Teachers could also get to listen in and understand their thought process or spot any misconceptions.

3. Implement hands-on learning approach as much as possible.

With learning materials that are tangible in nature, students tend to become more interested in learning. When they see things happening right in front of their eyes, they can visualise and understand concepts better.

4. Relate content to real life.

Give practical examples or tell stories to replace experiences if needed. For example, you could use analogies relating to real life experiences to explain a concept. Or, asking students questions on whether they have experienced certain situations before. These could help them associate what they are learning to their own personal experiences.

5. Encourage and reward students using game-based tasks.

We need to be extremely encouraging to those who are discouraged when they have difficulty learning or understanding. What we tell them can be very impactful and powerful on their mindset. It is important to point out their small achievements and let them realise that these are considered successes too. With every success, teachers could reward these students to further motivate them. Teachers could also make lessons fun by encouraging students to participate in learning challenges. They could stand a chance to win prizes or reward students who help their peers.

As a parent, where can I find such experiences for my children?

Education should be a two-way street where teachers are motivated to teach, and students are motivated to learn. There are many ways for teachers to encourage students and likewise, students can also give teachers that sense of fulfilment. Learning should come from curiosity and what better ways to pique their interest than to expose them from young.

Ready to inspire young scientists? Join us at TinyGene Academia to learn more about your DNA and to cultivate skills you will never believe you can!

To conclude.

Education should be a two-way street where teachers are motivated to teach, and students are motivated to learn. There are many ways for teachers to encourage students and likewise, students can also give teachers that sense of fulfilment. Learning should come from curiosity and what better ways to pique their interest than to expose them from young.

Ready to inspire young scientists? Join us at TinyGene Academia to learn more about your DNA and to cultivate skills you will never believe you can!

the-gene-identity2

We can contribute as proud Singaporeans.

by with No Comment Uncategorized
the-gene-identity1-1

The Gene Identity

Workplace culture and its importance.

What is workplace culture?

Workplace culture or company culture describes the shared values, goals, attitudes, and practices that characterise an organization. Factors such as the working environment, company policies, company goals and employee behaviours can all contribute to the company culture.

Though company culture is intangible, it can be felt by everyone who interacts with your company: your employees, clients, vendors, partners, stakeholders, and the public. To put it more simply, all these aspects represent the personality of the company, and your team will naturally develop a culture whether intentionally or not. Hence, each company has their own unique culture, and it is important to identify it and improve on it.

Why is company culture important?

The unnerving part about company culture is that it has the potential to help a company thrive or cause it to suffer. Companies with great workplace culture have incredible advantages: they attract and retain talent, improve productivity and innovation, develop strong leaders, and become the company’s driving force for ongoing business success. On the other hand, when the company culture does not align with employees’ beliefs and feelings, they are much more likely to leave, or worse, remain with the company but underperform due to being unmotivated.

Furthermore, forty percent of job seekers view colleagues and culture as a top priority when considering career opportunities. This means that candidates and employees care about culture. However, good company culture does not happen by itself. That being said, how do we improve our company culture? To do that, companies must be willing to take active steps to improve it, starting from the CEO to every leader and employee.

Having a purpose is a reason for being and doing what you do. Without a sense of purpose, it is almost impossible to find the motivation to find the things you want to do, such as making an impact or helping others.

One strategy is to help your current employees see how their work contributes to the organisation’s purpose or success. Being part of the company’s progress is one of the most satisfying achievement an employee could gain. By communicating this clearly and often, employees would have a better sense of their purpose and their worth in the company. Hence, they feel like they belong in the organisation.

Having a purpose is a reason for being and doing what you do. Without a sense of purpose, it is almost impossible to find the motivation to find the things you want to do, such as making an impact or helping others.

One strategy is to help your current employees see how their work contribute to the organisation’s purpose or success. Being part of the company’s progress is one of the most satisfying achievement an employee could gain. By communicating this clearly and often, employees would have a better sense of their purpose and their worth in the company. Hence, they would feel like they belong in the organisation.

When it comes to recognition, we need to let the employees know that they are being valued and appreciated for their contributions, attitude, talents, and their hard work. Employees tend to be more engaged when they feel strong recognition from their employers. Recognition carries many positive benefits, such as attracting and retaining talent, increased job performance ad innovation. Showing appreciation does not have to be extravagant. Simple actions like providing treats for the team, sharing accomplishments with the team or giving extra days off around public holidays are all great ways to encourage personal growth and satisfaction.

Team building may sound trivial, however, a bonded team is one of the most crucial ingredients for business success. Especially when we are shifting towards a hybrid work model from the traditional work model, team building is much more required in our workplace. The main objective of team building is to create a cohesive and united team through various activities, either at work or outside of work.

Organising one is of course not an easy task, as it requires careful planning. This involves picking the date, transportation, food or diet restrictions, appropriateness of the activity etc. Many considerations are involved, which increases with more people in the team. Nonetheless, team building offers many benefits, and it could matter more than you think. Team building increases productivity not only by improving Interpersonal Relationships but also improves employee engagement and morale.

There are many ways we can incorporate team-building activities: One example would be to dedicate one day of the week for games day where the whole company participates in the games. Programmes such as cooking classes or educational programmes like the Corporate Team Building Mystery by TinyGene Academia. More active programmes could be Escape rooms, Karaoke, Go-Kart Racing, Company retreat on Cruise or Trampoline Park.

It is never too late to start building your culture.

Who knew that workplace culture could affect the company on such a big scale. Nonetheless, it is better to start building one than ignoring the problem. Furthermore, in a recent study, employees were asked to describe their current company culture in a word or two and found the most common term to describe their workplace culture is “stress”. What we want is to have a culture that has motivated and happy employees which would reap many benefits for the company. So start planning now!

the-gene-identity1

Workplace culture and its importance.

by with No Comment Uncategorized
the-gene-identity1-1

The Gene Identity

Workplace culture and its importance.

What is workplace culture?

Workplace culture or company culture describes the shared values, goals, attitudes, and practices that characterise an organization. Factors such as the working environment, company policies, company goals and employee behaviours can all contribute to the company culture.

Though company culture is intangible, it can be felt by everyone who interacts with your company: your employees, clients, vendors, partners, stakeholders, and the public. To put it more simply, all these aspects represent the personality of the company, and your team will naturally develop a culture whether intentionally or not. Hence, each company has their own unique culture, and it is important to identify it and improve on it.

Why is company culture important?

The unnerving part about company culture is that it has the potential to help a company thrive or cause it to suffer. Companies with great workplace culture have incredible advantages: they attract and retain talent, improve productivity and innovation, develop strong leaders, and become the company’s driving force for ongoing business success. On the other hand, when the company culture does not align with employees’ beliefs and feelings, they are much more likely to leave, or worse, remain with the company but underperform due to being unmotivated.

Furthermore, forty percent of job seekers view colleagues and culture as a top priority when considering career opportunities. This means that candidates and employees care about culture. However, good company culture does not happen by itself. That being said, how do we improve our company culture? To do that, companies must be willing to take active steps to improve it, starting from the CEO to every leader and employee.

Having a purpose is a reason for being and doing what you do. Without a sense of purpose, it is almost impossible to find the motivation to find the things you want to do, such as making an impact or helping others.

One strategy is to help your current employees see how their work contributes to the organisation’s purpose or success. Being part of the company’s progress is one of the most satisfying achievement an employee could gain. By communicating this clearly and often, employees would have a better sense of their purpose and their worth in the company. Hence, they feel like they belong in the organisation.

Having a purpose is a reason for being and doing what you do. Without a sense of purpose, it is almost impossible to find the motivation to find the things you want to do, such as making an impact or helping others.

One strategy is to help your current employees see how their work contribute to the organisation’s purpose or success. Being part of the company’s progress is one of the most satisfying achievement an employee could gain. By communicating this clearly and often, employees would have a better sense of their purpose and their worth in the company. Hence, they would feel like they belong in the organisation.

When it comes to recognition, we need to let the employees know that they are being valued and appreciated for their contributions, attitude, talents, and their hard work. Employees tend to be more engaged when they feel strong recognition from their employers. Recognition carries many positive benefits, such as attracting and retaining talent, increased job performance ad innovation. Showing appreciation does not have to be extravagant. Simple actions like providing treats for the team, sharing accomplishments with the team or giving extra days off around public holidays are all great ways to encourage personal growth and satisfaction.

Team building may sound trivial, however, a bonded team is one of the most crucial ingredients for business success. Especially when we are shifting towards a hybrid work model from the traditional work model, team building is much more required in our workplace. The main objective of team building is to create a cohesive and united team through various activities, either at work or outside of work.

Organising one is of course not an easy task, as it requires careful planning. This involves picking the date, transportation, food or diet restrictions, appropriateness of the activity etc. Many considerations are involved, which increases with more people in the team. Nonetheless, team building offers many benefits, and it could matter more than you think. Team building increases productivity not only by improving Interpersonal Relationships but also improves employee engagement and morale.

There are many ways we can incorporate team-building activities: One example would be to dedicate one day of the week for games day where the whole company participates in the games. Programmes such as cooking classes or educational programmes like the Corporate Team Building Mystery by TinyGene Academia. More active programmes could be Escape rooms, Karaoke, Go-Kart Racing, Company retreat on Cruise or Trampoline Park.

It is never too late to start building your culture.

Who knew that workplace culture could affect the company on such a big scale. Nonetheless, it is better to start building one than ignoring the problem. Furthermore, in a recent study, employees were asked to describe their current company culture in a word or two and found the most common term to describe their workplace culture is “stress”. What we want is to have a culture that has motivated and happy employees which would reap many benefits for the company. So start planning now!