Ms Adrienne de Souza
I graduated from Imperial College London with a Bachelor of Science (First Class Honours) in Biology. On a Ministry of Education (MOE) Postgraduate Scholarship, I attained a Master of Education in Mind, Brain and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
I consider myself a hybrid creature, having taught Biology, General Paper and Project Work — an unconventional workload for a junior college teacher. As much as I love Biology as a discipline, my teaching interest lies in teaching knowledge skills, and specialising in General Paper allowed me to pursue that. I joined the Curriculum Planning & Development Division (CPDD) Pre-University English unit, being heavily involved in Project Work and leading the team that reviewed the curriculum for General Paper in my three years there. The words of Deborah Meier resonate with me and I believe that “teaching is mostly listening and learning is mostly telling”. In my role as an educator and as Head of Department for Project Work & Integrated Programme, I want to nurture students to be good thinkers and good people.
My one enduring hobby is debating, which I took up in secondary school and further pursued in junior college and university. Before entering university, I served as a debate coach at CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls’ School and St. Andrew’s Junior College. I then served as teacher-in-charge of debate at a junior college, and as both Secretary and President in the Debate Association (Singapore).
Joining a new junior college is a rare and amazing opportunity — to conceptualise a new school and new programmes from scratch, to imagine possibilities and new ideas, and to grow a new school culture.
Adrienne joined the college as a pioneering Head of Department in 2015.