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Globalization and the Singapore Curriculum pp 99–117Cite as

Teach Less, Learn More: Lost in Translation

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Part of the book series: Education Innovation Series ((EDIN))

Abstract

This chapter analyses how the Teach Less, Learn More (TLLM) initiative was translated into operational frameworks for implementation in schools and classrooms. It is found that substantive considerations of the “what” (content) and “why” (purpose) of teaching fundamental to TLLM have faded away in the translation process, overshadowed by largely technical concerns about the “how” of teaching driven by the imperative of meeting the needs of learners. Invoking the German Didaktik tradition, the chapter argues that TLLM is a quintessential curricular idea which has to do with the “what” and “why” of teaching, and is inexorably associated with historically-rich curricular and educational thinking and discourses. The chapter concludes by discussing the reasons for the loss of the “what” and “why” questions in the translation of TLLM and surfaces key insights about curriculum translation.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Juin Ee Teo, Zongyi Deng, Christine Kim-Eng Lee & Christina Lim-Ratnam

Authors
  1. Juin Ee Teo
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  2. Zongyi Deng
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  3. Christine Kim-Eng Lee
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  4. Christina Lim-Ratnam
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Correspondence to Juin Ee Teo .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Zongyi Deng

  2. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    S Gopinathan

  3. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Christine Kim-Eng Lee

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Teo, J.E., Deng, Z., Lee, C.KE., Lim-Ratnam, C. (2013). Teach Less, Learn More: Lost in Translation. In: Deng, Z., Gopinathan, S., Lee, CE. (eds) Globalization and the Singapore Curriculum. Education Innovation Series. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-4451-57-4_7

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