Singapore boosts IT education to develop future-ready workforce

By SMBWorld Asia Editors | Aug 8, 2011

0 comments

 

 

 

Digg

 Email

Print

Thumbnail: 

Two recent developments will boost Singapore's IT education that could reduce the skills gap and develop future-ready workforce.

Last week, Temasek Polytechnic opened its unified communications training center to promote unified communications (UC) and collaboration solutions to businesses in Singapore and help to develop new technical skills sets within the country.

The training center provides a hands-on learning facility for the institution. The center houses the latest collaboration equipment from Avaya and is designed to facilitate engagement between students and industry on projects, and to train students in the design, development and implementation of UC business communications systems. Students studying networking and telephony at the Temasek Polytechnic School of Informatics & IT will utilize the centre to learn via practical training how to setup and configure IP telephony, UC and broadcast networks.

Unified Communications solutions are designed to enhance efficiency and productivity in the workplace, drive customer service improvements and reduce costs for companies of all sizes. Integrating the latest communications technologies with a company’s business applications, and providing a seamless user interface that is both intuitive and fun to use, is helping companies to change the way they do business. And the latest UC solutions also offer integration with a wide variety of user devices, enabling individuals to use the communications tools they are most familiar with to help them in their work. Temasek Polytechnic’s Unified Communication Centre utilizes a range of Avaya UC solutions for training, including  Avaya Meeting Exchange, , Avaya IP phones, Avaya Conferencing solutions and Avaya one-X® Portal.
 
“At Temasek Polytechnic, we provide a modern and holistic environment for learning so that students are equipped with the most relevant skills and knowledge to add value as professionals.  The new UC Centre is a key new addition to the School of Informatics & IT, providing students from the Diploma in Mobile & Network Services with valuable practical training to prepare them for a fulfilling career in the information technology industry,” said Benny Chin Siew Min, Course Manager, Diploma in Mobile & Network Services, Temasek Polytechnic School of Informatics & IT.

Meanwhile, the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and Cisco have announced the development of a connected learning environment at the ITE campus in Chua Chu Kang. The interactive and global learning laboratories, called the ITE-Cisco Collaboration Technologies Center, will also offer technical education and training in the field of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in Singapore through the Cisco Networking Academy.

The skills gap is currently extensive, as graduates are entering the workforce with a lack of real-world experience.  To address this, ITE and Cisco will develop a relevant curriculum and joint certifications from ITE and Cisco, as well as internships and industry attachments.

The ITE-Cisco Collaboration Technologies Center extends the borders of the classroom by connecting students in Singapore with lecturers overseas and provides a virtual learning environment that is environmentally sustainable and cost effective. The ITE-Cisco Collaboration Technologies Center uses Cisco TelePresence, WebEx and other collaboration technologies.