Never Give Up: The SKM programme has given me a future

“I cried when I saw my UEC results, but my parents said, ‘Don’t worry; this is not the end of the world. Find something that you would like to do and do it.’ These words were an inspiration for me and the SKM in Early Childhood Care and Development Education was the solution.”

Lim Cha Cha, Student, Dika College

Interest in Children

I come from a big family. There are six of us and I am the fifth born. I have many nieces and nephew and taking care of them has created in me an interest in young children and a motivation to learn more about the subject.

I went online and did my research in early childhood education. That is when I found out about Dika College. There are other institutions that offered the programme but I noted that Dika College has been providing education in this area for 17 years, and more importantly, they had a programme that I could join, the SKM in Early Childhood Care and Development Education (SKM ECCD).

A Future in the Education of Children

The SKM programme has opened my mind and heart to pursuing a future in the care and education of children. The one-year programme has five modules. The lecturer was caring, and she helped me understand the theories as well as to put what I learned into practice. She also spent a lot of time helping us with our assignments and tasks. 

For example, she taught us about nutrition and we had hands-on sessions on food preparation. Many of us take nutrition for granted, but the right type of food in the right amount can help students be more alert and participative in class. Also, children can sometimes be picky eaters, so it’s important to make food look interesting, and we were taught how to do that.

Another subject that I found interesting is First Aid Administration. Knowledge in First Aid can save a person’s life. Educators must have this knowledge because you never know when you may need to use it to save a child’s life. I am excited to have learned it and to be awarded a certificate as well.

Lim Cha Cha (foreground) and her SKM ECCD Batch 2 coursemates on the final day of the
assessment. They passed with flying colours. Photo: Lim Cha Cha

The Next Step

We sometimes give up when we don’t get enough credits in our examination results. I want to urge others who have been in such a situation not to give up as there is hope. 

Thanks to SKM, I have been given an opportunity to continue my education. I will be starting my Diploma in Early Childhood Education at Dika College in January. I can’t wait to move into the next phase of my study.